why are we not getting this? (Charlotte, Raleigh: appointed, real estate, renting)

[Funnefam5]

well we are back from our trip to NC and i don't know why but we drove all over we put 2000 miles on the car and we didn't see any place we would like to live, don't know if we missed it all or what, someone said we had to get off the main roads and explore i thought we kinda did but we couldn't find any area's that we liked i don't understand because just listening to everyone talk on here it sounds like this is the place to be but we got a whole other picture from being here while. so can someone give us their opinion on what you think we did wrong? please tell me if we didn't check out the right area's or what? we are looking for suburban area not far for work or stores, oh and just to let you know where we drove to we started in Vance to Granville to Durham, Raleigh, Cary, Johnston, Greenville, Williamston, and up to Halifax and everywhere in between so i thought we looked in alot of towns and would have found something but idk. please help.

[CharlotteAgent]

NC is not for everyone. Maybe your happy where you are now. A trip out of town just made you realize it.

[Desdemona123]

Originally Posted by Funnefam5

well we are back from our trip to NC and i don't know why but we drove all over we put 2000 miles on the car and we didn't see any place we would like to live, don't know if we missed it all or what, someone said we had to get off the main roads and explore i thought we kinda did but we couldn't find any area's that we liked i don't understand because just listening to everyone talk on here it sounds like this is the place to be but we got a whole other picture from being here while. so can someone give us their opinion on what you think we did wrong? please tell me if we didn't check out the right area's or what? we are looking for suburban area not far for work or stores, oh and just to let you know where we drove to we started in Vance to Granville to Durham, Raleigh, Cary, Johnston, Greenville, Williamston, and up to Halifax and everywhere in between so i thought we looked in alot of towns and would have found something but idk. please help.

So you don't like NC....it's not utopia for everyone. You need to figure out what you are looking for...then find an area that fits it...not the other way around.

[southward bound]

And while you did all that driving, what, specifically, is it that you were looking for?

Maybe, it's making the decision to move that is difficult for you - and maybe, like someone already said, where you are now is where you really want to be. You either have to take the plunge and promise yourselves you'll make the most of it, or stay put. Moving is scary, and it's an adventure at the same time. And, as the saying goes, life is an adventure, or it is nothing at all.

I don't believe a drive-through gives any area justice. Looking at it is not knowing it. The latter involves the heart and how one feels, and that can only come from more frequent interaction with the community. On the first rung of discovery is the intellectual - does the area meet our needs for job, housing, cost of living, interests and activities, schools, climate, medical services, and a host of other life's concerns. On that basis, one moves if the current place of residence no longer meets those needs. Only then can one get to really know the new place and that takes investment of time, effort,
and seeing it not only with one's eyes, but seeing it with one's heart as well.

Then we know that it "feels right". Sometimes it's just a matter of what one brings with them, rather than what one finds waiting for them, that makes a big difference. We first have to embrace our new community before it will embrace us and make us feel at home. Unless you know someone who already lives there, and trust their insights about the area and, at the very least, get to know it through them, you'll always feel like you're just passing through and will miss what you're looking for. The folks in this forum do a wonderful job in that respect, helping us to 'see' what they see, helping us to get to know the areas.

It took me 12 trips over 2 years to be convinced that it's OK to move here.
In that time, housing prices inched up, and airline tickets didn't get any cheaper. I did get to know the areas pretty well, from F-V to Franklinton, to Louisburg and everything inbetween. I wasn't sure what I was looking for - on the pratical, rational level, I knew, but I wasn't finding the intangibles we all search for. Now, living here, I find them around every corner. Continually I am reminded in big and little ways, what a good move we've made. Is everything perfect? No, but nothing and no place ever is. However, it's pretty close to perfect, and that's plenty good enough for me - and the more I put into it, the more I feel a part of it. I may even come to think of myself as a NC'ian, if y'all will allow me to!
(SORRY I got so long winded...I'm starting to feel passionate about NC)!

[southward bound]

By the way, did you work with a realtor? The right realtor can be a tremendous help in learning about the area.

