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I will try to keep this brief and to the point...we live near Seattle and I suffer from SAD (seasonal affective disorder) from the lack of sun, and the cold/grey weather we have 9+ mo of the year.
We have some choice as to where to move re: my husbands job so here our the options:
Charlotte
Raleigh
Wilmington, NC
Charleston, SC
Also:
Boise, ID
Harrisonburg, VA
What we want:
We are Christian, conservative, have kids, we homeschool, we love the beach, but also like the mountains, want a nice place to raise a family, home with some acreage, not too cold in the winter, best weather possible, low crime.
I will try to keep this brief and to the point...we live near Seattle and I suffer from SAD (seasonal affective disorder) from the lack of sun, and the cold/grey weather we have 9+ mo of the year.
We have some choice as to where to move re: my husbands job so here our the options:
Charlotte
Raleigh
Wilmington, NC
Charleston, SC
Also:
Boise, ID
Harrisonburg, VA
What we want:
We are Christian, conservative, have kids, we homeschool, we love the beach, but also like the mountains, want a nice place to raise a family, home with some acreage, not too cold in the winter, best weather possible, low crime.
any thoughts?
You've picked some great areas to choose from!
Of course, Charleston and Wilmington will have the mildest winters but from what I know schools are hit and miss in both. Also, not too sure you'll find "acreage" in either that is not astronomical. But both offer tons of things to do and the beach you love.
Charlotte is the largest city in NC - it is a great place to raise a family, BUT, it has grown so large now that we do have more big city problems than ever before. Of course, coming from Seattle you would be used to these issues and they might not bother you at all. You would not find much affordable acreage anywhere in the city or county - but you could find places you might like in neighboring counties. There are good schools all around, but also some struggling ones - with high levels of free and reduced lunch students too. We have the NFL, NBA, NASCAR, museums, a very clean, safe downtown area - a lot of pluses. Oh, and you can get to the mountains faster from Charlotte than Raleigh.
Raleigh is our state capital and has half the population of Charlotte. It is also a very nice place to raise a family. There are great universities all around it and many technological companies in Research Triangle Park - just to name a few things. Both cities have large homeschooling groups. We are losing some of our conservative values in both cities as they grow larger and acquire more newcomers from other states - but there are still many areas you would find to be conservative in each.
Can't speak about Boise or Harrisonburg, although I know they are both great areas from what I have read.
The bottom line is, your best weather with the vast majority of sunny days will be in NC - you just can't beat those Carolina blue skies
I think by what you said Harrisonburg, VA might be your best best if you are very christian and conservative and want a home with acreage. It does get a little colder there in the winter than most parts of NC and you'll get some snow. It's actually pretty boring there unless you are a student at JMU, but from what you said I could see you liking it there.
If you're looking fro something bigger, then I would say the Charlotte or Raleigh area might meet your needs. Charlotte is not twice as big as Raleigh. Raligh is about 60-65% the population of Charlotte, but has a higher population density due to having much less land. The Triangle area has about 1.5 million where as the Charlotte area has about 1.6 million.
Either way I think most of those area woul meet your needs, but keep in mind that Charlotte or Raleigh is going to be much different that Harrisonburg, VA.
but keep in mind that Charlotte or Raleigh is going to be much different that Harrisonburg, VA.
Can you elaborate on this?
I am familiar with Harrisonburg as I graduated from JMU, though that was 15 years ago and I know it has changed since then, plus at the time I was in college and not looking at things from a "moms" perspective.
I don't necessarily want boring, we do like to go out and do things, especially with the kids, but I don't want a super liberal, party type place either.
by any chance, would greenville, SC, be an option? this sounds like it might be perfect for you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by needthesun
Can you elaborate on this?
I am familiar with Harrisonburg as I graduated from JMU, though that was 15 years ago and I know it has changed since then, plus at the time I was in college and not looking at things from a "moms" perspective.
I don't necessarily want boring, we do like to go out and do things, especially with the kids, but I don't want a super liberal, party type place either.
I am familiar with Harrisonburg as I graduated from JMU, though that was 15 years ago and I know it has changed since then, plus at the time I was in college and not looking at things from a "moms" perspective.
I don't necessarily want boring, we do like to go out and do things, especially with the kids, but I don't want a super liberal, party type place either.
Harrisonburg is a city of like 40-50k while Raleigh and Charlotte are much bigger obviously. I think if you want to be able to do some stuff then you would need to live in a bigger place than Harrisonburg which is pretty isolated and is about 2 hours from both Richmond and Washington D.C. I've never been to Greenville, SC, but that might be a good fit for you. Raleigh and Charlotte still have big conservative areas, but you won't find a mjority of conservative folks in these places. PS - I'm pretty conservative, although I'm not really a church going person.
if you suffer from SAD i wouldn't consider Harrisonburg as they can have darker winters than here in the piedmont. as far as changes over the last 15 years... JMU has new buildings and there are a bunch of retail stores clustered on the east side of 81, thats it. i would not consider raising my family there. check out the lake norman area north of charlotte. good overall quality of life IMO.
We moved here a year ago from South Florida. But have had family here and knew the area quite well. One of the great benefits of the Charlotte area is that is incredibly diverse for a southern city. Has all the charm an politeness of the south but also cultural and social benefits of a major city.
As far as conservitive and christian the Charlotte area has the most churches per capita than any other major city in the US.
I would suggest Union county just south of Charlotte. 30 - 40 minutes commute to Uptown Charlotte. You get all the benefits of Charlotte, but lower taxes, more house and land for the money and more gentile. The western part of Union County is quite congested (relatively speaking for this area) The Weddington / Wesley Chapel / Waxhaw area has had the most development and of course has the most traffic. I absolutley disliked the Weddington area. Beautiful expensive homes that are a bit overpriced compared to surrounding areas. But the biggest problem are the North-East transplants that have brought there unique NY, NJ, PA attitudes with them pushing out the pleasant southern gentility of the region. But then again it takes a while to adjust to new surroundings so there is still hope for them.
I don't know what it is like in Seattle but I have lived all over the country and this is by far my favorite place. Born in Jersey, raised in LA lived in DC, Maryland, VA, Houston, San Jose, Dallas, Baton Rouge, Miami, Ft.Lauderdale. I don't plan on leaving here.
Regarding your other choices. Va is very beatiful but even though it isn't that much farther north, the winters are a bit harder there. But still nothing like you'd find up north. Harrisonburg seems a bit remote to me.
SC - Beautiful state and has very low taxes but that also translates to a lack of modern infrastructure in some places.
Wilmington, NC is nice if you like the beach but it seems to be a bullseye sometimes for hurricanes and I had enough of that in Florida. Raleigh is also pretty but too small for me and way too political.
The Charlotte area seems perfectly placed for week-end trips to mountains, beaches, Atlanta, DC, Williamsburg, etc. Plus there is plenty to do right here. Lots of parks, activities, museums, entertainment etc.
So if you have kids, want good schools, low taxes, low crime, acreage at a reasonable price, Union County is great.
Hope this helps
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I like Eastern Union County
