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My feelings about NC are pretty similar to goldenage's. Maybe I like it better because we're new here, or maybe because we live in the Raleigh area and don't have to drive too far for good restaurants, museums, etc. In any case, it's a nice, family-friendly area with good weather. Some areas have "heavy" traffic, but coming from Boston, the traffic isn't 1/4 as bad as it is up there.
I guess I will have to learn to drive since the coldest weather my husband is willing to tolerate is NC's.
Don't know about the other places but I know that it is pretty cold in Pennsylvania.
If it was me, and I was starting over and didn't want to work in IT anymore, even though I'd hate the weather, I think I'd cowboy up and head to South Dakota. You don't need to work he oil fields to find a paying job.
Second Choice Texas.
Cudos to you for being willing to go to the better place for your family.
It depends on your husband's job skills and whether you want a job also. If his skills are only as a security guard, I would suggest a smaller town, perhaps in the west of the state. Somewhere like Waynesville, Hendersonville, or Greenville South Carolina.
Raleigh and Charlotte are great for people with professional degrees and skills, but they are comparatively expensive.
Thank you very much for your responses.
I wanted to ask you if your suggestions were based on my preferences and if there are other places that you think would also be a good fit.
I have been browsing the forum and found a couple of posts about people that also want small town living and you suggested: "Pinehurst, Troy, Weaverville, Black Mountain, Mount Airy, Asheboro, Whiteville, Farmville, Newton Grove, Richlands, Tarboro, Angier, Apex and Mebane".
Do you think any of those would also apply for us?
*Weather (Cooler summers and some snow days in winter)
*Family oriented
*Availability of jobs that don't require a degree
*Affordable living
*Short commute
Thank you very much for your responses.
I wanted to ask you if your suggestions were based on my preferences and if there are other places that you think would also be a good fit.
I have been browsing the forum and found a couple of posts about people that also want small town living and you suggested: "Pinehurst, Troy, Weaverville, Black Mountain, Mount Airy, Asheboro, Whiteville, Farmville, Newton Grove, Richlands, Tarboro, Angier, Apex and Mebane".
Do you think any of those would also apply for us?
*Weather (Cooler summers and some snow days in winter)
*Family oriented
*Availability of jobs that don't require a degree
*Affordable living
*Short commute
Newton Grove is a nice place to live, but there's very few job opportunities "in" Newton Grove. You'd have to have transportation to drive at least 30-45 minutes anywhere else (Goldsboro, Smithfield, Clinton, Fayetteville). Weather is definitely NOT cooler in the summer!!
Newton Grove is a nice place to live, but there's very few job opportunities "in" Newton Grove. You'd have to have transportation to drive at least 30-45 minutes anywhere else (Goldsboro, Smithfield, Clinton, Fayetteville). Weather is definitely NOT cooler in the summer!!
Thank you for your input.
When you said is not cooler in the summer you meant in those places or all NC?
Which part of NC has the most bearable summers??
We are in Florida... really hot and REALLY humid.
The summers here are also hot and humid. I do think it's a bit cooler than a Florida summer and a bit shorter, but people who move here from almost anyplace else complain about the summers. Today it's supposed to be 85 (yay). I love heat and humidity personally. Hate cold and my skin dries out terribly in the winter. A typical July or August day would be about 95 and 75% humidity. Sometimes it's hotter (usually gets over 100 several times a summer), and sometimes it's cooler (sometimes high 80s, low 90s).
Unless something in particular is bringing you to NC I would research where the most jobs are for you that don't require degrees. Much of the NC workforce is trending away from manufacturing and toward high tech, which are positions that require a lot of education/expertise. There are service industry jobs everywhere, but NC does not typically pay well for those positions.
Western NC is the only place with bearable summers in the state in my opinion but I don't fare well with humidity. Jobs are hard to come by mostly service industry not great pay. Troy, NC is nowhere and not much there. Greenville SC seems like a decent place but again hot summers. Think posting on the US forum a good idea, cast a wide net. Good luck with your search for a better life.
We're thinking of NC because of the balanced weather and because it is always at the top of the good lists of better places to live, to raise a family, etc.
Don't necessarily believe everything you read on a list. There is often a hidden agenda.
And, it's usually particular cities, not whole states, on those lists. If you don't want anywhere hotter than Asheville, you wouldn't like most of NC, which is brutal in July & August.
Maybe Charlottesville or Roanoke, VA? They are mountainous like Asheville, but bigger, more diverse places.
The problem with a lot of the jobs requiring unskilled labor in NC (and elsewhere) is that due to the lack of manufacturing in NC and the fact that the farm workers are often illegal immigrants (at least from what my husband tells me), all you're pretty much left with is jobs in the service industry which are usually minimum wage and not a living wage. As a whole, NC isn't affordable by Southern state standards, so it's unlikely you could make ends meet.
As for weather, I too agree that the Western part of the state has the nicest Summers, but the job market isn't great and COL isn't cheap.
To obtain a decent quality of life anywhere, first and foremost you need employment that will pay the bills, and since there is no specific trade or profession you're looking at going into, I'd focus on the areas with low cost of living and higher paying unskilled jobs.
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