Atlanta, Nashville, Houston, Dallas, Raleigh, Charlotte, Kansas City, Columbus, Madison, Indianapolis, Birmingham
Off the top of my head these are all low cost cities I know of with lots of jobs and good neighborhoods and with great schools.
And these are just the bigger ones. Tons of other places in the south and Midwest with lots of opportunities and good neighborhoods.
(Nashville and Atlanta aren’t totally low cost but they both have great suburbs with good schools that are still very affordable.)