Considering moving to Charlotte area...confused (Waxhaw, Marvin: rental, how much, home) - City-Data Forum

FatherofThree · 12-31-2008, 07:58 AM

Hello, my family of five is planning to move to the Charlotte area in the Spring/Summer. I am an IT professional who is currently looking for a job, but more importantly we are looking for a good area for the kids.

Can anyone help us sort out which suburbs would be the best fit for us, which to stay away from, and any suggestions on schools?

I have seen several old posts from a year or two ago, but nothing recent. Can anyone offer any advice?

Thanks,

JT

lovesMountains · 12-31-2008, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatherofThree

Hello, my family of five is planning to move to the Charlotte area in the Spring/Summer. I am an IT professional who is currently looking for a job, but more importantly we are looking for a good area for the kids.

Can anyone help us sort out which suburbs would be the best fit for us, which to stay away from, and any suggestions on schools?

I have seen several old posts from a year or two ago, but nothing recent. Can anyone offer any advice?

Thanks,

JT

JT - let me clear up the confusion - the job market sucks in Charlotte at the moment. Just don't pack the moving van until you know you have secured a job, which may take you until this time next year.

Also, we can't make good suggestions about where to live without more info like, how much can you afford to spend on a home or for rent?

NCN · 12-31-2008, 08:03 AM

Get your job here first and then find the outlying area that is closest to that. Going across town takes a lot of time. If you don't have a job, it is not a good idea to come this way.

FatherofThree · 12-31-2008, 08:09 AM

Well there is a chance that my current job will allow me to work from home, so I am not terribly worried about employment at the moment.

The most important concern I have is finding a good area to raise the kids and good schools. I have 2 children in elementary school and 1 in pre-school, and we are looking to spend between 1000-1500 a month on rent until we decide to purchase a home.

Thanks for all the responses,

JT

lovesMountains · 12-31-2008, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatherofThree

Well there is a chance that my current job will allow me to work from home, so I am not terribly worried about employment at the moment.

The most important concern I have is finding a good area to raise the kids and good schools. I have 2 children in elementary school and 1 in pre-school, and we are looking to spend between 1000-1500 a month on rent until we decide to purchase a home.

Thanks for all the responses,

JT

Well, good luck with that - but if your current job doesn't work out you really need to understand how very tight things are here - it won't be easy to find a new job right now in Charlotte.

As far as where to live - plan to spend closer to that $1500 to find a rental home in a good area with good schools. Anything under $1200 might still look nice but ususally won't get you great schools. Try researching schools on the website greatschools.net. There are many good elementary schools scattered around Charlotte so you'll have a lot of options.

Swimmom32 · 12-31-2008, 09:24 AM

check out union county Marvin/Waxhaw area the schools are excellent...u can go to greatschools.net and ncreportcard.org

u can also go to carolinahome.com and put in 28173...but remember that zip code covers quiet a few area's in Waxhaw..we have been here 19 months and love it...

I have a rising 9th grader and my dd is going into 4th...

There are some awesome people from other areas that can chime in as well, it just depends on what your family is looking for....

chicagocubs · 12-31-2008, 09:29 AM

Don't know where you are coming from, but, please do your research. I am definitely not a fan of the Charlotte public school system; they say that Fort Mill (SC) is better...don't know. My kids are grown now, so, I don't have current information.

The BIGGEST concern would be your job. The market here is awful and 2009 is not going to be much better; probably worse. So, do your research into those things and then let us know.

NCgirl · 12-31-2008, 10:29 AM

FatherofThree

There are 174 schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg district. Some are bad but there are great schools.

There really aren't any suburbs to avoid. Generally they are all nice.In your op you said "planning to move to the Charlotte area", Are you looking t move to Charlotte or a smaller, outside city.f you want to be outside of Charlotte, how far away? Do you prefer an urban or more rural setting? How close do you need to be to shopping,entertainment or restaurants?

* I'm not sure why you're only seeing old threads. To find more recent posts use the advanced search feature.

CouponJack · 12-31-2008, 11:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatherofThree

Well there is a chance that my current job will allow me to work from home, so I am not terribly worried about employment at the moment.

JT

Please don't think that if your job goes south it will be easy to get another one here. The job market is awful in many fields.

As long as you have a yr worth of expenses (or at least a year's contract) I would be hesitant about moving here in today's economic climate.

Having said that, this is a great place to live if you don't have those worries

g/l

FatherofThree · 12-31-2008, 11:32 AM

I appreciate everyone's responses, and I don't by any means think a job will be easy to acquire, that isn't the case anywhere right now. I was simply stating that I have a very solid job now and they will most likely allow me to hold my current position and telecommute. It's very common and will likely be effective.