Surfside/murrells inlet nice place to raise family? HELP! (Charleston: transplants, insurance)

[momtojosiah]

Does anyone know these areas? Is this a nice safe family place to live?
My mom and dad live in surfside now and my husband and I are thinking of moving there with our 4 month old son. Is it far enough away from crime and tourists? Any info would be geat! Thanks SO much!!
Nikki

[Rapture]

They are both really nice areas. Lots of things to do and I've heard good things about the school system. I'll pm (upper right corner) you a link about schools. As far as crime and tourists, there is crime everywhere. My guess is this is a low crime area but you can check that by calling the local law enforcement agency, type the town in City-Data or search on the internet. There are a lot of tourists from May to Sept. but depending on where your from the traffic might not be an issue. I would say the traffic is a lot worse closer to Myrtle Beach.

[SaveSouthCarolina]

Both are nice places but where are you going to do your shopping? I stayed near myrtle beach for 3 months in the winter and the crime in Mytle Beach in the winter was still very bad! The gas station I stopped at had just gotten robbed right near the old mall. In the spring, summer and early fall it will take you forever to go to some of these stores in Myrtle Beach. Now you can drive to Mt. Pleasant or Charleston but that will take you 1 hr to 1 hr 20 minutes. Even in Surfside from April to September the traffic and crime will increase ALOT! Mt Pleasant wold be a better place on the coast but is alot more expensive!

[baylovers]

I guess the crime theme is all relative... I came from NYC and I have never felt in any danger or threatened in Myrtle Beach. The crime staistics are a bit skewed to the negative side because of the amount of transient population that come into town and drive the numbers up in relation the amount of full time residents.

My opinion of Surfside is that is more resort oriented than Murrells Inlet. I did a ride along with county police during the winter and wasn't that impressed with the year-round population in Surfside outside of the planned communities. I would recommend the Murrells Inlet/Garden City area for raising a family.

The Horry County side of MI is in the Saint James school district and have heard good things about it. The Georgetown County side of MI is in the Waccamaw District, where my kids go, and I highly recommend it. I've been impressed with the schools and the sense of community that most of the parents have.

As far as shopping goes, there is an abundant amount of supermarkets in the area. If you need something from a department store, there is Coastal Grand mall, Inlet Square Mall & the Tanger Outlets on Rte 501. Traffic isn't all that bad, especially if you time your trips right.

[SaveSouthCarolina]

Traffic near Myrtle Beach is HORRIBLE from APRIL to September!!!
In the Summer to "time your trip" you would want to go early LIKE 6 -7 AM and be back by 9AM!!

I LOVE MYRTLE BEACH! I have been there 40-50 times and I stayed there for 3 months in the winter and also a few months in the summer a few times. Over the last 20 years since I was a teenager Myrtle Beach has went downhill especially over the last 10 years! The traffic is HORRIBLE and the CRIME...Well the Crime or the traffic is not as bad as NYC that is for sure but people who are from South Carolina the Crime in Myrtle Beach is Very bad!

[sclegacy]

I was born and raised in Pawleys Island which is within 5-10 miles of surfside and M.I. Overall, the area is extremely clean, friendly, and dignified. People know each other rather well and everything is accessible via Hwy 17. As long as you don't try to go anywhere around 3-5 o'clock, you will avoid major traffic with the commuters. Once you learn the back roads, and there are 10 of them, you can avoid evening traffic from the tourists riding brakes trying to figure out which of the myriad of eating establishments or entertainment ventures that they will frequent. People cannot, I repeat, cannot drive well in this area and you must become an effective defensive driver to live down here. This is also why auto insurance will be higher and you will be required to get more of it than in other areas. Still, crime is extremely low as long as you know what areas to avoid. This, too, you will learn within the first month of residing here. The natives love to gossip, are extremely helpful, and with all the senior citizens you will find the area has a family oriented feel to it. The schools are wonderful and they pride themselves on trying to ensure that all children matriculate somewhere if they are fortunate enough the finish a rigorous K-12 education within Horry or Georgetown County Schools. Horry schools are more diverse where as Georgetown schools are extremely segregated.

[usc_gal98]

Try Socastee. I'm a native of here. Love the schools and we are very close to the library, shopping, etc.
Surfside/Murrells Inlet are both nice places, too.

[momtojosiah]

Thanks to all of you for your imput
If you have any more info regarding this area and your opinions on it I greatly appreciate it. I want to make the right decision for my family.
Nikki

[Rapture]

I've lived here since January and I've seen traffic but none I would say is horrible. As far as comparing crime to NYC, I'm not sure if you can make that comparison. NYC was just named the safest city in the country, so I don't know what that says about Myrtle Beach.

Back to the subject...If I had to break down the area, I would say Surfside and Murrells Inlet are two of the nicest in the county.

Originally Posted by SaveSouthCarolina

Traffic near Myrtle Beach is HORRIBLE from APRIL to September!!!
In the Summer to "time your trip" you would want to go early LIKE 6 -7 AM and be back by 9AM!!

I LOVE MYRTLE BEACH! I have been there 40-50 times and I stayed there for 3 months in the winter and also a few months in the summer a few times. Over the last 20 years since I was a teenager Myrtle Beach has went downhill especially over the last 10 years! The traffic is HORRIBLE and the CRIME...Well the Crime or the traffic is not as bad as NYC that is for sure but people who are from South Carolina the Crime in Myrtle Beach is Very bad!

[tootsiesgirl]

My husband and I retired to Murrells Inlet from Long Island, NY 4 yrs ago and love it! It is a really lovely place with many nice people - among them, many transplants like us. Actually, Surfside Beach, Garden City Beach, Pawleys Island - The South Strand the area's called - are all lovely places to live with good schools. It's a bit hectic in tourist season, but nothing like Myrtle Beach. At worst, our abundant and wonderful seafood restaurants are VERY crowded. But we 'locals' just stay away, go for very early dinners, or just enjoy them in the winter!
Inlet Square Mall is right in Murrells Inlet. It's getting a much needed facelift and will be looking spiffy soon. Even now in it's rather outdated state, it suits me fine .... it's never crowded and I love that! There are decent stores: Belk's, Penney's, K Mart, Steinmart, Rack Room Shoes, Hallmark Cards and many others. There's also a multiplex movie theater.
Although the crime rate in Myrtle Beach is high, we've never felt unsafe or threatened anywhere we've been in this area. From my perspective, it's nothing to be alarmed about. I'm not trying to minimize it. But a lot of serious crime, murder for example, seems to be primarily more domestic violence and drug related not just random. There's MUCH LESS of it down here on The South Strand. It's just a charming, quieter, area and very conducive to a delightful lifestyle.
Hope this info was helpful. Good luck to you.
And to the poster who referred to the NYC crime rate - you're not too well informed because Myrtle Beach's is much higher!