Best towns in NC for young family? (Charlotte, Greensboro: best cities, 2015)

[Ladyx13]

This is going to be kind of long, so apologies in advance!

I currently live in Florida, and am considering moving to North Carolina. Originally my husband and I wanted to move to Portland Oregon area, but we have decided to stay on the east coast. We don't want harsh winters like New England, but Florida is just too hot. We love camping, hiking, etc and think North Carolina would be our best bet.

We are both in our early 20s and have a toddler. So what we are looking for is :

-safe neighborhoods, friendly neighbors, that kind of thing
-good public transit, or things within walking distance
-things to do, libraries, playgrounds, zoo, parks, street or town festivals etc
-good public schools
-farmers markets, art districts, things like that

My family leans more towards the liberal side, I will be looking for work as a yoga instructor, so we don't want to end up in a too conservative place.

I also want to make sure that there are plenty of job opportunities and growth...orginally we were looking at Ashville, however it seems that there are a lack of jobs.

We aren't moving for a few more years, and will hopefully be making more by the time we move, but as of right now ideally we would like to rent a two bedroom house under $800.

I know it's a lot, but any feed back would be amazing! Really, we aren't set on any city, we are just looking for feedback!

[poppydog]

Your price point seems low on renting a house to me. Maybe Greensboro or Winston-Salem? I believe rents will be more than $800 in the Triangle and Charlotte areas, but there might be deals if you're diligent.

[Ladyx13]

Thank you for the feedback! Hopefully by the we move we will be able to afford more, but right now we are trying to keep the budget in that range

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by Ladyx13

This is going to be kind of long, so apologies in advance!

I currently live in Florida, and am considering moving to North Carolina. Originally my husband and I wanted to move to Portland Oregon area, but we have decided to stay on the east coast. We don't want harsh winters like New England, but Florida is just too hot. We love camping, hiking, etc and think North Carolina would be our best bet.

We are both in our early 20s and have a toddler. So what we are looking for is :

-safe neighborhoods, friendly neighbors, that kind of thing
-good public transit, or things within walking distance
-things to do, libraries, playgrounds, zoo, parks, street or town festivals etc
-good public schools
-farmers markets, art districts, things like that

My family leans more towards the liberal side, I will be looking for work as a yoga instructor, so we don't want to end up in a too conservative place.

I also want to make sure that there are plenty of job opportunities and growth...orginally we were looking at Ashville, however it seems that there are a lack of jobs.

We aren't moving for a few more years, and will hopefully be making more by the time we move, but as of right now ideally we would like to rent a two bedroom house under $800.

I know it's a lot, but any feed back would be amazing! Really, we aren't set on any city, we are just looking for feedback!

West of Charlotte you could probably find something in Gastonia, but I wouldn't want you to think that you could still get that price in a few years. I wouldn't know about the school situation, though, at that price. Public transportation will limit you to certain towns, though.

[carolinadawg2]

"Ten best Cities for Young Families in NC":

This Triad town is among the 'Best Cities for Young Families in N.C.' - Greensboro - Triad Business Journal

Your housing budget will be difficult in any decent area.

[ZeusAV]

$800 is pretty tough in most decent neighborhoods but maybe one of the suburban towns of CHARLOTTE would fit your needs. You would have access to the Charlotte job market and the mountains would still be within 2 hours for a nice weekend trip.

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by ZeusAV

$800 is pretty tough in most decent neighborhoods but maybe one of the suburban towns of CHARLOTTE would fit your needs. You would have access to the Charlotte job market and the mountains would still be within 2 hours for a nice weekend trip.

She wants a public transportation system. That leaves Gastonia & Concord. Gastonia is probably possible but I wouldn't guarantee the best schools for that price. I think that Concord is less likely. I would have suggested a couple of other towns west of Charlotte but she wants public transportation.

[-SeanWalker-]

You are looking for awful lot for $800 a month. You want to be in either the Triangle, Greensboro. or Charlotte based on your political leanings and all the things you want to have to do... but $800 will not get you much in any of those areas. You may be in the position where you have to live a county over from one of those areas until you are in a better financial situation. I see some people have mentioned Gastonia and Concord in the Charlotte area.. in the Triangle region you may want to look at Johnson County, Clayton in particular.

[Francois]

First you need to decide which area of NC you are interested in; unlike FL, NC's terrain is very different from west to east, and just because two different cities/towns are both in NC doesn't mean they have a single thing in common (Asheville vs Wilmington). Have you ever been to NC? If not, you can't really be sure it's where you want to move, so a visit should come before calling the moving van

Also there is the issue of jobs, if you will not be retired yet--what industry would you be looking in? Doing a search of what areas have the best jobs in your field should come before choosing a town.

[rockeyjoshi]

Mooresville District Schools are great and also near the lake area with lots of diversity. You should look into the area I think you'd like it.