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Old 05-19-2017, 04:59 PM
 
Location: Nashville
3,533 posts, read 5,803,771 times
Reputation: 4708

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I am looking to possibly relocate from Seattle, WA to Charlotte, NC by end of June. I've been researching about the neighborhoods in Charlotte and I am starting to learn a bit about what areas are good and bad, but still feel fairly ignorant. Some say North Charlotte should be avoided, whereas South Charlotte is more upscale. I'm looking to spend around $600-$900/mo (tops) on an apartment. Can anyone give me suggestion of what neighborhoods or surrounding cities are fairly safe and within my price range. I'm going to be spending the next year studying and preparing for job interviews, so I will not be commuting to any job for the first year so I am even open to living farther away from the city. However, the closer to the city center I can live, the better.

As far as neighborhoods in Charlotte I am told Ballantyne and surrounding areas are pretty decent. I notice the rents look higher in that area, but they still seem affordable enough and at the top level of my price range for one bedrooms. Can $800/mo get me a decent place in the Ballantyne or surrounding areas?

What areas and apartment complexes in Charlotte should be avoided?

As far as surrounding cities, Gastonia, seems more affordable, but I have heard Gastonia also has some less desirable areas. I guess it would be interesting to know what part of Gastonia I should consider if I want to rent there.

As well, I'd be interested to hear about any other suburbs people feel are affordable and decent enough to live. The less money I can spend the better. If I could even spend $500/mo living in a safe and quiet place then I would do that as I don't need fancy amenities like granite countertops or stainless steel appliances. However, I know for the Charlotte metro $500/mo for an apartment is not feasible, although it looks much more feasible for Greensboro and Winston-Salem.

I've also considered living in Greensboro or Winston-Salem as I have heard they are decent enough places to live even if they will be fairly boring and have no real social activities for a single late 30s person like myself. For this first year the only thing on my mind is spending time studying technologies and algorithms as I have not been on the software market in 15+ years. I've heard Charlotte and Raleigh are booming in IT and tech and think I can eventually land a decent job there and not pay the astronomical prices for living as we have in Seattle, Portland or anywhere in the desirable parts of the Northwest.

Greensboro and W/S seem to be with an hour or so travel distance to Raleigh and Charlotte, so I guess if I need some nightlife or activities I could go into either city once a week. Being from the rural Northwest and living in the country for so many years, travelling long distances is something I am actually use to, even if it is not ideal.


Anyway, I appreciate people's help here. Charlotte is on the top of my list, but just trying to figure the city out. I will have to rent sight unseen, so I can only make my best educated guess. Sadly, there is no option and not enough funds for me to travel all the way out there just to scope out apartments.
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Old 05-19-2017, 05:37 PM
 
Location: The Triad
34,090 posts, read 82,620,862 times
Reputation: 43652
Quote:
Originally Posted by RotseCherut View Post
I am looking to possibly relocate from Seattle, WA to Charlotte, NC by end of June.
I will have to rent sight unseen....
No you won't and you never should even if inclined to.

Quote:
...not enough funds for me to travel all the way out there just to scope out apartments.
And without a job lined up you shouldn't sign a lease in any case.

On the whole it sounds like you're unprepared for a cross country relocation move.
Delay/Postpone until you ) have a job offer and/or b) far more cash saved.

---
If you still insist you're correct then plan to take an extended stay motel for a few weeks.
Use that time to square away some sort of job and with THAT address known look for a
share situation NEAR the employer and avoid the entire set of furniture issues.

Take some time to catch your breath, make a few friends, learn your way around town...
and followup on the applications and interviews for the better job you probably warrant having.
Once you have this job... look for another share situation near THAT job.

Allow yourself a year to do all that... and THEN start looking for an apartment of your own.
But do so knowing you have a solid job, where it is, where your friends are, and what the traffic issues will be.
Not before.
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Old 05-19-2017, 05:42 PM
 
Location: Nashville
3,533 posts, read 5,803,771 times
Reputation: 4708
I have cashed saved.. So I am in no better shape here in Seattle without a job and paying 3 times as much to live as I would be in North Carolina.. As well, many people in this day and age are doing cross country moves rent sight unseen..

Sadly, your post is not helpful, but I respect you taking the time to respond, anyhow.

This is my situation and there is no turning back. I was not prepared to lose my business of 15 + years, which I devoted my blood, sweat and soul to build. Nothing in life I was prepared for and ready for.

