Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > North Carolina
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 11-17-2013, 10:24 PM
 
68 posts, read 99,845 times
Reputation: 23

Advertisements

Hello Friends!!

I have been reading the threads on this site for a few years and it has been very helpful but now it is time for me to step out and get specific help. I am a single mom living in Nashville. I am originally from the Bay Area and wanted to return there... possibly a bit south and coastal (SLO?) but I can't justify moving back to california in it's current condition. It saddens me the condition of the state and honestly I can't afford it.

I don't love Nashville because it is so southern (slow, closed minded IMHO ) with tides of prejudice which I didn't experience in California. It is also landlocked which is not great. Aside from that Nashville is a nice, quint little city.

I also have 3 children... one who will beginning college in 2015 and 2 elementary school kiddos. I am looking for someplace that I can afford (maybe 600-700k), live a good life, low crime, lots of amenities, universities and a great place to raise my younger children (good schools, lifestyle, ect) Definitely near the beach (within a couple hours) and preferably close to mountains. We are Christ believing Christians.

I am considering the Raleigh area... Maybe Cary? Or Apex? However I have read so many mixed opinions about which subs are better and the horrible prejudice in the area.

I work from home so that is not an issue. I can essentially live anywhere. I have looked just about everywhere and honestly I am exhausted with it. Everyplace has it's issues so I am just looking for the least of the evils at this point.

I have looked in Fishhawk outside of Tampa and I LOVE the idea of a master planned community with homes, walking paths, pools, community center and a town center with restaurants and shops all within the subdivision or "community." I thought this would be really neat for the kids to grow up in. But I haven't seen this type of set up in the Raleigh area.

Top priorities: Great schools, culture, family oriented, colleges, close to a beach, low crime.

I am open to ideas outside of Raleigh as well. I just want to be around people that are free spirited and raise my kids in the best culture with the best education as possible.

Thank you for any help you can give me!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 11-18-2013, 01:39 AM
 
1,965 posts, read 3,288,910 times
Reputation: 1913
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trinity7499 View Post
Hello Friends!!

I have been reading the threads on this site for a few years and it has been very helpful but now it is time for me to step out and get specific help. I am a single mom living in Nashville. I am originally from the Bay Area and wanted to return there... possibly a bit south and coastal (SLO?) but I can't justify moving back to california in it's current condition. It saddens me the condition of the state and honestly I can't afford it.

The unemployment in NC is just about equal to that of CA.
I'm not sure what you mean by the current state of CA, but it seems to mirror the state of the entire nation which has certainly seen better days.. There will always be groups of people who are disaffected with the parties in power in any state, some people dislike Jerry Brown just like some people dislike McCrory.


I don't love Nashville because it is so southern (slow, closed minded IMHO ) with tides of prejudice which I didn't experience in California. It is also landlocked which is not great. Aside from that Nashville is a nice, quint little city.

I think you will find Raleigh to be more similar to Nashville in this respect than the Bay area.

I also have 3 children... one who will beginning college in 2015 and 2 elementary school kiddos. I am looking for someplace that I can afford (maybe 600-700k), live a good life, low crime, lots of amenities, universities and a great place to raise my younger children (good schools, lifestyle, ect) Definitely near the beach (within a couple hours) and preferably close to mountains. We are Christ believing Christians.

With a budget like that you can definitely afford a lot of house in Raleigh area, there are also no shortage of religious activities and people there.


Top priorities: Great schools, culture, family oriented, colleges, close to a beach, low crime.

Good schools, yes. UNC (liberal arts), NC state(engineering, IT, technical), and Duke (great all around private university) are all well regarded.


Culture, no. Not in my opinion. Cary really comes the closest to meeting all your requirements but it is also extremely bland, not unlike Raleigh.

Family oriented, yes. Cary is one of the safest cities in the US.

Close to the beach, not really. It is a 300 mile round trip from Raleigh to Wilmington which is 4.5 hours in the car for a day trip..


I am open to ideas outside of Raleigh as well. I just want to be around people that are free spirited and raise my kids in the best culture with the best education as possible.

"Free-spirited" is probably not a frequently used adjective to describe people in the Raleigh area however, Cary probably best meets some of those criteria you listed. I would not discount San Luis Obispo that you mentioned earlier in your post... Cal Poly is a great engineering school as well. I feel that you want the CA lifestyle without the pricetag, and that's going to be hard to come by...

