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I'm a native Charlottean. Self employed with no business debt. Own rental property that is all debt free. My business is doing better this year than in the past 5 years. And I have no personal consumer debt. I'm fortunate but I'm a realist. Things are going to get much worse for the unprepared!
You go, bugguy. A lot of my family and friends are like you . . . have their houses paid for, own their vehicles and no debt. You sound like you are on track to be "the millionaire next door."
Well, about 3/4 of the people born in this state, die in this state. Although Charlotte has had a huge influx of newcomers in the last decade or so, most areas of NC are still populated by natives.
Yes,but I was asking about Charlotte in particular
The difference b/n "local" and "native" would be . . . anyone born here is a native. A "local" could refer to someone who has moved here and been here long enough to pay taxes, thus binding him to the community as a tax paying citizen.
But we have been paying taxes for the last 3 years without living there, but we were neither locals or natives
A lot of the people out of work here are those who were recruited here for a job, so they are not natives, but they are locals.
Have never seen any study breaking down household income by native versus newcomer status. I can speak for my family and friends (who are natives), nearly all of whom have advanced degrees and make more $$ the the city, state or national median.
There seems to be a misconception about natives being uneducated and not landing the best jobs here, LOL. Don't know that is what you meant, Susan, but thought I would clear that up.Not what I meant at all, but I was expecting the response NC has a very robust higher education system and the majority of students are in-state students. Those that stay here remain b/c they have been able to establish careers and make good salaries - otherwise, they would leave to establish careers in other areas.
The natives who were blue collar workers are the ones who have suffered most w/ unemployment over the last 10=15 years (textile and furniture mill closures). White collar workers here in Charlotte who have been laid off from banks were more often newcomers than natives. Charlotte was never known as a big banking/finance center until the last 15 years.
Over the last 30 years, the advice from guidance counselors (and parents) has been - if we wished to stay in this state, biotech, teaching, healthcare, engineering were the job sectors to stay in (add legal professions - attorneys/paralegals - we have several fine law schools here). If you liked finance, be a CPA. Marketing - not so much (field has been crowded for several decades).
Recruitment for jobs in IT and banking has been VERY heavy in Charlotte, and thus, most of the people laid off from those jobs are not natives. I have a huge extended family here - and not one of them is in banking. We have attorneys, CPAs, healthcare, ministers and teachers/professors and some folks who own businesses . . . but not one person in banking. None of my friends who are natives are in banking, either.
I think forum members would attest that - if they have worked in banking here - the majority of their coworkers (at the management level, especially) were people who had moved to this area - not natives.
So-when Charlotte was booming,or became a banking center, if the outsiders hadn't come in to take the jobs, do you think that natives would have taken them, or was it neccessary for outsiders to take the jobs as not enough native Charlotteans available/with appropriate experience?
I am just trying to get a better picture as the impression I sometimes get is that natives were happy to have the banking, but now that it's gone pear shaped they think the people who were outsiders (who are now locals) and came for the banking jobs, should now go somewhere else.
You'll be happy. Promise! You are gonna like folks here. The people who have moved here and are into conspicuous consumerism will be easy to spot - and avoid. Most of the folks who have come to NC came b/c of jobs and the desire to relocate b/c they felt it was a good place to raise a family. That means - we all have the same goals - stable communities w/ a good standard of living. And I have found 99% of the newcomers are eager to make friends, get active in their communities and live a peaceful life. Plus there are other people from the UK here . . . Trust me on this: you are gonna like it here.
Thanks Annie
Hope Heroin high school turns out OK!
My son-who is quite quiet in a very astute and contemplative way will need a change of underwear if someone offers him more than a Coke.
I am also hoping that he doesn't get too much attention because of his "funny accent", but he has changed school systems twice before and made it-so I am sure he will be fine.I will just have to kick some .... at the school if he gets hassle.He is already in a pickle wondering what to wear-he wears uniform over here.
I have recently joined Lake Norman Mommies Not really a Mumsy person, but thought it might be a good idea.
Anyway-off topic now,sorry
I have alway said this time and time again...I get so sick and tired of people coming here without a job driving our unemployment rate up....As is if it is not high enough all ready. Competiton is fierce for jobs right now in Charlotte. Now dont get me wrong, I welcome transplants but if you decide to come..please have a job lined up.
How does our umempoyment rate effect you? Just curious. If you are unemployed and having to compete with unemployed newcomers, I understand, if you have a job, why does that number going up bother you
How does our umempoyment rate effect you? Just curious. If you are unemployed and having to compete with unemployed newcomers, I understand, if you have a job, why does that number going up bother you
Nobody is secure. Today you're working, tomorrow might be another story. Most employees are an HR visit away from being laid off. Many people still think about what type of job environment they would be facing if a laid off occurred. A tight job market obviously has a lot of discontented people "staying put" as well because they know their chances are slim that they'll be able to transition into a another job with the high % of unemployed in the state.
When I first got here I noticed real quick that people down here don't like setences that start with: "back home we.." or "it was better where I'm from because..." and I'm ok with that. Frankly, I understand that as one of my local native charloteans friends once said to me, "don't come here to try to reinvent the wheel."