Anyhow, within a year I should be able to land some job and have all my up to date tax forms and have been licensed as an independent contractor. I also have over 800+ credit score and don't think I will have any trouble being able to rent and secure a place. I didn't have any problem here in Seattle and I am paying over $1500/mo for my piece of crap little 1 bedroom I live in now.


So, I would request anyone who just wants to say don't move here and you are not prepared, just keep that to themselves; it is not going to help me. I am just asking people to help me the best they can with advice of where to move to and know my situation.

I am thinking in a year with my 15+ years of software experience that I should be able to get some job on the Eastern seaboard. All I know is in Seattle even if you get an $80,000 year job you will still be living in poverty so I don't see the advantage of staying. Seattle has the most underpaid software market in the country and people fight one another to come move here so they can work at one of the dream companies that actually pay pretty crappy and have horrible hours. The housing market is grossly overpriced and is only rising faster and faster with each month.


I appreciate any helpful response here. Thanks
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Old 05-19-2017, 06:37 PM
 
152 posts, read 192,217 times
Reputation: 87
Greensboro and Winston Salem, both, are nice midsized cities that are not devoid of a social scene. I wouldn't rule them out based on that. Overall, for Charlotte, you'll need to figure out what your version of nice is. Forget Ballantyne. So many recommended areas will have value wrapped into their school zoning and it sounds like you don't need that. Go for a well managed complex in a less desirable area. You may need to lock your car doors but it will probably be safe enough.
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Old 05-19-2017, 06:42 PM
 
5,139 posts, read 8,821,586 times
Reputation: 5248
wouldn't Raleigh be a better place for IT ?
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Old 05-20-2017, 03:31 PM
 
Location: Nashville
3,533 posts, read 5,803,771 times
Reputation: 4708
I appreciate the information people are giving me..

Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational View Post
If you still insist you're correct then plan to take an extended stay motel for a few weeks.
Use that time to square away some sort of job and with THAT address known look for a
share situation NEAR the employer and avoid the entire set of furniture issues.

Take some time to catch your breath, make a few friends, learn your way around town...
and followup on the applications and interviews for the better job you probably warrant having.
Once you have this job... look for another share situation near THAT job.

Allow yourself a year to do all that... and THEN start looking for an apartment of your own.
But do so knowing you have a solid job, where it is, where your friends are, and what the traffic issues will be.
Not before.
Mr. Rational, I probably will end up signing a year lease and staying situated in an area saturated with more jobs.. Most places, worst case scenario, make you pay a lease breaking fee of one or two months rent if I had to leave early for whatever reason. Staying at a motel and dumping all my possessions in storage will be pretty challenging. I agree it would be much more ideal to find a temporary place, but since I have about a year's savings (depending on how much I pay a month for rent), I think it would be best to just rent as inexpensive of a place as possible in one of the three major cities. I should be able to find some work, even if it means, G-d forbid, that I have to find a lower wage tech job, I am sure between Raleigh and Charlotte I can get something. I have no wife, kids , pets , family or friends or anything holding me back.


Quote:
Originally Posted by 28226 View Post
Greensboro and Winston Salem, both, are nice midsized cities that are not devoid of a social scene. I wouldn't rule them out based on that. Overall, for Charlotte, you'll need to figure out what your version of nice is. Forget Ballantyne. So many recommended areas will have value wrapped into their school zoning and it sounds like you don't need that. Go for a well managed complex in a less desirable area. You may need to lock your car doors but it will probably be safe enough.
Thanks for this information 28226. I've heard that Greensboro isn't "Greensboring" anymore and that both WInston-Salem and Greensboro have been growing quite a bit and are looking to be the next thriving metro areas of the country. The fact that Greensboro/W/S are within day travel distance to CHarlotte and Raleigh also is nice. It seems that rents are much cheaper in both cities, but I fear that while I am there I would get real bored. I have lived in small city (overgrown town) before like Boise and it seems everyone is married with kids and there is no social life that doesn't exist outside college scene. At almost 40, it gets pretty hard to hang out with immature, drunk and wild college kids for too long. Not that I don't have a youthful existence and enjoy some good times, but I am long gone from the frat or crazy party scene, which is what most small towns with a college seem to offer.

Anyhow, this next year will most importantly be a time for me to save money and study hard for the job interviews which can land me a very high paying job. The tech market in North Carolina seems to keep growing and I think there is even more opportunities in Charlotte and the Triangle than in Seattle from what I am seeing. It seems .Net developers are in big demand in Charlotte, even more than the Triangle from my querying the Indeed job site, which I think is a valuable resource , both for finding jobs and seeing what the job market is like in an area.

