MD or NC Which Will It Be??? (Ellicott City, Bowie: house, preschools)

[DWS43]

As my husband and I weigh the possibility that his company may choose to relocate a number of personnel, I have started researching two possible locations where we might end up. After checking out the Raleigh RTP board, I have now come here to learn more about Ellicott City. I spent 14 years in the DC Metro Area and my husband lived in MD for about 4 years. We feel pretty confident that we would look forward to a move back to the area.

I have searched the archives, but if anyone would like to share their impression of Ellicott City with us please feel free. We have a 3 year old so we would be very interested in opinions on preschools, elementary schools and nice subdivisions.

Thanks,

D

[Alanboy395]

Originally Posted by coldwellbankerbroker

Hi,

I moved from Maryland to North Carolina two years ago. I LOVE it here in North Carolina. I stayed in the Bowie, Mitcheville area and housing was so expensive. I purchased a 5 bedroom home here in NC for 200k. That same home in Maryland would be somewhere around 700k. The bottom line is that you LIVE better the further south you go. I hope this helps

i agree, i live in NoVA (jus across the bridge) which is even worse in house value and am trying to move to NC (charlotte or winston-salem). That 200k house that would get 700k in Mitchellville would fetch over $1.1 million in the city of Alexandria. Although i am a fan of Bowie even more of Mitchellville, NC is where it's at.

[DWS43]

Thanks for the responses. I grew up in Alexandria and lived in Bowie briefly. I believe my husband and I would really like NC, but his employer is driving the move so as it looks more and more like MD we will just have to deal with the high cost of living. Honestly, with property taxes approaching $20K in NJ anything would be an improvement.

D

[Njrover0216]

We are heading out of MD to NC ourselves. It is going to get just as bad here in MD as it is in NJ. My husbands parents are in NJ, and MD is heading in that directions. Electricity rates are skyrocketed! My grocery bill has gone up 100 dollars more a month, property taxes...the list goes on and on! We are moving to a place called Clayton on the outskirts of Raleigh.

[DWS43]

We were completely focused on Raleigh/Cary then we heard MD was back on the list. It seems like costs are going up in both places. Best wishes with your move.

[RoadTripGurl]

Hee hee to Njrover0216 I think PSEG and BGE are in cohoots together! I moved back to MD to escape the cost and a month after being here they announced the hike! Yikes! I can't wait until BGE is in the past!

[isis297]

Who is PSEG through? What location? I've thought about NC too vs. MD but am concerned about the growth down there. It seems like NC is having a tough time dealing with the influx of people and aren't doing what needs to be done like MD is doing with BRAC. The article I read talked about how MD is working out roads, schools and everything now while it sounds like parts of NC are ignoring it or thinking about year round schooling which I would not want actually. Is all of NC that way? I'd hate to end up somewhere just to have it be out of control in five years because everybody else had the same idea as me. LOL

[RoadTripGurl]

PSEG is the utility company in New Jersey. NC is just on my list, the bottom of it actually. I am also thinking about TX and CA. TX is at the top because of affordability.

[karpo]

oh my -- I could write a novel on this...

I grew up in MD and then moved around for a bit and then moved back... and then FLED!!!

Just because you lived there before, don't expect it to be the same. Yes, it is a nice place to live (cultural-wise). But the only people who aren't struggling are those who were living there before housing skyrocketed!!

The reason the incomes are so high are because everything else is so high.

My husband made awesome $ there, on paper... but it wasn't enough for us to be able to live there even comfortably...

[DWS43]

Oh believe me, I know nothing ever stays the same. I guess I just feel more comfortable in both places (MD due to familiarity) and NC because I have family there. NJ is not bad, I just am not a big city person. Nine years in and right outside NYC is enough for me.

D