Moving from southern California to Raleigh? (Durham, Cary: fit in, real estate market, renting)

[roanoker 4]

I lived in SoCal a few years ago and I loved the weather, the open-minded people, the beautiful beaches, etc. Its quite a hard place to leave for the mid-altantic region. Our weather is mild but the summers are humid, winters can be icy in the Triangle, snow here in the Blue Ridge. I would say we have about 4 really good "outdoor" months. You will find many transplants in the Triangle and throughout NC. The state is still overwhelmingly conservative republican and lots of narrow-minded southern Baptists. There is a church practically on every corner. Overall, most people are homophobic and they tend to be segregated racially. This description is primarily the case in NC and most of VA. On the plus side, Raleigh/Durham is considered one of the top places to live in the U.S. due to its robust economy, fine educational opportunities, lower cost of living, great shopping, international airport. Your kids will have many opportunties like access to the beaches of NC, ski slopes in Western VA and WV, Smokey Mtns. Whitewater rafing and outdoor opportunites all around the region. I guess there is no perfect place to live, but I think the Raleigh area is a nice place to live and raise a family. There are much worse places to live.

[KFran]

Having moved from Chicago to NYC to Los Angeles to Raleigh, I can say Raleigh is my favorite place so far. I lived in SoCal for 10 years and enjoyed my time there until I had kids. We're not much into shopping or restaurants, so my opinion might differ, but I think it's the best move we made.

We like to travel - esp. to bermuda/europe and it is much easier to get there from here. Also, we are only a short distance from NYC, so we can still take long weekends up there too. I feel we do much more out here then we ever did in SoCal. We also have mountains and ocean within a couple hours drive. I actually have been to the mountains and ocean several times this year, and I only went to the mountains once in 10 years in LA.

We moved for housing/jobs/education and can't say we regret it a bit!

[dcgrl]

I think there's a lot of Triangle bashing going on in this thread, and I don't want it to scare you away from what might be a good move for you. If your choices are stay in SoCal, Atlanta, or the Triangle, I would head to the Triangle, especially if you don't have family keeping you in the land of unattainable real estate.

A previous poster mentions that North Carolina is overwhelmingly Republican, southern Baptist, racially segregated, and homophobic. I wonder where that poster hangs out. The Triangle is none of these things.

We're experiencing a major growth in fine, interesting dining (non-chain restaurants)--you have to be willing to look for the good restaurants and not just accept whatever the developers are building in the shopping centers.

If your husband will only be taking a minor adjustment in pay, you will definitely come out ahead here. And although I agree somewhat with memorytheatre that moving only for financial considerations and square footage is not necessarily a good idea, you suggest that you're simply not getting ahead in CA and not able to prepare for your future because you're lining the pockets of your landlords. This, to me, is a legitmate reason to explore other options. It was part of why we moved 2.5 years ago, and in the process, we found a lot more than just cheaper real estate. We found a vibrant community, a great place to raise kids, mild weather, and good people. We don't have the same cultural opportunities that we used to, but we accept the tradeoffs. And I wouldn't say that it's a cultural wasteland, either.

We kind of have a difficult time explaining to visitors why we love living here so much; we usually just sum it up as "It's nowhere we'd want to vacation, but we sure love living here."

[wanderintonc]

Originally Posted by roanoker 4

. The state is still overwhelmingly conservative republican and lots of narrow-minded southern Baptists. There is a church practically on every corner. Overall, most people are homophobic and they tend to be segregated racially. This description is primarily the case in NC and most of VA. .

So, do you consider yourself open-minded? I surely can't tell, from reading your post

BTW, statistically, I believe NC is mostly Democrat.

[mojo.jojo]

Ok, all of these posts have been quite helpful, and it is good to see both sides when some of you disagree...

Now, how about neighborhoods?
Having kids, schools are clearly important (both are early high school age.) Crime is another thing we're concerned about. We're used to an area where we never lock our doors, so, we may be a little spoiled. We've also heard there are areas best avoided in Durham/Raleigh. Online, it looks like Cary/Apex stands out as safe with good schools.
Are there other specific neighborhoods anyone would recommend?
(By the way, we're thrilled to have easy access to Trader Joe's & Whole Foods!)

Again, thanks to everyone for their posts! You've all been very helpful!

[Desdemona123]

Originally Posted by mojo.jojo

Ok, all of these posts have been quite helpful, and it is good to see both sides when some of you disagree...

