Moving to wilmington in 5 days what do i need to know (Raleigh: sales, apartments)

[hbk2121]

Hi me and my girlfriend are moving to wilmington next week we have aapartment and i have a job. but i do have a few questions and it would be fantastic if you nice people could help me out.

1. We are living at the sea pines apartments is it nice or are we in for a year of hell.

2.How is the crime is it as bad as some people here make it out to be.

3.She works in child care are thier jobs to be had.

4.and finally and this is the silly one what is the best supermarket.

If you all could help it would fantastic ill even buy you a beer if i see you out in public.

thanks in advance

[jmarquise]

I heard sea pines is nice, I worked with a guy who lived there. crime in that area shouldn't be too bad, but I am sure there are some shady areas. there are lots of families that have moved here within the last 5 years, so daycare is a pretty large industry I would think. the best super market would be harris teeter, however, there is a place called the fresh market in mayfaire that is excellent. it's just a question of whether or not you want to drive there as there is only one in town.

Originally Posted by hbk2121

Hi me and my girlfriend are moving to wilmington next week we have aapartment and i have a job. but i do have a few questions and it would be fantastic if you nice people could help me out.

1. We are living at the sea pines apartments is it nice or are we in for a year of hell.

2.How is the crime is it as bad as some people here make it out to be.

3.She works in child care are thier jobs to be had.

4.and finally and this is the silly one what is the best supermarket.

If you all could help it would fantastic ill even buy you a beer if i see you out in public.

thanks in advance

[hbk2121]

thank you kind sir. now i ask this i thier anything else that i should know about wilmington that nobody but the people that live thier know?

[Florida15]

Drive VERY cautiously and defensively,don't go out alone after dark....especially downtown and have plenty of money for the high prices of everything around here.The best supermarket is wherever the best sales are for that week.LOL

[hbk2121]

thank you thank you anything else?

[wilmingtonangel]

Best supermarket - Walmart Supercenters b/c the groceries are cheaper than anywhere else in town. Harris Teeter is expensive.

Crime is high....especially in downtown. I strongly recommend that you lock your car doors. Lately I've seen a lot of reports of ppl having things stolen out of unlocked car doors at night. Don't pick up ANYBODY or pull over when someone is waving you down. Reasons why: A few weeks ago some guys were walking along 3rd street with a gas can...so some nice person gave them a ride and they robbed the driver as he was dropping them off! A few yrs ago some guys were on the side of the road waving down someone in a really nice car. The car driver stopped to see what they were saying and they literally pulled him out of his car, stole the car, and wrecked it. And obviously don't walk around downtown alone at night (this is especially true for your girlfriend).

As for the childcare jobs....she will have no problem finding one. The pay scale might be that great though.

[hbk2121]

Thank you all of you are very helpful

[Ellise]

About the supermarkets...Harris Teeter is nice, but you pay for that niceness. For instance, last time I was in there a 6 oz. can of Friskies cat food was $0.54, compared to $0.45 at the Food Lion. I've got 6 cats (thanks to all the morons around here who don't get their cats spayed or neutered then drive down my road to drop off their unwanted kittens) and a nine cent per can price difference really adds up.

[hbk2121]

I want to say thank you too all of you for your help i can not wait to join your community

[shutdownthefed]

I want to be honest with you- I moved to Wilmington, NC in search for a better life and it's not working out for me. I want to list off a couple things as a cautionary tale-

#1-There are no jobs in this town. If you don't have a job lined up already, I wouldn't move here at all. I went on about 25 interviews here and never got any job offers. I can give you a couple of reasons for that:
A. There are a lot of college kids here (University of NC) that take up a lot
of the jobs for less.
Thus-
B. There is a high turn over rate.
C. Every one under the sun is moving here. I am from Maryland. I am
waitressing right now and everyone I work with is from somewhere else,
whether its from west NC from Raleigh or somewhere else. I know we
have a couple people from jersey. and two new girls moved from
Massachusetts and Ohio.
D. There are a lot of Rich People who moved here and took this place over.
They own Wrightsville beach and inflated the economy. They are also
the *******s that have companies which turn people over. And they are
taking up the beach and all the coastal properties.

#2- Every one has the same idea. For some reason, every body is moving here. I guess some people found out there was a cool town here with jobs- but not any more. There is way too many people living here to sustain a stable economy. It's getting inflated (just like Maryland was) and the town is way tooooo small to support as many people that are living here.

#3- Since there are a lot of people here, the traffic is crazy. I am from the DC-metro area so I am used to traffic. The traffic is really bad for a small town but what the worst part is, I could mind the traffic because I am used to it; but this is a small town, and the amenities are such. The closet bank requires me to go down 8 miles and takes me 20 mins. to get to because the traffic is so bad. I live in Kings Grant and there is nothing at all around my neighborhood. It's a nice neighborhood, nice house, quiet, etc. but there is nothing around. No places to eat. I have to go S College Rd for the bank, food, etc etc and the traffic sucks and takes forever just to go around to the corner store.

#4- The town itself is just a bunch of strip malls. It's a small town so there's not a lot of diversity at all. For example, there aren't really that many places to eat. A lot of chain restraunts. There are a couple of good places I found- Naked King Fish (fresh seafood), Mellow Mushroom (Good Pizza, Good beer selection). But No Chipotle, No Panera Bread, No Good Mexican food that I have found yet. There aren't any cool clothes shops I have found besides Fairy Circle. I guess I wish there was a lot more variety. This is NOT a diverse place.

#5- Downtown is pretty cool. As far as I can tell, it's a lot of college kids down there but it's a pretty chill atmosphere and chill bars. I like the vibe from downtown. Definately better than the downtown Bethesda or DC places to go. The bars and even the people seem really chill.

I'm not sure where you are moving from, but I wanted to give you the best possible advice. It took me four months to get a job and the only job I could get was becoming a waitress. Most of the people I work with have Bachelors degrees, two girls I know have Masters degrees and everyone complains about not being able to find a "real job." Right now, all the college kids are moving back into town so it's about to get a lot worse with the job situation.

I would suggest that if you do have a job and a good rental- to hold onto it while you are in town and see if it is right for you. Your girlfriend may not find a job though. I would just rent and have money saved up so if you don't like it, you can roll out to some place else.

I think the best super market is probably Fresh Market but it's expensive. I also like Tidal Creek but only for certain things because that's really expensive too. (Tidal Creek is on Oleander.) (I hate that there are NO TRADER JOE's IN THIS PLACE!)

I think that's it for now. There are my pointers. I hope you get what you need!
Good Luck! =)