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We live in the Charlotte area (Concord) and have in-laws in Raleigh. Both are great areas, but we really love Charlotte. More to do recreationally, awesome downtown, metro area housing a little less expensive. Both areas have great towns, great people, lots of trees, nice weather, and convenience to the ocean/mountains. Can't go wrong with either. As some posters have said, it's very important to visit both areas to get a personal feel. No one area is right for everyone. Good luck!
I'm not sure why you chose NC other than it seems like a nice, laid black place to live...but I livedin Berlin, Germany for 12 years so I kinda know the feel your lady is going for.
ESPECIALLY if she is Asian, you guys really might want to consider an entirely different area altogether: Seattle. There is a huge asian community there, especially when you compare it to any of the southern states, and the nightlife and cafe life there is TOP. I really didn't see much in the way of that kind of atmosphere in NC, or in most of the US for that matter.
I miss the delis, the cafes, the excruciatingly strong $6 cups of coffee, all the different languages and coins, the cuisine - OH the cuisines - and general mentality. I honestly feel your wife would have a much better fit in the Seattle area based on what you've posted here. Just my take. Are you living overseas right now?
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Originally Posted by cunparis
I've been up since 4am reading and searching the forums looking for a new place to install my family. I'm very interested in North Carolina. Last year we drove through Raleigh and Charlotte during our vacation but we only had a few days in each so we really didn't get to see much. So all of my research is online.
I'm really debating between these two cities. Partly cause I'm from Kentucky and my wife is from Paris. So we have different tastes. But we can't afford to buy a house here in Paris or any of the big cities in the northeast so something has to give!
I work in IT so I'm thinking the RTP area would have more opportunities for me. But Charlotte seems to be #2 in banking after NYC (so I read today on this site) so there should be IT jobs in the banking industry in Charlotte. My wife works in sales administration so she could work anywhere but it seems jobs are scarce in Charlotte.
Home prices seem to be about the same. Cary seems more rural, which I like. But in the Charlotte area Fort Mills seems rural too. So I'm really torn.
One advantage to Raleigh is it's a lot closer to the ocean and we love the beach.
Has anyone compared the two and then made a decision? I plan for us to come spend a couple weeks in NC in the spring, but until then I can't stop thinking about it and researching it.
Also, we were considering Tampa but the Florida heat scares me. Is Florida really that much hotter than North Carolina??
I'm not sure why you chose NC other than it seems like a nice, laid black place to live...but I livedin Berlin, Germany for 12 years so I kinda know the feel your lady is going for.
The reasons for me (different for everyone):
- we want the east coast to be closer to France (easier to return home for a short visit, less travel time, less time difference)
- I like the brand new homes and low prices of Phoenix, but we don't like the dryness, heat, and it's more west coast. Plus I lived there 9 years so I'd like something different
- Charlotte has good value (nice new big homes for around $300k). We can't get that in the north east
- Charlotte has good weather. maybe too hot in the summer but it seems 9-10 months of the year it's great. This is what I loved about Phoenix.
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ESPECIALLY if she is Asian, you guys really might want to consider an entirely different area altogether: Seattle. There is a huge asian community there, especially when you compare it to any of the southern states, and the nightlife and cafe life there is TOP. I really didn't see much in the way of that kind of atmosphere in NC, or in most of the US for that matter.
This would be great, as we often go to Chinatown here in Paris and love exploring new asian restaurants. But seattle doesn't meet all of our criteria. It's west coast, the weather is less nice. I will mention it to her though.
At this point (2 kids, 2 years & 5 months) we're more into frozen pizza than clubs and cafes.
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I miss the delis, the cafes, the excruciatingly strong $6 cups of coffee, all the different languages and coins, the cuisine - OH the cuisines - and general mentality. I honestly feel your wife would have a much better fit in the Seattle area based on what you've posted here. Just my take. Are you living overseas right now?
Thanks for the suggestion, I'm always open. I'll verify home prices and then ask her about it.
We are currently living just outside of Paris in a small apartment.
Ah, my husband, daughter, and I are living in a small apartment in the DC metro area - so don't move here! This place is outrageous: 300K and up for townhomes! Don't even get me started on the commute. :P
A friends-couple we know is also considering moving down there around the same time as us, and his wife is Japanese. Asian influence has also been a big question for her as well. I think the topic has come up before, it surely has, so doing a search on it may prove fruitful. I will try and ask her if she knows anything and will try and get back to you on it, if she does.
I can see why the clubbing thing is out! Tell me about it! We just have the one. One is all it takes though to kill any nightlife you thought of having if there is no one who can babysit, or, like with us, you just can't afford them. these days to see a movie, it's like $17 (not including our smuggled in popcorm and bottled water) and $40 for a babysitter. Better be a darned good movie. LOL!
