[PG77]

Left Florida back in May of this year to move to Washington State for employment reasons. I'd give my right arm to go back to Florida if I had a job opportunity...im putting the airlines on standby

[michele704]

Moved to NC from Coral Springs a year and half ago and will be heading back to South Florida within the next few months. It is lovely here but just not for my husband and me. I miss the ocean, the weather, close stores and restraunts, and sushi delivery!!! I guess if you are okay with a quite rural lifestyle then NC is a great place...just not for me.

[JimKing]

Originally Posted by michele704

Moved to NC from Coral Springs a year and half ago and will be heading back to South Florida within the next few months. It is lovely here but just not for my husband and me. I miss the ocean, the weather, close stores and restraunts, and sushi delivery!!! I guess if you are okay with a quite rural lifestyle then NC is a great place...just not for me.

I hear that. We lived outside of Chapel Hill and then in Wilmington, NC. Not for us. We counted the days until we returned to S. FL. Then we had to spend several years in PA. Same deal, the calender was marked with the days left on our 'sentence'.

[bob dabalina]

Originally Posted by michele704

Moved to NC from Coral Springs a year and half ago and will be heading back to South Florida within the next few months. It is lovely here but just not for my husband and me. I miss the ocean, the weather, close stores and restraunts, and sushi delivery!!! I guess if you are okay with a quite rural lifestyle then NC is a great place...just not for me.

Union county? isnt that in the Charlotte area? Beautiful there, prettier than any Florida city of it's size. So many Floridians are there now too. I think the weather is better in Charlotte, b/c atleast it's not so hot all the time, or atleast 6 months out of the year. I'm not a big fan of cold weather, but changes are nice. But perhaps Union County is not just outside of Charlotte, b/c you would have all the ammeneties you can get in S FL there.

[michele704]

Union Co. is in the Charlotte area. It is beautiful but is still very rural. I am getting tired of driving 20 minutes to go out to dinner, 30 minutes to get to the mall...I can't even get chinese delivery!! (yes I like to eat)
Like I said, it seems to be absolutely wonderful for everyone else, just not for me.

[Sunandsand]

I would say get out of the Charlotte area, especially if you have kids. The air pollution is horrible due to all the industry, especially chemical plants. The good days of air quality are down to about 40%. Compare that to S. FL which is over 90%. Not worth risking your health if you have the option of living where the air is cleaner. And air pollution travels a long way, so many parts of NC are rated very poor, even many rural parts.

The Raleigh area also has very poorly rated air quality, under 50% 'good' days. Here is a little blurb about Charlotte's problems with the air.

From the EPA: Charlotte's ongoing environmental woes - the most recent being the EPA's 2004 ruling that the Charlotte area is in violation of federal air quality standards.
The eight-county Charlotte region must meet the EPA's 2010 deadline to improve our air quality or risk sanctions, including the loss of federal highway construction funds.
Not that a loss of funding is the only hazard. Charlotte's poor air quality also poses a serious public health threat, contributing to asthma attacks and other respiratory illnesses. In fact, an estimated 130,000 Charlotte area residents suffer from asthma, about a third of them children. Air pollution has also been linked to increased lung cancer mortality and an increased risk of cardiovascular problems.
While power plants and industrial plants are a significant source of our dirty air, according to the report, transportation-related air pollution is the most crucial issue Charlotte faces. "As of 2000, mobile sources including on-road and off-road vehicles like construction equipment created 60 percent of the emissions that resulted in smog," says David Farren, an attorney for the non-profit Southern Environmental Law Center, which produced the report. "And if you look to 2007, that figure jumps to 75 percent."

[bob dabalina]

perhaps the "air quality" isnt as good in raliegh and charlotte, which stinks. sorry to hear that. on the other hand, other than air quality, charlotte and raleigh offer much more of a better quality of life than any cities of it's size in florida.

seeing someone say, " get out of the charlotte area, especially if you have kids" is quite laughable, especially if you are saying this in ft lauderdale or orlando, miami or tampa, jax or pembroke pines, etc... we have smaller cities in fla that are more crime ridden than charlotte, and especially raleigh. ppl are nicer, and overall happier up there.

[lndmvr]

I have to say.............. after 26 years in St.Pete, Trenton, Tampa, left due to an insane divorced spouse. Then........... East Texas, Las Vegas, Woodland Park, Co, it's time to come back to Florida. We are looking in the rural areas of Pensacola only for the reason of being able to see the sunset on the water and to catch a fish or two. After being disabled on the job, income isn't an issue. Home prices seem reasonable by watching online. We lived both the real estate boom and bust and are damn glad to be getting out of 15 below and snow once a week. My worst problem is finding a place to put my rv while looking for a home. With housing as it is in all areas, we invested in a nice 5th wheel that is paid for and if the predicted doom comes, at least we have a roof over our heads paid for. ( don't want to live in a Walmart parking lot tho )

[latinalover]

I moved to Atlanta 2 years ago and the crime is unbearable here. I regret moving now even though the housing is some what cheaper depending on what area. I miss the beach, ocean, broadwalk, latin women, my sports teams, my friends and family. I plan on moving back in a few years.

[floridasandy]

i am currently in new jersey but wish i was back in florida. i dislike the increased traffic, the cost of living, property taxes, and bad air quality. i miss the laid back people of central florida. since our economy is tanking we might blame the state that we live in for our problems but i can see that it is on an almost national scale now, and florida had a lot to offer in terms of quality of life. for the record everybody i talk to up here wishes that they lived in florida, so i guess the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.