Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The Triangle is very livable, pretty affordable (esp compared to Seattle), and particularly nice for raising a family. Downtown Raleigh and Downtown Durham both have smallish, vibrant downtowns, but nothing near the level of Seattle for urban environments.
Lots of people here like running, biking, and hiking. There is a nice Greenway system with over a hundred miles of trails (i biked about 15 miles today in Cary). Umstead State park has nice hiking/walking trails. Lots of rolling hills. Accessible to the beach in 2 or 2.5 hours. Access to mountains in about 3 hours. Fairly hot summers, mild winters with one or two snows.
Seattle is a great city. Much more urban. Much more expensive. Much less sun.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
9,776 posts, read 15,776,851 times
Reputation: 10881
Raleigh is a more family-oriented, suburban area to live. Seattle is a bigger, more urban city. If you are looking for a place that's "easy" to live in, then Raleigh fits your criteria. Not too much traffic, not too high cost, lots of natural areas nearby, urban areas are smaller in the two cities. On the other hand, if you are looking for something more exciting, bigger city, gorgeous mountains and are willing to put up with higher costs the other negatives of a bigger city, then choose Seattle. Also, there is the obvious east coast/west coast difference.
Note that teachers are not well-paid here in the Triangle. I've been here 8 years, and in that time period, there have been various outcries at different points about how teachers are treated/paid. One example was taking away more pay for teachers with their master's degrees (that may have been reinstated). I am in the "coveted" Chapel Hill School district, and I have seen a lot of turnover in teachers at my kids' schools. North Carolina has a license plate that says "NC - First in Flight" with regard to the Wright Brothers. A play on that is a bumper sticker that says "NC - First in Teacher Flight" I admittedly come from Pennsylvania which is the land of small school districts and very well-paid teachers where it is very, very competitive to get into a good school district to teach. Here it is the opposite. If you have a teaching degree, you can easily get a job.
School districts are primarily at the county level and pay is dictated by the state, but counties can add a locality pay up to a certain amount. I have no idea about how school districts work in Washington State or how teachers are treated/paid, but I wanted to share the experience in NC. I have only been to Seattle as a tourist. Seems like a great city. If I were single and had no preference for East Coast (because it's where most of my family and friends are), I would choose Seattle as I prefer bigger cities. But you can have a nice and easy life in Raleigh.
I am trying to figure out which area would be the best fit for me without actually being there. I am looking to move to the Tri-city area of North Carolina or Seattle. If you have lived in one or both of these areas, I'd love your feedback. Even if you haven't, I'd love to read your input.
A bit about me:
Teacher
Single, early 30's
Running
Somewhere with:
Great outdoors, coffee, friendly people, no killer pollen, and has that unique personal feel. (whatever that means.)
Thank you all for any feedback. If you have any other living suggestions; please feel free to mention them.
Definitely Seattle in my opinion. 'Unique personal feel' is basically the opposite of NC outside of the far east and west parts of the state which the triangle isn't particularly close to either. Also NC has this weird grudge against teachers due to it's pervasive belief that unions are the work of the devil lol.
The weather mixed in with the white savior complex of Seattle is a bit too much for me so, the Triangle.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
