To all those seeking to live in NC, what exactly is it that you are after? (Charlotte: neighborhood, elementary school)

[Randysmom]

Originally Posted by lovethecarolinas

We had it all planned out to have my parents move in with us....once we arrived back here they did live with us for about a month...but then my Dad started chomping at the bit to get their own place (which they ended up doing). It's been a little over a year now and they are about 10-15 minutes away from us (which turns out to be about the same distance they were from us in CA).

Do you mind if I ask what kind of place they ended up in? Did they buy a house, condo or are they renting? My parents live in a senior community now and they love it. There don't seem to be any comparable places down there. They want somewhere with no maintenance, no steps, and preferably planned activities so they can meet some people. I haven't really found that down there. We're looking in the North Raleigh area.

Thanks for any info you can provide.

[CAKD]

Randy's mom while looking at the Cary Magazine I noticed a new community being built for age 62 and better. It sounds ideal. I am not sure if I can post the web site here though so I will try pm-ing you.

[lovethecarolinas]

Originally Posted by Randysmom

Do you mind if I ask what kind of place they ended up in? Did they buy a house, condo or are they renting? My parents live in a senior community now and they love it. There don't seem to be any comparable places down there. They want somewhere with no maintenance, no steps, and preferably planned activities so they can meet some people. I haven't really found that down there. We're looking in the North Raleigh area.

Thanks for any info you can provide.

Don't mind you asking at all Randysmom Currently my parents are living in a very nice apartment complex in the south Charlotte area (not sure what the future will hold though). I have done all kinds of research for senior housing...but I'm sorry that I can't help you...as I have only checked out the areas around Charlotte. Wishing you Good Luck with your search!

[Randysmom]

Originally Posted by lovethecarolinas

Don't mind you asking at all Randysmom Currently my parents are living in a very nice apartment complex in the south Charlotte area (not sure what the future will hold though). I have done all kinds of research for senior housing...but I'm sorry that I can't help you...as I have only checked out the areas around Charlotte. Wishing you Good Luck with your search!

Thanks. I don't know why I thought you were in Raleigh. I'll check out the other site and keep everyone posted.

[needtogetout]

I am seriously considering a move to the Triad area. Better weather, job opportunities seem to be plentiful, cost of living is very similar to where I live in WI now, I need a change of scene and change of pace, I hate bitterly cold winters and I have been to the south on several occasions and people seem to be much more open and friendly than they are here in the north.

I'm also a single male in my late 30's and where I live now (due to the culture) it seems it is impossible to make freinds, let alone meet decent women. I've tried everything and people here just aren't at all receptive to folks they don't know. I gave up drinking several years ago and everything here seems to revolve around drinking. I'm tired of sitting in my apartment 4 months out of the year (winter) surfing the net and watching TV because there is nothing else to do since it's so cold outside--and DARK!

Since so many of the factors (cost of living, job opportunities, etc....) seem to be the same, at least I will be someplace where the weather is nicer year round and the people are friendlier.

I will admit that I am a bit nervous of moving someplace on my own since I don't know anyone there, but I need to make a serious change. There is nothing for me here. I've been in WI since 1979, and in this city for 7 years. I'm sick of it and need a fresh start somewhere else!

[Niki]

I hope your move goes smoothly and that you find what you're looking for. I love it here in the Triad.

[Sue_in_CT]

Needtogetout,
I'm kind of in the same boat you are and I'm also looking at that area of NC. The difference is I love where I am now (on the shoreline in CT). I still have the same friends I had in elementary school. I have my entire family here and have lived here my whole life. But the reality is that they are all raising families and most are married, and I am divorced and do not have children so our lives are very different.

Over time, the cost of living here has increased and my salary is not keeping up. I don't want to spend my life working harder and harder just to stay even. The majority of single people here also tend to revolve their social life around excessive drinking which I'm not interested in doing. I too am somewhat nervous about moving somewhere where I don't know a soul. Also, I was raised Catholic and our social lives here are not tied in with the church so I won't be meeting people that way like so many others do.

I feel like you do; that I need to "shake things up" in my life and make some bold changes. I know that I can try a move for a year, and if I don't like it I can go back; but the truth is once I leave my area, I could never afford to go back there. The housing market is just too out of control. For me, it's not trying something new/different that scares me; it's that I won't be able to afford to go back home.

I certainly wish you luck and please post updates if you do go ahead with it.

I certainly wish you luck

[a1m1700]

I feel the same way. I'm getting cold feet today about making a move to NC. I'm not really in the same boat as a lot of people on this site. Az is affordable to me since I did buy low at the time when you could and our taxes are not high at all. I know if I make this move and I don't like it, AZ will be expensive if I wanted to move back. I guess what I saying is I'm comfortable here(especially with the weather) hahahah... and I like it here for the most part. I can't figure out why I can't shake this notion to move. It plagues me day and night like an obsession.

[Bethanytedder]

a1m1700, maybe you are just looking for something different. I have lived where I am now nearly my whole life. I am 54 now and I realize there is so much I haven't never seen since I narrowed my options to staying here. Don't get me wrong, we have wonderful people here. When my son Benjamin was killed in 1982 at the age of 4, they rallied around us in ways you wouldn't believe. And that kinship is there if you need a kidney, lung and heart transplant whatever. You can go in the convenience stores at any time and see jars collecting money for the needy. You can see posters at the bank giving you a place to deposit money for really expensive things like medical costs. And that is one of the things I admire about where I live. Since I took back in 1982, I try to give back. We had a little boy that was born with this horrible birth mark right on his face. They collected money and sent him to California to remove his "boo-boo" as he called it. When they got back and sent pictures to the papers to thank everyone for the new life they had given that child, it was just amazing to know you had a small part in that.
Why don't you just come to North Carolina for a week or so and check out places that seem to appeal to you now. Then maybe you will at least have an off handed idea of what you might want. Good luck whichever decision you make.

[fastfilm]

bethany, I'm so sorry to read of the sorrows you have had: how generous you are to share your local's expertise with all us strangers online.

Unlike other posters, when we leave Los Angeles, we hope NEVER to set foot in this hellhole ever again. The "home" that I inhabited for the last 50 years doesn't exist anymore. Last night I had to go tell some foreign nationals that, no, it is against the law to start an outdoor party with yelling and music at 2 in the morning in a quiet inner city neighborhood in the U.S., hoping that someone could understand English. Absolutely no cold feet whatsoever here: we're just waiting out our sentence until husband can retire with a pension. I think it will be easier for us to adapt since we're fleeing from real awfulness in this part of the country. Good winter weather isn't everything there is to quality of life issues.