Living urban is also a money drain. To get a decent sized place, you need to pay HoA fees, high rents, security deposits often get stolen, not to mention pet fees, parking fees, expensive QoL, exposure to pollution and noise, lack of quiet and solitude. I'm semi-rural now and while we do have to pay for well upgrades and power backup systems, we get a huge beautiful quiet piece of land for our money.

Thats why you go suburban. Low COL but high quality of services and infrastructure. It's amazing what you can accomplish if you don't care about the solvency of your community :D

And I like that you understand that choice and cost. I don't like the concept that tax dollars should be used to pay for the extremely high cost of electricity and other utilities for a small number of people to keep rural living costs low.

Earlier this month the water line from my well pump to my pressure tank just... exploded. Water gushed all over my basement until I remembered where the off switch for the pump was. I'm lucky I was home, because it would have just kept running until it got to a place where it could drain out (i.e. upstairs) or the power shut off because everything shorted out.

It's real bliss out here in the country, let me tell you :-) My son was home and got to hear me swear with words and tones that he'd never encountered before.

Get an automatic line break & low pressure shutoff valve. They make DC, AC, and mechanical solutions.

Yeah it would need to sit between the pump and the pressure tank. My existing shutoff valve is -- like most -- after the pressure tank. What I really need is something to cut the AC power to the well the moment water starts to touch the floor under the tank.

search for "Water Leak Detector Auto Shutoff Valve with STAINLESS STEEL automatic ball valve 1" NPT". First hit on DDG was $150.

HOA's are in theory a choice. In practice, in many regions anywhere built out in the last 30 years (more?) years is covered by them and there is no real choice. I absolutely loath them for this reason. There is no "choice" about them when it comes to newer housing.