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Wow... I"m not sure how to take your comments. It sounds like its more of the "we like it here because its nice, so stay away and don't ruin it for me". To use your fishing example, there are friendly fisherman who are happy to share info about their favorite spots with people, because they know deep down that their skill is going to always give them the advantage, even if the other guy knows where you fish. I've been fishing with a former brother-in-law that was incredible... he'd catch 5:1 the fish I did on the same boat with the same equipment. It was his skill, not the location. The same holds true with a metro area. Just because someone knows where to fish, doesn't mean they know how to fish.... and in the end the guy who doesn't know is going to fail in a good fishing spot or a bad fishing spot.
For someone to move here because they "heard it was nice" and buy a new house with no job and no prospects for a job is kind of like the poor fisherman in the example. They are probably going to fail. We are moving to Raleigh for several reasons that don't change because of a temporary drought - 1. Warmer climate, 2. Close to a lot of jobs with my current employer (IBM), 3. Closer to relatives, 4. Lower taxes, 5. Close to beaches that are warm, 6. Southern lifestyle vs. northern lifestyle, and 7. Iced tea.
Compared to other metro areas around the country (that are attractive and growing), the Triangle's cost of living is good. You can't compare the place to metro areas that are depressed and shrinking. I will say that my look at places to live has been primarily restricted to the east coast, so perhaps places in the midwest are cheaper... I don't know.
What I can tell you nearly a full year after relocating to Raleigh is that most of the logic behind our decision to move here has held up. There have been some surprises both good and bad but the sum total of the experience is that if you conduct due diligence and decide to move you're likely to be successful (and happy).
Oh, and for the most part it's either sweet tea or unsweet tea; you almost never hear anyone call either of those iced tea.
Having lived in the suburbs of the metro DC area, I would say that you have no idea what poorly planned uncontrolled growth looks like, if you are comparing Raleigh's current situation. From what I've seen, Raleigh has some issues for sure, but they are doing a good job of addressing them. Nothing is ever perfect.
From your last comment, it appears that you are accepting the "global warming" myth since you commented about climate change and decreased rainfall in the future. If you believe that, then I guess it might affect your view of the current drought. If that's true, then where would you go? Eventually the whole planet will be in a drought if you go with that.
I guess I'm willing to take the risk that we'll be complaining about too much rainfall in the future. We'll have to wait until then to see who's right.
Oh, and for the most part it's either sweet tea or unsweet tea; you almost never hear anyone call either of those iced tea.
I like to have fun with that one as one of my reasons for moving! You can't hardly ever find sweet tea in NY, and if you do its going to be only in barbeque places. I love that its a given in the south. The one thing I'll miss is non-smoking resturants... which is statewide in NY. It will probably eventually get that way in NC, but it will take a lot longer since tobacco is a big income producer for the state.
I not sure im sold on global warming but I do think climate changes based on the rotation of the earth around the sun ect, as historical data shows the planets climate has changed before man and cars. I see facts like melting ice caps . My experience with no real bad winter weather here for the last three years, nothing like it used to be temp wise and snow fall in nc past. My post is not reflective of people making logical well thought out moves to benefit their families,but it the larger issue of the folks moving out of desperation thinking its the land of OZ only to be crushed. SC, GA, VA (Charlotte is cheaper too)all have areas that have cheaper cost of living then raleigh. NC has one of the highest gas taxes in the country plue food tax. Its all relative there will always be more expensive places and less expensive places, places with more traffic and places with less traffic. Raleigh is climbing in all cats.
Well I think what we are seeing is just cyclical climate. But time for climate is hundreds of years, not months... so what looks like a big change can still be cyclical. Anyways, like I said... time will tell. I was somewhat restrictive in my searches of metro areas because I wanted to have job availability in a certain field, but if you compare any of these places to the northeast, its a rounding error difference compared to up there and down here. For example, NC may have higher gas taxes than the immediately surrounding states, but when compared to NY any of them are a bargain. Its about a 40 cents difference vs. a 5 cents difference. Raleigh may be climbing in all categories, but so are all the other places... so they should maintain their relative differences unless something big happens. I guess some people think the drought is it, but like I said... its hitting 4 or 5 states pretty hard, so it certainly isn't a problem that Raleigh can do much about by itself.