Thank you for any help you can give me!
-rr
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-18-2013, 03:06 PM
 
68 posts, read 99,845 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoaminRebel View Post
-rr
Thank you RoaminRebel! That is very helpful. And yes... I do want the California culture and lifestyle without the price tag. I own my own business and taxes even here in tn without state income tax are ridiculous. California I do believe would break me. The gang activity and crime in most areas of california are a concern as well. It would be different if I wasn't a single mom. But alas I am... so I have to make decisions based on what is the best thing for my children... LOW CRIME! They do say home is where the heart is and I believe my home will always be California... but for now I have to find someplace that will allow me to be a great mom without breaking the bank!!

Thank you again! Much love!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-18-2013, 03:19 PM
 
1,965 posts, read 3,288,910 times
Reputation: 1913
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trinity7499 View Post
Thank you RoaminRebel! That is very helpful. And yes... I do want the California culture and lifestyle without the price tag. I own my own business and taxes even here in tn without state income tax are ridiculous. California I do believe would break me. The gang activity and crime in most areas of california are a concern as well. It would be different if I wasn't a single mom. But alas I am... so I have to make decisions based on what is the best thing for my children... LOW CRIME! They do say home is where the heart is and I believe my home will always be California... but for now I have to find someplace that will allow me to be a great mom without breaking the bank!!

Thank you again! Much love!
Do your research, because there is definately plenty of this in NC, depending on the area. There are places also where the crime/ bad element is "less contained" than what you might find in CA. Good luck!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-18-2013, 04:24 PM
 
68 posts, read 99,845 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoaminRebel View Post
Do your research, because there is definitely plenty of this in NC, depending on the area. There are places also where the crime/ bad element is "less contained" than what you might find in CA. Good luck!
Sigh... why can't people just behave, get an education and not act like barbarians. We have come so far... but yet... we are still crawling.

Thank you! Are there certain subs of Raleigh that I should look into specifically to steer clear of??
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-19-2013, 07:25 AM
 
Location: South Beach and DT Raleigh
13,966 posts, read 24,023,374 times
Reputation: 14760
With a budget that the OP has to spend and given her requirements, I think she should either look inside the Beltline in Raleigh near Cameron Village or in Chapel Hill/Carrboro. Raleigh will be closer to the beach while Chapel Hill will be closer to the Mountains. Both locations will have the most open mindedness combined with safety that she seeks and both will have good education options for her children.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-20-2013, 08:39 AM
 
Location: Southern California
4,453 posts, read 6,765,643 times
Reputation: 2233
Have you been to SLO or looking for comments about it? I'm not sure which part of the bay area you were from, but SLO might be considerably cheaper.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-20-2013, 11:36 AM
 
68 posts, read 99,845 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by thelopez2 View Post
Have you been to SLO or looking for comments about it? I'm not sure which part of the bay area you were from, but SLO might be considerably cheaper.
I have been... I was out there last year over CHristmas on a scouting trip. Do you live there?? How is the gang activity out there. I didn't realize there was any until my realtor started telling me which areas I didn't want to consider because of gangs. It was a huge turn off to me as a single mom of 3. My younger 2 are very young so I don't really want to get tangled up in that kind of mess. Thoughts??
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-20-2013, 11:37 AM
 
68 posts, read 99,845 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by rnc2mbfl View Post
With a budget that the OP has to spend and given her requirements, I think she should either look inside the Beltline in Raleigh near Cameron Village or in Chapel Hill/Carrboro. Raleigh will be closer to the beach while Chapel Hill will be closer to the Mountains. Both locations will have the most open mindedness combined with safety that she seeks and both will have good education options for her children.
What is Cameron Village??
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-20-2013, 02:10 PM
 
1,965 posts, read 3,288,910 times
Reputation: 1913
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trinity7499 View Post
I have been... I was out there last year over CHristmas on a scouting trip. Do you live there?? How is the gang activity out there. I didn't realize there was any until my realtor started telling me which areas I didn't want to consider because of gangs. It was a huge turn off to me as a single mom of 3. My younger 2 are very young so I don't really want to get tangled up in that kind of mess. Thoughts??
With a budget of 700K you should be able to afford places away from gang activity in NC, SLO, or SoCal for that matter..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:




Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > North Carolina
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top