Wilmington questions part 2 (the trip/pics) (Raleigh, Brunswick: house, buying, tile)

[West_ny]

That's where the place is we bought Monkey Junction. Looking online prior to coming down I was kind of sold on Hampstead, but after seeing it, it was bit too undeveloped for us. We like being nears things, stores, etc, and College Ave is great for that. But we're still close to beaches, downtown, and Mayfaire area too. In the Hampstread/Ogden area we found many places have a nice $300k home across from a trailer. One development we looked at in Ogden, nice homes, in the rear they literally built a stockade fence to hide the row of trailers. Monkey Junction/Myrtle Grove seemed to be more beyond that stage.

Originally Posted by jmarquise

hi stacey. there are quite a few newer family friendly neighborhoods that have been built here during the past 5 years. places to avoid, downtown, around downtown, around the college. places to check out would be ogden, monkey junction, and perhaps even hampstead.

[Dogluvr]

Originally Posted by Stacey1214

Ok, so I just joined this website like 5 seconds ago and found your post. Just want to say thank you so much! My husband and 1 year old daughter and I will be visiting on 3/17-3/22 in hopes to relocate to Wilmington. And your post pretty much sold the city for me! Of course, anything is better than Western Massachusetts! (It's currently snowing & freezing rain outside, ugh!). We are really looking forward to our visit and hope we love it as much as you did! Just curious if anyone might be able to give me some advice as to where to look for daycare and good family-friendly neighborhoods? Thanks!

Great! I hope your trip goes well and would love to hear your thoughts when you return.

[jmarquise]

you are going to find that everywhere here. some redneck sells his land, but his redneck neighbors don't sell theirs. so the developer stacks houses next to the trailers putting up privacy fences. that is why I live where I live. very established neighborhood and I know they won't be building any ugly subdivisions in my back yard. if you go to brunswick county, that is all you see. ugly subdivisions with tiny houses built next to trailer parks. if I could make one plea to anyone thinking about moving down here, it's avoid brunswick county at all costs!

[Patricktrow]

Originally Posted by jmarquise

yeah vicky, I think I know where there are town homes in that price range near the beach. someplace in central america. j/k. I doubt it. $150,000 doesn't go very far around here. the good thing, however, is that you can get pretty much anywhere in town in 15-20 minutes. your best bet would be to look at something more towards carolina beach as that part of town is cheaper than the ones closer to wrightsville beach. patrick, you kind of had me wondering when you said you were just on magic seaweed, but then I read on and figured out it was a website. today I would imagine that the waves were huge. we had a storm come in. when bad weather is coming, the waves get really big. you would be very hard pressed to find a beach on the east coast with bigger waves than wrightsville and carolina beach. wilmington isn't that bad. there is good and bad in all areas. I am better off here than I was in DC. I just think that this place has traveled downhill in the past 10 years with the influx of transplants and the poor planning the city has done. they really need to catch up with the rest of the world when it comes to pay scale. for a pricey area, by NC standards, the jobs pay pretty bad. guess it's the price you pay for living in a tourist town!

I hear ya about the poor planning and tourist town wages, it sounds like you are describing Bend, Oregon. The only difference I see is that the housing prices here are much higher, even since the RE crash. To get a 600sqft shack built in the early 1900's that maybe has a foundation and needs everything you're going to start at $300k and it goes up fast from there(in a good area). I am definitely leary of tourist towns since living in one for the last 12+ years we spent a few years in Tahoe and few in Hermosa Beach ,Ca also a year in San Diego. I guess the alternative is living in some bland place that has a quiet vibe to it, but then what would there be to ***** about? bad planning at the PTA meeting? I have a question for you jmarquise, how many months a year is the humidity at it's worst? I have been told 3 months, is it less the closer you get to the water?

We are looking at places in the $350k to $600k range for a house and around $0 to $250k for lots/acreage, what do you think would be the prime area to look in? given this price range. I really want to get in the water to surf or kiteboard at least 4 days a week year round.