BTW, 28226, you say not to live in Ballantyne as it is just overhyped because of school zones. If you could, would you be able to share with me areas you think are both affordable and safe enough to live and where I can rent a 1 bedroom for $700-850/mo. I'd say I prefer to pay even less, but I am realistic that in Charlotte if you are paying less than $700, probably even $800 you are living in fairly poor conditions unless you want to live in a studio, but I hope not to settle for less than a 1 bedroom. As well, if you have the names of any reputable apartment complexes that would be helpful as well. I usually prefer renting from private landlords, but considering I am doing this sight unseen and far away, I probably will just want to rent from a larger company since I know I can depend on them to have the place ready for me when I arrive on the other side. Private landlords can be a bit flaky and usually want to meet you in person before renting.


Quote:
Originally Posted by loveautumn View Post
wouldn't Raleigh be a better place for IT ?
Not necessarily.. Charlotte is no longer just a banker's town. It appears to have a very quickly growing tech market and I was surprised by the number of .Net jobs available in Charlotte.

Also, I think CHarlotte would be more enjoyable for me to live as it is more of a real city with a central urban area and not an overgrown and sprawled suburb as I have heard Raleigh and its surrounding cities are. The only area in the Triangle that sounds desirable to me is Durham, but I hear it is fairly crime ridden in a lot of areas and still not quite as interesting of a place to live as Charlotte.
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Old 05-20-2017, 04:34 PM
 
6,321 posts, read 10,278,675 times
Reputation: 3835
Quote:
Originally Posted by RotseCherut View Post
I appreciate the information people are giving me..


Mr. Rational, I probably will end up signing a year lease and staying situated in an area saturated with more jobs.. Most places, worst case scenario, make you pay a lease breaking fee of one or two months rent if I had to leave early for whatever reason. Staying at a motel and dumping all my possessions in storage will be pretty challenging. I agree it would be much more ideal to find a temporary place, but since I have about a year's savings (depending on how much I pay a month for rent), I think it would be best to just rent as inexpensive of a place as possible in one of the three major cities. I should be able to find some work, even if it means, G-d forbid, that I have to find a lower wage tech job, I am sure between Raleigh and Charlotte I can get something. I have no wife, kids , pets , family or friends or anything holding me back.




Thanks for this information 28226. I've heard that Greensboro isn't "Greensboring" anymore and that both WInston-Salem and Greensboro have been growing quite a bit and are looking to be the next thriving metro areas of the country. The fact that Greensboro/W/S are within day travel distance to CHarlotte and Raleigh also is nice. It seems that rents are much cheaper in both cities, but I fear that while I am there I would get real bored. I have lived in small city (overgrown town) before like Boise and it seems everyone is married with kids and there is no social life that doesn't exist outside college scene. At almost 40, it gets pretty hard to hang out with immature, drunk and wild college kids for too long. Not that I don't have a youthful existence and enjoy some good times, but I am long gone from the frat or crazy party scene, which is what most small towns with a college seem to offer.

Anyhow, this next year will most importantly be a time for me to save money and study hard for the job interviews which can land me a very high paying job. The tech market in North Carolina seems to keep growing and I think there is even more opportunities in Charlotte and the Triangle than in Seattle from what I am seeing. It seems .Net developers are in big demand in Charlotte, even more than the Triangle from my querying the Indeed job site, which I think is a valuable resource , both for finding jobs and seeing what the job market is like in an area.

BTW, 28226, you say not to live in Ballantyne as it is just overhyped because of school zones. If you could, would you be able to share with me areas you think are both affordable and safe enough to live and where I can rent a 1 bedroom for $700-850/mo. I'd say I prefer to pay even less, but I am realistic that in Charlotte if you are paying less than $700, probably even $800 you are living in fairly poor conditions unless you want to live in a studio, but I hope not to settle for less than a 1 bedroom. As well, if you have the names of any reputable apartment complexes that would be helpful as well. I usually prefer renting from private landlords, but considering I am doing this sight unseen and far away, I probably will just want to rent from a larger company since I know I can depend on them to have the place ready for me when I arrive on the other side. Private landlords can be a bit flaky and usually want to meet you in person before renting.




Not necessarily.. Charlotte is no longer just a banker's town. It appears to have a very quickly growing tech market and I was surprised by the number of .Net jobs available in Charlotte.

