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Hello all,
My wife and I, and our 1 year old son are taking a blind leap and moving to the Raleigh area. I've had 3 inerviews with the NCDOT in the past month but still no actual offers...I'm sure one is coming soon. San Diego was good to us for th past 8 years but California as a whole has gone down the tubes. I am a Cali native but I'm smart enough to notice when a good thing is over. I have lived in a variey of different climates and places so I'm well equiped for the change, My wife on the other hand is a Chicago metro local (I dragged her from Chicago to Denver, then her job took us back to my locale, (So. Cal.) San Diego). So all she knows is big city life, and extreme weather or big city completely mild weather. As of now the east coast is fighting 100 plus degrees and equal humidity where as here we haven't seen the sun or gotten above 65 degrees since the 1st of the month. Don't be jealous it actually is dreadful....My wife is heading to Raleigh on the 19tth for a couple days to find us a place and hopefully sign a lease. I know many of you will think we're crazy, but as far as my trade goes San Diego has broken up with us, and since the arrival of our son We'd rather my wife be a stay at home mom. I know our hard earned dollars will go alot further in Raleigh. Enough with my descriptive rambling my questions are; we are leaving many good freinds, is it possible to make more within our demographics (mid 30's parents) and is tthere single family RENTALS 2-3 bedrooms with a garage in our price range (not over 850 a month) we have been told o avoid (no offense to anyone, East Raleigh, and Durham as from block to block they can be hit or miss. So were looking in the Cary, Chapel Hill, N. Raleigh, etc. area) point being is this plausable? Are we crazy? any good advice will be helpful! Dont try and be negative as our minds are already made... just looking for some positive reinforcement!
Thanks! Daniel
$850 seems low for a house rental anywhere. We charge $995 for ours (with garage), and we've considered it quite reasonable. (It's not available.) Like I said were coming blind, so all I have o go off of, is what I've seen on "Craigslist" so I might be off, from what Ive seen very few properties acually have attached garages. Many carports or dedicated parking spos but garages are far and few inbetween. Undersand I'm coming from Cali where everyone has a garage (driving State) and as I just felt earthquake state, so I'm just looking for plausibles...
I just moved here from La Mesa. I've only been here a couple weeks so take my opinion with a grain of salt.
You will miss the weather (shocking, I know) and be surprised by the amount of traffic here, but other than that you will love it. I was having a similar conversation with other people who moved here. We all agreed that Raleigh is in the beginning of its boom so it's a great time to move here. It reminds me of Atlanta about 15 years ago so expect this place to become a bigger city soon.
Many companies are moving here because of the great tax breaks they are being offered so the Research Triangle has become a major business hub for corporations. The roads are not able to handle the traffic yet, however a lot of development is going on. The amount of traffic you will face depends on where you are coming from and going to (like anywhere else I suppose). Some roads just can't handle it. There should be some relief within the next year or two when some of these construction projects are completed.
Taxes and tax laws are different and strange but there are other things in place to balance them out. Something I found out today was that you pay taxes on everything including your car. Registration is cheap though so it comes out to about what you would just pay for registration in Cali.
So far my experience has been a good one. There is a lot of diversity and many many many places to eat and shop. The schools here seem to be top notch and people have been very friendly. Raleigh is about as much of a melting pot as San Diego is. With that said, there is plenty to do here and they have magazines similar to The Reader so you can always find activities on the weekend.
For housing, 850 is reasonable but probably not for a house unless you are able to by a townhouse or condo with a good finance rate. Some people are willing to negotiate so anything could happen. You could easily land a good 2bed/2bath/1000-1200 sqft. apartment with washer/dryer for about that price. This will mostly depend on what area you are looking to live in. From what I have seen in my hunt for a place, Chapel Hill and Wake Forest are the most expensive areas. Raleigh is good but I wouldn't bother looking inside the beltline (440). I've been told to stay away from Durham but South and North Durham don't seem too bad. It depends on what you are comfortable with so tell your wife to drive through the different areas. Many of them still have that "Old Town" feel and some of them have that "Normal Heights" feel.
