Gastonia (Charlotte, Mount Holly, Belmont: relocate, showing, vacation)

[lottaquestions]

Hi, I'm lookin to relocate from Miami to NC but i've got many questions. I'm all over the place. I'm lookin' at several cities in Wake county, Meckelenburg, Gaston & Union. It's pretty obvious that Wake county seems to be a "nicer place" to raise a family. Can anyonve tell me a bit about Gastonia? It seems to me that Charlotte & Gastonia are less expensice places to buy a home. Is crime really that bad in Charlotte? Keep in mind I live in Miami so I've seen my share of crime. Thanks!

[flyingscotsman]

I moved from Miami to South Charlotte.

Crime is a lot less than Miami.

Look up the zipcode demographics this will give you a good starting point.

We where advised to rent first, that was great advice, we took out time, travelled all over Mecklenburg, Gastonia, Carrabus etc gettign a new house build in Charlotte by M/I Homes.

[lottaquestions]

Thnx, where can I get info about diff zip codes? Are u familiar with Gastonia? I have friends who live in the Hamilton Green developement, are u near there? I hear alot about state taxes being a bad thing. Exactly how does that affect me?

[friendnc]

I was raised in Gastonia and my parents still live there, so I'm VERY familiar with the area. Though I'm sure you'll hear your share of bad about Gastonia, it's a good town. The majority of the city is really neat, clean, and the road system is one of the best in the Charlotte area. It's also one of the easiest commutes into Charlotte. You have lakes to the east, mountains to the west. There are plenty of restaurant/shopping opportunites. There is a very nice nature museum, parks, and one of the nicest public libraries in the metro. The one negitive (and it's a biggie for some) is the overall school system. It's not great. But the schools in SE Gastonia are very good (Robinson or Bess Elem., Cramerton Mid., and Forestview HS). You'll get a lot of house for your $$. Belmont would be a great choice with wonderful schools. If you want any more information, just pm me.

[lottaquestions]

Thnx FRIENDNC,

this is going to sound ignorrant, but how do i PM? Anyway when u say the schools in gastonia aren't good, what's bad about them?

[xray42]

Originally Posted by lottaquestions

Thnx FRIENDNC,

this is going to sound ignorrant, but how do i PM? Anyway when u say the schools in gastonia aren't good, what's bad about them?

Hey Lottaquestions,

nothing is ignorent, you are just new, and this forum is like no other i have seen, i am still trying to figure iut what a thread is LOL- but to pm FRIENDNC,just double click on his name-FRIENDNC in the box you are replying to, and it will give you options on what to do-one of them willbe a PM=private message-goood luck.

[friendnc]

Originally Posted by lottaquestions

Thnx FRIENDNC,

this is going to sound ignorrant, but how do i PM? Anyway when u say the schools in gastonia aren't good, what's bad about them?

Yes, do what xray said. Click at my username and it'll tell you about how to pm (personal message) me. The school system test scores in Gaston County have never been good, even when I was in the system in the 70's-early 80's. The score just aren't very good system-wide. Now, like I said before, like with most any system, there are some good school zones, like SE Gastonia or Belmont, where the schools are very good. I'll assure you, I'll be totally honest when it comes to the area. Schools county-wide, not so good. Other than that, it's a great place to live.

[GastoniaGal]

Lottaquestions,

I just moved to Gastonia from Fort Lauderdale and guess what there are others just like us that moved from the over crowded , hurricane battered cities of south florida, after four months I can say this much I feel like I am on vacation every day. Isn't that what Forida was sappose to do for us?? LOL..... As far as crime goes we had our share of it in Florida too , our son was murdered there in 1999 and ever since then for us it went down hill.
Coming from Miami to Gastonia I think you'll love it. PM me if you'd like ,we found a great realtor here and I think she can be a great help in showing you the right area for your family. We dont have small children now so we moved to the Historic District to restore and older home. Best Wishes to you and your family! Let me know where you end up.

Angel

[MelodyP]

We just moved to Belmont from Fort Myers, FL in November, (nice to see so many FL refugees on here!!) I have to say I would definately look more at Belmont and Mount Holly than Gastonia itself. We are a quick drive into Gastonia or Charlotte, Belmont has a brand new Wal-Mart supercenter, 3 Grocery stores, and numerous resturaunts. If you have kids in elementary school I have heard the Belmont schools are top notch. It is a very nice town to live in, and the housing prices are really reasonable!