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Thank you. Honestly that’s great info to consider. My kids are little but do not expect them to perform above average, and I’m weary of putting them anywhere their self confidence would be at risk. Sounds like Butler and similar schools may be best. That’ll help narrow down neighborhoods. Of course, we will visit schools during our next trip. Though high school is a ways away.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Originally Posted by Jhorbal
I’m back. Are there South Charlotte subdivisions you’d note as having an extra amount of family participation in their community, like joining the pool and participating in events like Easter Egg hunts etc? Looking for a very active neighborhood- where we do NOT feel we have to join s country club. That is just not in our budget. But we really liked many of the south Charlotte neighborhoods.
Second, many of you mentioned Belmont might be a great fit for us, but I’ve read a lot about lack of amenities close by and having to shop in Gastonia which I’ve heard has a reputation for high crime. Is this true? We did not get a chance to visit Belmont during our last visit.
Last, we liked that Matthews had a little downtown and independent coffee shop and stores. Anyone want to share pros/cons of Matthews.
Thank you!
I live in Kings Mountain. Like most people out here, I do most of my shopping in Gastonia. I'm female & have zero problems. Look at a crime map. There are bad areas. There's no reason for you to be in those areas of Gastonia. There's nothing of interest for you.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Originally Posted by southbound_295
Sure. To be honest, I'm about to go into Gastonia right now. I'll give you a detailed description when I get back.
Well, I'm back. West Franklin Blvd has been less than inviting, but work is happening in relation to the entertainment complex. Today on WSOC they were discussing potentially building ligh rail to Gaston County. Since Gastonia has a small bus system, that would be a good thing.
In nearly 10 years, I've had to go to Charlotte once for something that I couldn't get in Gastonia.
Trader Joe's is only in Charlotte. I found that annoying, but since Lidl opened a store in Gastonia, I don't care.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Originally Posted by Jhorbal
Thanks for writing back! Sounds like you have almost all you need there
You're welcome. Yes, just about anything is available out here. The same could be said for Belmont. There are posters who thrive on bashing Gastonia.
If there's anything that I didn't address, let me know.
People used to bash schools out here until it became possible to make reasonable comparisons. There is a magnet school, Highland Tech, which is highly rated.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Originally Posted by Jhorbal
As we get closer to our next visit to Charlotte in a few weeks, I'm trying to make an estimated budget if we were to live there. Many of our costs won't change much, but I have no idea how to get approximate costs for utility costs/other housing costs. Ideas on where I can get any sample budgets like this for a 4BR, 2bath house/family of 4 type arrangement? I also heard food is more expensive there, so does $150-200/week for groceries for a family of 4 sound reasonable? I'm just looking for approximates; doesn't have to be perfect. I'll take anything you can share! TIA.
Food budgets will depend on what you buy, & where you buy it. Which sounds stupid, but that's what it boils down to.
There's a grocery thread that may answer some basic questions. A lot of the thread involves the current fluid state of who's selling in the Charlotte market.
I do most of my shopping at Aldi, Lidl, & Ingles. There aren't many Ingles stores in the Charlotte market & there are currently 4 Lidls. I recommend checking websites for sale prices to get an idea.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,814 posts, read 34,670,113 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jhorbal
Great idea about grocery threads thanks. I’ve heard good is more expensive in general so just need an idea to plug into my pretend budget. Thanks!
You're welcome. The current grocery thread just shifted to page 2 of the threads on this board. Search for groceries & you should find 2 or 3 older threads, too.
While you're searching, search for the city & town websites. They should show what town-sponsored events are available throughout the year.
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