Moving to the coast if possible? (Wilmington, Jacksonville: car insurance, condo, low crime)

[tonycee]

]I will be retiring in the next 6 months currently living in Pennsylvania and am seriously looking NorthCarolina, the change in climate will be a welcome relief.


I have followed your recommended thread regarding the KeyQuestion’s so here goes. I have also done some research on this site but someof the threads, directed to my questions are quite old. Or do not specificallyaddress my concerns. Please forgive me if I am asking something I should have read but missed.
1) Whereyou are working – as I said I am retiring but my wife is not old enough (she still has 5 years to go) she is a nurses aid in a Retirement Community and absolutely Loves it so I need to find some place that would enable her to continue working with the elderly
2)How much you are willing to spend onhousing – not wealthy people so I think 100 to 150 thousand – possibly a nice modular on a lot
3)How long of a commute you're willingto tolerate – it would be for her, so no more than ½ hour[
4)If you have kids: Private schoolor public school? - No kids (at our agekids would be the death of us both LOL)
5)What type of neighborhood environmentyou are looking for: small town feeling? small city excitement? suburbiadelight? – We both like that quiet small town ambiance
6)Community amenities important to you– Not necessary


I have been researching myself for sometime now with the following 4 requirements


1) Since a child I have had dreams ofliving on the beach. Would Love a Coastal Town
2) I am paranoid about crime areas - so I need someplace safe (before anyone says anything about this I know there are no guarantees about safe but some places definitely have a better crime rating than others.
3) Cost of living – I have a small retirement savings so I need a place with a low cost of living
4) A place for my spouse to continue to work with the elderly until her retirement.


In my researching I have found plenty of Coastal areas that have a High Cost of living and a low crime rate or a low cost of living and a high crime rate.


So please tell me, am I am trying to book passage to a place that does not exist namely;


A place at the beach with a low cost of living and a low crime rate.


Very much looking forward to your reply.


Tony

[goldenage1]

Originally Posted by tonycee

....So please tell me, am I am trying to book passage to a place that does not exist namely;

A place at the beach with a low cost of living and a low crime rate.

May I suggest that you temper your expectations a bit. If you expect to live on the beach, you can expect to pay in the hundreds for a condo, and 390K to the millions for a house.

If you live a bit inland, you can find a house for about $170K. Modular homes are available for less, eg $90-125K. Here in Sneads Ferry, we are about 2.5 miles from the ocean. There is very little crime except for the occasion drug bust. Expect to pay about $1500 for property taxes for the SFH, and about the same for homeowner's insurance (which includes hurricane coverage).

Your wife could look for a job in Jacksonville or Wilmington. She might also have to look further inland to Maple Hill or Kenansville, as there are not many nursing homes in the beach towns. She may have to commute further than 1/2 hour. Please let her job search determine where you live. EG, if she found a job in Kenansville, you could live in Richlands and be about 30 minutes from the job. Please have her look into the nurse aide Certification requirements in North Carolina.

BTW, much of the reported crimes in the beach towns consist of arrests for abuse of alcohol or drugs. People come to the beach to party. Sometimes they get drunk and get into fights. If that is not your lifestyle, you have nothing to worry about in a beach town.

We live closest to North Topsail Beach, and it is a very quiet, family-oriented place.

[goldenage1]

Originally Posted by tonycee

... I am retiring but my wife is not old enough (she still has 5 years to go) she is a nurses aid in a Retirement Community...

The wife might also look in the Morehead City area, as there are several nursing homes or rehabilitation facilites. The couple could probably find a reasonable home in Newport, Havelock or further inland.

The cost of living will probably not be dramatically less than where they are now. Food will cost about the same and we have a 2% tax on food in grocery store. Electricity, water and sewer are probably cheaper than Pennsylvania. Car insurance is likely to be cheaper.

[HP91]

Burgaw

Lost cost of living, low crime. 30 minutes to the beach or to gainful employment in Wilmington...easy straight shot down I-40. Quintessential small town feel, used in many movie sets. Many people don't consider it because the schools aren't great.

The other one I would think of is Shallotte, which is closer to the beach, but the housing costs may be higher.