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My hubby and I have been thinking about relocating out of California for a long while now. We considered Seattle, Austin, and now Raliegh/Cary. Seattle was out because of weather and horrible traffic, Austin sounded great, but salaries are way lower than what we're used to and the super hot summers were questionable. So for the past few days I've been researching the Triangle, specifically Cary/Apex and it seems like this town would be perfect for our family. I'm 28, DH is 32 and we have 3 children, DD is 10, and our sons are 4 & 2 years old. My husband has a niche profession and several companies are hiring right now with relocation offered in the Triangle. The timing has never been better and we're ready to leave for greener pastures, literally!
We currently live in Long Beach, near Cal State and Belmont Shore (east LB is nice, not like the northern part) and our local real estate has actually gone up and there are buyers out there. We will be able to sell, I'm just not sure how long it will take, but we will be pricing the home realistically to sell in a timely manner. I think we can walk away with $100k in equity after paying agent fees, etc.
Anyhow, my question to my fellow Californians, is how do you like NC and the Triangle in general? Has it held up to your expectations?
If we move out there, we will be renting a home for a while, in order to get an idea of where exactly in the Triangle would suit our family. Also, I promise not to bring any expectations with me because NC offers what Cali cannot, primarily lower cost of living, beautiful large houses for a fraction of Orange County prices, good schools/colleges, great place to raise kids, educated people, clean air, and less illegals ( at least I hope so!). I'm so sick of driving around and seeing whole parts of SoCal taken over where all the businesses/billboards are written in Spanish, Cambodian, or Vietnamese. I appreciate diversity and fantastic ethnic food, but not when our school system, hospitals, and tax base is so greatly effected. We've thought about moving to Irvine and South OC in general, but so sterile down there and no trees really! We also aren't jazzed about Mello Roos and high HOA fees, along with a decent newer home still in the high 600's and up range. I will miss the beautiful weather and our family/friends, but hopefully some of them will follow us.
Thanks in advance for your replies and so sorry for the long post!
I'm 28 and recently relocated from Palo Alto, CA to Durham (my fiance goes to Duke Med). The Bay Area had a lot to offer that this area does not, but conversely this area has it's own charm and definite pros, and I don't find myself missing California all that much. In fact, the only thing I really miss most is the coastline, but to trade that for light traffic, friendly people, and cheap housing is likely worth it.
If I had one complaint about moving here, it's that I can no longer find any decent Mexican food. Other than that, the area has held up to my expectations, and I'm definitely considering staying here for longer than I originally expected. Also, I can't surf anymore (used to live 45 minutes from Santa Cruz), but the mountain biking out here is great so I keep myself entertained with that.
I also have complaints about Durham (doesn't feel safe), but I'm forced to live here because of my girlfriend. If I lived in Cary or Chapel Hill, I'd be 100% happy here.
We relocated to NC 4 years ago from California. We spent our first 6 or so months in a rental looking for where to buy. Our children would be starting school the following year so we had some time to check out area schools, etc.
For me, the only things that really caught me off guard is the summer humidity and a good amount of large flying bugs. I was born and raised on the coast in California (Santa Cruz) with temps in the 70's nearly year round and not a drop of summer humidity. The summers are still VERY HARD for me. I find myself planning lots of indoor activities for the months of July and August and some of September which tend to be the worst months. The spring and fall feel shorter to me than in California.
The adjustment to everything else came easy and we have all settled in nicely. We are glad we left California and made our home here.
Best to you in your decision.
Last edited by kwalk65; 04-02-2009 at 01:56 PM..
Reason: spelling
We live about 5 minutes from the beach, but the funny thing is we never go. The water is too dirty! I will miss the coastline, as I drive on PCH everyday, I think I will miss the laid back beach lifestyle, and of course the weather.
Have you been to Hawaii, is the summertime humidity in NC similar? I think I can swing it and I love wearing flip flops or sandals, so if I can do that for half the year in NC, then I'm good. The bugs may be a problem, as they like to bite me, but we will stock up on the bug repellent.
Thank you for your replies!
Have you been to Hawaii, is the summertime humidity in NC similar? I think I can swing it and I love wearing flip flops or sandals, so if I can do that for half the year in NC, then I'm good. The bugs may be a problem, as they like to bite me, but we will stock up on the bug repellent.
