Moving to NC/SC from England (Charlotte, Raleigh: sales, real estate, chapel)

[rikardoavocado]

Hi All,

Firstly this forum is great. I love all of the information.

Here's my situation.

I'm currently married to Abigail whose an American citizen who I met whilst working in New Zealand. We were married a yr and a half ago and for the moment are living in England. I'm 28 and my wife is 26.

My wife's would like to move back to the US in the next yr or two to be closer to her family and before starting a family. Her parents are in NJ, but thats definitely not the place for me, or us. Far too busy and built up. We did a trip last from Cape Cod down into Virginia, but didn't see anywhere we really want to relocate to. So this Spring we're planning a trip into NC and maybe Greenville SC.

We are looking for a nice relaxed lifestyle, in a small town but maybe near a larger city for jobs, with warmer weather than the UK and somewhere pleasant to bring up a family. Is this NC/SC? We like rolling hills, mountainous areas and the sea, so all areas are open to us. Though I hear you get hurricanes on the coast so maybe thats not a good idea!?

Are there any areas that anyone would reccomend us to visit when we're over? Or not to visit. We have friends in Chapel Hill/Carrboro.

In terms of jobs, Im a graphic/web designer with 6 years of experience and a degree in design. My wife is degree educated also, and currently works in social housing.

What sort of salary would I be looking at? Is $40,000 a good target? This is the about the equivilant of what I make in the UK. Can you live off of this much?

We're also in the lucky position that the UK house market has made us approx $130,000 which we can put down on a house. Life in the UK is very expensive, and we were looking to lead a better more fulfilling life elsewhere.

We just want to make sure that we would be better off in NC/SC than staying in the UK.

I was also wondering how much you pay for healthcare and property tax in NC?

Thanks,

Richard

[LakeGuy]

I don't know about salaries for your type of work there, but Greenville SC is an interesting town and would likely have good opportunities for you both from a career standpoint.

[YorkshireLass]

Originally Posted by rikardoavocado

Hi All,

Firstly this forum is great. I love all of the information.

Here's my situation.

I'm currently married to Abigail whose an American citizen who I met whilst working in New Zealand. We were married a yr and a half ago and for the moment are living in England. I'm 28 and my wife is 26.

My wife's would like to move back to the US in the next yr or two to be closer to her family and before starting a family. Her parents are in NJ, but thats definitely not the place for me, or us. Far too busy and built up. We did a trip last from Cape Cod down into Virginia, but didn't see anywhere we really want to relocate to. So this Spring we're planning a trip into NC and maybe Greenville SC.

We are looking for a nice relaxed lifestyle, in a small town but maybe near a larger city for jobs, with warmer weather than the UK and somewhere pleasant to bring up a family. Is this NC/SC? We like rolling hills, mountainous areas and the sea, so all areas are open to us. Though I hear you get hurricanes on the coast so maybe thats not a good idea!?

Are there any areas that anyone would reccomend us to visit when we're over? Or not to visit. We have friends in Chapel Hill/Carrboro.

In terms of jobs, Im a graphic/web designer with 6 years of experience and a degree in design. My wife is degree educated also, and currently works in social housing.

What sort of salary would I be looking at? Is $40,000 a good target? This is the about the equivilant of what I make in the UK. Can you live off of this much?

We're also in the lucky position that the UK house market has made us approx $130,000 which we can put down on a house. Life in the UK is very expensive, and we were looking to lead a better more fulfilling life elsewhere.

We just want to make sure that we would be better off in NC/SC than staying in the UK.

I was also wondering how much you pay for healthcare and property tax in NC?

Thanks,

Richard

Hi Richard,

First of all which part of England?

Now on to the matter at hand. Life here is definitely different and there are good and bad aspects when compared to life in England. Taxes are much lower than what you're used to (property tax rates are based on where you live, you can find the state wage tax rate on the NC or SC govt website and sales tax runs about 7% vs the 17% vat). You also have much more freedom when it comes to home ownership (our home owners associations are pushovers compared to applying for planning permission from the council ). Heathcare is easy to get, no waiting for surgeries etc. but paying for it is another matter entirely. My family has always said that if they faced a serious medical illness issue they would move back to England because facing such a crisis here could lean to financial ruin. Everything is further apart here, which can be good (no teeny tiny parking spaces and you don't have to look for a pay and display ) but it makes public transportation almost impossible, at least in my part of the state. I would recommend visiting as much of the state as possible before you make a decision and if I can be of any help, please just let me know.

Cheers

[LisaTriangle NC]

Good choice looking at NC. I moved from New England to the Raleigh area where you can travel to the ocean in approx 2 hours; or the mountains in approx. 3 hours. Best of both worlds. Great weather & topography. I have been in the area for 1 1/2 years and my only regret is not doing it sooner. I have children and they haven't mentioned our "old home" since about 2 weeks after we moved here.

Some other nice areas in NC are Greensboro and Charlotte. Housing prices are considered quite reasonable here, there is tremendous growth lots of new construction homes at very affordable prices as well as resales. I can speak to this from experience I am a real estate broker.

In terms of jobs, $40K should be a low target, the Raleigh area in particular is a very "tech" area, you might want to look at www.rtp.org. In the job area, I might be able to offer assistance as well, my husband is a technical recruiter. (our family joke is "he gets you the job, I get you the house") I have access to lots of info through my profession, if you ever need any on the area let me know.

-Lisa

[kmflan]

My uncle is from London, but has lived in Charelston, SC for....25-30 years now, I think. He likes it quite a bit, and there is a fair sized british population there. Actually, he lives in Mt. PLeasant, a Charleston suburb.

[rikardoavocado]

Hi YorkshireLass

Thanks for your reply. I'm from Cirencester in the Cotswolds (Gloucestershire)

The whole moving thing is pretty daunting really, though I'm excited about our trip to NC/SC which is in 2 weeks. :-)

So you're from Yorkshire then? When did you move over to NC do you like it there. Do you feel better off than being in the UK? Another question I had was about holidays. I've heard you dont get many days vacation in the US compared to Europe. On job adverts I see things like 16 Personal days and 7 days holiday. Now can you use the personal days for holiday (eg visiting family in the UK) or is it likely that i'll have to take unpaid leave?

We're planning on visiting as much of NC as we can, and also dropping down into SC (Greenville area). Im hoping what we see will help us make a decision.

Thanks again for all you info

[YorkshireLass]

Hiya,

Thanks for the reply I sent you a PM so that you'll have my contact info

[Martha Garbarino]

Hi! New Bern is a great, easy going town. Settled in 1710, we have a beautiful, historic town on two rivers, Trent and Neuse.


Good luck!

Martha