I tend to agree, Davie, but I think there are two points of view.
Firstly, from the family perspective, if the family come down and enjoy life here than all is well. If not, then maybe it might unsettle the player.
A player whose family do not join him will always have an eye on moving on at the end of his contract.
Secondly, and probably more importantly, is the view of the player himself, and where he sees that the move fits into his career. Age of course comes into it. Someone joining whilst young will be looking at the move differently from someone near the twilight of his career. A player with years ahead of him will not want to plant roots but will want to do his best and hopefully move on and upwards at the end of his contract.
Travel has always been a problem. The closure of the airport many years ago did not help the situation. Players do enough miles during matches played away, and may not be willing to return to their home area as often as they may wish. Lowe does give opportunities through the season for players to get away for a few days, and the opportunity for that to occur after an away game up north would seem sensible to take up.
At the end of the day, most players move on. Those that settle here are usually near the end of their careers and can see what Plymouth and the surrounding area has to offer, far more than the younger player who is interested in the night life, maybe, and who knows that they will be able to move on when they can.
Let's face it, we see players return to the Club, usually for an event of some sort, or for the half time chat, so we must be doing something right.