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It probably seems stupid to natives, but as someone trying to figure out exactly where to relocate to in Charlotte, these two (and the nearby suburbs) seem like the best fit for our budget and needs. I've mentioned this in passing on other threads, but I thought I'd start a thread to see if I got any guidance.
We've driven around Huntersville/Cornelius a lot, and liked the area. We want to be near a lake, and while Lake Norman appears to offer more than Lake Wylie, it's also pretty crowded? And I am not concerned about rush hour traffic on I-77, but I have been told repeatedly here that I-77 is a nightmare most of the time. Not sure what to think, as a few other large metro transplants have told me it's not as bad as the major metro areas.
But we've heard that Fort Mill and other NC suburbs east of Lake Wylie and north of Fort Mill (from The Vineyards and The Palisades down to Fort Mill) might put us closer to Uptown and points south of Uptown. We don't want to go any further away from Charlotte than Fort Mill (or Huntersville/Cornelius), if that far.
Any obvious guidance between the two suburbs? I'd be happy to provide more info. We're ready to buy, our first house hunting trip is in about 3 weeks.
I wouldn’t let Lake Norman being crowded or 77 influence your decision between these two areas. 77 is a nightmare going North in Uptown as well and that part of 77 isn’t slated to get any relief for a good 8 or more years from now. The part of 77 north of Uptown will at least have optional toll lanes added soon.
The reason I wouldn’t say that Lake Wylie being less crowded for now is a benefit because at the rate this area is rapidly building up, it won’t be long before it’s just as crowded as Lake Norman or worse. So as far as being crowded and congested, I’d be looking at not only current conditions, but how things will be 10, 15, or even 20 years from now. At which point both of these regions will be heavily built up. I’d base my decision on current traffic and congestion if I were moving to older, more firmly established areas in Charlotte itself where the cityscape is unlikely to change going forward.
I’d say the choice should probably boil down to which area of Charlotte has better amenities to you overall, including the surrounding suburbs and neighborhoods. For example, are you more interested in the Lake Norman suburbs in addition to having convenient access to Concord, University City, Northlake etc. or more interested in Lake Wylie/Fort Mill while also having convenient access to Steele Creek, Rock Hill, and the Ballantyne area.
I don’t have kids yet so I can’t speak on schools.
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Originally Posted by Midpack
It probably seems stupid to natives, but as someone trying to figure out exactly where to relocate to in Charlotte, these two (and the nearby suburbs) seem like the best fit for our budget and needs. I've mentioned this in passing on other threads, but I thought I'd start a thread to see if I got any guidance.
We've driven around Huntersville/Cornelius a lot, and liked the area. We want to be near a lake, and while Lake Norman appears to offer more than Lake Wylie, it's also pretty crowded? And I am not concerned about rush hour traffic on I-77, but I have been told repeatedly here that I-77 is a nightmare most of the time. Not sure what to think, as a few other large metro transplants have told me it's not as bad as the major metro areas.
But we've heard that Fort Mill and other NC suburbs east of Lake Wylie and north of Fort Mill (from The Vineyards and The Palisades down to Fort Mill) might put us closer to Uptown and points south of Uptown. We don't want to go any further away from Charlotte than Fort Mill (or Huntersville/Cornelius), if that far.
Any obvious guidance between the two suburbs? I'd be happy to provide more info. We're ready to buy, our first house hunting trip is in about 3 weeks.
Have you considered Belmont, which is in the middle? (There's also a neighborhood in Charlotte called Belmont. I'm speaking of the town in Gaston County.) Belmont is on the northern side of Lake Wylie.
Have you considered Belmont, which is in the middle? (There's also a neighborhood in Charlotte called Belmont. I'm speaking of the town in Gaston County.) Belmont is on the northern side of Lake Wylie.
Proximity to Uptown/Charlotte proper is a high priority for us, so we've ruled out communities west of Lake Wylie and Lake Norman. However we've recently realized Route 49/York Rd crosses Lake Wylie (unlike Lake Norman?) and I see Belmont is pretty close to I-85, so we should revisit Belmont, Lake Wylie SC and a few others. Thanks!
Unfortunately for us we like Lake Norman and Birkdale Village and similar amenities that Fort Mill doesn't seem to have nearly as much of. But Fort Mill offers lower taxes and it might grow into more like Huntersville-Cornelius in 10-20 year? We don't know what to think. But we'll be combing the area while house hunting in a few weeks!
If you like the Lake Norman and Birkdale Village area, I would say go with your heart rather than hope and wait that Fort Mill might develop into something different down the road. There is no guarantee those things will happen and the property tax difference will most likely be less than $1,000 per year for apples-to-apples houses.
Both areas are great, it just seems like you have a pull towards the Lake Norman area and there isn't really a reason to fight it. It is a nice area of the metro with a good quality of life.
I don't see it in your posts, but is your job a consideration?
The commute from Fort Mill to anything past the Uptown is horrendous and the commute from Huntersville to the Ballantyne area is horrible as well.
