Would I like the Greenville area?

[LynchburgLover]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

Not quite. Columbia has historically been the state's most liberal city and its metro is the bluest of all in the state (except Sumter) and has been for a little while now. A majority of voters in metro Columbia in the 2012, 2016, and 2020 presidential elections broke for the Democratic candidate. That only happened in last year's election in metro Charleston, and just barely (50.1% vs 52% in metro Columbia).



Good observations, and Jacksonville and Columbia have a good bit in common on this front.



If I were you, I'd probably look at Spartanburg (which is entering its own boom phase) or Anderson if you were considering Upstate SC. I don't know if you included them in your search or were zeroing in on Greenville in particular, but they have their own plusses and advantages also.

Spartanburg is indeed undergoing a boom but I think it’ll be a pretty long time before anyone considers it “liberal”. Same with Anderson. They are two of the reddest of the red areas of the Upstate.

[Huckleberry Knob]

If you are open to small cities like Anderson, you could look at Orangeburg which is located on the interstate between Columbia and Charleston.

The voters in Orangeburg County went 66% for Biden.

Orangeburg is a college town with a public and a private historically black college.

It seems like it is big enough to have some accounting jobs. I'm sure some residents commute to Columbia or Charleston area for work but take advantage of the lower cost of living in Orangeburg.

[Huckleberry Knob]

Originally Posted by SCGAFL

They have Wegmans?

Wegmans hasn't been in Raleigh long. I'm thinking most of the hype is Duke and UNC being located there.

We are starting to get that kind of hype with Clemson's success in football the past 10 years although I don't think most people associate Clemson with Greenville specifically.

I will be surprised if Greenville doesn't get a Wegmans soon. It will probably be the first SC metro to get one if they do expand into SC.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by LynchburgLover

Spartanburg is indeed undergoing a boom but I think it’ll be a pretty long time before anyone considers it “liberal”. Same with Anderson. They are two of the reddest of the red areas of the Upstate.

I agree with that but I recommended them as they aren't as large and fast-growing as Greenville currently is.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by Huckleberry Knob

If you are open to small cities like Anderson, you could look at Orangeburg which is located on the interstate between Columbia and Charleston.

The voters in Orangeburg County went 66% for Biden.

Orangeburg is a college town with a public and a private historically black college.

It seems like it is big enough to have some accounting jobs. I'm sure some residents commute to Columbia or Charleston area for work but take advantage of the lower cost of living in Orangeburg.

If Columbia doesn't have jobs in his field, it's pretty safe to say Orangeburg doesn't either. There's also no good reason to live in Orangeburg if his job will be in Charleston based on what he's looking for. And I know from experience that the commute is a rather soul-draining one.