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I've lived in NJ my whole life so moving to a new state has me a bit panicked. Our oldest (32) is currently living in Charlotte. She's been there for 5 years and loves it. My middle child (21) attends ECU in Greenville. My youngest is in her Senior year of HS in NJ. Our plan is to have her start college, in NC, in the Fall 2023. My husband and I are choosing NC for better weather, better taxes to retire and hoping with the kids in NC we will all stay in the same state keeping us together in the future. Although, our oldest lives in Charlotte we're not looking to live in that area. We're thinking of retirement/resort communities so we'll be settled for the future. For now and for the next 5-6 years, at a minimum, we will have our kids living with us so we aren't looking to go into a 55+ community. We've been considering the following communities: Compass Pointe, Brunswick Forest, St. James Plantation, Winding River. We love the Brunswick County area because it's close to the beach, close to Wilmington for entertainment and such but also has the suburbs feel to it. We've spoken to realtors, looked at brochures, searched the internet & youtube and are now scouring the forums. We're also planning to visit in October so we can see everything in person. My big dilemma is choosing whether to move closer to the beach in a community such as St. James Plantation Winding River or move to the Leland area to Brunswick Forest or Compass Pointe. I'm also open to other "resort" style communities that I may not have heard of. We'd love to be in a community with with all the amenities, such as pools, fitness center, courts. I love the idea of being able to participate in social clubs. My husbands a golfer to being on a golf course is nice however it's not a deal breaker if he can golf close by. The other thing we're thinking about is getting a boat in the future. So, not a deal breaker since we don't have one yet but if we were to get a boat having access to the River and getting to the beach would be nice.
I guess I'm trying to get a feel on how the locals feel about the pro's/con's to the Leland area vs closer to the beaches.
I love the idea of being 5-10 mins from a beach but does it get VERY crowded and is there ALOT of traffic in the warmer months? I'm also concerned that some of the communities have rentals and people will come and go rather than live full time? Do all the communities have renters?
My understanding is the major shopping centers aren't that close to the beach. I'd have to travel 30 mins to go shopping vs. Leland being very close to all shopping.
I like that Leland is closer to Wilmington but a 35 min ride isn't a dealbreaker to go for dinner or entertainment once in a while.
I believe there's good medical in both areas?
I like the idea of a gated community but that's not a dealbreaker. However, I've heard some communities have "major" highways running through them???
I believe we'd pay town and county taxes in Leland but not near the beach? so, double taxes in Leland.
Any pros/cons & advice you can give would be GREATLY appreciated!!!!
.....My big dilemma is choosing whether to move closer to the beach in a community such as St. James Plantation Winding River or move to the Leland area to Brunswick Forest or Compass Pointe. ...........
I like the idea of a gated community but that's not a dealbreaker. However, I've heard some communities have "major" highways running through them???
I believe we'd pay town and county taxes in Leland but not near the beach? so, double taxes in Leland.
Any pros/cons & advice you can give would be GREATLY appreciated!!!!
I can't really help you make a personal decision, but I suggest making a large spread-sheet with attributes in the columns, and communities or houses in the rows.
You also need to account for the size of a house you need and the price you are willing to pay. You can assign weight to factors like being near the beach, and having access to a marina for the boat.
You have not mentioned if you are aware that joining a golf club at St James requires an equity fee of $30,000. Other golf clubs like the one at Brunswick Forest are public, and I think you can pay lower by-the-game fees. (I do not care about golf, so I do not have details. You may need to research this more.)
My current communty is gated, and I wish it were not. The gates frequently do not work correctly, and they do not prevent real crime in any case.
I agree with goldenage1. There are so many opportunities for different types of housing and more being built every day.
We moved to the Calabash area from NJ about 4 years ago. We liked the beach at Sunset Beach the best, very low key, no high rises, little retail, basically just sand and waves. The other barrier islands offer a bit more. There are many options for golf in the area (there are resident cards that discount greens fees for area golf courses.) but for shopping you might find Wilmington or Myrtle Beach more to your liking depending what you want.