Paid 25 cents less in Hampton VA just last week. I found a site that listed the prices ,I was shocked NJ was much cheaper. In regards to raleigh growing in all cats and so is the other places. The last projections I was reading had the Northeast lossing population not gaining which would reduce Traffic, school crowding ect not increase it, right? I would assume with the high migration to the new Sunbelt it will relieve issues lossing population as well as cause states like Mich is doing to offer more incentives to big corps to bring in jobs. You never know Mich could recover and become the new rave in 15 years while people are trying to run from south. Will have to wait and see.
Wow... if you got gas for $2.75, that would be a bargain. But if you look at averages based on the tracking sites, NC average is $2.94 which is lower than the national average at $2.97. NY's average is $3.23 and VA's average is $2.85 by comparison. So actually NC is pretty close to in the middle. So I wouldn't say that NC's gas tax is "among the highest". VA is a dime less and NY is a quarter more.
You are correct that some states are losing population. You need to ask yourself why that is? In the case of NY, its because of very high taxes, very high cost of living, and very anti-industry policies that have made the job market poor at best. If people are leaving, its not a good thing. Much of NY is filled with small towns that were "one factory towns" who lost most of the jobs when that company failed or moved to another state. Those communities never recover. There is no area in NY that is what I'd call booming. Albany is pretty stable because the state's largest employer is based here... and the state's largest employer is the state government. Again, that is not a good thing, but it does keep the job market relatively stable. Michigan very well may recover, but if you lived there... are you going to sit around for fifteen years waiting for that to happen. In my case, if I waited that long I'd be at retirement. We live on the planet for a limited amount of time, so why not live in a place that has a good quality of life. I think that's what everyone wants. In the case of my wife and I, I dont' believe we'll move back north because the climate is a primary reason for our moving.
Good post and the very point Ive been making here.. NC hasent added the industry poeple think it has. Most areas in NC have lost industry. Greensboro was est by Cone Mills industry(Levis jeans) They went over seas. Winston Salem Is an RJ tobbacco town, brown summit NC was American tobbaco. The point is the influx here has been non job generated which is very scary. The most common are work from home types that still get paid NY wage Or a drug rep reporting to another state co.. NC has not produced the home state jobs through incentives that will be required to keep the influx employeed. Medical and service jobs will continue to increase just from the influx but are low paying.
Well the job draw to me is tech jobs and RTP. I can tell you that there is nothing close to that where I'm at now, but they are trying to create it. I was actually at SAS Institute for several classes over 20 years ago, and was attracted to the area then. But, my wife wasn't interested in the south at that time.
I see what are saying to some degree because I'm looking at threads in this forum every day where people are moving here with no job and no prospect for a job, and trying to find the right place to live. That is pretty scarey to me. But, at the same time, it will be easier for them to be hired if they are here... but I think a lot of research would need to preceed such a move. If it were me, I'd probably come first and rent an apartment and find a job before moving the rest of the family. But that has nothing do do with the drought... its just a very risky scenario.
One thing that probably works against you is that Cary was in some of those "best place to live" top 10 lists and that will cause people that are just googling around where to live to put it on the list. But seriously... if people can find a job, then they will eventually have to move away. I don't see a lot of people in this forum that say they are sorry they moved here, and if there are... its usually things related to the area such as "lack of cultural activities that they had in NYC" or something like that.
Correct not allot of unhappy posts on this site but some other sites would show a different view. Many of the people I speak with work daily have liked NC but were taken by surprise of the rate at which the area is changing. Some have already made plans to locate an area outside raleigh because of the growth they have seen in such a short time freaked them out. But even that has been tough because the areas like clayton Garner apex which were farm land and trailer parks have sprouted Track homes and drug stores on every corner. alot of people expected a southern nice slow pace of life with jobs every where. Instead they see a future NJ type area and they were taken back.
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