Relocating: Family orientated towns on coast with great schools! (Wilmington: 2013, house)
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Hello!
We are a family of five (3 children under 9) residing on the coast of New England. We are looking to move south to either Southern coastal NC or Southern coastal SC. We are self employed and with most of our family now residing in the southern states... we area ready to follow suite.
Must Haves:
Great Schools!
Within 20min of beaches
A "downtown" with shops/restaurants/libraries
Would prefer an older home w/ character.
Must be considered a nicer/safe area to live.
Would love feedback. Most of my concentration so far has been in SC just to be close to my family... but I've heard such wonderful things about NC, I don't want to rule it out. Just need to be where it no longer snows ;-)
Must Haves:
Great Schools!
Within 20min of beaches
A "downtown" with shops/restaurants/libraries
Would prefer an older home w/ character.
Must be considered a nicer/safe area to live.
Would love feedback..... Just need to be where it no longer snows ;-)
Thanks in advance!
A couple of comments. It does snow in Coastal North Carolina, but it might be an inch every other year.
Please provide a budget for you wish list! Please provide a definition of "great schools". For example, I would say the top 1% in the country are great schools, and we don't have any of those on the coast. We have some very good and excellent schools however.
Some of the wish list combinations are just not realistic, because the South is not built like New England. For example, Hampstead, Newport and some parts of Wilmington have the better schools. However, they are all newer suburbs. Most of the beach towns are all newer construction.
If you really want an older house with character and a downtown, you can find that in a town like Burgaw. However, the schools are more average.
We get around 80" +/- snow a year... an inch I can deal with!
Budget for a fixer-upper $300K, for move in ready $425K
Great schools for me are when 95% of the graduating class goes on to college. My kids in 1st & 2nd grade are doing a lot of STEM work & "coding" in the classrooms. Each classroom has several computers/ipads. There are many clubs, sports, and parent involvement. Blue Ribbon schools... I would also be open to Charter schools
Budget for a fixer-upper $300K, for move in ready $425K
Great schools for me are when 95% of the graduating class goes on to college.
Your budget for housing is fine for areas like Wilmington, Hampstead and Newport. It would put you in a nice, new suburban house with lower property taxes than you pay currently.
Our schools don't hit the 95% rate of college entry. Just as an example, Hampstead's Topsail High is one of the best on the coast, and 65% of the students take the SAT. They do perform better than average on the end of course testing. Here is a detailed report from the latest year: High Student Performance - School Level
The schools have plenty of clubs and sports, but they are probably less well-funded than the best New England towns. However, you might also look into Dare County on the Outer Banks which has some of the highest funding per student. Some towns to look at are Manteo and Kill Devil Hills.
What you're looking for doesn't exist in NC, sorry.
This is another person looking for Newburyport Massachusetts in the South. It is a very affluent, old-money town with walkable conveniences. OTOH, the coastal South was originally agricultural so everything is spread out. We have many working-class folks so the schools don't send 95% to college.
This is their realistic requirement from the South Carolina thread: "We can live anywhere as long as we can find a workshop w/loading dock." This could be met in Morehead City, Wilmington or Jacksonville, and probably several other towns.
I do not mean to be rude but this same basic question gets asked about 3 times a week it seems. Search these forums. You will find plenty to read that has already been posted.
Sorry ditchoc, didn't realize my post was so annoying that you had to take the time to respond to it.
Making a pretty major decision here & after 40 yrs of dealing with bitter cold/snow, we can afford to move my family & business to another part of the country to be closer to family. Just looking for a similar kind of town so I feel at home. Didn't realize that was such an absurd thought :-/
Odd that a nice town, near beaches with a good school doesn't exist on the coast of Carolina - how sad, Coastal Planner.
Just looking for a similar kind of town so I feel at home. Didn't realize that was such an absurd thought :-/
Odd that a nice town, near beaches with a good school doesn't exist on the coast of Carolina - how sad, Coastal Planner.
You have put yourself out of the running when you said you wanted a school system where 95% of kids go on to college. You have annoyed people when you show a lack of understanding of the history, geography and demographics of the area.
You would have had a better reception if you had said you wanted to enjoy what the South has to offer, rather than expecting to duplicate what you have in the North. The posts in your South Carolina thread have pointed out the inconsistencies in your wish list, and most of the same things apply in North Carolina. We do not have great deep-water ports on North Carolina, so there is little historic wealth in the coast. The coastal development has all occurred after World War II, and was driven by the military and tourism.
Bottom Line: There are nice, safe towns near the beach with above-average (but not great) schools: Hampstead, Newport and Manteo are my recommendations. The construction is mostly new, so it is not worth looking for a fixer-upper. They mostly do not have town-centers, so you have to drive everywhere. You could locate your warehouse in Wilmington, Jacksonville or Morehead City.
Last edited by goldenage1; 03-08-2016 at 07:19 AM..
Obviously, the more research I do my wants/needs can change, no?
Many coastal towns in New England were not considered "wealthy" till the resurgence in the 70's. You clearly don't know northern New England as it's either fisherman/lobsterman or farming/agriculture.
I have small children, of course schools are going to be a main factor.
I have dozen of friends/family who have moved to N/S Carolina over the last 10-15yrs. looking for the same criteria as myself. They just chose to live inland. Being near the ocean & good schools are two things I won't compromise on, and don't think I should have to. Looks like N.Carolina is out.
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