Crime in Conway/Myrtle Beach area (Charleston, Garden City: renting, violent crime, houses)
Myrtle Beach - Conway areaHorry County
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Hello I have a couple questions..I'm retired and wife is in process of it now and we have visited the Conway area along with Myrtle Beach area and honestly love what it offers. We are wanting to retire in the south so we don't have to deal with this Ohio freezing weather anymore. We have been vacationing to coastal Carolina since 1987 and love many of the areas. For us south Carolina offers more of a southern feel and we want that. We live in a very small town with not alot to do without traveling quite far. We will be selling our home and renting or camping down there til we find something. I see crime is very high in the area. For those of you that did what we want to do, how safe do you feel? Is crime really an issue? We are conservatives and vote Republican and conceal carry .. I know that doesn't matter, however I just wanted to let everyone know that we will not be bringing Ohio way of thinking or liberal far left thinking to the south. Part of the reason we chose the area of Horry county is it's a very red county. So please give me some info on safe areas, ways to meet people etc. We want a larger yard single story housing community anywhere in the area. Thank you very much. Bill
You will get a wide range of opinions on whether crime is really an issue. Some believe it is rampant while others, including me, believe that the statistics are skewed due to the huge number of tourists that visit the area. Tourists tend to leave their brains at home and do things that they normally would not...walk on the beach at 2:00 in the morning, hook up with a new "friend" in a bar and go back to their place, etc. and then they get robbed, etc. They would never go walking on the street in their home town at 2am but somehow believe it's safe at the beach. So, the statistics are influenced by tourism.
On the other hand, there is a fair amount of local crime just like in any town/city. There are parts of Conway and MB and Horry County that I would not feel comfortable driving in especially at night. Loris/Longs seems to have a gang problem...a fair number of shootings. The Racepath portion of Conway is a no-go as far as I'm concerned. But, much of the violence in these areas are drug dealers protecting their turf/taking out rivals, etc. and if you're not involved in that type of activity, it's generally safe. I also see a fair amount of domestic violence reported in the papers so that contributes to statistics as well.
Overall, I feel safe just about anywhere I go and I make sure I avoid those few areas where I would not feel safe. My 85 year old mother still gets out and about by herself and has had not problems.
As far as housing, your budget will drive what communities might be recommended as well as how far away from the beach and other activities you want to be. You can pretty much forget about a large yard in a community unless you buy an older home in an older community. Most newer communities come with 1/4 to 1/3 acre lots. But, believe me, when it comes time to mow your lawn in June-August heat/humidity, you'll think that even that much is too big...LOL. Renting is a great idea (that's what we did for the first year we were here) because it let's you experience life as a resident rather than a tourist. The experience is very different and will drive where you want to live. Lots of people love Little River/NMB because it feels smaller and there's lots of activities for locals whereas MB tends to focus on tourists. Surfside/Garden City has their own appeal with family focused activities. If you want to be further inland, Conway has a small, rural farming community feel (but it's an hour or more to the beach in the summer).
Ways to meet people...if you are religious, churches are a great way to meet people. Church attendance and religion are still a big part of life in SC. If you're not into church... volunteer groups, clubs/organizations, there are some meet up groups on Facebook...even some set up for people from specific states!!! The city of MB has a senior center and shows movies on Friday afternoons so that might be a way to meet others your age. I think Conway has a similar place.
Thank you CT. I do feel tourists skew the crime stats. I do things on Vacation I normally do not do at home. Not like you described though lol. 1/4 acre is all I will need or even less, just do not want my home so close to the neighbors that I have to turn sideways to go between the houses. Big enough for a pool but small enough to mow quickly. I will check out some of the groups for meeting new people. I did notice that most people say crime is not an issue and as long as I stay away from those areas I should be fine.
I'm not sure if Crime here is higher or lower than where I came from... or if more of the smaller crimes are reported because it is a smaller town. I would say, crime is higher than I expected and there are a number of fatal accidents, which seem surprising considering the population of the county. I subscribed to the paper so I could get a good idea what it is like in the area before moving.
As with most crimes. As long as you aren't hanging out with the wrong people you should be fine. And just like any town, be street smart and pay attention when out and about.
Pools may not be as prevalent as you may imagine. Everyone if FL has a pool (okay... not everyone... but a very high percentage). You definitely see a lot less pools here because of the shorter swimming season. If you do get a pool, get a heater so you can extend your swimming season.
For what it’s worth...I’ve been visiting for approx 10 years now averaging about 2 visits a year. From Charleston to Myrtle. I have yet to drive through an area that really made me cringe or want to lock my doors.
With that being said, I live in central Miami so....my standards might be lower than others.
I have lived here one year and I feel pretty safe just about everywhere. When I first moved here I was nervous in store parking lots etc but not anymore. I just wouldn't hang around downtown at night after dark. It seems a lot of the violent crime at the beach has been from visitors from North Carolina.
As for meeting people, we joined a few of the many meetup groups that are here, just google meetup groups. We also go to the many happy hours and meet many people at the bar that have become good friends that we get together with. Our neighbors are wonderful also.
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