10/2/15 How Do People Start New Lives?

    I love watching those HGTV shows, starry eyed people deciding they are going to buy a home on some far away island, or better yet, move to Alaska.  How do people manage to do that?  I'm not sure I could move to the north side of town, it would be so drastic and different.  The people on TV frequently are buying houses or condos in the $300,000 and up range so there has to be some serious money for these fantasies/dreams to come true.
    My house cost that much and honestly it kind of chokes our lifestyle.  Between the house being expensive and my job, which happens to pay quite well, I feel like a prisoner.  We almost sold the house and moved to our older house as I kept saying over the summer, but honestly, the house was not show ready and still would not be.  There was an almost identical house on our street and they could not sell for over $400,000.  We almost have to sell for that amount, considering the realtors get a very healthy 6% right off the top to make it worth our while.
    My salary is also artificially inflated with all the OT I am allowed to work since we are short handed, plus I get paid for compressed hours and I get a 15% differential for being awake at night.  I almost double my salary with all these "extras", which again, is great, but where else am I going to find such an awesome set-up?  I am basically a prisoner in my life.
    I don't think I want to move, but the shows do piss me off a bit, when Joe Blow and Sally Knucklehead are looking at $750,000 vacation homes... what am I doing wrong that I can't afford their lifestyle?
    My plans are not that fantastical, I would at some point like a vacation home on the coast with a view, I could settle buying a lot with some lakefront views for my olden years.  Maybe all those people on TV are just acting anyway, at least I'll keep telling myself that.
    The idea of Alaska is other world stuff.  There is no way I would want freaking bears to have access to my backyard, I've seen those things outrun and take down moose.  Bears can keep Alaska, I'll stay near the coast, that's where bikinis get used most often anyway.