Welcoming towns in NC? (Charlotte, Raleigh: transplants, chapel, new home)

[Dicedoll]

I have been browsing the posts for a while and it seems that every town is reportedly "hostile" against "transplants". Are there any towns in NC that don't mind having non-natives live there?

Thanks
Dicey

[DanielleNC]

There are so many great towns in NC to chose from. What is it you are looking for? You may see a few people on this forum who may be a bit hostile towards transplants, but for the most part it's not an issue with most people. It's really more about the attitude you bring with you, not where you are from. I really don't think it is something you need to worry about. We moved here from CA and many people I grew up with and meet to this day are transplants. We've never had any issues here. Everyone has been very nice. If you want to check out an area with a lot of transplants that would be the more populated cities like the Triangle area, Charlotte, the Triad, Wilmington, Asheville, etc. Again, it really isn't an issue with most people, it's more about a persons attitude. It can be a bit sad to see some places growing so fast, but at the same time there has been great things that come with it.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by DanielleNC

There are so many great towns in NC to chose from. What is it you are looking for? You may see a few people on this forum who may be a bit hostile towards transplants, but for the most part it's not an issue with most people. It's really more about the attitude you bring with you, not where you are from. I really don't think it is something you need to worry about. We moved here from CA and many people I grew up with and meet to this day are transplants. We've never had any issues here. Everyone has been very nice. If you want to check out an area with a lot of transplants that would be the more populated cities like the Triangle area, Charlotte, the Triad, Wilmington, Asheville, etc. Again, it really isn't an issue with most people.

This is the bottom line - come to your new home in NC with a good attitude and you'll fit right in in no time. The people who have trouble "adjusting" are those with superiority complexes who do nothing but complain about things here versus wherever it is they came from. It's the "when in Rome, do as the Romans do" thing

[eek]

Originally Posted by Dicedoll

I have been browsing the posts for a while and it seems that every town is reportedly "hostile" against "transplants". Are there any towns in NC that don't mind having non-natives live there?

Thanks
Dicey

thats all net stuff. ppl act differently on the net than they do in real life. take everything you see on the net with a grain of salt.

people are just expressing how they really feel...but won't say anything like what you're reading here in person, i promise you. they'll hit you with a "bless your heart" and keep it moving. of course bless your heart could mean:

thats a nice person
f this person

but whatever, right?

try charlotte, raleigh or greensboro or winston salem if you must live in NC.

[Dicedoll]

Thanks for the quick response. That's what I was wanting to hear - thought maybe it was just a few people trying to scare others off. Good attitude I could handle! I live in KS right now and pretty much don't care for it at all - it's just hot and flat where I live. and oodles of trains. I have just fallen in love with NC during my vacations out there.

I'm not that much of a big city girl... the town I live in is 40,000? I wouldn't mind living near a bigger city, just not in one! Would love to buy a house out there and would need an acre or two for the dog (by then probably two!) to run and play fetch. Plus a little nervous about finding a job out there too.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by Dicedoll

Thanks for the quick response. That's what I was wanting to hear - thought maybe it was just a few people trying to scare others off. Good attitude I could handle! I live in KS right now and pretty much don't care for it at all - it's just hot and flat where I live. and oodles of trains. I have just fallen in love with NC during my vacations out there.

I'm not that much of a big city girl... the town I live in is 40,000? I wouldn't mind living near a bigger city, just not in one! Would love to buy a house out there and would need an acre or two for the dog (by then probably two!) to run and play fetch. Plus a little nervous about finding a job out there too.

The job will be your biggest obstacle right now. Not sure what kind you'd need, but the best places to look right now are in the Raleigh general area. Also, check out Winston Salem - a very nice small city and Wake Forest northest of Raleigh. That part of the state has lower unemployment numbers than the Charlotte metro area.

[anifani821]

Originally Posted by Dicedoll

Thanks for the quick response. That's what I was wanting to hear - thought maybe it was just a few people trying to scare others off. Good attitude I could handle! I live in KS right now and pretty much don't care for it at all - it's just hot and flat where I live. and oodles of trains. I have just fallen in love with NC during my vacations out there.

I'm not that much of a big city girl... the town I live in is 40,000? I wouldn't mind living near a bigger city, just not in one! Would love to buy a house out there and would need an acre or two for the dog (by then probably two!) to run and play fetch. Plus a little nervous about finding a job out there too.

Hi, Dicedoll! I am an NC native, but moved back here from Kansas. I lived in Johnson County and loved it there, but JoCo is not like most of Kansas, as you know.

What area of the state are you living in now? And what type of work are you looking for?

There are many towns here in NC that remind me of towns in both KS and Missouri (probably more similarities w/ small towns in MO - just b/c of the topography - you get past Topeka and KS just doesn't seem very much like NC).

You can definitely find the type of situation you want, but I guess finding a job to go along with the move would be the big thing.

Here in the Charlotte area, you could live in towns such as Kannapolis, Gastonia, Lincolnton, Hickory, Valdese . . . and find land and welcoming communities. It would just depend on where you would have to commute to for work.

I found small towns in KS and MO to be culturally almost exactly like small towns in NC. I had clients in areas ranging from Parsons to Atchison, KS and from St. Joe to Butler and Raymore - and east to Jeff City. I found people in all those areas to be very warm and caring once you got to know them. Towns here are a lot like that - many families have remained intact and so people have known each other forever. But if you are friendly and eager to get to know people - and are a good neighbor - people are usually very happy to help you get settled and welcome you into their homes, churches, volunteer groups, etc.

If you can give me more info what you are looking for in particular - I will try to give you some more suggestions that you can check out - and if I can think of some towns in KS and MO to compare them to, I will be glad to do that.

[DanielleNC]

Look into Mebane. It's a very affordable small town of roughly 10,000 people. The location is great b/c you can get to the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill) in 20 minutes and the Triad (Greensboro, High Point, Winston-Salem) within 30. Everyone is very friendly, and again is very affordable compared to the Triangle.

[Catrick]

Mebane, Graham, Gibsonville, Kernersville. All are great cities with great people. Peaceful yet close to the bigger cities. People here are welcoming and friendly. That is why it is so great to live here.

[al_roethlisberger]

I think most of the larger metro areas and surrounding smaller towns are decidedly receptive to "transplants" as many of their population already is a mix of native and new residents.

I know that in Sanford we have a lot of non-native folks from the Triangle and Ft. Bragg/Polk and it isn't perceived as a negative at all. In fact, I know more folks that are non-native than native

Al