Now, how about neighborhoods?
Having kids, schools are clearly important (both are early high school age.) Crime is another thing we're concerned about. We're used to an area where we never lock our doors, so, we may be a little spoiled. We've also heard there are areas best avoided in Durham/Raleigh. Online, it looks like Cary/Apex stands out as safe with good schools.
Are there other specific neighborhoods anyone would recommend?
(By the way, we're thrilled to have easy access to Trader Joe's & Whole Foods!)

Again, thanks to everyone for their posts! You've all been very helpful!

If you think everywhere in Cary is 'safe' just because it's Cary....you are in for a rude awakening. It's the same as any other city of it's size. There are great areas and areas that aren't so hot.

Yes, there are areas I wouldn't want to live in in Raleigh and Durham...but come on...the areas like this are pretty darn obvious and anyone with options is going to notice and not live there. There are MANY more areas that are fantastic...inside the belt line and further out.

There are great schools all over Wake/Orange/Durham county.....it's harder to find one that isn't. What makes a school (or really even a neighborhood_ great is going to depend on what you are looking for and how you like to live (and what compromises you need to make for you family - I'd love to live in downtown Raleigh, but my hubby is not quite the city person I am...and our jobs are in outlaying areas....it doesn't make sense for use to live IBL, but it doesn't mean that it's a bad place.)

[Gurl]

I've lived in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Durham (as well as, several other places including DC, MD, etc...)

Based on your stated short and long term goals, I think the Triangle will be a good fit for you.

My job gave me the option of living anywhere in the US, as long as I could get to an airport easily. I initially chose Atlanta, then went back to Los Angeles, and then relocated to Durham. My choice was mainly financial. I wanted to own a home, have money stashed for retirement, and have money leftover to travel where ever and when ever I wanted.

The Triangle isn't exactly the cultural mecca of the country, but I'm partial to diverse populations, and I find the Triangle tolerable. When I want 'culture', I hop a flight to NYC, and I'm there in less than an hour. I'm in L.A. in less than 4. Best of all, the RDU airport is a DREAM to fly out of (compared to LAX, or Hartsfield - which I HATE)

In Durham, look in the 27713 neighborhoods - especially Woodcroft. Very pretty, and a nice place to raise kids. There's also nearby Hope Valley Farms and Woodlake.

There have been PLENTY of things I've had to adjust to, but in the end, the move was TOTALLY worth it.

[suncat]

Originally Posted by sundaze

My brother left southern California for Portland,

I'm glad to here he's happy, but my experience with moving from a Southern California beach city to Portland is *don't do it,* unless you love grey skies and cold rain.

I am looking forward to living in Raleigh. I have spent the past couple years visiting and researching certain Southern cities, and Raleigh seems to be a good fit for me. YMMV, though.

[seohkna]

I moved from Monrovia (next door to Pasadena) 2.5 years ago. I understand why you want to leave CA it sounds like the same reasons we did. There are a lot of things here I love, the weather is exciting and the humidity hasn't bothered my family much, it is beautiful and clean and safe. True that the shopping or dining isn't as good, especially in the In-N-Out and Mexican food areas, but what you do have is uncrowded and low stress and traffic is a dream, it actually makes driving pleasurable again.
I have yet to see a neighborhood that comes even close to being as crime ridden as a good portion of So Cal. I mean, there are some places but they don't compare.
The schools are ok. They are great in comparison to CA, but in Wake county there is a lot of moving kids around because of overcrowding from all the recent growth and that is hard on the kids. For that reason knowing what I know now I might consider someplace out of Wake county like Chapel Hill or Carborro.
Something I really dislike about here is the state of the health care system. I know there is a crisis everywhere in the country but it is way worse here than in CA in my opinion. When we first got here we found no one accepted our insurance which was bad being pregnant - it really left a bad taste in my mouth. If you have money and good insurance that is acceptable to facilities in this state you will get excellent health care, otherwise, not so much. It makes me wonder about the disparity of the classes.
The other thing I am personally having a hard time adjusting to is the insects. Not everyone has a problem but they seem to like me a lot and I can walk around my yard and come back with 30 mosquito bites, chiggers and a tick. At first I thought we were just infested but it has happened to me everywhere we go from July to October unless I wear a lot of clothes and insect repellent. As a person who loves the outdoors and was hoping to enjoy the beauty of this state, I am not happy about that situation.
So there is good and bad here like everywhere else, but I would rather be here than CA and I think it is much, much, better for kids.


Good luck in whatever you decide!!

Marie

[jello212]

The other thing I am personally having a hard time adjusting to is the insects. Not everyone has a problem but they seem to like me a lot and I can walk around my yard and come back with 30 mosquito bites

That's funny. My wife and I can walk outside and I'll get 2 bites and she'll get about 30. I wonder why they prefer some people to others.