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I have searched and read for the last hour or so, and this forum is loaded with great info. My wife and I have 3 children (ages 6, 3 and newborn), I do have a few questions still remaining:
1) We are looking in the South Charlotte area and considering the northern part of Union County. What newer neighborhoods are chock full of kids, that are still building. I am not particularly interested in a neighborhood full of homes with mostly siding. Price range is roughly $350,000.
2) In this price range, what neighborhoods have lots for sale for a "bring your own builder"?
3) I have read that Baxter Village in SC may also fit our needs. What are the tax implications of living in SC, but working in NC? How far is Baxter Village to the Earth Fare grocery store in South Charlotte? I see there are no Whole Foods (which is where we currently get our groceries).
4) last, what's up with no basements. Where am I supposed to store all this stuff you accumulate with 3 kids?!?
I am sure I will have a few more questions, but would like to see the responses to there. Specifically, I am looking names of neighborhoods. Would like to be in the neighborhoods that feed into the following high schools:
I will give you some commentary on the Marvin Ridge area as it is the leading area we're looking at, too. Ardrey Kell and Providence are excellent choices if you're willing to live in Meck county. The entire area you're looking in is family oriented and "chock full of kids".
If you have to have new construction at the $350k price point and full brick, your options are limited in Marvin Ridge... You're not going to "bring your own builder" into a neighborhood as you'll pay anywhere from $100k to $250k+ just for a lot in the custom neighborhoods - then be faced with minimum specs on the home that will put you well over budget. You'd have to look for land outside of a HoA if you want to bring your own builder. For an idea of what I'm referring to take a ride through Providence Downs, PD South, and Kingsmead (non gated custom communities).
So, for new you'll most likely be looking at tract built with 2 main contenders in the Marvin Ridge cluster... Pulte's The Chimney's at Marvin will stretch your budget to just get in at the lowest end and Shea's Barrington will be very comfortably within your budget. Both are full brick communities (although Shea did start Barrington without it and there are a handful of homes that aren't full brick built in there in the beginning).
I'm sure others will give you some info on Ardrey Kell and Providence areas - there are some new construction options up there. Some will tell you that resale is a much better option over new in an unfinished development - which I completely agree with to an extent. I'm riding the fence because it still baffles me what these seller's are asking for resales in this area.
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Another area you might consider is in Weddington schools district, Brookhaven subdivision fits your bill with lots of kids and great ammenities and I think you can get in there at your price range. Weddington schools are highly rated and you can walk to Antioch ES. Brookhaven has had some lots with walk out basements, depends on the lot.
Thanks for the replies so far. I am not deadset on building, but more understanding the newer neighborhoods, that won't like cookie cutter. Once I have an idea of the neighborhoods that fit what we are looking for we can start to look at existing homes as well as new builds. I completely agree with your comments about pricing being over our budget on the build your own communities, but maybe there would be some short sales, or something that falls into our laps.
Any ideas on those neighborhoods (Providence Downs, Brookhaven, Chimneys) distance, or more importanly, how long the actual drive to Earth Fare will take?
Thanks for the replies so far. I am not deadset on building, but more understanding the newer neighborhoods, that won't like cookie cutter. Once I have an idea of the neighborhoods that fit what we are looking for we can start to look at existing homes as well as new builds. I completely agree with your comments about pricing being over our budget on the build your own communities, but maybe there would be some short sales, or something that falls into our laps.
Any ideas on those neighborhoods (Providence Downs, Brookhaven, Chimneys) distance, or more importanly, how long the actual drive to Earth Fare will take?
Godd stuff so far. Thank you!
I never understood the "cookie cutter" thing... Unless you're moving into a truly custom neighborhood, you're going to find what I consider cookie cutter everywhere. Maybe you can expand on what you mean more because there's no way you're going to touch custom at your price point unless it's a severely distressed property.
If you're doing this long distance, short sales or distressed properties (i.e. falling into your lap) is not the way to go. If that's what you're interested in it sounds like you should consider renting for 6 months - 1 year while you figure out what you want to do and get to know the area intimately.
It sounds like your best bet is to find yourself a good agent.
We lived in Rock Hill, SC and worked in Charlotte. It is a little more complicated from a tax standpoint, but it was cheaper. Your taxes are taken out of your NC paycheck as normal. You file returns in both states, and SC gives you a credit for the taxes taken in NC.
If you're in Baxter, there is an Earth Fare in Ballantyne as well as on Cherry Road in Rock Hill (about 15 minutes away). The Rock Hill one is a little smaller but is generally easier to get to as you can avoid going into Charlotte proper. Whole Foods is coming to the SouthPark area.
We ended up moving to Charlotte to be closer to everything, and that was the right decision for us.
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