Please help....moving to MB from Seattle (Charleston, Myrtle Beach: real estate, to rent)

[Scotty Dosent Know]

I have grown up in the Seattle area (15-20min north of down town) and my g/f and I are most likely going to be moving to Myrtle Beach for a job. I am 29 and my fiance is 22 we love it and here but taking the job there will mean a substantial raise in pay especially since my buisness out here is floundering. I will be doing insurance claims adjusting for storm damage.

What I wanted to know is what is a good area to live in the MB area?? I noticed just looking online N. Myrtle beach is a little nicer? Due to the low real estate prices we will be buying a house hopefully with in a year of moving out there but dont know where to start looking. We have 2 dogs so we need a yard and we also need a garrage. We are also not big fans of living in the city, we prefer the quiet suburbs. We dont party etc.

We dont have to be in MB but the surrounding area would be nice since her family lives in the MB area and would be the only people we know there.

I am totally lost since I have lived here my whole life and I know this will be a big change.......please help!

[PawleysDude]

Hey Scotty - Welcome to MB. I'm not sure it will impress after Seattle, but it's a decent place, particularly since you have a job waiting on you.

You're on the right track not planning to buy immediately, so I wouldn't worry about it until you're here. The entire Grand Strand is a compressed area, and it won't take you long to scout out surrounding areas, to find something that appeals to you. Carolina Forest is a huge planned development near MB that appeals to many immigrants to the area. I don't particularly recommend it for buyers, but it's a good central location to rent and begin your search.

Given the mental condition of the current City of MB govt, I would never consider living within the city limits, but you've got a lot of good choices nearby. Conway is very nice, a little inland from MB. North MB is also a nice area, although it can be congested. To the South of MB, both Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island are popular, although both are quickly becoming very touristy. IMO, Georgetown, just a little further South, is one of the few pleasant areas remaining that have not yet been overrun by too many new residents or by the tourist craziness. Georgetown, perhaps along with Conway, is also one of the few remaining vestiges of the old South in the coastal SC region. Regardless, come one down and rent a little while. It won't take you long to find the best spot for you and g/f.

[pburgess68]

I concur with PD on everything he said, especially about the mental condition of our goverment .

Georgetown is lacking desperately in employment, as is Horry county. We are a tourist area, and there are really NO jobs, not joking. I've been without a job since last August, and I'm IN the food business. If you do a search on the forums, a great deal of us suggest people move further south to the Charleston area and surrounding neighborhoods. Good schools (which is generally lacking here), still reasonable $$ on homes, close to MB, and very family and pet friendly. Oh, and there's things to do besides golf!!!!

Horry County is not a place one would want to come to unless you are independantly wealthy or have a high paying job that's transferring with you, like my boyfriend had. There is very little chance of this changing in the next 5-10 years, unfortunately, unless we can get the people who are in power OUT, and the mindset changed away from "just" a tourist area. Until then.....