Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hi! My husband has a possible job opportunity in Fort Mill SC. We are planning to take a trip at the end of this week to see the area but my only concern is the salary. We would be relocating from NY and his salary would be about 40k a year. Would this be enough to support a family with down there. I know it is cheaper than where we are now but we would never be able to survive here with that salary so it makes me wonder if its really that much cheaper. I feel like its a little tight to buy a house and raise kids on that... thanks for your advice!
Compared to the rest of SC, Ft. Mill isn't very cheap to live. It is now basically a suburb of Charlotte and property values have really skyrocketed as the city grows south. In my opinion, 40k combined family income isn't much to raise a family on. But that depends on your lifestyle now. Are you debt free? What kind of house are you looking for? How old are your kids? What do you do in your spare time? How do you spend your money?
Compared to the rest of SC, Ft. Mill isn't very cheap to live. It is now basically a suburb of Charlotte and property values have really skyrocketed as the city grows south. In my opinion, 40k combined family income isn't much to raise a family on. But that depends on your lifestyle now. Are you debt free? What kind of house are you looking for? How old are your kids? What do you do in your spare time? How do you spend your money?
Lots of unknowns.
thank you for your response 😀 coming down we will be debt free. Our daughter is 2 and we just found out we have one on the way 😃. i am currently a "stay at home mom" but i do babysit which provides income, but can not be gauranteed to find a babysitting job down there so we need to make sure we can swing it on his income only and hope i can find something just for extra. we dont necessarily need to stay in fort mill but thats where the job is located so we can go to surrounding areas. i am just more wondering if it is worth the 12 trip to come see the area if we arent going to be able to live off of a salary like that.
we are not fancy shamncy so we do not need a huge fancy house. we would really need four bedrooms two baths in a decent area with pretty decent schools.
Housing is going to be a problem. 4 bedroom 2 bath homes are going for 300k and up. The cheapest I saw was 209k. (And trust me when I say it was nothing special.) That's going to be hard to hit at only 40k salary.
After a closer look, I did find some decent housing with 4bed 2 bath for around 200k. That is more reasonable. If your husband doesn't mind a short commute, Lancaster is about 20 miles south and your dollar goes a lot further there. The schools aren't as good but not terrible either.
After a closer look, I did find some decent housing with 4bed 2 bath for around 200k. That is more reasonable. If your husband doesn't mind a short commute, Lancaster is about 20 miles south and your dollar goes a lot further there. The schools aren't as good but not terrible either.
I sincerely appreciate all of your help and research!!! we have decided to take the trip down to see what the surrounding areas have to offer... I am nervous and excited at the same time!
There are plenty of online tools to help you compare the cost of living from your current location vs this area. I think the affordability of this area might have become the stuff of legends. Tread carefully and realistically. I can't see 40 grand going very far for a family of four here. That's just my opinion since you asked.
Yes, the housing is a concern. Property taxes continue to rise and rent prices as well. When we moved here 3 years ago rent for a 3 bedroom was 1100-1200 max, now it's 1300-1400 and that's for an apartment.
I think it's doable if you look to live out a little further. Rock Hill will be a little cheaper in rent, but Clover would probably be my first choice if you plan to utilize the public schools later.
If you are going to Lancaster, try Indian Land near Lancaster. The schools are better the place is up and coming. It is probably safer and a less depressed area.
I was also going to recommend Clover not only because you'll have pockets of affordability, but the schools are great.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
