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I want to get opinions from people who have lived/live in these cities. I have visited both multiple times and love both. I was hoping someone with some insider knowledge of having lived in one of these places could help make this tough choice. I love the mountains and love the beach. I'm finishing up what seems like lifelong training in the coming year and want to relocate to a place I can anchor down after having moved around the southeast every few years. Have a child and plan to have more but planning on sending to private school. My parents are looking to retire in next couple years and would like to live in a retirement community near where we settle to be near grandkids.
I prefer Greenville because I prefer the general scenery, more hardwoods and fall color, and mountains in distance, some rolling hills. Charleston is obviously flat, and it mostly pine trees. Charleston housing costs are higher for similar housing. Rush hour traffic on interstate is much worse in Charleston.
That is a con for Charleston. I hate traffic which is why I would never consider leaving in a place like Atlanta. I've seen rush hour traffic across the James Island bridge once and it was pretty bad, not sure how bad it gets at rush hour going to Mt P/Daniels Island/points north on 26. I'd probably be working on the peninsula if I was in Charleston so traffic would factor into area I live. Housing prices also a negative, if I relocate to Charleston I want to be relatively close to downtown or the coast which is going to cost more. I don't have much interest in living in a place like Summerville or Goose Creek.
I guess in my mind I have pros cons for each:
Charleston
Pros: History (which I love), food (one of the best in the nation), culture, entertainment (nightlife/sports/beach), beach
Cons: traffic, no seasons, further from a major airport or major city (such as Atl/Charlotte), housing prices, crime
Greenville
Pros: Mountains and outdoor entertainment available, nice downtown and nightlife as well (although less the Charleston), good food (again it's hard to compare it to Charleston), 4 seasons, close to Clemson football and same minor league options as Charleston, 2 hours from Atl/Charlotte
Cons: not sure if true cons but has less culture/history/overall entertainment options than Charleston
Honestly I think I'd be happy in either place and have friends in both towns. It's good to hear from people who've lived in both. It may just come down to best job offer.
Greenville. I know of some near Charleston but am not as familiar of retirement villages around Greenville should my parents relocate there. They love Greenville as well and had a realtor take them to Lake Keowee but not sure what communities are in Greenville County. They have been looking at Greenville/upstate, south Grand strand, Charleston area, Siesta Key, and the Villages in Florida as possible options but really would prefer to be close to where we end up.
That is a con for Charleston. I hate traffic which is why I would never consider leaving in a place like Atlanta. I've seen rush hour traffic across the James Island bridge once and it was pretty bad, not sure how bad it gets at rush hour going to Mt P/Daniels Island/points north on 26. I'd probably be working on the peninsula if I was in Charleston so traffic would factor into area I live. Housing prices also a negative, if I relocate to Charleston I want to be relatively close to downtown or the coast which is going to cost more. I don't have much interest in living in a place like Summerville or Goose Creek.
I guess in my mind I have pros cons for each:
Charleston
Pros: History (which I love), food (one of the best in the nation), culture, entertainment (nightlife/sports/beach), beach
Cons: traffic, no seasons, further from a major airport or major city (such as Atl/Charlotte), housing prices, crime
Greenville
Pros: Mountains and outdoor entertainment available, nice downtown and nightlife as well (although less the Charleston), good food (again it's hard to compare it to Charleston), 4 seasons, close to Clemson football and same minor league options as Charleston, 2 hours from Atl/Charlotte
Cons: not sure if true cons but has less culture/history/overall entertainment options than Charleston
Honestly I think I'd be happy in either place and have friends in both towns. It's good to hear from people who've lived in both. It may just come down to best job offer.
You can do/see most of the history stuff in Charleston in short period of time. I wouldn't call that a major pro.
I think Greenville nightlife is just as good as Charleston's, 120 restaurants, nice park, bars, etc downtown. I don't think the food in Charleston is any better than food in Greenville. There will be some restaurants you like and dislike in any metro. I don't agree Greenville has less entertainment options, other than no beach, and it does have history, just not the war and slavery history that Charleston has.
Charleston does get four seasons, it felt colder in the winter in Charleston to me, due to the wind ocean.
