Moving from Mass...should I head for VA, NC, or SC? Please Help!!! (Charlotte: home, job market)

[krystalg]

My boyfriend and I are looking to relocate away from the cold New England weather in Massachusetts and are a little unsure of where to go. Here are the factors we would like to consider, any insight would help!

We have no children, so school areas are unimportant to us.
We would like to be within a half hour of the ocean, but not in a tourist driven location.
We want mild winters, not too cold and snowy/icy
I don't want excessively hot and humid summers
Beautiful scenery and things to do is a plus
Are there going to be bugs the size of my head?

Thank you all!

[robma44541]

Originally Posted by krystalg

My boyfriend and I are looking to relocate away from the cold New England weather in Massachusetts and are a little unsure of where to go. Here are the factors we would like to consider, any insight would help!

We have no children, so school areas are unimportant to us.
We would like to be within a half hour of the ocean, but not in a tourist driven location.
We want mild winters, not too cold and snowy/icy
I don't want excessively hot and humid summers
Beautiful scenery and things to do is a plus
Are there going to be bugs the size of my head?

Thank you all!

Let me put it to you this way..........the summers in NC are very hot and humid, I havn't been outside for more than 5 minutes this month without leaving a puddle of sweat behind me!
If you enjoy feeling wet and clammy and like living in airconditioning for months on end this is the place to live.
The past winter was cold but not as bad as in MA, very little snow.
Depends on what you like to do, probably about the same as you would do in MA also.
Some good sized bugs but not that big! Biggest problem is the no see'ums, they are here nine months of the year and bite like nobodys business!
And above all else, there are no jobs, unless you are a medical professional or want to work in a nursing home!
Just my observations living here for three years moved from MA.

[Akhenaton06]

If you're looking for any coastal location in the Carolinas or Virginia, you're going to have to deal with hot, humid summers. That's pretty much a given.

I'd suggest one of the smaller cities of Hampton Roads (Chesapeake, Newport News, Suffolk, Portsmouth, etc.) in VA, Wilmington in NC, and Mt. Pleasant or Goose Creek in metro Charleston, SC.

[HomeSweetHomeNY]

It's been nothing but hot & humid here in Wilmington.. Charleston is also disgustingly humid, way worse!! I think you are stuck with humid unless you move to the West. There are tons of roaches here, drives me nuts, but I like Wilmington. Really I think it's best to visit and feel the place out for yourself, some places are worth the humidity and some are not but only you can decide that.

[LittleDolphin]

You've lots of choices, of course, that's what makes it challenging. If you need jobs, perhaps post on some of the coastal areas and larger towns of VA to see how the job market is there...

North Carolina coastal areas, Wilmington, New Bern and Morehead City/Beaufort, don't have as many jobs...much of the work is seasonal, tourist-related. Health care is one of the bright spots.

The Raleigh Triangle area is best for professional, better-paying jobs, as is Charlotte, though both have been impacted by the current economy.

Don't know the job market in SC so can't speak to that.

Yes, summers are humid and hot. We got used to it after the first couple of years. Count on heat and humidity from beginning/mid of June--end of Sept. The rest of the year it's pretty great. Winters are not bad at all. We walk on the beach all year. Just a sprinkle of snow that doesn't stick.

Bugs? Yep, but we got used to those, too. Have a pest control contract on our house, they come quarterly and our home is bug-free.

Keep in mind that NC and SC coastal areas are a couple of hours away from large cities (with the exception of those areas close to Charleston SC) so if you need bright lights/big city, you'll have a fair drive. Wilmington is the largest town on the NC coast.

If you enjoy water-sports and live music and quieter activities with your friends, you'll find warm community here in the smaller NC towns.

[coffeebean330]

Although you don't have children now, wouldn't you also like to find an area with good schools for the future?

[Ellwood]

Even the Indians left Charleston and headed north in the summer to avoid the heat. Lots of bugs, and also snakes.

[LittleDolphin]

Yep there are snakes, but so far, they've not been a problem...found a pygmy rattlesnake in my back yard when I was picking up downed pine tree branches after a storm...but he left me alone and I gave him a wide berth. Only saw him that once...most snakes will do everything they can to get out of your way, though I've heard copperheads can be feisty, but so far haven't seen any of 'em...

What we have a lot of are small green anoles (little lizards). They look like the Geico commercial--I find them quite endearing...

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by krystalg

My boyfriend and I are looking to relocate away from the cold New England weather in Massachusetts and are a little unsure of where to go. Here are the factors we would like to consider, any insight would help!

We have no children, so school areas are unimportant to us.
We would like to be within a half hour of the ocean, but not in a tourist driven location.
We want mild winters, not too cold and snowy/icy
I don't want excessively hot and humid summers
Beautiful scenery and things to do is a plus
Are there going to be bugs the size of my head?

Thank you all!

I'd go where you can get a job - don't assume there will many to chose from either. You might try Virginia Beach, they are doing a bit better in the unemployment numbers than NC and SC.

[ohnowill]

Check out New Bern, NC. Approx. 40 minutes to the beach. Beautiful historic area (used to be the capitol). Lots of water (Trent and Neuse rivers converge here to form the start of the Pamlico Sound). Centrally located between Greenville, Goldsboro, Jacksonville, and Morehead City.