Young teacher wanting to relocate to NC, which area?? (Raleigh: rentals, how much)
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Hello! I am 23 years old and just graduated with a degree and license in teaching elementary school in Ohio. I have been wanting to move to NC for a while now but go back and forth about which area would be best. I am torn between living somewhere near Raleigh or somewhere by the east coast.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the beach and warm weather which is the main reason I want to go to NC...so I am interested in somewhere on the coast but don't know much about it.
Orginally I was looking at the Raleigh and surrounding areas. I dont' think I would want to live RIGHT in the big city of Raliegh. Two of my girlfriends live and teach in Clayton and they said its a pretty small town but I haven't had a chance to visit. Because I am so young having a great nightlife and plenty to do is important and thats why Raleigh catches my eye.
Living right outside Raliegh sounds ideal becuase I can have the city close along with nightlife and plenty to do all while living in a small town....but won't I be too far from the beach?!?!?
WHY can't Raleigh be on the coast or is there a place I don't know about that gives you plenty of city/night life, great schools, AND the beach!!! HELP..I want the best of all worlds!!
Living in Raleigh is not like living in a big city. Clayton is further away from Raleigh than you may realize. Raleigh has lots of suburbs in the city limits, and parts of Cary, Morrisville, and Garner are only 15-20 minutes to downtown Raleigh and its nightlife. The drive to Wrightsville Beach, NC from Raleigh is 2.5 hours on a major highway. Atlantic Beach and Morehead City are 2.5 hours also. You might also be interested in the Wilmington, NC area if you want to be near the beach. It was voted as the 7th best place to live by Money magazine this year and also has a nightlife and young person scene. There is lots of affordable housing a bit outside of Wilmington.
My brother and a ton of his friends from Ohio teach school in NC. He's on the coast in Jacksonville along with many of his friends. We also know a bunch of Ohioans teaching the Raleigh/Cary area. Everyone i know know loves it down there. I'm not a big fan of Jacksonville, but you might want to check out the areas around it.
There is a hiring freeze in the Wilmington area for public school teachers, so finding a job would be a problem. I think the freeze is across the state. You would have to find a job in a private school.
Teachers are one profession that should be pretty recession-proof, especially as so many are moving into this area. Wilmington is the closest combination of City+Beach you'll find in NC, though you might look in Virginia in the Norfolk/Virginia Beach area or in SC at Myrtle Beach or Charleston (actually I think Charleston probably fits what you're looking for most of all).
There's not a hiring freeze across the state. Most teacher hirings are by the local education agencies, not the state. It would depend on the area's school board on whether a hiring freeze would be instituted.
So do you think Raleigh is a pretty safe place to live overall? I live in Lakewood which borders downtown Cleveland, OH. Im sure it can't be worse than here! I live about 5 minutes outisde downtown and love it but I could Never live any closer because it gets kinda ghettto once you get into certain parts. Does Wilmington have a ton of tourists?? I might be leaning more towards Wilmington if you say I can have the beach + city. Do you know anything about the schools there?
Wilmington is very expensive. The city core kind of reminds me of Cleveland and Youngstown in some ways. All the new homes outside of the core are very expensive. They start in the $400k's from what i've seen and there is a ton of traffic. Maybe the locals will know better, but that's what i noticed when i was there.
Raleigh is safe. I lived in the ghetto and suburbs. I preferred the suburbs. There's lots of rentals and different priced housing.
Wilmington homes (if you're looking to buy), don't all start at $400k. You can also just rent for a year or so. I imagine you're not looking to immediately buy. I really recommend renting in either Raleigh area or Wilmington until you find a neighborhood in either that suits you.
A lot depends on the life style you want and how much stress you can handle. As a retired teacher who lived and worked in New Bern for 30 years, I can look back and reflect on this question. If I were to do it all over again, I might not do anything different. Who knows? But, after retirement, I moved to a small town on the coast: Emerald Isle. I love the relaxed lifestyle and living AT the beach rather than near it is a wonderful plus. So, remember teaching is only part of your day. Do you love the mountains, the coast, or a large city? Then let that guide you to your destination.
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