Summertime and holidays the beaches get pretty full so parking can be an issue. There are a couple of communities that have their own beach houses/ parking so that is a huge bonus. Kingfish Bay, Ocean Ridge, Winding River and St James all have beach houses.
Medical has not been an issue for us but Duke is a couple hours north and MUSC is a couple hours south. Not nearly as convenient as NJ but that is one of the many tradeoffs.
Not too familiar with the Leland area but it is farther from the beaches.
It's a big decision but if your kids are in the State it would be a no brainer for me.
Regarding the "major highway running through", Compass Pointe has a section where I-140 is adjacent to the east, and you would want to check the noise level. IMHO, Compass Pointe is your least desirable option.
You should ask yourselves how often you would use the ocean beach during the summer. If it is more than 3 days a week, one of the four developments with a private beach club will be the most convenient.
BTW, I do not think the differences in taxes are very significant.
Last edited by goldenage1; 09-09-2022 at 05:52 AM..
Thanks jerseyj! I had never heard of Kingfish Bay, so looked them up. The have a beach club at Sunset Beach an provide a trolley car so you do not have to worry about parking.
Their location is closer to Myrtle Beach for major medical services and an airport.
Thanks jerseyj! I had never heard of Kingfish Bay, so looked them up. The have a beach club at Sunset Beach an provide a trolley car so you do not have to worry about parking.
Their location is closer to Myrtle Beach for major medical services and an airport.
Kingfish Bay was originally started by Wakefield Development out of Raleigh in 5/07, that development was abandoned in 8/09 with only the entrance, one road and a couple of the homes started. That was the same time a couple other developments were abandoned they were coined "zombie developments". It sat for several years until the current developers revived it.
It is in a very convenient location right in the town of Calabash, they are now developing the Calabash riverfront and selling riverfront properties. The trolley to the beach has been abandoned but there is a good amount of parking at their beach house. Their beach house is right beside ORP's beach house on Sunset Beach.
There is quite a bit of difference in the property taxes between here and NJ, for example the taxes on our 3600 sq/ft home here are about 3700/yr our NJ property taxes on a 50 yr old 2200 sq/ft home were 13,000/yr.
I'm also relocating to this area from Pennsylvania. I have two adult children living with us.
Can anyone give opinions on the Ocean Isle Beach area?
On the island is very expensive, but inland is more reasonable. The golf communities are likely to be mostly retirees. The median age of OIB is 67.7. Have you asked your children how they would feel living among retirees? If they can earn their own livings, they may prefer a livelier place like Myrtle Beach.
Last edited by goldenage1; 09-10-2022 at 11:05 AM..
Kingfish Bay was originally started by Wakefield Development out of Raleigh in 5/07, that development was abandoned in 8/09 with only the entrance, one road and a couple of the homes started. That was the same time a couple other developments were abandoned they were coined "zombie developments". It sat for several years until the current developers revived it.
It is in a very convenient location right in the town of Calabash, they are now developing the Calabash riverfront and selling riverfront properties. The trolley to the beach has been abandoned but there is a good amount of parking at their beach house. Their beach house is right beside ORP's beach house on Sunset Beach.
There is quite a bit of difference in the property taxes between here and NJ, for example the taxes on our 3600 sq/ft home here are about 3700/yr our NJ property taxes on a 50 yr old 2200 sq/ft home were 13,000/yr.
The last time I was in Kingfish Bay was two years ago and they had purchase adjoining land to expand. I thought the prices were very high at that time. I just checked their website and the smallest home with 1,041 sq ft is starting at $376,500 for a slab base home. I figured the trolley wouldn't last very long, too much expense for a smaller development.
On the island is very expensive, but inland is more reasonable. The golf communities are likely to be mostly retirees. The median age of OIB is 67.7. Have you asked your children how they would feel living among retirees? If they can earn their own livings, they may prefer a livelier place like Myrtle Beach.
Thank you .. Im hoping they start careers and go find there own path lol
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Im in the same boat
