SC native ... will answer questions (Charleston, Goose Creek: foreclosure, for rent, closing)

[gaby133]

I want your advice in where is the best city to move in SC. I live in SE Florida for the last 10 years and it is time for a move. I lived in Michigan before that and I loved everything there except the weather. In Florida I loved just the weather and I am looking for a place where people will be nice like in Michigan and the weather pleasant like in Florida. I am a registered nurse so I am looking to be somewhere close to hospitals and 55+ retirement communities...in few words I need a fairly populated area. Also I have two children 12y and 5yr and good schools are very important .I was very dissapointed in south Florida schools. I am not crazy about city life ,we don't drink so we never go to bars. We are into water sports and enjoying the nature. I would like an area where there are grocery shops, home depot, Walmart close , and may be a mall(even if I am not a big mall shopper).I will appreciate any piece of info you can give.

[SCSKier]

Originally Posted by gaby133

I want your advice in where is the best city to move in SC. I live in SE Florida for the last 10 years and it is time for a move. I lived in Michigan before that and I loved everything there except the weather. In Florida I loved just the weather and I am looking for a place where people will be nice like in Michigan and the weather pleasant like in Florida. I am a registered nurse so I am looking to be somewhere close to hospitals and 55+ retirement communities...in few words I need a fairly populated area. Also I have two children 12y and 5yr and good schools are very important .I was very dissapointed in south Florida schools. I am not crazy about city life ,we don't drink so we never go to bars. We are into water sports and enjoying the nature. I would like an area where there are grocery shops, home depot, Walmart close , and may be a mall(even if I am not a big mall shopper).I will appreciate any piece of info you can give.

Sounds like Greenville would be a perfect fit. It has everything you listed.

[g-man430]

Sounds like Greenville. Oh wait it is.

[terrier94]

We relocated to Florence SC from Dallas TX when I accepted a new job. Good small southern town with good retail amenities, little traffic, cheap housing and good schools if you live in the West Florence school district. A decent place to raise kids but not much going on and definitely a lot of "homegrown" locals but also sprinkles of transplants like us. Though it is located at the junction of I-95 and I-20 and is experiencing growth, it does have an "isolated" feeling as the major cities of Columbia, Charleston, Charlotte and Raleigh are a good drive away. I have lived in other small southern towns like Albany GA and Valdosta GA and you do get what you pay for. With cheap living comes cheap paychecks and cheap culture.

[pminct]

Okay, I want to transplant from CT to SC, and not sure where to go.

Both Conway and Summerville look nice----not too close to TOURIST areas, but close enough to the coast (where I currently live in CT, so would hate to be too far away---now a 5 minute ride, so 45 minute ride would be max!!)

What are the differences between Conway and Summerville, and which would you prefer?

I need a home around $150K with 3 BRs and 2 bathrooms, as well as a job that will provide medical insurance. I currently do IT Tech Support, but would love to find a job in the school system in SC to have the summers off with my child. I started as a secretary many years ago and would go back to that type of job, if I had the summers off as I prefer.

I know there are a ton of professional jobs in Charleston, but do Conway or Summerville also have IT/Tech jobs? Or are there jobs in these area school systems?

I do NOT want a long commute time. I want to be LOCAL.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Patty in CT

[MelanieJohn]

Hi!
I'm a freshman in college and I'm hoping to move to the Carolina area when I graduate. I've absolutely fallen in love with the Charleston area and I would love to live some where in that area. I'm originally from Michigan, and as much as I hate the winters I do enjoy some snow. I was wondering if there was anywhere in the east side of South Carolina that had any snow fall?

[morningbecomeseclectic]

Hi Kat2k. I just sent a post to the general SC forum, so forgive me if I repeat myself, but I didn't see your offer of help until after I submitted. My husband has been offered a job in Gaffney, and, knowing nothing about the area, I asked about it in the Greenville-Spartanburg forum. Long story short, no one had anything good to say about Gaffney (except that the people there are nice--which actually counts for a lot). The fact of the matter is, unless we can find a nice place to live, where we can settle and be happy, BEFORE accepting the job, we can't commit to this position (that's the mistake we made with our last move and why, a year later, we find ourselves having to move again!).

So, my question is: Is there anywhere within a reasonable commute to Gaffney (20-30 minutes) that is a really nice place to live? We're looking for somewhere family-friendly, with a small-town feel, low crime, decent cost of living, clean environment, etc. We'd also like somewhere we can walk to shops/restaurants if we want.

Does this place exist near Gaffney? Any help you can give would be really appreciated.

[usc_gal98]

Originally Posted by terrier94

We relocated to Florence SC from Dallas TX when I accepted a new job. Good small southern town with good retail amenities, little traffic, cheap housing and good schools if you live in the West Florence school district. A decent place to raise kids but not much going on and definitely a lot of "homegrown" locals but also sprinkles of transplants like us. Though it is located at the junction of I-95 and I-20 and is experiencing growth, it does have an "isolated" feeling as the major cities of Columbia, Charleston, Charlotte and Raleigh are a good drive away. I have lived in other small southern towns like Albany GA and Valdosta GA and you do get what you pay for. With cheap living comes cheap paychecks and cheap culture.

Cheap culture?

[usc_gal98]

Originally Posted by pminct

Okay, I want to transplant from CT to SC, and not sure where to go.

Both Conway and Summerville look nice----not too close to TOURIST areas, but close enough to the coast (where I currently live in CT, so would hate to be too far away---now a 5 minute ride, so 45 minute ride would be max!!)

What are the differences between Conway and Summerville, and which would you prefer?

I need a home around $150K with 3 BRs and 2 bathrooms, as well as a job that will provide medical insurance. I currently do IT Tech Support, but would love to find a job in the school system in SC to have the summers off with my child. I started as a secretary many years ago and would go back to that type of job, if I had the summers off as I prefer.

I know there are a ton of professional jobs in Charleston, but do Conway or Summerville also have IT/Tech jobs? Or are there jobs in these area school systems?

I do NOT want a long commute time. I want to be LOCAL.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Patty in CT

If you were going to move to Conway and look for a job in the school system, you may want to visit www3.hcs.k12.sc.us/ to find employment.

I can tell you a little about Conway. It is a very nice town. There are alot of little shops downtown and you will also be just a short drive to the Coastal Grande Mall, as well as the beach. I happen to love Conway but I am partial because I am there alot. If you are looking for a job in IT, you may want to check HTC. HTC is a local cooperative in the area.

The only negative thing that I would say would be that traffic is HORRIBLE on Hwy 501 during tourist season. Summerville is nice, too.

[PalmettoGuy]

I was wondering if there was anywhere in the east side of South Carolina that had any snow fall?

Snow is a rarity in eastern SC, especially as you go farther south towards Charleston. About once every few years, northeastern SC will get a snowfall of a few inches. Other than that, you're lucky to get a dusting. Your best bet would be to take a day trip up to Greenville or the NC mountains when they're getting the white stuff.