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as i continue my research on relocating my family to the area. a few questions come to mind. the early thread about fire ants got me thinking.
1) what other pests or rodents are notorious in the upstate area.
(here in ne ohio, earwigs are a constant battle in the summers. the occasional poisonous spider my find its way into your home, and mosquitos can be a pain in the butt. as far as rodents go, maybe a raccoon in the trash or a mouse in the garage seems to be normal, as i'm sure it is everywhere. keeping your eyes out for deer while driving in the fall and winter months can be a little hazardous. just a few examples i guess.
2) what's the storm activity like? are tornadoes an issue? when a hurricane hits the coast, how is the upstate area effected?
sorry if these questions seem a bit silly. at times it just feels like i'm moving to a different country. thanks in advance.
1. I don't have too many pest problems. Occasional problems with ants and you need to have termite inspections yearly. If you live near water you'll have snakes.
2. Storm activity in Greenville itself is not big thing. We get occasional tornado warnings but in almost 20 years I've been here not one tornado. South of here Anderson, southern Greenville County, East into southern Spartanburg and West to Oconee County more of a chance.
We have pests. We have rodents. We have weather. Let me know if you find a place that doesn't. Seriously, the Upstate of S.C. is the greatest area in the country to live. Come on down. You will not regret it.
Pests: I second the termite advice. Depending on where you live, stinging ants can be a real pain. The company that does your termite treatment can treat for the ants as well, though. The upstate has earwigs but they really are not a problem unless you live in a wooded or damp area. (Wood roaches can be found in the same environment) Again, depending on where you live, mosquitoes can get quite bad in summer. If you have pets, you will have to treat for fleas and ticks year round and not just in the warm months. If you have a dog, you have to also add heartworm medication to the mix, as well as periodic roundworm treatment. As far as spiders go, you can find black widows and brown recluses in the area.
Rodents will only be an issue if they have a food source so as long as the grass is kept mowed and trash contained you should not see rodents. Raccoons and skunks can be seen at night if the trash cans are not secure or if you leave dishes of food out for outside cats. Deer will also be an issue, mostly at night in more wooded areas.
Like janrey said, storms are not a huge deal although some areas near springs and rivers can be prone to flooding during heavy rains. (Sometimes these rains come as a result of the tail end of a hurricane as it winds down across land)
I grew up in the area, just moved away 2 years ago. I love it there and your family will, too!
Nobody has mentioned ice storms, which happen from time to time. Everything shuts down, so driving to work won't be an issue, but you could be out of power for a while, depending on how far out you live.
Termites and palmetto bugs (aka roaches) are a big problem in the South in general. We have a newer house (3 years) have it sprayed monthly but I still can go into my yard and see roaches.
Nobody has mentioned ice storms, which happen from time to time. Everything shuts down, so driving to work won't be an issue, but you could be out of power for a while, depending on how far out you live.
We may not have tornadoes, but we can get some humdinger thunderstorms with high winds. I also learned that some of the trees have a very shallow root system and can easily uproot or split in two and fall over during a bad storm. One from the subdivision next to mine broke off and fell over our fence, missing my patio wall by just a couple of inches after one storm last fall. I did break down and bought a NOAA weather radio after a couple storms had me wishing I had a basement.
Ice storms have been a problem in the past, and most notably more recently. Roads become impassible with ice, trees, and power lines. Personally, I believe my family lost power for 4 nights, and couldn't find a hotel closer than Columbia. We ended up just roughing it in the cold and darkness. We survived. It's not something we worry about too much. It's only cold for a short time.
However, the City of Greenville is working with Duke Energy to bury the utility lines in the City limits to prevent such widespread outages and for aesthetic appeal. If it's something that concerns you, then you may wish to find a place to live within the city and around the first targeted corridors...
As for tornados and such, you may wish to know that Greenville County does not have a siren alert system. You'll have to find your storm coverage by internet, phone, tv, or radio. I think it's only fair to inform you of this, however severe weather of that sort is really not that common, IMO. We have summer afternoon thunderstorms of course, but tornado warnings seem to be rare for Greenville for whatever reason.
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thanks in advance. 