Also, I think CHarlotte would be more enjoyable for me to live as it is more of a real city with a central urban area and not an overgrown and sprawled suburb as I have heard Raleigh and its surrounding cities are. The only area in the Triangle that sounds desirable to me is Durham, but I hear it is fairly crime ridden in a lot of areas and still not quite as interesting of a place to live as Charlotte.
I'm not going to flat out say don't do it, but if you have cash saved, I would highly recommend making a trip out here to try to find an apartment. You can do a weekend trip for about the cost of what you want to pay for a month's rent - you can get a direct flight on AA for ~$500, and you could check out the Triangle as well which is 2.5 hours away. That will really help you get a feel for the area you'd be living in. If you drive around you might also be able to find some rentals that are not advertised online.

I agree with avoiding Ballantyne, although it is a nice area. Sounds like you want to be near the city center, which Ballantyne is not. Good to see you've upped the realistic amount to $700, I was going to say $800 would be about the minimum for a not that updated apartment in a good location. A few suggestions to look at although I don't have specific experience with each of these:
1. First Ward Place - maybe the best location you'd get in your price range (but still looks like $900)
2. Edgehill Terrace - another good location but again likely at the top of your price range
3. The Chimneys - probably more what you were wanting to spend, but kinda on the border between a nice area and a not as nice one, but still decent overall.

Probably worth checking craigslist as well for private landlords, and checking the relevant crime maps. If you are open to areas that are a little "rough around the edges" that aren't total war zones then you can find some more in your price range while still being not far from uptown.
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Old 05-20-2017, 05:55 PM
 
132 posts, read 153,016 times
Reputation: 126
Quarterside in the first ward section of uptown also may have studio units close to the $800-900 range when you factor in special deals. That's where I live now and my first year they gave me three months free and I just had to pay the first month's rent and then the next three were free. Not sure exactly what specials they have going now.
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Old 05-22-2017, 08:10 PM
 
152 posts, read 192,217 times
Reputation: 87
Quote:
Originally Posted by RotseCherut View Post
I appreciate the information people are giving me..

BTW, 28226, you say not to live in Ballantyne as it is just overhyped because of school zones. If you could, would you be able to share with me areas you think are both affordable and safe enough to live and where I can rent a 1 bedroom for $700-850/mo. I'd say I prefer to pay even less, but I am realistic that in Charlotte if you are paying less than $700, probably even $800 you are living in fairly poor conditions unless you want to live in a studio, but I hope not to settle for less than a 1 bedroom. As well, if you have the names of any reputable apartment complexes that would be helpful as well. I usually prefer renting from private landlords, but considering I am doing this sight unseen and far away, I probably will just want to rent from a larger company since I know I can depend on them to have the place ready for me when I arrive on the other side. Private landlords can be a bit flaky and usually want to meet you in person before .
I haven't rented in a while so I don't know current prices, but the ones i had in mind were Matthews Crossing/McAlpine Ridge Apts, Sabal Point (Pineville), and Sharon Crossing (which also has some other complexes right around it). None are close in, but they may check some other boxes.
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Old 05-22-2017, 08:18 PM
 
Location: Nashville
3,533 posts, read 5,803,771 times
Reputation: 4708
I've been looking around and it seems if you want to avoid living in the "slum" or bad areas or bad complexes in Charlotte you will have to pay around $1000 a month or more. I guess I am seeing Charlotte is a bit more expensive than I originally perceived. I'm thinking that if I move to Charlotte I will be forced to have to live in the suburbs. Renting a studio is out as I have too many possessions for that and already have gotten rid of so many of them and have a lot of stuff in storage. One bedroom with over 600 sq ft is about the minimum I'd like to live comfortably. Coming from living in a huge house at one point , apartment living already has been a tough adjustment.

I am looking at Gastonia, but still don't know enough of that city. Would $800/mo be able to get me something good there? It appears the South Carolina side is more expensive (relatively speaking) than North Carolina side. Maybe it has to do with proximity to the lakes. The northern suburbs seem expensive to that are near Lake Norman.

I will be spending $3000 or more to do my move across country or else I would have been able to budget more.

But $900/mo would be the top of what I want to spend. Some suburbs do seem just a bit too far out and I hear Charlotte does have bad traffic. This will be a non-issue for a while, but if I end up getting work I will be stuck moving again if the commute is too brutal. I also don't want to live way too far out as I would like to go into the city 2-3 times a week for some type of social life as I know suburban/small town life is always boring and surrounded around church and family; at least here in the Northwest.
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