Loved Wilmington, buy a house? (Charlotte, Raleigh: health insurance, crime, vacation home)

[verdegallardo]

I've vacationed several times in Wilmington and have fallen in love with it. And I'm considering purchasing a vacation home there. However, my friend is recommending Siesta Key instead. I am self employed and work from home, so that's not an issue, but my fiance will be looking for work. I'm 29, she's 24, both from Chicago.

Anyway, the place I'm looking to buy in is Parkside of Mayfair. It seems like an excellent location. I loved it there, however, so many posts on here about Wilmington are really negative. Can someone tell me the bad things about Wilmington that people seem to hate so much so I can be prepared and make a better decision?

Thanks,
Shawn

[suedonym]

theres a bazillion threads about that, just do a search.

one thing to keep in mind though (actually a couple)

1. visiting is different than LIVING, but maybe for a vacation home it wont matter too much
2. 'Bad' (as in traffic, crime, etc) is entirely subjective to what you are USED to. No mass transit like in chicago, but crime would probably be laughable compared to chicago as well. LOL (i think wilmington traffic is NOTHING and I am in raleigh right now)
3. Taxes and insurance are high. look into it before you buy. A/C can get pricey too (depending on how long youre here and when)
4. Lots of places to eat, but not nearly the assortment or caliber that you may be used to

[escapenc]

I have been to Wilmington several times and am also eventually relocating there. I have done my research. The cons are the crime rate which IMO are high for the population. Being from Cary, I am used to no/very little crime. Another con is the lack of employment and "high" cost of living. I do think that employment is hard to come by almost everywhere nowadays. I would advise you to have BOTH a job and alot of $$$$ saved up before relocating ANYWHERE. Some have relocated there and have been unemployed 6-9 months later. Everyone says that there is a "high" cost of living in Wilmington. I do think that Wilmington is more expensive compared to other parts of NC. However, "high cost of living" depends on your expectations and what you are used to. If you are from Cary, Charlotte, Raleigh, homes in Wilmington are not that much more expensive. Of course home insurance will be more due to proximity to beach/chance of huricanes, etc. People have also said that there are two "classes" of people in Wilmington, and that you are either rich or poor. Well, hello, isn't that how it is everywhere in NC? You can live in a golf/waterfront/mountain community and have rotting homes several blocks away. Thats just the reality of living in NC. People complain about the traffic. Again, this depends on what you consider traffic.

There are alot of negative comments about Wilmington on here. People have complained about the cost of living, taxes, government, etc. I really do believe it is related to money/lack of money. I look forward to moving there.

[verdegallardo]

Thanks for the responses so far. To address a few issues brought up:

Crime rate: I think it's quite a bit less than the Chicago area or the sarasota area that my friend recommended. I did see a couple homeless people downtown when I was there last, but nothing like Chicago, where they are on almost every block.

Cost of Living: I tried to compare a few things when I was there, including gas, property taxes, groceries, gym memberships etc. I came out considerably less in Wilmington than I am paying now in Chicago. Gas for instance last week in Wilmington was 3.69, that same day it was 4.19 in Chicago (and that's the burbs, city is worse). Gym memberships and groceries seemed the same. Property taxes are substantially lower in NC, ie 30% or so of what they are in Chicago. I was told insurance of pretty much any kind is more expensive in Wilmington though. Not sure why health insurance would be too, but oh well.

Employment: I don't need it as I have my own small marketing business that I run from the internet. But my fiance will need to find a job there and has so far been unsuccessful. She's not even trying to find a "career", just a job she likes for instance in the health and fitness industry and has been told by pretty much everyone jobs are hard to come by. So that may be an issue, but if worst comes to worst she's willing to work at a bar or something I guess for the parts of the year we are living there.

Traffic: I haven't noticed anything even resembling traffic. Certainly nothing like chicago traffic.

Hurricanes: I'm kinda concerned about this, but have been told the Mayfair area is pretty safe? And I realize that comes with living near most coastal areas.

One bad thing I noticed was it was pretty touristy last time I went there. This time was looking for houses and it was last weekend around memorial day. Is it usually like that all summer long or mainly around holidays or?

Are there any more cons I should be aware of? So far ones that affect me (us) are lack of jobs, hurricanes, and insurances costs.

And how bout some things you love about Wilmington?

Riding bikes to wrightsville beach, everyone seemed extremely friendly, love the mayfair area and walking to all the shops, theater etc, love all the small stores, love the restaurants downtown and on the inlet like Bluewater, the weather (can't wait till no more snow!),

[escapenc]

What I love about Wilmington is that you have the beach nearby. It is a small city minutes to the ocean. Unlike other areas of Coastal/Eastern NC, Wilmington is in "civilization" and will have decent shopping, restaurants, health clubs, etc. The climate/water/beach is beautiful. I guess that's why there are so many multi-million dollar homes at nearby Wrightsville Beach. I know that visiting a place and living there are two different things. However, I don't think I would get bored in Wilmington. Have you ever been there? You must stay there for at least a week to get a feel for it.

[NM posts]

I just moved here a month ago - I hate the traffic, but I moved from Durham and the traffic here is worse than there. I used to live up north though and the traffic isn't as bad as up there.

I used to live in FL too - Siesta Key is gorgeous - but if you're really considering FL as well you should look into St. Petersburg, which has a hopping downtown much like Wilmington.

I love it here, my neighborhood is near downtown yet after talking to neighbors I'm not worried all that much about crime. My negatives are: traffic, lack of decent Chinese food, and it's buggy to no end where I live. Out of those three, the lack of decent Chinese bothers me the most

[suedonym]

it is a beach town, and as such, can be quite touristy and service oriented. holiday weekends will always be worse than the 'average' day, and most weekends during the summer (again, holiday ones notably more so).

hurricanes. well, its a hazard, sure but thats why we pay so much for insurance And if we take a DIRECT hit (which is rare, historically they *generally* come inland further north or further south in SC than in wilmington itself), it wouldnt matter if you were in mayfaire or carolina beach. The nice thing with hurricanes is we have plenty of warning. im more scared of tornados (having lived through one) and their lack of warning. at least with hurricanes you have time to board up and get out of town

[le roi]

Originally Posted by suedonym

hurricanes. well, its a hazard, sure but thats why we pay so much for insurance And if we take a DIRECT hit (which is rare, historically they *generally* come inland further north or further south in SC than in wilmington itself), it wouldnt matter if you were in mayfaire or carolina beach.

i'd have to disagree with you, there.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJw_c2PNOzI


( in addition to the rickety water/sewer system at C.B., the likelihood of the snows cut bridge being shut down, and the threat of storm surge)

[suedonym]

i never said it COULDNT or DIDNT happen (LOL) but most storms dont hit directly. flooding and storm surge is a common problem with most any storm that hits nearby though (as we all know, and good ol le roi was kind enough to demonstrate for us)

2 words... flood insurance!

[le roi]

i'm just saying, i'd rather be in mayfaire when TSHTF.