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My family and I (wife, kids - 3 and 1) will be relocating to the Greenville area near the end of March and know relatively little about the area other than the glowing reviews it has received from friends and family that live/have lived in the area and internet research; we will be headed down for a visit in February. My question is, in doing internet research we've found some great looking properties in the Greer area and we are curious as to the difference in living/quality of life in Greer as opposed to actually living in Greenville, or is there one? I'll be in a position that will have me commuting all over South Carolina with frequent trips to Atlanta and Macon (company wants me in Atlanta, but coming from Iowa I don't think we'd be happy in the sprawling metro traffic for very long). Specifically we're curious as to whether or not Greer lacks personality, convenience and amenities, little things like Target and a gym, and an opportunity for social interaction for my two little guys. Our only concern about actually living in Greenville is that the public schools seem to take a knock; we're coming from a very good school district in a state that prides itself on early education and will have two in school in a few years. Thanks in advance for any help.
The Town of Greer has a nice, but small downtown with a few excellent restaurants and specialty shops. They have an active chamber of commerce, and it seems a dedicated core of citzens who work hard to make continual improvements in the community. I live on the outskirts of Greer, but from keeping up with news in the paper, it seems like there is a real sense of community there. There are a variety of festivals and other special events throughout the year.
However, there is much more to Greer than that... there is quite a large area of Greenville County that has a Greer mailing address but not actually inside the town's corporate limits. This includes Eastside near Pelham Road and Thornblade all the way over to a long section of Wade Hampton Blvd (a lot of it shared between Greer and Taylors) that holds a lot of shopping - WalMart, Target, Home Dept, Lowe's, groceries, fast food, etc. There are gyms all over the place including multiple YMCA branches.
As a newcomer to the area - been here seven months - I find that you can drive around parts of the county and not really know which actual community you are in. What I mean is that you could live in Greer, and it's not really any different from living in Greenville - downtown and other amenities are easily accessible from most areas of the county.
I guess I would suggest you pick a location based on housing and neighborhoods you like and the best schools for your children. I don't have children, so others are better suited to reply to that part.
The Town of Greer has a nice, but small downtown with a few excellent restaurants and specialty shops.....
I guess I would suggest you pick a location based on housing and neighborhoods you like and the best schools for your children. I don't have children, so others are better suited to reply to that part.
BTW, I love it here!
Very well written. I can't differ on anything and would emphasize that, because of the similar nature and look of Greenville to the communities of Greer and Taylors, pick the location based on neighborhoods and schools that suit you.
I've just lived here (Traveler's Rest) for a year, but I see a lot of interest in re-establishing Greer's downtown as a "spot" to visit for both locals and outsiders. If/when a cinema is added, it will take off and increase the restaurant and boutique business beautifully. Otherwise, its going to take some persistence and continued city support to make it thrive economically. There is certainly money pouring into it and I'm hopeful.
Check into the property taxes. You'll pay more in the cities than in the county, which, as roadpony says, you can't differentiate between as you drive an area. I don't know how Greer city vs Greenville city taxes compare. Ask a Realtor. For my money, I'd live in the county, though you don't have city police and fire insurance may be higher.
I agree on your take on Atlanta. Its for some people, but not for me. Its busy and has lots of affluent suburbs. That consistency of affluent homes, block after block, even mile after mile, keeps prices very high. Some people want that insulation from anything resembling poverty or threats to property values, or for some other reason.
In Greer, and other Greenville suburbs, as you drive away from town, you are going to see pastures or woods within 3-5 miles. You are also going to see areas with mobile homes mixed in among the pastures on certain roads. If you want consistency, find a larger development that has a home owners association that enforces its restrictions. If you want to settle farther out from town, the developments will be small. But there will be homes on acreage too where you will need to drive 10 miles of surrounding county roads to "check the neighborhood" instead of driving around a few blocks.
I technically live in Greer but in the area mentioned above that's closer to Pelham Road and 85. I absolutely LOVE my location as it's a quick drive to just about anywhere. It' s an interesting area and covers a large expanse of territory as well as a wide variety of home types and neighborhoods.
Between Greer, Taylors and Greenville, there are a ton of restaurants, health clubs and most everything you could want. The Target is wonderful. There's a Lowes and Home Depot practically across the street from each other on Wade Hampton (nice when you can't find something at one and need to go to the other). I think all the Wal-Marts are Super Wal-Marts. It's truly wonderful. And, depending on where you live, it's like living in the city, but the country's 5-10 minutes away (or vice versa).
