Moving to South Carolina (Charleston, Mount Pleasant: apartment complex, rentals, condo)

[benjharrisons#1fan]

Being from California, Leone sounds like a typical person from San Francisco, Marin County, Berkeley or southern California. Leone's type is taking over California and making me want to escape.
The beaches in Northern CA are freezing cold year round. And we have no seasons, it goes from Winter to Summer. Which being a swimmer, I love the heat!
We are always finding dead frogs in our pool. We have to shake the bushes in the summer to make sure there isn't a rattle snake waiting to be discovered. And I loved catching lizards as a kid.
I would love to have churches on every corner vs bath houses, drug dealers, drive bys from bangers and Totally Nude Strip clubs. Not to mention the casino's popping up in every city/town for the Indians. It has gotten so politically correct here people hardly speak to each other for fear of offending somebody else. Not to mention half my neighbor's don't speak a word of English.
And to top it off taxes here are through the roof. And most people can't even afford a modest home. You have to work 2 jobs here to live in a blue collar neighborhood. I am college educated, have a great job with decent pay and will never be able to afford to buy a home here even in the ghetto. And that's with the nose dive in the housing market here. CA is called the Golden State for a reason, you have to literally have Gold in the bank to live here.
Traffic sucks, plan on at least an hour to get home, even if you live 15 miles from work.
The pollution is bad. There are some nights here where you can't have a fire in your fireplace without being fined. Due to "bad air conditions." So you have to watch daily the news or somehow find out what the banned days are.
I have never been to SC, but it sounds like a great place to live. I am desperately wanting to escape CA and am looking into SC or VA. And I don't want to bring a typical CA attitude or attitude like Leone's. I want to move to SC or VA because it will be different. Or at least it seems so.

[vamtncat]

benjharrissions#1fan

You might look into a position that was listed in the Post and Courier as a Cheif Interpreter for some of the historic houses through the Charleston Museum. I saw your earlier posts on the VA forum, thought about you when I saw this job posting.

[4greatboys]

Moved here in August from Northern VA and LOVE it! The quality of life is awesome. Cost of living is about 1/3-1/2 of NYC and DC and food is wonderful. We have visited many famous very expensive ($300 or more for 2 for dinner) highly rated restaurants around the world and have found the food here at some restaurants to be just as good and cost less then $125 for two(that inculdes tips)! People are thoughtful, helpful and very welcoming. We have found the only people that are not are fellow northerns who have moved down here looking to continue the unfriendly ways of the North. The real estate market down here does have its quirks but so does any market that exploded in the boom and has many people trying to take advantage of that. Just use some brain power and pay attention to what you are purchasing and what else is out there on the market and you will do fine. We come from some of the best schools in the country and were a little nervous here but have found our schools (laurel hill and Pinckney) to be outstanding. Good luck and hope that you too make the decission to become a Carolina family!

[NS_Highlander]

Originally Posted by benjharrisons#1fan

It has gotten so politically correct here people hardly speak to each other for fear of offending somebody else.

In October I met someone like from LA at a function. What an A-hole. It is thanks to him there are so many double standards in respect to race. According to idiots like him it is impossible for member of a minority group to be racist against white people. The thing about people like this is they make these kinds of ridiculous arguments, but would never sit next to a member of a minority group on the bus. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the hypocracy that is now engulfing the western world.

[Donna7]

Originally Posted by OrangeCountyGirl

I don't consider myself to be thick, but I just am not getting it. What is wrong with this person venting their frustration? He isn't insulting any of your personally, he has had a horrible experience in Charleston. Most residents of Charleston talk it up to be the perfect place to live. That makes it very difficult for some people to get a realistic view of the place.

It's not fair to the people posting or to the people looking to get real, local, current and balanced information to try to shut these posts down or to make people feel so bad about posting them that no one else does.

Just relax, it's not personal.

Here, here. I agree. Frankly, getting two sides of things makes it more balanced for me. The "everything here is awesome" mantra (no matter what state/city is being discussed) sends out red flags for me.

[jbanyas]

Take a look at Beaufort and Habersham. One of the nicest developments I have seen. WWW.Habershamsc.com.

[clobrien]

I am a new to this site and am learning a lot both good and bad about moving to SC. Like charlc318, we are from Massachusetts and my husband and I are thinking about moving to the Charleston area. We currently pay over $8000.00 a year in property taxes and live on a 3500 square foot lot with with not much of a view of anything. The winters are long and cold and the summers are way too short and not warm enough. We do have tons of mosquitos and are always checking for ticks on our dog! Our youngest is 18 and will be going off to college in the fall. Our thought is that there must be a nice place to live that is a little warmer, a little sunnier, a little closer to the beach, and that has a quaint, waterfront downtown area with shops and restaurants to visit nearby. That is what the Charleston area seems it is like. I am just beginning my search but I am sencing that Dunes West, Mount Pleasant, or Summerville might be nice places to look. I will continue to read your posts on this site but would appreciate anyone giving me any thoughts and ideas they have.

[SCDweller]

Hi Clobrien...well, judging from your post and what you are looking for (longer summers, warmer weather, beach accses and quaintness) I would say you've nailed our area. Have you ever visited Charleston or Summerville? It would be great if you and your husband could take a little vacation to our area and get an idea of the quality of life. That would be my first suggestion. Second, if it seems like a good fit, drive around Mt. Pleasant and Summerville with a local real estate agent and see which community you like the look and feel of. They are different and priced differently as well. Both have great assets and drawbacks. It just depends what is going to suit you the best.
If you had to say what is most important to you what would that be? (Proximity to the ocean, neighbors and neighborhood amenities, 55+ community etc.)

[beth1104]

It's been a while since I've been on here, and appreciate all the advice - - I'm narrowing down my choices and need a little more help (please). My daughter has been talking with several students at Wando and Summerville, and the consensus from all of them has been "Wando has a lot of cliques, Summerville is a big party school, and West Ashley students only go to school to fight". I'm sure there are much more positive comments to be found about each school, but this is what she got from the sampling. Can someone also give me scoop on whatever schools are available on Folly Beach and John's Island? (I found a couple of potential homes there too). Thanks so much!

[GaryK]

My wife and I hope to be moving from Ma in 09. Two of my older sisters moved to IOP. One in 87 and one in 94. Both are nurses and have done well. Let me tell you they never regreted it! Iv'e made several visits to the area and I love it also. I am a little concerned about the job market but I'm in sales so I know I will find something. Taxes are much lower than Ma. Insurance is much higher so it is a wash. Our motorcycles are in the garage waiting for the 3" of ice to melt off the driveway. Can't wait to ride year round. I find the people to be very nice for the most part. As far as shoddy workers, they are evrywhere. I've learned to do most things myself. We might have a modular built and I might do the finish work myself. As far as bugs, I'm not a big fan of snakes but I can't go out even during the day where I live in May and June or I get eaten alive! Moving is never easy but all in all Charleston is a nice place.