Irmo, or Lexington? (Columbia, Newberry, Forest Acres: homes, neighborhoods, buy)

[ElliottW]

My (retired) cousin and his wife are considering relocating to the Columbia area, and they're trying to determine which areas would be best for them. Recently, they have been seriously considering Irmo; someone else also recommended the Lexington area. The most important factors for them are housing costs and traffic. Which of the two would have a more affordable cost of living? Also, does one of them have noticeably more traffic than the other? And which one is more convenient to amenities?
Also, if you'd like to recommend another area in Columbia which you like better than either Irmo or Lexington, I'd certainly like to hear from you. Any comments at all will be appreciated. Thanks!

[waccamatt]

Are they going to be commuting to work anywhere or are they retired?

[ElliottW]

They are retired. He retired about a year ago.

[waccamatt]

What types of interests do they have? Do they want to be near the lake, shopping, museums, restaurants, etc?

[ElliottW]

I just called them for clarification. He told me that they had decided that both Irmo and Lexington were too far from the city. They're now interested in living closer to Columbia per se, and they're mainly interested in the eastern and/or southeastern sections of the area (within the "loop").

[Palmetto Heel]

Save for homes on the lake, I think that homes in Lexington will hold their value better than homes in Irmo over the long term. The development in Lexington just seems to be of better quality.

[waccamatt]

Originally Posted by ElliottW

I just called them for clarification. He told me that they had decided that both Irmo and Lexington were too far from the city. They're now interested in living closer to Columbia per se, and they're mainly interested in the eastern and/or southeastern sections of the area (within the "loop").

Elliott, if I were about to retire I would look at the Shandon area, which is very close to everything, but still relatively quiet. It is on the southeast side of downtown, not far from Five Points and adjacent to the Devine Street corridor, which has a lot of nice restaurants, boutiques, etc. If they want to be a little further out then they could look at Forest Acres, which is also convenient to a lot of parts of town. I personally love Shandon because it is a great neighborhood for walking or biking and is close to everything. I have photos of various neighborhoods on my website, which is linked in my profile.

[Palmetto Heel]

Originally Posted by waccamatt

Elliott, if I were about to retire I would look at the Shandon area, which is very close to everything, but still relatively quiet. It is on the southeast side of downtown, not far from Five Points and adjacent to the Devine Street corridor, which has a lot of nice restaurants, boutiques, etc. If they want to be a little further out then they could look at Forest Acres, which is also convenient to a lot of parts of town. I personally love Shandon because it is a great neighborhood for walking or biking and is close to everything. I have photos of various neighborhoods on my website, which is linked in my profile.

LOL. IMO the nice thing about being retired is that you don't need to live near work. If I were retired I'd sell my home in Shandon, buy a really nice place in a small college town like Newberry or Clinton and pocket the difference. To each his own. LOL.

[waccamatt]

Originally Posted by Palmetto Heel

LOL. IMO the nice thing about being retired is that you don't need to live near work. If I were retired I'd sell my home in Shandon, buy a really nice place in a small college town like Newberry or Clinton and pocket the difference. To each his own. LOL.

LOL, exactly. I would last exactly 3 hours in the country before the quiet drove me crazy.

[ElliottW]

Thanks for the recommendations! That info is quite helpful.