Downtown is old and quaint, though many of the buildings are being rehabbed and turned into trendy boutiques, businesses and restaurants. The city has recently built some new facilities, and there is a fabulous new park adjacent to the new City Hall.
I have taken several photos of Greer between summer and now and will post some in this thread in the next day or two so you can see a little of what we're talking about.
I technically live in Greer but in the area mentioned above that's closer to Pelham Road and 85. I absolutely LOVE my location as it's a quick drive to just about anywhere. It' s an interesting area and covers a large expanse of territory as well as a wide variety of home types and neighborhoods.
Same here, I live in the Pelham Road/I-85 area and I am VERY happy with it! The schools in that area are probably the best in the state (Buena Vista Elementary and Riverside High). The neighborhoods seems to be upper middle class.
I'm not a Wal-Mart hater, so I am very pleased with the new Walmart on Pelham/I-85.
It's hard to find anything bad about this location.
Last edited by mitchhedberg; 01-14-2009 at 10:58 AM..
Reason: missing quote character
good choice in moving to greer...whether speaking of schools, land, housing, amenities
research schools you have many to choose from; and as long as your childeren are highly motivated they will have honors and college waiting on them.
Greer is close to everywhere; highway 85 if you need to go out of town,3 walmarts close by, target, restuarants, hobby shops (skating, instruments, bikes), downtown greenville,building supply, two upholstery shops for vehicle interior, greenville technical college satellite near by, car auction, beautiful moutains, rim shops, vehicle dealerships (kia, hummer, toyota, nissan), the city of spartanburg..
greer is city and country formed together to make one..
and as for your childeren having childeren to play with: on average families living in greer have childeren (2)
ok 4 walmarts
Greer has some very upscale neighborhoods and contains some of the county's best schools. Buena Vista and Woodland are excellent, top-rated elementary schools: look for something in the Riverside attendance area. Brushy Meadows is a nice family-oriented neighborhood near those schools. Tons of children; very active swim team, etc. Many of the Eastside neighborhoods have swim teams that compete with each other, and a lot of active athletic teams such as soccer, etc. Other neighborhoods you might like depending on your price range: Silverleaf, Thornblade, Sugar Creek, Sugar Mill. Many nice neighborhoods are off of Old Spartanburg Road, past the intersection of Hudson Rd/Old Spartanburg. A realtor could give you some help in that area.
I suppose the biggest difference in the living quality of Greenville and Greer is a city vs. town. The eastside of Greenville is upscale with some of the more expensive properties/golf developments with a Greer address. Greenville County's schools here are crowded to the max because of the developments that pop-up. The district can't keep up with the growth. Most of the elem schools feed into Riverside and Eastside. Top high schools but crowded. These are on the outskirts of Greenville, not in the small town of Greer.
Living quality? Do you want to live on the outskirts of a city that are developments? These areas are known by major roads (Pelhem Road) with strip malls/restaurants. No "town" on the Eastside. Just developments continuiously, That is the "Eastside of Greenville"If so your center of "town" would be downtown Greenville. Culture, museums downtown. There are area rec associations for kids, churches etc. within these areas. If you want swim teams, that's the place, pools for summer in every development. Small yards and "close" neighbors. Check the annual rates. The "magnet schools" of Greenville County are placed in sections to draw students to the area, beware of living in those areas. Kids are transported by the parents from wealthier areas.
Or do you want to live in a smaller community of a town like Greer? It depends of what your family wants. More of a slower pace, community Christmas parade, organizations for community support of ministries, etc. Greer has real estate in city limits and out. Many new developments on the outskirts of the town of Greer, where you don't pay city taxes, but you pay county taxes. Very nice subdivisions in Greer with larger yards!! Several churches in town are the best place to start with your kids, the larger churches have excellent pre-school programs, but apply now for fall!! They keep waiting lists. Greer schools feed into Greer High. One of the few International Bach. schools in Greenville County. New school, with space and all of the advanced placement courses you could need. (Downtown Greenville is a 25 min drive from Greer.)
Downtown Greer was a great spot for George Clooney to film scenes from "Leatherheads" as well as downtown Greenville.
Don't neglect a visit to the high schools in which the elementary school feeds into. Always ask teacher ratio for those intermediate grades of 4-6, that's what you don't see when they take you to first grade in Greenville County, but that problem is district wide.
You can't go wrong moving in the area. But there are differences in Greenville and Greer, just depends on what you need.
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