I live in Fort Mill and am looking for a new job and even though I've seen some attractive openings in a few companies in the University area and in NW Charlotte, I'm not even considering them because of the commute.
Something to think about.
I wouldn't go to Huntersville on the basis of the cancer cluster alone.. that's just my opinion and it was one of the reasons we avoided the area.. If you are in Fort Mill you can take Steele Creek to S. Tryon (5 min drive) and follow it straight down. It takes you right into the middle of downtown (or uptown as they call it). Its what we usually take to avoid 77. I do enjoy Fort Mill and I go there weekly to get Sno-Cones and do some shopping and girl scout meetings. They also have a lot of traffic but who doesn't? Its also nice because its close to Carowinds and seasonal passes are great. We spending several days a week at the water park and then Scarowinds, Pumpkin Festival, and Winterfest. Can't go wrong with that.
It probably seems stupid to natives, but as someone trying to figure out exactly where to relocate to in Charlotte, these two (and the nearby suburbs) seem like the best fit for our budget and needs. I've mentioned this in passing on other threads, but I thought I'd start a thread to see if I got any guidance.
We've driven around Huntersville/Cornelius a lot, and liked the area. We want to be near a lake, and while Lake Norman appears to offer more than Lake Wylie, it's also pretty crowded? And I am not concerned about rush hour traffic on I-77, but I have been told repeatedly here that I-77 is a nightmare most of the time. Not sure what to think, as a few other large metro transplants have told me it's not as bad as the major metro areas.
But we've heard that Fort Mill and other NC suburbs east of Lake Wylie and north of Fort Mill (from The Vineyards and The Palisades down to Fort Mill) might put us closer to Uptown and points south of Uptown. We don't want to go any further away from Charlotte than Fort Mill (or Huntersville/Cornelius), if that far.
Any obvious guidance between the two suburbs? I'd be happy to provide more info. We're ready to buy, our first house hunting trip is in about 3 weeks.
...
Proximity to Uptown/Charlotte proper is a high priority for us, so we've ruled out communities west of Lake Wylie and Lake Norman. However we've recently realized Route 49/York Rd crosses Lake Wylie (unlike Lake Norman?) and I see Belmont is pretty close to I-85, so we should revisit Belmont, Lake Wylie SC and a few others. Thanks!
Unfortunately for us we like Lake Norman and Birkdale Village and similar amenities that Fort Mill doesn't seem to have nearly as much of. But Fort Mill offers lower taxes and it might grow into more like Huntersville-Cornelius in 10-20 year? We don't know what to think. But we'll be combing the area while house hunting in a few weeks!
If you want to really enjoy the lake, hopefully that means you either have or plan to get a boat. There really isn't a ton of access unless you do, although Jetton Park in Cornelius is a good spot. If you do, Lake Norman may be more crowded than Wylie, but it is at least bigger (no boat for me so no real direct experience). It also seems to have "better" water - I know I've read that's because it's the furthest north (and then you also have Mountain Island Lake in between the two).
I-77 traffic is definitely bad, but I think it does get overstated a bit. Yes it's among the worst traffic in the metro but I think most would probably say it's still not as bad as other major metro areas. Part of the current problem is the construction which should (hopefully) be done soon, which seems to be contributing to more accidents. I have to think the new (toll) lanes will help traffic at least somewhat even in the free lanes, but I know some feel that the merging in particular may make the free lanes worse. I guess we'll see. I do think for the most part the non-77 traffic in Huntersville isn't horrible - the worst it gets is when there's an accident on 77 and everyone tries to go around it.
I-77 traffic also gets exponentially worse the further north you go. If you're near Exit 23 in Huntersville, it's usually not as bad because you have an extra lane on I-77 that turns into that exit, so traffic seems to get a lot worse past there. There are also more alternate routes where it's not too bad to at least get to points south of NC-73. If schools are a concern, technically south of NC-73 is zoned to a HS that is currently not as highly rated as the one in Cornelius, but I'd guess with the growth Hough will eventually be limited to just Davidson and Cornelius residents, and with the Charter School bill CMS seems like it is thinking about taking all of Huntersville out of there anyway. If Huntersville/CMS do play nice, I believe CMS also owns land that's planned for another new HS in Huntersville anyway.
But as noted, traffic on 77 south of Charlotte and even in-town Fort Mill is no picnic either. Fort Mill does have a good reputation for schools, but I know it usually gets pointed out that the "ratings" are based on comparisons to the state average, and I believe NC tends to have higher averages overall. But everyone I've talked to does seem to be happy with the schools in Fort Mill. I think for that reason when I was looking Fort Mill prices seemed to be higher than Huntersville IMO.
A main difference depending on how old your kids (if any) are is the whole NC vs. SC colleges. Most seem to prefer the in-state options that NC provides.
When you say "west of Lake Norman," do you mean places like Denver? I wouldn't rule that out due to proximity as it's probably comparable to coming from Cornelius. There's not quite as many amenities over there, but it is a little less crowded (but also growing). If you are close to the intersection of 16/73 then you wouldn't be too far from Birkdale Village if you enjoy going there.
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