Considering relocation to coastal North Carolina

[movedtothecoast]

def. go see for you self, southport is a lovely little town
but not for us.

the nuclear plant is very close , but in fairness also close to wilmington,
there is this strange canal of slimy, odd, ugly water running from
the nuclear plant area out to the sea.

one drives right over this canal once past st. james plantation before coming into
southport.

there is no beach in southport, it is on the cape fear river.

while attending a concert in wilmington I ran into a woman who had just moved with family
to southport , her husband worked at the nuclear plant, she hated living in southport because they ended up wanting to go to wilmington all the time, concerts, shopping or just good bars.
town was a little too quiet for them.
while a 40 minute ride does not sound like much
it quickly gets to be a hazzle.

good luck and southport might just be right for you.

[acktroll]

Thanks for your input; I will keep that in mind

[Stonecreek67]

acktroll, since you asked, here are some of my thoughts on Southport.

We are both late 50's and moved here to Southport ( St James Plantation ) from NJ in early August of this year. We are very happy with our move. It is a very nice "shore-like" community and coupled with Oak Island just a few miles away, it gives us all the waterfront that we can take in..... riverfront in Southport and oceanfront in Oak Island.

Food shopping is plentiful and we have found a plethora of restaurants and bars, both waterfront and otherwise.... and most of them very good.... IMHO.

There are many, many opportunities as far as housing, from rentals to more than a dozen plantations both gated and non-gated scattered throughout Southport and the surrounding vicinity.... and in all levels of price ranges...... high and low..... plus regular housing NOT in gated communities.

As far as being "in the boondocks" as far as getting to "big" shopping and "culture".... our house in NJ was exactly 18 miles from the mouth of the Holland Tunnel, to get through that tunnel and into Manhattan was 45+ minutes and usually more and that was on a good day with no weather and everyone considered us very lucky to be "so close" to NY and it's "culture". We are now 35 miles from "downtown" Wilmington and it's the same 45 minutes but it's a nice drive on a smooth as glass highway at 55 mph and almost no traffic ( except in peak rush hour like anywhere else, but even then it still "moves along" ). Between Southport, Shallotte, North Myrtle Beach, Leland and Wilmington.... we find just about everything "WE" need in a 30 to 45 minute drive.... healthcare and doctors are abundant IMHO and Wilmington and "it's" healthcare, as stated, is 45 minutes away.

We looked around at many areas in the South and we find Southport a very nice place to live and, as others have already suggested, worth a look see for yourself, that's the only way you'll really know.

[LLN]

Newport, NC. Near US 70 for good access. Very small but close to the retail explosion in Morehead City, 25 minutes, max to the beach, and about 25 minutes to pretty good medical in New Bern. New Bern has large historic district, actually four historic districts, but is about an hour from coast.

I think Morehead City is the best deal going, but could not find the house-price point mix that I needed there.

[mrearly]

Acktroll,

Your posts caught my interest as I'm also a single female in my mid 40's considering a possible move to the Wilmington, NC area - though I would be coming from Virginia. In any event, I was just wondering if you have made your move yet. If so, where have you ended up and/or what might be some areas that you would recommend as a result of your experience? If not, are you still considering it? Either way, any advice for someone like me in similar circumstances that you may have gleaned by now in way of experience and/or research? I will actually be needing to rent an apartment for the first year at least for just myself and a small dog before considering buying. If renting is what you might be doing at this point as well, I would be really interested in finding out what you may learned so far about rental areas that
might potentially be a good fit (basically not too youngish or too ghetto but hopefully somewhat walkable and convenient if that isn't asking too much since Im only working with a monthly budget somewhere around 700). So, if you don't mind (or if anyone else might have advice for me, please chime in too!) please let me know how it's going for you at this point.
Regards,
Melly

[acktroll]

Hi Melly,
No I am still in Florida due to a job commitment, and plan on visiting coastal North Carolina in April on my migration back to Massachusetts. I first want to check things out; stay a few days in the area and see if I get the "feel" for one place in particular. If I do feel that it might work for me, the plan is then to relocate in the late fall (had to make a change in plans due to a variety of practical issues that came up).
I still read whatever I come over about the area and am very interested in hearing other people's experiences- good and not so good- and I'm thinking I'll pipe in here when I'm there making my observations

Best of luck (to us both!)

Irene

[Goheels]

You might want to check out Governours Square apartments. This was a strong consideration for my daughter because it's far enough away from the university and it included water, sewer, and trash in the rent. seemed to have good reviews.