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My husband and I are looking to relocate this coming December and Charlotte is currently on the top of our list since we have some family there. I've only ever been to Charlotte twice, but have been browsing this forum for quite awhile and a lot of questions have been answered through previous posts, but had a couple more.
A little about us- we're a 28 year old couple and we have a 5 year old with boy #2 due to arrive next month. I currently work as the executive director for a non-profit and my husband is a retired (medically) Marine. I have my bachelor's degree in business admin, and my husband is starting his second year of college. He stays at home and does online classes, but I will be starting the job search once our son is born. Our oldest son is starting kindergarten so we are looking to move during Christmas break so he doesn't miss much, or any, school.
My questions are:
1. What is the job environment like there? If I can't find a job prior to December, we'll most likely be moving without one- we have enough in savings to make up for my salary for a year, if we need to use that, and we also have my husband's retirement and disability pay that comes in monthly and is $5,468/month. While we could even get by on just his retirement alone where we currently live (in Jacksonville, NC), I'm not sure how far that would get us in Charlotte. I will be looking for office type jobs, not necessarily in the non-profit sector. Here in Jacksonville, jobs are horribly low-paying because of how transitional the town is due to the military. I currently make $53,000 at my job with 4 years of managerial experience as a non-profit exec, and wasn't sure if salaries were comparable in the Charlotte area. I know Charlotte is still rebuilding from the recession, but wasn't sure how bad it still is.
2. What is the veteran population, if there is one, like? Since Jacksonville is a military town, it has been a relatively smooth transition into retirement for my husband, but Charlotte is nowhere near a base. I wasn't sure if there were any really active veteran groups there.
3. Des anyone know how transferring a kindergartner would work? If the public schools would even accept a transfer in the middle of the school year?
4. Obviously if I found a job prior to moving, we would find a location close to my job, but in the event that we move without one, what are some good areas for us to start with? We would be renting to start out with, since we don't know the area and would look for a single family house between 2,000-2,800 sq feet, 3 bedrooms, with rent up to $1600/month. A neighborhood with a pool would be ideal. I realize this is very general, and while we plan on visiting there a couple times before moving, Charlotte is such a large place that having any tips on narrowing it down would be appreciated.
Thank you for taking the time to read this long post! Any advice is welcome or insider info is welcome!
8.8% is a great number when the Charlotte area was at 10.5% during the recession.
I recently moved from Austin, TX where the job market is very great to Charlotte and had little to no trouble finding a good job. I wouldn't necessarily say Charlotte is the best city for jobs, but I do know it is one of the top 10 cities for job seekers.
I'm in Union County. We had at least one rental in my neighborhood in that price range at some point recently, so I think it's doable to find a house to rent. As for the Kindergarten situation, one of mine was that age last year and had a new student come at the end of April. So coming in around the holidays shouldn't be a problem. A lot of people are always moving to the area, so it's quite common I think.
since we don't know the area and would look for a single family house between 2,000-2,800 sq feet, 3 bedrooms, with rent up to $1600/month
If you're price range is up to $1600, then reduce the house size expectation to under 2000 square feet if you want to be in Mecklenburg county. If you must have the space, look in the adjoining counties or be prepared to pay more.
8.8% is a great number when the Charlotte area was at 10.5% during the recession.
I recently moved from Austin, TX where the job market is very great to Charlotte and had little to no trouble finding a good job. I wouldn't necessarily say Charlotte is the best city for jobs, but I do know it is one of the top 10 cities for job seekers.
New numbers came out on Monday 8/19. Charlotte is up to 8.9%. That's trending in the wrong direction, but the summer months are always down.
New numbers came out on Monday 8/19. Charlotte is up to 8.9%. That's trending in the wrong direction, but the summer months are always down.
I replied with the same number you originally posted. Whether it's 8.8%, 8.9%, or 9.0%, it's an improvement from 10.5%. The number will obviously fluctuate.
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