Moving from New England (Virginia Beach, Norfolk: apartment, rent, crime)

[SFT]

Hello everyone,

I am finishing college in the next year and looking to move for a few years after I get out of school, might just be temporary, or could end up being permanent, still not sure.

I am mostly looking for somewhere warmer with fairly close proximity to the beach. The Virginia Beach area seems to have a lot of cities close to the coast while being within a 10 hour drive of where all my family lives (New England).

I was interested to see if someone might give me a bit more of a personal insight into the Virginia Beach and surrounding areas? Right now I am trying to decide between Virginia/Hampton Roads area and Raleigh, NC and those surrounding areas.

Mostly I'm interested in what average rent is in the cheapest area of within 30-40 minutes of Virginia Beach. Raleigh and surrounding areas seem to have very low rent, but are also 3 hours from the beach, so if I could find decent rent much closer to the beach it would be great.

Also, does Virginia have the same type of a southern feel as North Carolina has? I was in Southport, NC recently as well as the Myrtle Beach area and everyone just seemed quite a bit nicer on average than you typically find up here in New England.

Thanks, I would appreciate ANY comment at all about the area as well as any sites to check out.

[rtandc]

Originally Posted by SFT

Hello everyone,

I am finishing college in the next year and looking to move for a few years after I get out of school, might just be temporary, or could end up being permanent, still not sure.

I am mostly looking for somewhere warmer with fairly close proximity to the beach. The Virginia Beach area seems to have a lot of cities close to the coast while being within a 10 hour drive of where all my family lives (New England).

I was interested to see if someone might give me a bit more of a personal insight into the Virginia Beach and surrounding areas? Right now I am trying to decide between Virginia/Hampton Roads area and Raleigh, NC and those surrounding areas.

Mostly I'm interested in what average rent is in the cheapest area of within 30-40 minutes of Virginia Beach. Raleigh and surrounding areas seem to have very low rent, but are also 3 hours from the beach, so if I could find decent rent much closer to the beach it would be great.

Also, does Virginia have the same type of a southern feel as North Carolina has? I was in Southport, NC recently as well as the Myrtle Beach area and everyone just seemed quite a bit nicer on average than you typically find up here in New England.

Thanks, I would appreciate ANY comment at all about the area as well as any sites to check out.

Everyone wants cheap rent or cheap housing, but with out including a dollar figure none of us really knows what your definition of cheap is and it may be totally different then what I think cheap is so it would help if you included a dollar figure when asking ......Yes you can find low cost housing in this area, especially if you are looking at going out as far as 30-40 miles from Va Bch....but it all depends on what you are will to give up to get it......

I dont think Va Bch has a southern feel at all, it is closer to being Northern IMO but its really not that either, with such a large military presence here we have a mixture of people and cultures from all over the USA

[SFT]

Sorry should have been more specific. Up in my area usually you can get a 1 bedroom place for around $500-600/mo or a 2 bedroom around $850-1000/mo depending on how nice the apartment is, in an area that is safe.

I'm basically looking for an area that is fairly close to the beach (within an hour or so), nearby or in the city, and that is fairly warm in comparison to New England. This lead me to looking in the North Carolina area, but there aren't any real cities near the ocean besides Wilmington which I've been to and not really interested in that area.

This all came about after visiting Myrtle Beach which I loved for the weather, nice beach, and so many people to meet from different areas. Unfortunately, there don't seem to be any good cities to live around by Myrtle Beach and the closest seems to be Raleigh area which is three hours away. But, it seems incredibly affordable in Raleigh, rent being very low in comparison to here (not sure whether crime has to do with that, etc.).

So what I'm trying to find out overall is how Virginia Beach compares to somewhere like Myrtle in terms of tourism and development and whether it is inexpensive to live near a decent city within 30-45 minutes. of there.

[chesapeakesim]

Hi SFT, what part of New England are you from? I am from up there as well. VA Beach doesn't have the same southern, friendly feel that say NC or SC has. As rtandc said, it is more like a northern city in terms of friendliness.

What is your degree in? You have probably read this in other posts, but I will say it again. The pay here is extremely low compared to the cost of living. Places in NE like Boston are expensive, but you get compenstated well so it evens out. A 1 bedroom here in an ok area will probably go for $850-$1000 a month. The jobs here are mostly service / tourism type jobs as well, not a lot of corporate presence.