[jmarquise]

I would say that it is humid at least 3 months out of the year. probably much more than that. closer to 4 months, with humid days in probably 6 months. it doesn't get any worse the closer to the water you get. it is pretty much humid everywhere! in DC, you had to pay $500,000 for a knockdown house. the prices there were insane although they are now starting to get back down to reality. your price range gives you a ton of options here. got some questions for you in order to answer yours. do you have children? ages? what do you look for in a neighborhood? newer houses, older houses? trees? character? you can get into the water from anywhere in town year round. the beach is only 10 minutes from most places in town. I know almost all the neighborhoods in this town. partly because I looked in all of them before I bought, and I did land surveying so I laid out the new developments. so give me some details and I would love to help. you can send me a direct message if you want.

[jmarquise]

I am surprised that the real estate stalkers on this site haven't tried to bombard you yet patrick!

[seashellbelle]

Originally Posted by jmarquise

you are going to find that everywhere here. some redneck sells his land, but his redneck neighbors don't sell theirs. so the developer stacks houses next to the trailers putting up privacy fences. that is why I live where I live. very established neighborhood and I know they won't be building any ugly subdivisions in my back yard. if you go to brunswick county, that is all you see. ugly subdivisions with tiny houses built next to trailer parks. if I could make one plea to anyone thinking about moving down here, it's avoid brunswick county at all costs!

Hi, I am new to this forum, however, I keep seeing such negative remarks regarding Brunswick County in your quotes. Did something tragic happen or did you have a bad experience? I relocated here about 4 years ago, have traveled extensively, lived in major cities in the US, and find the area, and weather, very agreeable. We do have our rural areas, so when considering purchasing land or a home, stay within established communities, and there are many to chose from. I chose the area because of it's proximity to the ocean, and a short drive to the city. I don't know of any other area in the States, that offers this, with such low property taxes and high quality of life. Do us all a favor, and stop discouraging those who are seeking to learn more about the area. Do we have a moderator on this forum?

[Sleestak]

Originally Posted by jmarquise

you are going to find that everywhere here. some redneck sells his land, but his redneck neighbors don't sell theirs. so the developer stacks houses next to the trailers putting up privacy fences.

Rednecks, Trailers, and Hog Farms... oh my. Well, what does everyone expect with so many northerners following the yellow-brick road down to NC? Inevitably, some developers will build McMansion neighborhoods in rural areas. The whole downeast portion of NC is dotted with trailers and older farmhouses, so the overlap is bound to happen. If the mere sight of trailers is enough to give some transplants the heebie-jeebies, then they should exercise sufficient due diligence beforehand. Just a suggestion, but if someone is considering buying in a rural area, it's a good idea to visit and check out the sights, sounds, smells, etc. beforehand. Moving "sight unseen" to a rural area and then demanding that the locals change their way of life is considered to be bad manners down here.

[Patricktrow]

I think Jmarquise is playing devils advocate, and I can appreciate that( calling a spade a spade), especially when many realtor's you talk to sugar coat just about everything just to get you to buy.( I don't think all realtors are bad) His objective views help to paint a more realistic picture of the area. ( I happen to be very fond of Rednecks)Thanks JM. I just bought two round trip tickets into Wilmington arriving on April 1st, my wife and I are going to check it out and see what we think, while having a vacation without the kiddo's. I would love to hear some insight from you locals regarding things to do and see. If anyone has advice on a nice place to stay at the beach I would appreciate it, we will need a place from the evening of the 1st to the 8th of April, I don't want to spend a small fortune but do want a decent place. Does $600 for those dates sound realistic? Thanks in advance.

[Sleestak]

Patrick, I understand what you're saying. My comments were not directed at JM... I just used his quote as a convenient branching point in the conversation. My rant was meant more as advice for prospective transplants.

For example: buying a house in the country, next to a bunch of cotton fields, might seem quaint in an old South kind of way. However, for a couple of weeks out of the year, the farmer will most likely be spraying his fields with an unpleasant smelling herbicide mix to defoliate the plants for harvesting. The smell tends to carry several hundred yards, at least. Little things like that are good to know before buying in a rural area.