[friendnc]

What are you SPECIFICALLY looking for? Are you interested in the Raleigh area only? It sounds like you only looked in one area. Have you ever visited the Charlotte, Greensboro, Asheville, Hickory, Wilmington areas? There's lots to choose from and their different (but in good ways). Though all of these areas (Raleigh included) are very nice and highly regarded nationally, no one place is for everyone. No place is perfect. Just make sure your expectations are reasonable. Some people are seeking for the "perfect" place and are always disappointed. Just keep doing research, lets us know exactly what you want, and maybe we can be of more help. I hope you find what you're looking for, even if it's not here in NC. Good luck!!

[Funnefam5]

Ok now that i have had a day of rest after the long haul let me start by saying thank you for all your imput, like someone said everyone on here seems to be so nice and very helpful, as i wrote yesterday in all our travels we saw alot of (bad) area's they were all run down empty buildings, towns with nothing in them Rocky (Mount being the worst) and to get to a store it seemed like forever to find or a place to eat, this is why i wanted to know did we miss something and just drove right on past everything that matters? and yes part of me don't want to move because all my family is here and i have a teenager that is fighting us on this too, but we are kinda in a way that we don't have much of a choice and i really don't mind if we move as long as my grandkids are near me, and as of right now everyone is onboard except my son but he really don't have much of a choice he will have to go with us till he's 18 i hate to be that way with him but like i said we really don't have much of a choice if we don't get out from this soon we will lose everything so we need to find something a little less on the exspensive side but yet we don't want to live where there is nothing there and like i said before everywhere we were seemed to be very bad area's so i guess i'm asking if anyone can point us in a direction of what we need to survive? yes i did meet with a realtor and she was helpful but she couldn't help enough because she needed to know where we wanted to look for a house and that's what our problem is we couldn't find an nice area with inexpensive homes and stores close by and of course employment in the area too so once we can decide on a spot to live then we can look for homes in that area. ok i drug this on long enough so i hope i'm not boring anyone but i'm trying to give you a feel for our situation and i hope this helps. (look at me i'm asking you's if this help's and i'm the one looking for help) (lol) and thank's for everyone imput on this it sure is appreciated

[Bill Hitchcock]

Funnefam5,
I must admit that "sight seeing' from the highway, from anywhere USA- usually leaves a lot to be desired.
As a Realtor and an Accredited Buyer's Representative-It is the job of the Real Estate Broker to find out all of your requirements/desires/wants and show you what is available. It is possible that the area the Broker represents just doesn't have what you are looking for.
Since you seem somewhat unrestricted in locale's-I would suggest contacting Brokers in each area that you have strong interest in. Interview them carefully-All Brokers are not created equally although each will swear that they are your best choice!!

Figure out your "Must Have's" and your "Wanna Have's". Know in advance how much you can comfortably put down on a house and how much of a mortgage you can comfortably afford each month. These factors alone will have the greatest affect on where to move to.

[Apple Annie]

That is a lot of miles to cover in a search, and sounds daunting. You need to take home searching one area at a time spending probably 3 or 4 days within a 40 or 50 mile radius, otherwise you get confused which is what seems to have happened.

As another poster said, you really need to contact a Realtor or a few Realtors, each in their own "territory" to give you information and do the research for you before you make the visit. This can be done via email and mailings. Give the Realtors your criteria and your reasons for the move. A good experienced Realtor will be honest in giving you the correct information about areas if you give them your full shopping list.

Also have you checked: www.****** ? It's a long survey, but well worth the time to bring up many areas according to your wants and needs.

Relocating also is very dependent on your "frame of reference" which is where you are coming from; what is it like where you are and what are your expectations in the new area? This is the most important part of house hunting; being able to compromise on some things in order to get settled.

You may also consider renting for a year or so in the general area of where you think you will end up .... and that will give you many opportunities to explore.

What about employment? If you are coming to NC without a job, you need to think long and hard, or have at least one year's income stashed away because it could take that long to find a job in some areas.

In a nutshell, we don't know what type or how much research you all did prior to this 2,000 mile trip, or where you reside now that you desperately need to leave.

[autumngal]

Hi. What is it that compels you to feel you "have to get it", and might be missing something about NC? What is your primary reason for moving specifically to NC?
This may very well not be "home" for you and your family. And personally it seems to me you covered quite the distance. Getting off roads and finding a house is all fine and good, but what about the looking at it as a whole? You won't be staying in the house and never coming out into other parts. Take your time, and if it comes to this, do not be afraid to say "this just isn't for us". As where you live revolves around your whole life.