They are both good places to live, i would probably focus on which job you think hyou would like most.
For Charleston it depends on timing for traffic. I go downtown from north Mount Pleasant around 6:30-7 am and sail right through. As far as affordability, I guess it depends on the definition. Is $500k affordable? If so you could find an ideal spot in Chaleston close to downtown in a nice school district. If you're looking more for $250K, you'd probably end up so far from downtown and the beaches it may not be worth your while over the upstate.
In general mountains/hills are almost always more affordable than the coast due to the fact you have half the buildable area. The flip side is the coast usually appreciates and holds value better over time for that same reason.
I like Greenville a lot, but the town itself isn't that big. It's true you can see a lot of touristy things on Charleston in a short amount of time but I've been here almost 6 years and I'm still discovering new restaurants and historical stuff that the tourist rarely ever know about.
As far as food quality that's mainly subjective but Charleston is frequently featured in food related magazines. It's not only that but you can find a restaurant that's anything from a modern building to a 200 year old house, cigar factory, an old warehouse, wherever. I kinda like the old reused buildings and courtyard, porch, and rooftop dining options as opposed to just the food quality itself. The food quality is great, but it's everything else that really pulls it together.
Greenville: more conservative, green scenery, proximity to Charlotte & ATL
Charleston: more liberal, cosmopolitan, multicultural, multinational companies
From my standpoint, Greenville feels more cosmopolitan, it gets a lot of stuff that Charleston does not, like Apple, Dave and Busters, REI, Cheesecake Factory. The Greenville MSA and CSA has a lot more people than Charleston metro.
Gville also has a more modern looking downtown, with a lot of new building and taller buildings mixed in with the old buildings.
Greenville has a better group of employers than Charleston, in my opinion. It also has more foreign companies than most cities, and I believe it is much more than Charleston, companies like Michelin, BMW, etc. There appear both metroes are 1.5 percent or so Asian, and I would not be surprised Gville has more Europeans due to the European companies.
I believe the politics in similar in both metroes, more conservative in the burbs, more liberal in downtown area.
Last edited by ClemVegas; 02-12-2016 at 10:06 AM..
From my standpoint, Greenville feels more cosmopolitan, it gets a lot of stuff that Charleston does not, like Apple, Dave and Busters, REI, Cheesecake Factory. The Greenville MSA and CSA has a lot more people than Charleston metro.
Gville also has a more modern looking downtown, with a lot of new building and taller buildings mixed in with the old buildings.
Greenville has a better group of employers than Charleston, in my opinion. It also has more foreign companies than most cities, and I believe it is much more than Charleston, companies like Michelin, BMW, etc. There appear both metroes are 1.5 percent or so Asian, and I would not be surprised Gville has more Europeans due to the European companies.
I hardly think that Dave & Busters and the Cheesecake Factory qualify as "cosmopolitan." I wouldn't consider any city in SC very cosmopolitan, but Charleston to me feels more diverse/international than Greenville. Part of that probably stems from tourism.
You can do/see most of the history stuff in Charleston in short period of time. I wouldn't call that a major pro.
I think Greenville nightlife is just as good as Charleston's, 120 restaurants, nice park, bars, etc downtown. I don't think the food in Charleston is any better than food in Greenville. There will be some restaurants you like and dislike in any metro. I don't agree Greenville has less entertainment options, other than no beach, and it does have history, just not the war and slavery history that Charleston has.
Charleston does get four seasons, it felt colder in the winter in Charleston to me, due to the wind ocean.
They are both good places to live, i would probably focus on which job you think hyou would like most.
I suppose it depends on type of food, but I've never heard the claim that Greenville's food is on par with Charleston's. Lowcountry cuisine is well known and unique. The only scenario where you're statement makes sense to me is if you don't like seafood. I don't know enough about the nightlife to comment.
As far as history goes, it depends on your interest. If you have the tourist mindset of checking off the boxes, then yes, you can see most of the historical sites in 3 days or so. However, many people (such as myself) simply enjoy strolling through the battery and all of the old houses. Greenville has nothing like that. Visiting Magnolia Gardens and Middleton every spring is also a wonderful thing.
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Agree w/ traffic and housing
