Please Help with relocation (Charlotte, Raleigh: rental homes, low crime, homes)

[melimelo]

Hello Everyone,

I have been reading so many different opinions here that I don't know what to do anymore!
So, I decided to start a new thread with the hopes that you could help us.
My husband and I are really tired of Florida for so many reasons (cost of living, no jobs, no trees, safety issues, unfriendly people, etc...) so, suddenly this week we decided to move to North Carolina.LOL!!!
Now, where is the question???

So, I'm going to tell you all what we are looking for and hopefully you can help us. We would really like to hear from people that have relocated there or natives. The more imput you can provide the better. We plan on moving real soon and can't afford to visit first.

Here it goes...
1)Affordable rental homes in family oriented neighborhoods (right now we are paying $1300 for a two bedroom/1bath appartement).
2)Good Middle School a must
3)Diverse ethnicities... My daughter is half black/white (never thought of my daughter in that way before but just wanted you to understand)... we just want a community that is open minded in regards to that.
4)Close to a city(thirty minutes or less)...Like Raleigh or Charlotte... for convinience.
5)My husband is really interested in becoming a wilderness survival guide (He's a veteran, so I think he would be great at it!)... so an area with job openings in that kind of work would be a plus but not a must.
6)Low crime rate.

I hope we will receive many responses from all of you. Thank You so much for taking the time for our family.
Your own experiences, opinions, suggestions, pictures, videos, good addresses, etc... are all welcomed!The more details the better!!!

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by melimelo

Hello Everyone,

I have been reading so many different opinions here that I don't know what to do anymore!
So, I decided to start a new thread with the hopes that you could help us.
My husband and I are really tired of Florida for so many reasons (cost of living, no jobs, no trees, safety issues, unfriendly people, etc...) so, suddenly this week we decided to move to North Carolina.LOL!!!
Now, where is the question???

So, I'm going to tell you all what we are looking for and hopefully you can help us. We would really like to hear from people that have relocated there or natives. The more imput you can provide the better. We plan on moving real soon and can't afford to visit first.

Here it goes...
1)Affordable rental homes in family oriented neighborhoods (right now we are paying $1300 for a two bedroom/1bath appartement).
2)Good Middle School a must
3)Diverse ethnicities... My daughter is half black/white (never thought of my daughter in that way before but just wanted you to understand)... we just want a community that is open minded in regards to that.
4)Close to a city(thirty minutes or less)...Like Raleigh or Charlotte... for convinience.
5)My husband is really interested in becoming a wilderness survival guide (He's a veteran, so I think he would be great at it!)... so an area with job openings in that kind of work would be a plus but not a must.
6)Low crime rate.

I hope we will receive many responses from all of you. Thank You so much for taking the time for our family.
Your own experiences, opinions, suggestions, pictures, videos, good addresses, etc... are all welcomed!The more details the better!!!

Are jobs a concern? Would you consider being 30 minutes away from smaller cities, or does it have to be the big ones?

[melimelo]

A 30 minutes commute sounds wonderful compared to here and smaller cities are fine as long as the basic needs are available... We don't want to have to hunt for our food!LOL!(Just joking!)

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by melimelo

A 30 minutes commute sounds wonderful compared to here and smaller cities are fine as long as the basic needs are available... We don't want to have to hunt for our food!LOL!(Just joking!)

But what about jobs? If so, what kind? Do you need to find them or do they come with you?

[melimelo]

We are not really concerned about jobs as we intend to start a small business (we have a few ideas but new ones are always welcomed!LOL!)... the only job my husband talked about being interested in is the wilderness survival guide type job (My husband loves that stuff!HA!HA!HA!).
I was looking around a bit more today and Apex and Clayton seem very nice. What is your take on that?
Thank you so much for taking the time for us... It is appreciated!

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by melimelo

We are not really concerned about jobs as we intend to start a small business (we have a few ideas but new ones are always welcomed!LOL!)... the only job my husband talked about being interested in is the wilderness survival guide type job (My husband loves that stuff!HA!HA!HA!).
I was looking around a bit more today and Apex and Clayton seem very nice. What is your take on that?
Thank you so much for taking the time for us... It is appreciated!

Would so love to be in the position that jobs didn't matter

I like Clayton and Apex - they are rural and family friendly. But you can travel to Raleigh easy enough for any big city things you might need. Schools are also supposed to be pretty good - I'd say that is one area to definitely check out.

Of course going toward that side of the state you are going away from the mountains, which is where you would find more "wilderness adventure" type jobs. In particular, Outward Bound has a program near Table Rock Mountain north of the town of Morganton. Here is a link:

Young people today need authentic adventure**||**North Carolina Outward Bound School: About Us: History: North Carolina Outward Bound School (http://www.ncobs.org/about_us/history/north_carolina_outward_bound_school.php - broken link)