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I have been lurking and doing searches on this board for a few days now, and I don't think I saw this asked:
My husband is considering a position directly over the border in SC. I would need to find equivalent full time work in NC, Charlotte area (I'm in the IT industry). I am originally from Florida so would love to move back to warmer weather. I visited NC in the past (Raleigh) and am seriously considering a move.
Please no one take offense, but are we (DH and kids) going to face prejudice and exclusion b/c we are from the Chicago area (we are in a suburb an hour away) and not originally from the south? I don't expect Charlotte to be Chicago (although the reality is I rarely go to Chicago, except for work) and would be looking for a town with similar ammenities but not the same size/congestion.
We have a lot of soul searching to do before relocating to make sure it is the best move for us. Not to mention get me a job, sell our house, etc. Frankly I am a bit worried since this area would be completely new to us.
Also, are there a lot of kids' activities: sports, museums, etc. in the nearby Charlotte area? To families that moved to Charlotte: was this the best move for your kids? To us that is ultimately the final question. Thanks!
I have been lurking and doing searches on this board for a few days now, and I don't think I saw this asked:
My husband is considering a position directly over the border in SC. I would need to find equivalent full time work in NC, Charlotte area (I'm in the IT industry). I am originally from Florida so would love to move back to warmer weather. I visited NC in the past (Raleigh) and am seriously considering a move.
Please no one take offense, but are we (DH and kids) going to face prejudice and exclusion b/c we are from the Chicago area (we are in a suburb an hour away) and not originally from the south? I don't expect Charlotte to be Chicago (although the reality is I rarely go to Chicago, except for work) and would be looking for a town with similar ammenities but not the same size/congestion.
We have a lot of soul searching to do before relocating to make sure it is the best move for us. Not to mention get me a job, sell our house, etc. Frankly I am a bit worried since this area would be completely new to us.
Also, are there a lot of kids' activities: sports, museums, etc. in the nearby Charlotte area? To families that moved to Charlotte: was this the best move for your kids? To us that is ultimately the final question. Thanks!
Try not to be so worried - you would be bringing your family to a very nice, family oriented area. Not sure why you would think there would be prejudice against you for being from the Chicago area? This whole metro area is one big melting pot of people from many different places, I'm sure you could find your niche. Since your husband would be working on the SC side, give great consideration to moving to the fantastic little town of Tega Cay on Lake Wylie
I have been lurking and doing searches on this board for a few days now, and I don't think I saw this asked:
My husband is considering a position directly over the border in SC. I would need to find equivalent full time work in NC, Charlotte area (I'm in the IT industry). I am originally from Florida so would love to move back to warmer weather. I visited NC in the past (Raleigh) and am seriously considering a move.
Please no one take offense, but are we (DH and kids) going to face prejudice and exclusion b/c we are from the Chicago area (we are in a suburb an hour away) and not originally from the south? I don't expect Charlotte to be Chicago (although the reality is I rarely go to Chicago, except for work) and would be looking for a town with similar ammenities but not the same size/congestion.
We have a lot of soul searching to do before relocating to make sure it is the best move for us. Not to mention get me a job, sell our house, etc. Frankly I am a bit worried since this area would be completely new to us.
Also, are there a lot of kids' activities: sports, museums, etc. in the nearby Charlotte area? To families that moved to Charlotte: was this the best move for your kids? To us that is ultimately the final question. Thanks!
People in Charlotte are not from the south - they are from NY, NJ, PA, OH and even Chicago. I don't think you'd feel out of place if you were green and from Mars. This is a wonderful place to live and especially to raise a family. I am originally from Cincinnati and cringe at the thought of ever having to move back. Many of the people here are translplants themselves, with very little roots established, so making new friends is very easy.
No we are Chicago, but few cities are. We do have just about anything you'd find in the big city. We have pro sports - Panthers and Bobcats (if you count them), museums, nearby mountains (1.5 hrs)/ beaches (3hrs), performing arts, etc. The quality of life here is great!
You mentioned Raleigh, very nice as well. However, being from Chicago you might enjoy the fact that Charlotte has much more of an urban feel to it than Raleigh does. Since it's much smaller than Chicago, you can actually only live 1/2 hour out of center city and practically be in the boonies.
People in Charlotte are not from the south - they are from NY, NJ, PA, OH and even Chicago. I don't think you'd feel out of place if you were green and from Mars. This is a wonderful place to live and especially to raise a family. I am originally from Cincinnati and cringe at the thought of ever having to move back. Many of the people here are translplants themselves, with very little roots established, so making new friends is very easy.
No we are Chicago, but few cities are. We do have just about anything you'd find in the big city. We have pro sports - Panthers and Bobcats (if you count them), museums, nearby mountains (1.5 hrs)/ beaches (3hrs), performing arts, etc. The quality of life here is great!
You mentioned Raleigh, very nice as well. However, being from Chicago you might enjoy the fact that Charlotte has much more of an urban feel to it than Raleigh does. Since it's much smaller than Chicago, you can actually only live 1/2 hour out of center city and practically be in the boonies.
