Denver, Lowell, Ranlo or Mooresville (Charlotte, Gaston: homes, middle school, commuting to)

[kdtierney825]

My favorite builder is in these four areas’... I was wondering which ones are the best for my family. We have two boys, ages 6 and 2 so schools are important. My husband will be commuting to Charlotte (off Tavola). A big plus would be somewhere that has sports programs, mainly soccer and hockey.

I read on another thread that the Lowell schools are not that great but looking on greatschools the elem. and middle seem pretty good. The h.s. looks a little unsavory, but we have 8 years to worry about that and know a lot can happen in 8 years.

Thanks for any advice!!

[CharlotteAgent]

Denver would be the better commute for your Husband.

[friendnc]

Of those 4, I'm with charlotteagent. Denver would be the best overall considering the commute, schools, ect.

I grew up in Gaston County and Lowell/Ranlo are nice little towns with the best commute to Charlotte of the four. But the schools in that area aren't great.

As for Mooresville, it's very nice and the schools are, IMO, the best of the four, but the commute into Charlotte would be really bad (two lanes each direction on I-77 - Yikes!!).

Denver has nice schools and a decent commute, plus has a bit of a relaxing rual feel to it (for now). Good luck!!!

[kdtierney825]

Thank you for the info.

I have read that the schools are not that great in Lowell/Ranlo but on greatschools and I thought ncreportcard they "looked" pretty good statistically for the elem. and middle school (the h.s. did not look too good, North Gaston High). Do you know if the elem. and middle (Lowell Elem. and Holbrook Middle) are good schools or if it just looks that way? The test scores were pretty high compared with the state avg. I am wondering if they have gotten better over the last couple of years or if looks from the website are deceiving?

In Denver the homes are a little higher than we would like to go, I assume the proximity to the lake has a lot to do with that.. We may end up there if the schools in Lowell/Ranlo are an issue though. With young children, the school system is a big issue.

Thanks again for your advice!