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Are we missing something??? Thought Raleigh was horrible! What is the fuss about??? What are we missing?? Drove around the whole area from downtown Raleigh,Cary, Apex, Wake Forest... We don't get it. What is the attraction there? Would really like to know why everyone is flocking to the Raleigh area and what they do for jobs!
I think *most* people coming here are coming for the lower cost of housing compared to other highly dense areas of the country, the decent job market, the good schools, open spaces and slower pace of life.
I don't think people are coming here because it's some type of fascinating city, which it isn't. I think for most people moving here, they feel that their quality of life is improved comapred to what they have or could have.
If you do a search you will see you are not alone. But for some of us we call it home, So no, it is not for everyone as you found out. And at least you can say, you came and you saw.
Are we missing something??? Thought Raleigh was horrible! What is the fuss about??? What are we missing?? Drove around the whole area from downtown Raleigh,Cary, Apex, Wake Forest... We don't get it. What is the attraction there? Would really like to know why everyone is flocking to the Raleigh area and what they do for jobs!
It depends on what you are looking for and where you are coming from For me it was like coming home (kinda). I grew up in ATL before it became the massive sprawl that it is today. The triangle reminds me of what Atlanta was like when I was a child, a good many years ago. I've also lived in CA for quite a few years and became accustomed to an eclectic environment. That is why we chose Chapel Hill instead of Cary or some of the other typical suburan communites. I raised my kids in neighborhoods like that and it was wonderful for them but I wouldn't want to live there now. I'm not knocking it. We simply want something different at this stage in our lives.
Are we missing something??? Thought Raleigh was horrible! What is the fuss about??? What are we missing?? Drove around the whole area from downtown Raleigh,Cary, Apex, Wake Forest... We don't get it. What is the attraction there? Would really like to know why everyone is flocking to the Raleigh area and what they do for jobs!
Tonight during my two hour commute home from the client site, while standing on a crowded commuter rail while some inconsiderate lout repeatedly bumped against me because he didn't want to step into the train, I was enjoying the view as the various parts of New York City passed before me. Traffic on Queens Boulevard, bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Van Wyck, a crowded platform in Jamaica Station where I needed to transfer trains and fight a crowd for a seat, more traffic on the L.I.E., cars ripping through the parking lot at my station not willing to slow down and let pedestrian traffic pass safely. I can't believe I'm giving all of this up.
I came home to my family where my son complained that he threw his last baseball over the neighbors fence because it's too close and it's hard for him to hold back. My youngest son wanted to ride his bike but the street in front of my house is so riddled with potholes that it's unsafe..... despite my nearly $10k per year in taxes. I went to a friends house to drop something off and the husband was in a snit because his latest job search is stalled, his wife is at him because they really need a bigger place then their small ranch provides and he can't afford the additional mortgage and property taxes with his current salary.
What do I see in Raleigh? Affordable homes with reasonable taxes. An easier city to get around with an airport that's twenty minutes away during rush hour. I'm moving from .17 acres to 1.02 acres and from a yard 40 feet wide to one that's 110 feet wide. The people are more polite, the pace at least a step slower, an extended warm weather season, convenient drives to popular vacation destinations, good schools, diverse community and a chance to switch from "living to work" to "working to live".
Tonight during my two hour commute home from the client site, while standing on a crowded commuter rail while some inconsiderate lout repeatedly bumped against me because he didn't want to step into the train, I was enjoying the view as the various parts of New York City passed before me. Traffic on Queens Boulevard, bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Van Wyck, a crowded platform in Jamaica Station where I needed to transfer trains and fight a crowd for a seat, more traffic on the L.I.E., cars ripping through the parking lot at my station not willing to slow down and let pedestrian traffic pass safely. I can't believe I'm giving all of this up.
I came home to my family where my son complained that he threw his last baseball over the neighbors fence because it's too close and it's hard for him to hold back. My youngest son wanted to ride his bike but the street in front of my house is so riddled with potholes that it's unsafe..... despite my nearly $10k per year in taxes. I went to a friends house to drop something off and the husband was in a snit because his latest job search is stalled, his wife is at him because they really need a bigger place then their small ranch provides and he can't afford the additional mortgage and property taxes with his current salary.
What do I see in Raleigh? Affordable homes with reasonable taxes. An easier city to get around with an airport that's twenty minutes away during rush hour. I'm moving from .17 acres to 1.02 acres and from a yard 40 feet wide to one that's 110 feet wide. The people are more polite, the pace at least a step slower, an extended warm weather season, convenient drives to popular vacation destinations, good schools, diverse community and a chance to switch from "living to work" to "working to live".
I don't think I've ever heard anyone put it any better!
To me, if you didn't see something you liked in the area, why drag it through the mud trying to get people to defend it? It's not for you, and that is that. For some of us the area provides a much better quality of life, more friendly people and a generally more pleasant environment in which to live. Even those of us who know nothing of life outside a big city. I personally am very glad that it is not for everyone - the whole country could not possibly fit here!
I think a more appropriate question to ask is what is it you are looking for in a place to relocate? That might be more helpful to you rather than learning why people are moving to an area you do not care for. If you don’t like Raleigh, that is cool. I don’t feel threatened or feel compelled to defend it. No place is perfect for everyone. Best of luck to you!
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Cary, Apex, Wake Forest... We don't get it. What is the attraction there? Would really like to know why everyone is flocking to the Raleigh area and what they do for jobs!
So no, it is not for everyone as you found out. And at least you can say, you came and you saw. 
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
