Moving from Newark, NJ to South Carolina (Columbia, Clemson: real estate, 2009)

[inspirations2009]

Hello- my name is Lady Inspirations and my family which includes myself, my 8 year old son, and my husband are relocating from Newark, NJ to Columbia, SC. Originally, we were not sure if we should move to NC or SC, however, due to the poor school system here in NJ that I have had to fight tooth and nail with to get my son on track-and due to the high rent and our bad credit, I decided we need a change. We both have distant family and roots in South Carolina. A lot of people say it is too slow for them, but I would rather have a better quality of life than be concerned with the action-so I think anyway!

My husband has his CDL-B, local, but not over the road. He has been in transportation from buses to trucks for the past 10 years. I am a court clerk, but I also have past administrative experience. I plan to go back to college and obatin a teaching degree. We have found some nice places in Richland County, however, I am not sure what it is really like to live in 29223.

My son is into football and basket -ball and mentioned an interest in soccer. We are of Christian Faith so we are hoping to move near a church.
We plan to move some time in mid April or May. We have put in some applications, but have not gotten many callbacks. IS there any advice?

[jlboney]

I lived in the 29223 zip code when my wife and I bought our first house, it was off of North Springs and I always liked it there. We still live in Northeast Columbia, but now were are in the 29229 zip code and live off of Clemson Rd. I prefer Northeast Columbia for myself, but different people feel different ways. You check out Northeast, Blythewood, and you could check out Lexington as well. You may be able to find what you are looking for in any of them.

[inspirations2009]

Wow! thanks for the quick response. We are looking for a great school system. My son struggles with information processing. He is in the 2cnd grade/the school system will not classify him, so we need a school system that is willing to help. My husband is looking to continue working in transportation until we are ready to go into business ourselves. He applied to a few school bus jobs in Richland County-just for starters. He has also put in applications for city, state and county law enforcement and will meet next week with the bus company to see what is available. I plan to go back to college and get my education degree, but only have 18 credits so I cannot get into the University. Any more advice?

[lisake]

Hi Inspirations,
Like you, my family may soon be moving to Columbia, so I can't give you much advice there. However, as far as obtaining a teaching degree, have you considered starting at a community college? They're usually much less expensive than four-year colleges and have more flexible schdules, important for a busy mom trying to further her education. Maybe you could meet with an advisor at USC and find out which courses you could take at a community college that would transfer and apply toward your teaching degree. Maybe in two years you could qualify for a scholarship or financial assistance at USC.

Here's one community/technical college I found, but the Columbia natives should have more information:

Midlands Technical College - You can get anywhere from here!

Best of luck.

[inspirations2009]

thanks so much. I will look into the community college information and as far as jobs for my husband, we are still putting in applications. After I get my degree, he plans to do his. We tried early on in life, but after my son was born, full time jobs were our priority. We worked day and night to make ends meet. We learned how to budget so we can get by with one working and the other in school and if need be, I can get a part time job as well. Please let me know if there are any suggestions or if there is any advice.

[DanaSQ]

Originally Posted by inspirations2009

Wow! thanks for the quick response. We are looking for a great school system. My son struggles with information processing. He is in the 2cnd grade/the school system will not classify him, so we need a school system that is willing to help.

This may be a "backwards" approach to finding a suitable area to reside in, but if your primary motivation for moving is to find a school that will work with your son to help him get up to speed, perhaps you'd do best to call a few of the schools in the areas you're most interested in, and ask to speak with an administrator to see what resources/programs/special classes they have available.
If you're able to find one or more school districts that have more specialized programs/teachers that can help your son, at least you'll know what areas to narrow your housing search down to.

I feel your pain on the NJ school system - been there, done that. Stay strong!

[inspirations2009]

thanks for the help. I now realize that I need to come up with an organized plan to get his done. I have contacted so many different schools and have become overwhelmed to the point that my husband is willing to take just any job just to get us out of Jersey! Any advice you can give is appreciated. What neighborhoods are decent. I want to move close enough to the doobie shop, the mall and Walmart-skating, bowling, city life-but more so live i the suburbs. Not the deep dark woods. Please help. Let me know if there are any sites that are helpful other than sciway and realor.com

[inspirations2009]

does anybody know what kind of jobs are out there for truck drivers or warehouse work in Columbia S.C?

[jlboney]

I am afraid that I do not know what jobs are available here in those areas. You may want to check hotjobs or check the SC State Paper's website. For more info on Columbia in addition to the sites you have above, you can try Columbia South Carolina - Tourism Real Estate and Relocation - Columbia SC and Richland County South Carolina - Richland Online.

What you are looking for in a place to live can be found in a few places around the Columbia area. You may want to look into Northeast Columbia. Just about anything you would want is right there. The Village at Sandhill is full of stores, restuarants, specialty shops, and even a movie theater. There is a bowling alley on Two Notch Rd, also in the Northeast, and you would not be far at all from down town Columbia if you wanted to go there.

As far as schools are concerned, I can't really say very much about them, as I do not have children myself. So, I try to avoid hearsay. But maybe these will help some, here are the websites as well as contact numbers for Columbia's school districts. I included Lexington, because it is right next to Columbia, and you may want to do a little research on that area as well.

Richland 1- 830-231-7000 this is the number for information. The school board office is 803-231-7556.
richlandone.org

Richland 2- The number for student services is 803.738.3228. Richland2.org

Lexington 1- (803)-821-1000 Lexington1.net

Lexington 2- 803-796-4708 Lexington 2

Lexington 3- 803-532-4423 Lexington 3

Lexington 4 (803) 568-1000 Lexinton 4

Lexington-Richland 5 803-476-8000 Lexington-Richland 5

[mother2threekids]

Our kids are at Bookman Rd. Elem. which has won many awards. The school is good and we like it! We live close to Village of Sandhills shopping and there is a skating rink nearby that the schools host "skate nights" for the kids as a fund raiser of sorts. The community is very diverse and all amenities are nearby. Unfortunately we are moving north ourselves...we wish we could stay...