On paper this area looks pretty cool, it is a big city, lots of waterways, near the beach, etc. But I personally don't really like it here. It has the big city problems, but none of the perks of a big city like pro sports teams. Also, the area is heavily, heavily military so if you are not in the military you feel like an outsider.

It will probably all come down to how important the beach is to you. If you absolutely must be close to the beach, then VA Beach may be your only option. But unless you plan on going like every weekend, I don't think it is worth it. I have lived here for 6 years and I have only been to the beach a handful of times. I would choose Raleigh if I were you.

Lastly, are you male or female? You didn't mention this, but if you are male, this is probably the worst place in the country to meet women. If you are female, then you will do great .

[SFT]

Originally Posted by chesapeakesim

Hi SFT, what part of New England are you from? I am from up there as well. VA Beach doesn't have the same southern, friendly feel that say NC or SC has. As rtandc said, it is more like a northern city in terms of friendliness.

What is your degree in? You have probably read this in other posts, but I will say it again. The pay here is extremely low compared to the cost of living. Places in NE like Boston are expensive, but you get compenstated well so it evens out. A 1 bedroom here in an ok area will probably go for $850-$1000 a month. The jobs here are mostly service / tourism type jobs as well, not a lot of corporate presence.

On paper this area looks pretty cool, it is a big city, lots of waterways, near the beach, etc. But I personally don't really like it here. It has the big city problems, but none of the perks of a big city like pro sports teams. Also, the area is heavily, heavily military so if you are not in the military you feel like an outsider.

It will probably all come down to how important the beach is to you. If you absolutely must be close to the beach, then VA Beach may be your only option. But unless you plan on going like every weekend, I don't think it is worth it. I have lived here for 6 years and I have only been to the beach a handful of times. I would choose Raleigh if I were you.

Lastly, are you male or female? You didn't mention this, but if you are male, this is probably the worst place in the country to meet women. If you are female, then you will do great .

Thanks for the response and I am a male so that does not seem like such a great deal. I probably wouldn't end up going to the beach EVERY weekend, so I guess the 3 or so hour drive from Raleigh to Myrtle Beach wouldn't be that bad.

I'm mostly looking for someplace a little more affordable than up north in New Hampshire. It isn't the most expensive place, not as bad as Mass. and such, but it seems like I could live fairly cheap in NC.

Thanks for the info.

[oceaneyes]

You might like Elizabeth City or Currituck. They are both in NC, about an hour from Va Beach and about 2 hours from the Outer Banks.

[frogbiscuit]

Hampton Roads is a great place to live but you have to get past the naysayers and the small town mentality. First, instead of there being one big city, there are five medium sized cities. Each city wants their own "downtown" so each city has a different feel.

There is plenty to do, lots of museums and art galleries. Do they compare with the Met or the Louvre? No.

There is traffic. Is it as bad as New York or Chicago? No.

There is a large military presence, but it makes up a very small percentage of the 1.7 million people living here. There are a lot of former military and retired military here, but there are also many many people who were born and raised here. I doubt you'll feel 'left out' if you're not military.

There are several professional sports teams here, two that are at the top of the minor league level, the Norfolk Tides (baseball), and the Hampton Roads Admirals (hockey). Harbor Park, where the Tides play, was chosen by Baseball America as the best minor league park in the country shortly after it opened. The Admirals routinely sell out, and its fans are among the most rabid I've ever seen? Is it Major league? No, but then you don't pay major league prices either.

There are also three Division I universities that all field competitive sports teams.

If you are into the outdoors, there are numerous biking and hiking trails around here and within a short drive. There is also very good hunting (Virginia has a Whitetail Deer population of 1,000,000) and world class fishing.

I could go on, but...

[stargazer64]

I am another 'mis-placed' New Englander. Moved here to Norfolk two years ago. I wannnaa goooo hoooomeeeee!!! lol I live in Ghent and love it, but nothing compares to VT.

[Erma]

Originally Posted by stargazer64

I am another 'mis-placed' New Englander. Moved here to Norfolk two years ago. I wannnaa goooo hoooomeeeee!!! lol I live in Ghent and love it, but nothing compares to VT.

Who says you can't go home? (by the way, this is a song by Sugarland and Bon Jovi)

[CosmicWizard]

Erma wrote:

Who says you can't go home? (by the way, this is a song by Sugarland and Bon Jovi)

That's a good song!