Well I hope you all find what you're looking for. I personally would **love** to see a strong asian community in the Raleigh or Charlotte areas if they're not there already. It means it will making my cooking and shopping so much easier. See, I am an avid sushi lover and so I often make it at home to curb the binge. But I also am starting to explore other asian cuisine, like Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese.
When are you thinking of moving down there, if you do? We are either going late summer this year or close to December. I can't wait! I wish it were this week!
Good luck with everything. Make sure to enjoy alot of everything there before you go though and take a ton of pictures, get phone #s and all. You'll be glad you had them.
Ah, my husband, daughter, and I are living in a small apartment in the DC metro area - so don't move here! This place is outrageous: 300K and up for townhomes! Don't even get me started on the commute. :P
We were investing this area, we liked DC and it has direct flights to Paris. I found some new homes in Woodbridge, I forget the prices but I think they were around 350k (2000 sqft, 4 bedroom). Then I read that Woodbridge wasn't a good area, and that the commute would be really bad and we'd have to pick up hitchikers to use the HOV (they call it slugging). So I think we're better off in Charlotte, but I will ask you if you've considered the Woodbridge area? Is my assessment correct?
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A friends-couple we know is also considering moving down there around the same time as us, and his wife is Japanese. Asian influence has also been a big question for her as well. I think the topic has come up before, it surely has, so doing a search on it may prove fruitful. I will try and ask her if she knows anything and will try and get back to you on it, if she does.
I haven't really searched for this specifically. My wife is French.. no worse, Parisian. She was born in France. So we both like Asia, have traveled there several times (once for 2 months) and we love Asian food. So this is our attraction to "Chinatown" areas.
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I can see why the clubbing thing is out! Tell me about it! We just have the one. One is all it takes though to kill any nightlife you thought of having if there is no one who can babysit, or, like with us, you just can't afford them. these days to see a movie, it's like $17 (not including our smuggled in popcorm and bottled water) and $40 for a babysitter. Better be a darned good movie. LOL!
We rent (or download) movies but even then we have a hard time finding time. I totally know what you mean and I feel like we're changing our way of living, well the kids are changing it. I don't mind staying home when I can play with them and I'm not bored. So we have less reason to go out. Babysitting will be an issue, here we have my wife's family. In charlotte we won't know anyone when we arrive. hopefully we'll make enough friends in the neighborhood to offer babysitting exchanges and keep it affordable.
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Well I hope you all find what you're looking for. I personally would **love** to see a strong asian community in the Raleigh or Charlotte areas if they're not there already. It means it will making my cooking and shopping so much easier. See, I am an avid sushi lover and so I often make it at home to curb the binge. But I also am starting to explore other asian cuisine, like Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese.
Chinese is actually my least favorite. We love Thai and Vietnamese. Do you like pho? It's my wife's favorite. We're fortunate in that our chinatown has a wide variety of asian places. We'll really miss that.
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When are you thinking of moving down there, if you do? We are either going late summer this year or close to December. I can't wait! I wish it were this week!
Good luck with everything. Make sure to enjoy alot of everything there before you go though and take a ton of pictures, get phone #s and all. You'll be glad you had them.
We're thinking of visiting this spring, to "make sure". School starts at 3 years old here so if we go to Charlotte we'll miss the school year so the best is to go in the summer, July, and stay a year minimum. I plan to rent a place for 3-4 months while we get settled and look for a house.
I'll take tons of photos cause it's one of my main hobbies.
Here we are buying char siu (bbq pork) at one of our favorite stores in Chinatown:
I've been up since 4am reading and searching the forums looking for a new place to install my family. I'm very interested in North Carolina. Last year we drove through Raleigh and Charlotte during our vacation but we only had a few days in each so we really didn't get to see much. So all of my research is online.
I'm really debating between these two cities. Partly cause I'm from Kentucky and my wife is from Paris. So we have different tastes. But we can't afford to buy a house here in Paris or any of the big cities in the northeast so something has to give!
I work in IT so I'm thinking the RTP area would have more opportunities for me. But Charlotte seems to be #2 in banking after NYC (so I read today on this site) so there should be IT jobs in the banking industry in Charlotte. My wife works in sales administration so she could work anywhere but it seems jobs are scarce in Charlotte.
Home prices seem to be about the same. Cary seems more rural, which I like. But in the Charlotte area Fort Mills seems rural too. So I'm really torn.
One advantage to Raleigh is it's a lot closer to the ocean and we love the beach.
Has anyone compared the two and then made a decision? I plan for us to come spend a couple weeks in NC in the spring, but until then I can't stop thinking about it and researching it.
Also, we were considering Tampa but the Florida heat scares me. Is Florida really that much hotter than North Carolina??
Thanks for any info & advice.
I live in Raleigh but visit friends in Charlotte often. Both are great places to live and I think their similarities far outweigh the few differences. In my opinion your employment options will be the biggest factor in determining which area is a better fit for you. You can find urban or suburban living in both Raleigh and Charlotte. I would go where the best job offer takes you.
Good Luck!
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