Bottom line is that this is a nice area that is growing fast. You will be much happier here than you were in SD, especially if your focus is to be with your family and start (finish) building your lives together.
I know. That's why I responded with what I knew. I also looked at a major real estate site, and you may find many more options in townhouses. Yes, garages are pretty rare for rentals.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CaliN8tive
$850 seems low for a house rental anywhere. We charge $995 for ours (with garage), and we've considered it quite reasonable. (It's not available.) Like I said were coming blind, so all I have o go off of, is what I've seen on "Craigslist" so I might be off, from what Ive seen very few properties acually have attached garages. Many carports or dedicated parking spos but garages are far and few inbetween. Undersand I'm coming from Cali where everyone has a garage (driving State) and as I just felt earthquake state, so I'm just looking for plausibles...
Moved out from Rancho Bernardo in 08 for my wife to go to UNC for her Master's. I would say that, in your price range, it would best serve you to keep Durham on your list. Yes, it is hit-or-miss, but the 'hit' areas are very nice and can be a relative bargain. We live in South Durham (27713) and love it.
That being said, we're seriously contemplating moving back to San Diego. We like the area just fine, but my 'temporary' job here has turned into 2 years of misery with no other prospects in sight despite constant looking. We'll miss the cost-of-living for sure, but the career has to come first. Being back with family and friends (not that we haven't made any here) is a plus as well.
I've had 3 inerviews with the NCDOT in the past month but still no actual offers...I'm sure one is coming soon.
I certainly hope you've been doing a lot of other interviewing; it's difficult to get on with the state of NC and they often interview a lot more folks than they are "serious" about (for quotas, etc). I wish you good luck but am just offering advice as an NC state employee who's been on lots of interviews that felt like "sure things"...no one should ever be "sure" they are going to get a state job with NC. Sometimes a job is frozen even after they've picked a candidate. I hope you have a backup plan and lots of saving to tide you over. This really is not the time to be moving somewhere like NC without a job offer in hand, but good luck to you.
I'm a So Cal native too and have been here a few years. I think your budget for housing is too low for what you want. I agree with others that you'll probably want to keep Durham on your list. You'll love the spring and fall here. Beautiful and mild. Gorgeous pops of color- trees, flowers- everywhere. Winter is generally mild and the occasions of snow (not the ice!) are fun for a SoCaler. I also like the summer thunderstorms. Spectacular! Love the evening fireflies and the sounds of nature! Though it's been calm this season where I live. The heat and humidity are the biggest challenge. It doesn't cool off much in the evenings so there's little relief. Get an apartment with great a/c! Though real estate is cheaper here, and gas and taxes, everything else is $$. Groceries, hairstyling, clothing, dining out, etc are just as expensive as Cali. And say good bye to BevMo, in-N-Out and great Mexican food! You won't find anything close here.
Senary, Thank you so much for your input and response. I am very much looking forward to the change, I'm just slowly , (and I mean slowly) convincing my wife that its a better move than what we've got. She knows it's for the best, shes worried about leaving friends and having to make new ones (the older you get the harder it gets to make friends) but I know hat it is a far friendlier and nicer vibe there than anywhere in So. Cal. If you dont mind me asking what brought you out there? It's simply the right thing for us right now and I'm excited about it!
I came out here because I was offered a job in the Research Triangle Park (known as RTP). Besides being a good opportunity with a good company, I really wanted to move here because all the members of my family live on the East Coast. I ended up in SD because it was my last duty station when I was in the military. Needless to say, I decided to stay. I was there for about 10 years before I determined it was time I should come back. I think that I will miss being able to run to Vegas on a weekend or head to Big Bear, but I figure I have Atlantic City and the Carolina Mountains if I ever get a real itch to do things like that.
My friend called me and told me about that Earthquake when it hit. It was 6.0 and seems to be getting closer to SD. That makes 3 in the area this year already right? Well, here you will deal with Hurricanes. The last rough one was a couple years ago. They don't usually come this far in land, but I've been told they will drop A LOT of rain on the Raleigh area.
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