Questions Regarding Boone/Blowing Rock and the Surrounding Areas (Greensboro: real estate market, rentals)

[drfranklin]

I have an excellent opportunity in Boone and am considering making the move. My wife and I love the Western NC area (she's from Greensboro). We currently live in Greenville, SC and, of course, are concerned about moving to a much smaller area. Some questions:

1. I have 3 young children (only 1 in Kindergarten now) - how are the public schools in Boone/Wautaga county? Any good preschools in the area?

2. How's the overall shopping? Adequate grocery stores? We have Publix here and that would be missed. I imagine in a tourist area there would be several, nice local shops. Where's the nearest Target, Costco, large mall, etc?

3. How's the weather overall? I've not lived in a "mountainous" area before. Is 4WD/AWD "required" in Boone? How does the weather compare to the NC Piedmont/Upstate of SC? Humidity?

4. How are the dining options? I love Mexican food and have read (on other sites) that Mexican food is lacking in Boone - any recommendations? I hear there is a good Thai restaurant (Cha-Da Thai) but no Indian restaurants. Any good deli or bagel places? Any other excellent, local dining establishments? (looking for an excellent value that I can take the kids, not something fancy/snobby).

5. How's the local real estate market? The rental market (housing) looks very tight (due to Appalachian State?) - we always rent first when we move to a new area. Any recommended property management companies?

6. (Lastly) How much of an influence does Appalachian State exert on Boone? I understand there are both pros and cons of living in college town.

Thanks for the help

(Am also looking in the Asheville area and may post a similar thread in the near future.)

[mdp_az]

Watauga County has an excellent school system. Not sure about preschools, but can only imagine there are at least a few good ones due to the university.

Boone has a nice Harris Teeter, Lowes Foods & an Earth Fare. There is a Wal-Mart, a Lowes and even a small shopping mall that has recently been improved, but no Target. I'm not sure, but I think the closest Target might be in the Hickory or Morganton area. Downtown Boone and Blowing Rock have some nice local shops, as do some of the other regional towns like West Jefferson, Banner Elk, etc...

I love the weather in the High Country. Cold winters, but not too cold and absolutely beautiful summer weather which is so mild you don't need A/C! You'll find it to be, on average, around 10-15 degrees cooler than the piedmont/upstate climate with a bit more rain, snow & fog. The cold they've been having up there the past couple weeks is a bit unusual, but not unheard of. At least one car w/ AWD is a good idea, but a lot depends on where you live. I got by w/ a 2WD coupe back in the early-90s when I was on campus and mostly hung around town.

Restaurants are good in Boone with some outstanding ones in Blowing Rock/Banner Elk/etc... There's a great spot on Howard Street in downtown Boone called Char...right next to Cha Da Thai...both of which are kid friendly and not over the top. Not sure about Mexican/Indian/etc... I expect restaurants in Boone to improve considerably in the near-term due to the recently eased liquor laws in town.

The RE market carries a premium up there due to the strong vacation rental/second home market. That said, deals are out there right now b/c the vacation home market is struggling mightily! I would imagine plenty of homes which rent as vacation homes might also be offered as long-term rentals.

ASU's enrollment is greater than the permanent population of Boone, so it does have a considerable influence on the town. Black Saturdays (home football games) in the fall will create gridlock in town due to all the traffic. There's also a noticable difference in town when students are in vs. out. A positive is that ASU offers some great performing and visual arts and a highly educated populace for such a small mountain town. Of course, you can live just outside of town and only deal with the traffic when you have to, opting to enjoy the peace and quiet of a nice home in the countryside with mountain views and clean air!

If I had an opportunity to live up there I would not hesitate in the slightest! I think NC's High Country is one of the best places to live on the east coast.

[roadpony]

I lived in Boone/Watauga County fulltime for 10 years and now live in Greenville, SC. We still have a part-time home near Banner Elk. The above post is excellent. I agree with everything.

Unless you live on a remote dirt road, you can get by with front wheel drive and good all-weather tires. However, I have always preferred having 4x4 or AWD. Subaru is a popular, relatively economical choice of vehicle in the High Country if SUVs aren't your thing.

One of my favorite "every day" restaurants in Boone is the Red Onion. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the quality and dining choices, even in comparison with Greenville, for the size of the area. A lot of that has to do with the tourism and seasonal home clientele.

I haven't kept up with the rental market in recent years, but Holton Management is one of the principal property management companies in Boone. Their bread and butter is student housing, but they have other rental listings as well. You could Google them for their web site.

One thing you didn't mention is health care. Watauga Medical Center and the medical community in general is quite good, so that should not be a concern.

Good Luck! I'd move back fulltime in a heartbeat if the job situation was different for hubby and me.

[drfranklin]

Thanks guys for the information. I'm planning a trip in the next two weeks and will report back.

[drfranklin]

Recently made a site visit to Boone, NC over the weekend - my observations:

Boone is actually bigger than I imagined. For a town its size, it has all one would need: a small mall with Belk, JC Penny, TJ Maxx, etc. There is also an outlet mall as well. Wal-mart and Super K-mart are present too. I suppose if one needed Target or other fancier stores, Hickory and Winston-Salem are not too far. Some chain restaurants are represented (either in Boone or Blowing Rock). Great local restaurants abound as well. We ate at Bistro Roca last night (Bistro Roca Restaurant & Antlers Bar Blowing Rock NC Restaurants) in Blowing Rock - fantastic. Driving out of town, I ate at Peppers in Boone (Pepper's Restaurant). Very good and an excellent value. Grocery stores included Lowes Food (nice), Harris Teeter (very nice), Food Lion, and Ingles. Boar's Head deli is available at Lowe's Food. I also saw an Earth Fare but did not go in.

The weather was terrible yesterday with fog and rain. Temps in the mid-40's. I was amazed at the amount of snow still left on the ground since the big snow in December. Piles and piles of snow everywhere. Today, however, the weather was gorgeous and completely clear.

ASU has a somewhat expansive campus (was told 16K students). I did see a lot of students in town but there is not an overwhelming presence.

There's a lot of road construction on 321 and in Boone itself (King street). With this, traffic was actually "bad" - but really nothing compared to larger metropolitan areas.

Outdoor activities are literally at your doorstep with nearby skiing, hiking, and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

All in all, an excellent trip and a very appealing area.

[roadpony]

Good report! Sounds like you'd assimilate just fine. Good luck with your decision. Let us know if we can help any further.