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having lived in Wilmington 35 years I can honestly say that in my opinion it is not a middle age family friendly place. The nearest sizeable city with real museums is Raleigh, nearest zoo is in Asheboro. Unless you love paying to park blocks away to walk to the beach then having to go back and forth every half hour to hour to feed the meter so you won't get a ticket or spending a lot of time sitting in your car in a traffic jam on college road during the summer because everyone seems to think that college road is the ONLY way to get to Wrightsville Beach you won't find a lot to do. The traffic is worse than horrible and New Hanover County was ranked the worst county for traffic accidents. There is next to nothing that a family with a 7 year old child can do in Wilmington as the majority of things are done during the week so to me that rates Wilmington as not very working parent friendly. Unless one parent is a stay at home parent then you miss the majority of opprotunities available for children such as swim lessons taught by decent instructors (tried the YMCA, big mistake) or reading hour at the library to name a couple. The school system is just average at best and forget about moving into a neighborhood because it is close to the good schools because chances are that that isn't the school your child would be going to anyway, or at least not for a extended amount of time. Neighborhoods vary a lot, Kings Grant is an older neighborhood and it hasn't been revitalized or improved. You will find newer neighborhoods off of Gordon Road, Potomac Woods, Brittany Lakes, and also out past an area called Ogden, it just depends on what you are looking for. It is hard to find decent newer houses that aren't in cookie cutter neighborhoods; by decent I mean homes that don't require a lot of repairs or replacing, that are priced below $200,000, it can be done but be careful of neighborhoods that charge you homeowner's dues and puts a lot of restrictions on what you can and can't do. There is a neighborhood off North College Road called Northchase, it's pretty big and there are all sorts of homes/condos in a lot of price ranges. They have a nice pool/tennis court so that is a plus, they do charge homeowner's association fees but with the pool which is manned by lifeguards I guess it is worth it. My husband and I are actually looking to move away from here within the next few years and head up north, even though it will be a climate shock I feel like I've outgrown Wilmington and it's wannabe a big city attitude along with all the people who think they need to go everywhere at full speed and God forbid you get in their way. Remember this is all just my opinion but having been here as long as I have, my entire life, Iv'e seen Wilmington grow and it hasn't been all that good. We are basically an overpriced tourist/college town that doesn't have much to offer your average middle class working family.
Walknred, what you said about the beach is SO TRUE. I think a lot of people think living in Wilmington, you will have easy access to beach--- and it is such a headache. At Wrightsville, you must get down there EARLY to get a parking space and then, like you said, feed a meter about every 30 minutes.
If you get there past 9am, forget about it, or drive around for hours looking for a space to park. It's not much better at Carolina/Kure Beaches, and then you have to get through all that College Road traffic to get to there. When we lived in Wilmington, we usually drove 30 miles north to Topsail to avoid the crowds (and we lived less than 3 miles from Wrightsville Beach) --I'm sure Topsail will be crowded out soon enough.
Unless you actually have a beach place or know someone who does, it is not easy. Wilmington was great in the 80s and early 90s --- the beaches weren't packed and traffic problems were practically nonexistent. There are lots of good things about Wilmington, but like everywhere, it has bad sides too. Before anyone moves here or makes plans to move, I would recommend that you visit for a week at least.
I visited Wilmington 3 times last year, Last visit in July, I only went to Writesville beach twice and had no problem with parking... Once before noon, lots of spaces, and once later, maybe I got lucky..The other attraction I have to Wilmington is the Riverwalk and downtown.. I loved eating by the river outside and walking around... Yes, I was on vacation so maybe I saw it through rose glasses... I am still considering it... I think If you put a price point at 350K there are many options for a new or almost new really nice homes.. Under that, I wasn't impressed...Lot's of homes that looked like brick
prisions.. lol...
Downtown scared me somewhat, while walking the streets. It appeared like Homeless people just wandering around...Riding bikes..Beautiful old homes though, some begging for a restore..Now I see new condo's going up all around Downtown.. Being I don't have children, I never really looked at it in a way a family would....So much to consider, when picking up and moving your life...
I visited Wilmington 3 times last year, Last visit in July, I only went to Writesville beach twice and had no problem with parking... Once before noon, lots of spaces, and once later, maybe I got lucky..The other attraction I have to Wilmington is the Riverwalk and downtown.. I loved eating by the river outside and walking around... Yes, I was on vacation so maybe I saw it through rose glasses... I am still considering it... I think If you put a price point at 350K there are many options for a new or almost new really nice homes.. Under that, I wasn't impressed...Lot's of homes that looked like brick
prisions.. lol...
Downtown scared me somewhat, while walking the streets. It appeared like Homeless people just wandering around...Riding bikes..Beautiful old homes though, some begging for a restore..Now I see new condo's going up all around Downtown.. Being I don't have children, I never really looked at it in a way a family would....So much to consider, when picking up and moving your life...
The brick homes that look like prisons? Hurricannes....there is a reason for such construction. It may not be as stylish...but they hold up well to the wind.
And I think you did get very lucky finding a parking spot at Wrightsville Beach. Did you go in the off season or when there was less then great weather?
The brick homes that look like prisons? Hurricannes....there is a reason for such construction. It may not be as stylish...but they hold up well to the wind.
And I think you did get very lucky finding a parking spot at Wrightsville Beach. Did you go in the off season or when there was less then great weather?
Sorry, but I did think the brick homes each identical looked like prisons..I have seen many new homes with hardi-plank? I guess it's a personal thing..
I really don't like brick, but see it would be solid against hurricannes...I really like the pastel's of the beach cottages in Southern Oaks.. I wish more builder's would choose that look.. Esp in a Beach town..
I went to Writesville beach I think in May.. No problem at all getting parking, I arrived before 1pm.. When I got back in the car after 2pm there were many people looking for my spot.. Then again, in July... No problem, Must have been luck..
Yes, you were extremely lucky to get parking at Wrightsville Beach without a problem. Maybe you went during the week and not the weekend? It isn't as bad then -- but, if you work during the week, doesn't really help you.
You bought your home 2 years ago for 115,000 and now if you sold it..look at the jump. Everyone hopped on that bandwagon, so to speak, and started price gouging homes for way over value prices. 2 years ago, maybe you were still lucky..but the boom kicked up about that time for some major hikes in home costs in the Wilmington area, and surrounding areas like Hampstead and Leland. Consider yourself lucky that you found a good deal on your home. We also were lucky enough to buy a home we'd rented for a few years, but if it had gone on the market, and we hadn't worked out something with the owners, we wouldn't have been able to afford our home for sure.
Just curious - wonder why some entrepreneur hasn't started a shuttle to the beach area from downtown every 30 minutes or so to cut down on traffic/parking woes?
Since I'm moving there in a month or so, I guess I'll have to do it! LOL.
I doubt many people would use it. The majority of the people going to the beach aren't coming from downtown and it would be inconvenient to drive there just to hop on a shuttle, plus I'm sure it wouldn't be for free. Then you have to find parking downtown and pay meters there, even bigger hassle. May as well just take your chances and drive yourself. I lived in Wilmington for 11 years and rarely ever went downtown. I basically just stayed away from Wrightsville Beach during tourist season or went to the beach up in Topsail.
Last edited by scjj; 05-24-2007 at 08:25 AM..
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Liz
You just answered your own question