Gee thanks. Can I just say, Charlotte has always been a nice place to live, even well before the yankees flooded in. What, you think YOU moved here and THEN it got to be so wonderful??? You moved here and added to what we had already spent generations cultivating. Don't try to take credit for something it took all of us to accomplish.
If you read enough threads on here you will see that the area is getting to be a very popular place for Northerners, Midwesterners, Californians, Floridians.....in short, just about everybody, to move to, which I don't think would be happening if the place you were from was going to be that big a problem. I've never felt that my birthplace - California - caused anyone prejudice against me, in fact people are mostly curious about the differences. We have a number of regular posters on here that are from Chicago and have never mentioned that as being a prejudicial issue - heck, your neighbors are more likely to be from New Jersey, New York or Florida than North Carolina.
Also, if you NEED or HAVE to get a job in the IT field here, read some of the other threads on here about jobs - or more accurately the lack thereof - in this area. If it is imperative that you have one also, you might want to post pone or reconsider the relocation until you have something lined up also - there isn't a lot available right now, and a lot of people trying to fill those few spots.
I believe that I have seen a number of threads regarding family/kid activities in the Charlotte area - I did a search on "Charlotte kids" and came up with quite a few that can offer a lot of information.
Gee thanks. Can I just say, Charlotte has always been a nice place to live, even well before the yankees flooded in. What, you think YOU moved here and THEN it got to be so wonderful??? You moved here and added to what we had already spent generations cultivating. Don't try to take credit for something it took all of us to accomplish.
HEE HEE HEE. I was thinking the same thing, while also being glad that JSTN is so happy w/ life here (and I am glad about that!)
Just don't come here w/ an attitude that somehow you are gonna find ignorant backwoods Southerners! And yes, there are still plenty of us left. Charlotte itself is a place where many have relocated. . . but the surrounding towns are still mostly populated by longtime NC families.
I love Chicago! I find the burbs of CHI very comparable to the burbs around Charlotte. You need to come and check it out for yourself - I think you will be very pleased.
The OP brings up an interesting point. I have relatives in the NY metro area that trumpet all the culture, etc it has, but they live way out in the burbs and rarely experience it. Though the sheer amount of arts and culture in Charlotte may be substantially less than in NY or Chicago, it is way more accessible.
And, as far as how well accepted someone from Chicago might be in Charlotte, as many have pointed out you would not have any problem there. Now, you wander out to Cleveland County, slightly different story. No one would be outright hostile to you, everyone would be polite, but they probably would not be too eager to be your friend either.
Gee thanks. Can I just say, Charlotte has always been a nice place to live, even well before the yankees flooded in. What, you think YOU moved here and THEN it got to be so wonderful??? You moved here and added to what we had already spent generations cultivating. Don't try to take credit for something it took all of us to accomplish.
Uh, perhaps you took my post a little differently than I meant it to be read. Sometimes words in black and white don't always translate, as they don't necessarily promote one's tone. I was simply trying to ease the tension of the OP, as she was apprehensive about being a northerner moving south. I was trying to stress what a great mixture of people we have in the Queen City. In no way was I trying to say Charlotte is what it is because of the northerners that have moved here. I've reread my post and I still don't don't know where you got that.
In fact, we (me and my family) are actually in the process of trying to move further away from the city so that we can enjoy a little more native Carolinian culture. Trust me, I may be born and bred in Ohio, but I have chosen to live the rest of my life as a SOUTHERN Tar Heel. I too can't stand to hear the phrase, "Well back north we do it this way....."
Uh, perhaps you took my post a little differently than I meant it to be read. Sometimes words in black and white don't always translate, as they don't necessarily promote one's tone. I was simply trying to ease the tension of the OP, as she was apprehensive about being a northerner moving south. I was trying to stress what a great mixture of people we have in the Queen City. In no way was I trying to say Charlotte is what it is because of the northerners that have moved here. I've reread my post and I still don't don't know where you got that.
In fact, we (me and my family) are actually in the process of trying to move further away from the city so that we can enjoy a little more native Carolinian culture. Trust me, I may be born and bred in Ohio, but I have chosen to live the rest of my life as a SOUTHERN Tar Heel. I too can't stand to hear the phrase, "Well back north we do it this way....."
Thanks for the clarification - and sorry if I snapped This is a sore subject for some of us southerners - when some folks claim it's only so great to live here now BECAUSE there are more northerners than southerners. Since the shoe doesn't fit in your case I apologize for trying to force it on you!
Uh, perhaps you took my post a little differently than I meant it to be read. Sometimes words in black and white don't always translate, as they don't necessarily promote one's tone. I was simply trying to ease the tension of the OP, as she was apprehensive about being a northerner moving south. I was trying to stress what a great mixture of people we have in the Queen City. In no way was I trying to say Charlotte is what it is because of the northerners that have moved here. I've reread my post and I still don't don't know where you got that.
In fact, we (me and my family) are actually in the process of trying to move further away from the city so that we can enjoy a little more native Carolinian culture. Trust me, I may be born and bred in Ohio, but I have chosen to live the rest of my life as a SOUTHERN Tar Heel. I too can't stand to hear the phrase, "Well back north we do it this way....."
Hope you find the place you are looking for . . . I ponder moving into a more rural area, myself . . .
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since this area would be completely new to us.
