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I'm from Oakland, CA area and love it after 3 years.
Likes: BBQ (seriously it is way different here), slower pace of life, friendlier, less crowded, less traffic, lower COL. Seasons can actually be nice where CA can be monoclimate.
Dislike: Mexican, Thai, and Vietnamese food are hard to find good options. No public transit, little walkability save for downtown. Humidity can be a bother and lots of mosquitoes. Winters are cold(er) than CA but not too bad.
Just being from Norcal, I can tell you there are people from CA here, but very few from Norcal- 3 of my neighbors are from LA area.
Moved to Cary from Orange County, CA about a year and a half ago and very much enjoy it.
Pros:
- Housing prices are about half what they are in CA, and, though subjective, find the houses to be far more aesthetically pleasing.
- There is traffic during the morning and evening rush hours (6:30-8:30am, 4:30-6:30pm), but outside of that it's pretty smooth sailing. Weekends are especially nice and make day trips a breeze. Very different from CA where there is pretty much always traffic and rush hour is gridlock.
- NC BBQ, though different, is quite delicious.
- Very family friendly.
- Greenways.
- Nearby lakes for swimming, boating, fishing, etc...
- Friendly people.
- Lots of good food options*.
- Downtown Raleigh has enough of a "big city" feel to get that experience without the crime and grime of most big cities.
- Great museums in the area.
- Moderate weather with 4 actual seasons. Winter isn't that cold. Summer humidity can get uncomfortable for a handful of days, but most of the time it's very nice and not nearly as bad as everyone in CA said it was going to be. Fall colors are beautiful.
- Storm parties on screened porches. During summer lightning storms it's fun to grab a beverage and sit out on a screened porch and watch the free lightning and thunder show. The humidity keeps the night time temperatures perfectly warm.
- Fireflies.
- So many trees!
- Lots of parks for the kids and state parks for hiking.
- Most activities (parks, museums, etc...) have free parking and admission.
- 2 hours from the beach and 3-4 hours to the mountains.
- Not a lot of semi-trucks, at least compared to CA.
- Great air quality, beautiful "Carolina blue" skies, and big cool looking cloud formations.
Cons:
- *Easy access to good Mexican food. Most Mexican food in the area is toned down Tex-Mex; bland unseasoned meats drenched in queso sauce. It's disgusting and depressing. In the Raleigh area there are 2 legitimate options though; Los Cuates (2 locations) and Taqueria El Toro. I'm not sure about the options in Durham and Chapel Hill, but I'd wager both have at least a couple good options. Otherwise you'll likely be disappointed. Though you'll get a few good laughs at some of the absurd things on the Mexican menus out here, e.g., "Pollo Tropical" consisting of unseasoned grilled chicken strips smothered in queso sauce topped with canned pineapple chunks. Yes, wtf?
- Way more mosquitoes than in CA, especially during the summer. Find a bug spray you like and apply it often.
- Hard to see sunsets with all the trees and relatively flat terrain. Also, for the same reasons, it's hard to see very far out to the horizon. It's a little claustrophobic and if you like that feeling of "wide open spaces" you may need to drive up to the mountains to get some relief. The trees are beautiful, but they're the only show in town.
- Pollen season in the spring is no joke. Never had allergies in CA, but had to take allergy meds here when the pine trees started spewing pollen. It literally covers everything in yellow pollen for a couple weeks. Pretty nuts.
That's all I have time for at the moment. Feel free to PM me, if you like. It's a great area and we don't regret moving here!
Pretty much agreed with pros and cons from Krozenthiel post.
My biggest con are the chigger bites in the summer even after applying bug repellant. The bitten area swells up for about 2 weeks and leaves an ugly dark spot on my skin. But reaction varies by individual - none of my family members react same way to bug bites.
There are also crazy drivers that don't follow rules on the road and create safety hazards, if not major accidents. My daughter completed driver's ed and I'm fearful of letting her drive! Traffic may be horrible in CA but at least drivers abide by the same rules. Around here, if there's an open space, drivers will drive through it even if it's for traffic going the opposite direction or a no driving zone.
When winter cold or summer humidity drags for too long, we kinda miss the boring consistent weather in CA. Other than that, we don't miss anything in CA.. ok, maybe the drivers that follow rules of the road.
Need help to find a diverse subdivision with amenities and highly educated residents for retiring to the RTP area
Hello all,
Anyone moved to RTP in retirement lately? Are there any online groups of such people (Meetups?) for tips, etc? We are contemplating move from Ann Arbor next year due to winters here in Michigan. Would love to hear thoughts from those who have recently moved to the RTP area. Where did you move to? We visited Cary/Chapel Hill area recently and cannot believe prices of homes on 1/2 acre or above in a developed subdivision with amenities. Do have a Realtor but she depends on me to find stuff to get more info about--may be because she knows we are not in a hurry. Any thoughts/tips/suggestions as to how to find a decent lot to build on or a nice home?
[quote=Tanvisha;58650757]Hello all,
Anyone moved to RTP in retirement lately? Are there any online groups of such people (Meetups?) for tips, etc? We are contemplating move from Ann Arbor next year due to winters here in Michigan. Would love to hear thoughts from those who have recently moved to the RTP area. Where did you move to? We visited Cary/Chapel Hill area recently and cannot believe prices of homes on 1/2 acre or above in a developed subdivision with amenities. Do have a Realtor but she depends on me to find stuff to get more info about--may be because she knows we are not in a hurry. Any thoughts/tips/suggestions as to how to find a decent lot to build on or a nice home?[/quote]
Hello all,
Anyone moved to RTP in retirement lately? Are there any online groups of such people (Meetups?) for tips, etc? We are contemplating move from Ann Arbor next year due to winters here in Michigan. Would love to hear thoughts from those who have recently moved to the RTP area. Where did you move to? We visited Cary/Chapel Hill area recently and cannot believe prices of homes on 1/2 acre or above in a developed subdivision with amenities. Do have a Realtor but she depends on me to find stuff to get more info about--may be because she knows we are not in a hurry. Any thoughts/tips/suggestions as to how to find a decent lot to build on or a nice home?
It would be interesting to also hear this question answered by someone from rural North Carolina who moved to the Triangle, and not just NY, CA, NJ, etc., as they would also be a major change in both population density and mindset, and many of the transplant experiences are occurring as a change from the opposite direction (coming from areas that are busier, more expensive, more competitive, more crowded than the Triangle instead of less).
This is especially true since they have moved to an area that is in their home state but in many ways doesn't totally feel like they're still in their home state compared to "back home"!
There is a lot of that dynamic happening, such as when the brighter rural students go to a college in the Triangle and then end up staying there, which also creates a brain drain back in their home communities.
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Need help to find a diverse subdivision with amenities and highly educated residents for retiring to the RTP area
