Cameron, North Carolina (Greensboro, Fayetteville, Cary: relocating, real estate, military)

[NEWLIFE8]

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! I am relocating to NC next month and did find a house online. It will pretty much be sight unseen because we wont' get to visit before relocating; but I think the pics do the place justice. It's listed with Carole Davis Real Estate, LLC. I believe it is located in Cameron, NC. Can anybody give me any insight as to the community/town? Your help is greatly appreciated.

[displaced.highlander]

Cameron is a very small community near Southern Pines, Vass, Pinehurst, Whispering Pines, Foxfire, Aberdeen, and other small towns in Moore County. It was previously the "Dewberry Capital of the World". Now it is the "Antique Capital of Moore County". (The main strip through Cameron has become a touristy Antique attraction.)

I am guessing you (or your spouse) might be active military. Fort Bragg is nearby and there are lots of military folks who have moved with the base expansion to the Cameron area over the last 10 years (especially) - particularly east of Cameron.

The population of Moore County has changed radically in the last 30 years, especially the last 10 years. Until then/now, the northwestern (Piedmont) portion was primarily comprised of English/German families that had populated the area since European colonization. The remaining (Sandhills) portion was primarily comprised of Scottish families that had populated the area since colonization (except for the fairly large concentration of northern retirees in the resort towns of Pinehurst, Whispering Pines, and Foxfire).

Folks from outside the region generally consider it a friendly place as most of the rural South. Southerners generally do not generally consider it to now be a friendly place as the recent arrivals tend to be relatively cold/unfriendly compared to the "locals".

Twenty years ago everybody waved to everyone passing by on the road and greeted everybody walking by whether they knew them or not. Now it is often the case that young couples living next door to each other with children of the same age don't know their neighbors names or speak to each other and consider someone whom they don't know waving at them to be some sort of nut or stalker.

If you like to eat, however, (and can afford it) there are lots of good restaurants in the Southern Pines - Pinehurst area. This area probably has the highest ratio of restaurants to people in North Carolina (and most areas of the US).

Recent arrivals outnumber locals in the area. With so many recent arrivals of diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, folks tend to be wary of others relative to more stable areas of the South. Locals in the Sandhills area are very welcoming to friendly/trustworthy newcomers and bristle up against newcomers who are "uppity".

Almost no real estate agents operating in the Moore County area are "locals". Most are recent arrivals who have fairly limited/shallow knowledge of the area. In short - as with any area - speak to the locals if you are interested in learning about the area and not the real estate agents who just want to make a sale.

If you are interested in learning more about the area, I suggest the following resources:

Carolina Scots (author is from Moore County)
Carolina Scots - Home

Cameron Antique Dealers Association
Cameron Antique Dealers Association - Cameron, NC Antiques

Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg

Sustainable Sandhills
Sustainable Sandills Web Site

Weymouth Woods - Sandhills Nature Preserve
N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation: - Welcome to Weymouth Woods-Sandhills Nature Preserve

Southern Pines Business Association
Welcome to Southern Pines, N.C.

[NEWLIFE8]

Wow! Thank you so much for your reply! We're not military by they did have some very inexpensive modular homes for rent, and I found one for $600/mo. for a 3 bedroom, so I was just wondering how the town was. Moving in a few weeks, and won't have time to visit beforehand, so moving very quickly on finding a house and reading as much as I can. It seems like it's fairly close to the Triangle area. I read to stay away from Sanford, NC which seems to be pretty close to Cameron.

[al_roethlisberger]

Originally Posted by NEWLIFE8

Wow! Thank you so much for your reply! We're not military by they did have some very inexpensive modular homes for rent, and I found one for $600/mo. for a 3 bedroom, so I was just wondering how the town was. Moving in a few weeks, and won't have time to visit beforehand, so moving very quickly on finding a house and reading as much as I can. It seems like it's fairly close to the Triangle area. I read to stay away from Sanford, NC which seems to be pretty close to Cameron.

Hi, I don't know why one would have been directed to "stay away from Sanford", but if so, you may want to check out the following thread:

Can anyone tell me about Sanford?


We moved to Sanford from San Jose, CA by way of a brief 1yr layover in Cary, almost 2 years ago. We love Sanford, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a small town feel with mid-town sized resources.

Sanford isn't perfect, but it has a great location and balance of size and culture.

And with its central location to Fayetteville, Greensboro, and the Triangle, Sanford is sure to continue to benefit.

Check it out

Al

[plantgirl2008]

Hi I just joined this forum today so please excuse the late response. I have lived in Cameron for 1 year and so far its been great! Very small population, I think there is 275 people here! Its also famous for being the hometown of the Hardy Brothers (the wrestlers) We bought a house on 3 acres here and now I have my horse in my backyard. There are miles and miles of trails so I ride all the time.

[hs&hg]

Although my mail is delivered through the Cameron PO, we live 12 miles away in Harnett Country. You can't go wrong with Carole Davis as your Realtor. We came down from New Jersey last May, bought our land in Carolina Seasons (she lives there also) through her, set up with the builder, also through her, and did it all in ONE WEEK!

We went back to NJ and Carole and her staff keep us posted via digital photos on email. Came back and closed on our retirement home December 19, 2007. We love it here and we love Carole.