I really like the culture and people here on a personal level but this repeated theme that I see in this thread really sets me off.
Not everyone from the north came here without a job, and not everyone from the north is trying to force feed you their culture. On the flip side, not everyone down here that is unemployed is a transplant. This city brought in a whole lot of people into a industry that has fallen on its face in recent time, I do not see how that is transplants faults. The way you guys talk, is almost demeaning to us "damn yankees."
The economic hard times of recently should make people come together, but all it seems to do here is make people point fingers and divide them further. My fiancee and I did things right, we came here with jobs, that we still have and began soaking up the culture like sponges. God forbid however, we even bring up something we like about back home, because if we do, then we should "go back there!" Southern hospitality seems to have become southern arrogance around this forum. The problems we face here in this city, this state, this country are the product of something much greater then transplants coming here.
So-when Charlotte was booming,or became a banking center, if the outsiders hadn't come in to take the jobs, do you think that natives would have taken them, or was it neccessary for outsiders to take the jobs as not enough native Charlotteans available/with appropriate experience?
I am just trying to get a better picture as the impression I sometimes get is that natives were happy to have the banking, but now that it's gone pear shaped they think the people who were outsiders (who are now locals) and came for the banking jobs, should now go somewhere else.
Wachovia and BofA (b/f it became BofA) were indigenous banks, slowly grown and rooted in the community. So of course there were bank employees that were natives. When Charlotte turned into the 2nd largest banking center in the USA, that is when all the recruitment (and transfers) really went into high gear.
As with any industry that more or less relocated to a region, talent necessarily had to be recruited to fill positions quickly.
Jobs were created in MANY fields - not just finance. So there have been jobs here in Charlotte for several different sectors (such as IT).
It seems that after 2000, the job market here literally BOOMED. I was living in Kansas and there would be ads even in the midwest recruiting folks for BofA, especially.
The feeling about job loss is . . . we all were here w/ jobs at one point (2007-2008) If you moved here w/ a job, you are vested in the community and you may have children in school - you most likely bought a house. You most likely want to stay here.
For folks who were recruited here . . . they are in a tough situation. Often, they sought out the transfer b/c they wanted to relocate to this region. Now, they realize they may not find a job here and will have no recourse but to relocate. Many people I know have parents or other relatives who have relocated here, too. So having to leave would be the pits.
I don't know of any natives who are saying - "these out of work former bank employees need to leave b/c they are taking away our prospects of getting a job." Those natives who have always lived here and plan to die here are probably not competing w/ non-natives for jobs.
Interestingly, altho I have many friends who are out of work right now, only two are natives. None of my family members has lost his/her job - but that is b/c they are not in the sectors that have been hard hit. And of course, that could change any day.
People who have moved here are our neighbors and friends. It is terribly upsetting to know they are having trouble finding new positions. No one is hoping they will leave! However, as we are all realizing, it may be necessary for folks to relocate in order to replace the jobs they have lost.
Nobody is secure. Today you're working, tomorrow might be another story. Most employees are an HR visit away from being laid off. Many people still think about what type of job environment they would be facing if a laid off occurred. A tight job market obviously has a lot of discontented people "staying put" as well because they know their chances are slim that they'll be able to transition into a another job with the high % of unemployed in the state.
You are so right about this. Any of us or our family members or friends could find out we were unemployed at any time.
When I first got here I noticed real quick that people down here don't like setences that start with: "back home we.." or "it was better where I'm from because..." and I'm ok with that. Frankly, I understand that as one of my local native charloteans friends once said to me, "don't come here to try to reinvent the wheel."
I really like the culture and people here on a personal level but this repeated theme that I see in this thread really sets me off.
Not everyone from the north came here without a job, and not everyone from the north is trying to force feed you their culture. On the flip side, not everyone down here that is unemployed is a transplant. This city brought in a whole lot of people into a industry that has fallen on its face in recent time, I do not see how that is transplants faults. The way you guys talk, is almost demeaning to us "damn yankees."
The economic hard times of recently should make people come together, but all it seems to do here is make people point fingers and divide them further. My fiancee and I did things right, we came here with jobs, that we still have and began soaking up the culture like sponges. God forbid however, we even bring up something we like about back home, because if we do, then we should "go back there!" Southern hospitality seems to have become southern arrogance around this forum. The problems we face here in this city, this state, this country are the product of something much greater then transplants coming here.
Most definitely and it would be very wrong to think that having people move to this region did anything negative to the region. The only things that have been negatively impacted by having so many folks move here in the last decade have been infrastructure issues (crowded schools, crowded roads where subdivisions have been built, water issues, etc). But the newcomers themselves had not a thing to do with that! These are city planner issues. Municipalities issued the permits . . . newcomers just bought houses where houses were being built. And schools got crowded, of course, but schools have been built or are being built - so that issue has been at least somewhat mitigated.
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NC has a very robust higher education system and the majority of students are in-state students. Those that stay here remain b/c they have been able to establish careers and make good salaries - otherwise, they would leave to establish careers in other areas.
Not really a Mumsy person, but thought it might be a good idea.
