Possibly moving to Asheville/Arden area...would like some input please. (Charlotte: for sale, houses)

[moving from missouri]

My husband has a job opportunity in the Arden area and its my job to do some research. Can anyone help? We have four kids ranging from 10 to 1...so good schools are a must! We would like to know about the shopping in the area. Let me rephrase that, I would like to know about the shopping in the area! Housing is another thing. Is it pretty expensive out there? Out here (Missouri), a 1500 sq.ft house with 3bdr/2bath would be about $130k-$150k. What's it like in NC? Any other information would be extremely helpful. Thanks!!

[cooperwx]

I live in Arden, and have kids. The schools are very good. It's probably the best place in western NC for a shop-a-holic to live. The Asheville mall is 20 minutes by car, so is downtown Asheville; the Airport Road corridor between Hendersonville Rd and I-26 is booming with new stores.

It is expensive here relative to what you're used to. It will be hard to find the typical home you describe for under $200k. But you will never get tired of the mountain views.

[Asheville Native]

Arden is an imitation of Atlanta or Charlotte, with growth, sprawl, and horrendous traffic. Asheville Mall is a joke, dozens of cheap shoe stores and teeny bopper clothing stores.

[moving from missouri]

Thanks for the info. I was looking at some homes for sale on the internet which included some houses that had spectacular views of the mountains. As far as I'm concerned, I could live in a tent if the land offered those views! I think my kids might enjoy that. lol
Currently, we live in a rural area within 60 miles of St. Louis. So anything is going to be a change. I'm afraid of the shock we are going to have at the price of things. I hope its not too different. My husband's work would be off of Brevard Rd. A couple of exits up from the airport. If he gets the job, we will be coming out together to look around a little more. Can you recomend some "must see" places? Is there anywhere that we should stay away from? It is so great to have first-hand information and I thank you for all your help.

[cooperwx]

For your budget and area, I would look into Royal Pines, Avery's Creek, and Fletcher. All are in good school districts, and will be less expensive if you can stay out of the new-home developments.

Areas around Glenn Bridge and Rockwood roads may be less expensive, but there is a lot of manufactured housing and it's very close to the power plant. Also, Bent Creek is a very nice neighborhood (sounds like it's VERy close to your hubby's work), but the schools aren't as good as further south and east. That may be changing as higher-end housing moves in that area.

[moving from missouri]

Is there a lot of construction going on in the area? The next town over from ours is building and has grown to double its size in the last 5-7 years. Even our little town is slowly growing. I'm guessing that its a trend all over the nation.
Does the airport there cause a lot of noise pollution or does it only handle the smaller aircraft?
As far as housing goes, I don't know what our budget will be. He hasn't gotten the offer yet...we're still waiting and praying. I hope that this will be a good move for all of us, but we will be all alone out there. Our family is all within 20 minutes to 1 1/2 hours away from us here. It will be a BIG change.
Thank you for your reply. It makes it a lot easier to make a decision knowing a little something about the area.

[cooperwx]

There are homes and subdivisions going up at an alarming rate. In this area they tend to be aimed at the $300k and up crowd. It will be tough to get new construction in southern Buncombe/northern Henderson counties for less than that.

We can hear the planes in the air (commercial jet service to CLT/ATL/Newark/Cincy/Detroit/maybe Houston, plus lots of private planes) at our home 3.5 miles from the airport. I don't think they'd be a nuisance unless I lived within a mile or so of the runway.

Good luck on the job offer!

[moving from missouri]

Thank you for all you help, Cooperwx. It really helps having first hand information. We're still waiting...I've got my fingers crossed and many prayers out there. I think this area would be great to raise our kids and let his career progress. As for me, I'll just sit back and dream about the mountain views!!

[moving from missouri]

Looks like we'll be moving out that way! He's going to accept their offer as of this Monday!
So the hunt begins for the perfect place to live!

[cooperwx]

Congrats, moving. I have a friend who can't stand Missouri. He's a true-blue Kansan, though, and I hear there's quite a rivalry between the states.

Keep us posted on your house hunt/moving plans!