Ideas for best places to live in NC (Charlotte, Raleigh: real estate, 2009)

[Mrs. DWalk]

My husband and I have two children ages 5 and 10 and are wanting to relocate down south because of the cost of housing rentals and sale. I would love to hear any ideas on where would be the best place to move? I was considering charlotte and fayeteville. Possibly greensboro.

Please give your feedback. It will be greatly appreciated.

[tiffanyj31]

Charlotte's a great city, as well as it's close suburbs: Matthews, Weddington, Waxhaw, Harrisburg, Concord.

[mdp_az]

The best place to live is where you already have a job lined up. NC has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation.

That said, most folks, especially those with kids, tend to settle in metro Charlotte, the Triad (Greensboro, High Point, Winston-Salem) or the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill). Fayetteville is largely a military town due to the presence of Ft. Bragg next door. It is considered by many to be a far less desirable place to live/raise a family than most other parts of the state.

[NCgirl]

NC is a big state with lots of great towns. What one person considers "the best" may not be a fit for someone else.

Please tell us more about you are looking for. What is your ideal home? Neighborhood? City size? What's your budget? Do you want a big yard? Do you need to be close the beach? The more details you give the better we can help you. That way we can help you find the place that's best for you.

[ncfootes]

Wow, I am shocked and saddened to hear someone say that Fayetteville is a less-desireable place to live than other places in the state.

I moved here from Bay Shore, NY in 1994 and am very very happy here. (I'm orginally from Albany, NY). My husband was offered a job with the county and we decided we had enough of NY taxes and wanted to find a great place to start a family. I am not military - have no affiliation with the military in fact.


I have two school age kids, (girls) and there are activities everywhere for them to be involved in. We are involved in karate, girl scouts, softball - and LOVE the YMCA programs. Great parks everywhere. What I noticed most when I first moved here is you could go somewhere and enjoy nature without TONS of other people around!

Thanks in part to the military, our economy is doing great here. vs. other parts of the state. In fact, Parade magazine just did an article on just how strong our housing market is. MY NY family and freinds are completely envious of what we pay in taxes. (SO LOW)

Please don't mark Fayetteville out. From what I can see, today's military is a professional, family friendly organization - and being a military town is a blessing! There's a great sense of neighbors taking care of one another in our community. I've never lived anywhere where I saw that kind of caring between strangers.

If you need any more information, please let me know. I'm actually in a neighborhing town to Fayetteville - but still considered part of the metro area - Hope Mills.

[splatek]

[quote]

Originally Posted by ncfootes

Wow, I am shocked and saddened to hear someone say that Fayetteville is a less-desireable place to live than other places in the state.

I am not shocked at all about people saying that Fay'ville is not a pleasant to live. The online data suggest high crime/gang rates and not much to do. However, after a recent trip there this past weekend, my wife and I found plenty to entertain us. We had lunch in the very quaint downtown, ate dinner at the Mash House, and generally had a good time finding our way around. We are moving there end of July 2009 and are both very much looking forward to it now. While we were apprehensive about 2 months ago, we are not quite excited. We also have no Military affiliation, but are patriotic and interested to meet people and learn about the military. We are going to be professors at Fay State Uni.

Great parks everywhere. What I noticed most when I first moved here is you could go somewhere and enjoy nature without TONS of other people around!

I'd be very interested in hearing more about these parks. My wife and I love to hike, kayak, fish, well I like to fish and am interested in hunting, climbing and generally anything outdoors. Appears that there are plenty of opportunities in Fay'ville and the neighboring areas.

Thanks in part to the military, our economy is doing great here. vs. other parts of the state. In fact, Parade magazine just did an article on just how strong our housing market is. MY NY family and freinds are completely envious of what we pay in taxes. (SO LOW)

This pleases me greatly as a newly arriving resident!

If you need any more information, please let me know. I'm actually in a neighborhing town to Fayetteville - but still considered part of the metro area - Hope Mills.

I'd certainly appreciate any information as we are preparing our move and I will have to entertain some visiting family and in-laws... Thanks!

[Ari'sMom]

I am a real estate broker in the Pinehurst-Southern Pines area, also known as Moore County or the Sandhills. This is a wonderful place for families. Our schools rank very high: www.mcs.k12.nc.us/. Our tax rates are very low Tax Rates. Our local community college has a fabulous community enrichment program http://www.sandhills.edu.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you would like additional information

[Dusty Rhodes]

Well.....there is always Mebane!