Cost of living (Charlotte, Concord, Kannapolis: relocating, real estate, property taxes)

[jm31828]

Hello!

My wife and I currently live in Nebraska and we've been looking for a while for a bigger city to live in that has a warmer winter climate with a good economy and low cost of living. From what I've seen it seems Charlotte may just fit this bill. My question is this, approximately what would someone in Charlotte (or a Charlotte suburb) pay for property taxes on a $100,000-$115,000 house, and what would someone expect to pay during the hot summer months for electricity in a newer home in the 1300-1500 square foot range?

And are there any others out there that have moved from the Midwest/Great Plains to Charlotte and loved it?

[superk]

Do any of these help?

What is your average electricity bill in summer and winter?
prop. tax question
Taxes
Tax Question..

[amploud]

Originally Posted by jm31828

Hello!

My wife and I currently live in Nebraska and we've been looking for a while for a bigger city to live in that has a warmer winter climate with a good economy and low cost of living. From what I've seen it seems Charlotte may just fit this bill. My question is this, approximately what would someone in Charlotte (or a Charlotte suburb) pay for property taxes on a $100,000-$115,000 house, and what would someone expect to pay during the hot summer months for electricity in a newer home in the 1300-1500 square foot range?

And are there any others out there that have moved from the Midwest/Great Plains to Charlotte and loved it?

The tax rates are online here: 2008 Tax Rates

Electricity usage varies widely based on the construction of the home, number of windows, set points, condition of the AC unit, etc. A rough guess would be $125ish per month.

Also, there are not a lot of homes in "nice" areas in that price range.

As for overall cost of living (not including housing), don't believe any of the online calculators. I relocated to the Charlotte area from Indiana. The cost of living calculators indicated that it would cost 7% more to maintain the same standard of living. It's actually closer to 25%. Since you are also relocating from the boring cornfields of the Midwest, I'd recommends you use 25% as your worst case number.

The job market here is really slowing down. For your sake, please find a job before you move!

Good luck!

[newcharlottan]

Just wanted to say that in Charlotte you aren't going to find a house that price range in a nice area.

You might outside of Charlotte, others can direct you as I don't know.

And also to repeat something important that I learned from moving here, have a job first!

Good Luck!

[DNaomi]

Originally Posted by newcharlottan

Just wanted to say that in Charlotte you aren't going to find a house that price range in a nice area.

You might outside of Charlotte, others can direct you as I don't know.

And also to repeat something important that I learned from moving here, have a job first!

Good Luck!

There are plenty of houses in that range in Kannapolis/Concord just outside the city...

(My husband & I will be leaving Chicago and moving into our new house in Kannapolis in a few days, can't wait!)

[LaurenRoss]

I second the comment on the 25% increase in cost of living. I moved from Michigan a year ago and my husband and I are bearly making both ends meet especially with the recent rise in gas and food costs. Homes that are similar in square footage and 'neighborhoods' to what you would pay in the midwest will cost you much more here. Although we have been struggling with trying to maintain a similar lifestyle than we did in the midwest, we do love the weather. Good luck to you in your move.

[jm31828]

Yes, that information did help- thanks!!!

[jm31828]

Originally Posted by amploud

The tax rates are online here: 2008 Tax Rates

Electricity usage varies widely based on the construction of the home, number of windows, set points, condition of the AC unit, etc. A rough guess would be $125ish per month.

Also, there are not a lot of homes in "nice" areas in that price range.

As for overall cost of living (not including housing), don't believe any of the online calculators. I relocated to the Charlotte area from Indiana. The cost of living calculators indicated that it would cost 7% more to maintain the same standard of living. It's actually closer to 25%. Since you are also relocating from the boring cornfields of the Midwest, I'd recommends you use 25% as your worst case number.

The job market here is really slowing down. For your sake, please find a job before you move!

Good luck!

Thanks for the advice. Right now we're just shopping around to see which places would be nice and affordable, so we're not on the verge of pulling the trigger on a move down there or anything at this time. It is interesting what you mentioned- you won't believe how many places- according to the cost of living calculators- are supposedly as cheap to live as what we have here in the Midwest. We'll be cautious and do our homework as we continue looking- thanks again!!

[abcornwell]

Originally Posted by jm31828

Hello!

My wife and I currently live in Nebraska and we've been looking for a while for a bigger city to live in that has a warmer winter climate with a good economy and low cost of living. From what I've seen it seems Charlotte may just fit this bill. My question is this, approximately what would someone in Charlotte (or a Charlotte suburb) pay for property taxes on a $100,000-$115,000 house, and what would someone expect to pay during the hot summer months for electricity in a newer home in the 1300-1500 square foot range?

And are there any others out there that have moved from the Midwest/Great Plains to Charlotte and loved it?

We lived in Cincinnati, Ohio before moving to western North Carolina (Franklin) in 2005, and then Charlotte (October 2007). Don't miss the cold and ice at all, and since summer in Cincinnati is humid, hot, and buggy we were ready for Charlotte's summer.

As others have said, finding a home in your price range in a decent neighborhood in Charlotte would be difficult. Depending on where you find employment - look outside Charlotte. We live in Gaston County and there are homes in pleasant middle-class neighborhoods in your price range. Some areas are more rural than others - I like rural so it suits me just fine.

Our electric bill for end of May through end of July (almost) averaged $75. The nights have been cool so we don't run A/C then, and our home stays decently cool until later in the day. Our home is 1200 sf on 2 floors.

This forum should be very helpful to you, and you might even make some friends before your move!!

[bandibadji]

Property taxes on your home equate to around $1,100 per year for a $100K home. It runs about 1.1 percent of the value. I just moved here from Fla. and received my first electric bill. I have two A/C units and mostly use only the one downstairs. Our bill was around $112 for around 27 days. During that period, we were away for around 5 days and left the thermostat at 78% during that time. Overall, utilities seem to be reasonable. In Florida, I had to pay for garbage pickup. Here I don't. Water is quite a bit cheaper than in Florida. You will need to shop around for affordable grocery stores possibly. I live in Cornelius. Cornelius is a generally wealthy town in Mecklenburg Co. and stores are expensive. I have learned to use Alda, B.Js. Superwalmart and be frugal. But, unfortunately, running my boat blows anything I save anyway. Great place, come on down. Like Abcorn said, check out the neighborhoods and don't leave it to the real estate agent. There are great neighborhoods in the area and some "not so nice" ones. Housing is very reasonable unless you are from a small/non-growing town in the midwest. I would say that housing is comparable to Omaha. Would be a good idea to have a job lined up unless you are in a critical area where employment isn't a factor.