I've lived in NC for a total of 7 years, with a 4-year stint in SoCal (Rancho Cucamonga for three years, San Diego for one) in the middle. We're back here so I can finish a doctorate that I started at UNC before we moved to Cali for my wife to go to school.
The humidity here in NC during the summer can be similar to Hawaii's sometimes, but there is no ocean breeze to mitigate it. After living in Cali, I did find it exceptionally hard to adjust to the humidity again, especially on a hot summer day with absolutely no air movement. The bugs here, though, are definitely manageable unless you spend a lot of time in the forest (then again, I grew up in Georgia where we had tons more!)
I agree with a previous poster with regard to spring and fall, too. It goes from cold to hot (and vice versa) here more quickly than it does in SoCal, and the temperatures are obviously more extreme than to a coastal area like Long Beach.
And forbiddenbeat is right about how hard it is to find decent Mexican food here. Most of what passes for "good" Mexican in the Triangle would be barely acceptable to someone who's lived in California!
My wife and I live in a historic district in Durham and are generally quite happy here - we are close to good restaurants, nice parks, and plenty of other activities that can keep us busy - but that won't stop us from moving back to San Diego once I'm done with my Ph.D. if there are opportunities for us there. It's simply a better fit for us with regards to lifestyle. We don't have kids, though, so our priorities would obviously be much different if we did!
The humidity here in NC during the summer can be similar to Hawaii's sometimes, but there is no ocean breeze to mitigate it. After living in Cali, I did find it exceptionally hard to adjust to the humidity again, especially on a hot summer day with absolutely no air movement. The bugs here, though, are definitely manageable unless you spend a lot of time in the forest (then again, I grew up in Georgia where we had tons more!!)
Yes, I agree about the Hawaii comparison. It is very stagnant air here.
We moved from the bay area about 8 months ago. So far NC has been good and very pretty in several aspects. One thing that can get annoying is that compared to CA, there are fewer freeways. So you will end up driving 10-12 miles sometimes on narrower roads with tons of stop lights. I've also noticed that there is definitely a need to drive more here for anything. Also public transport in several areas is almost non-existent.
However, I think that that this area of NC would lose its charm if all the things above were actually available, it would probably make it more rushed
I don't miss CA too much, except sometimes the food, specifically the cheap food that was easily available!
We moved from the SF Bay Area last June. We are renting and plan to rent for probably the next 1-2 years until we figure out exactly where we want to settle down. Right now we are living in NE Raleigh and I work in Durham so dont really like the commute. We LOVE it here. California was just ridiculously expensive and though not everything here is less expensive, life is just simpler. Slower pace of life, friendlier people and REAL WEATHER! The only thing I can say I have not liked is the bugs in the summer but they are not terrible either. We have never looked back.
I grew up in Coastal North Carolina, attended ECU, and then moved here to Orange County in 1999... I have lived in Newport Beach, San Juan Capistrano and Irvine. I absolutely love SoCal. Beautiful scenery, beautiful weather, I wear flip flops all year, it's very convenient to to shopping, not to mention snow skiing and the coast. Oh, and a 45 min flight to Vegas... are you kiddin' me? lol
We are moving to Clayton, NC in two weeks. What changed? We had a baby last year.
We want to be able to save for our retirement and actually afford our mortgage in a home that is brand new and not on top of our neighbors. We want to raise our family in an actual community... not somewhere that you can't let your kids out of your sight for 10 minutes. I want to turn on the news or listen to the radio and not hear 5 mins of bad traffic reports and highway shootings/murders/bank robberys/hit and runs etc etc. We are looking forward to the 4 seasons again. The Spring and Fall in NC are absolutely beautiful. (The extreme heat and cold make you appreciate it more! lol) Yes, the heat in the summer is a little like Hawaii (I actually thought that when I stepped foot off the airplane in HI.) but that's what the AC is for. And lastly the beach! Oh, the beautiful NC coastline- I personally prefer NC beaches to SoCal beaches... wider, whiter, calmer, and the water isn't freeeezing!
Oh, and we'll be within driving distance to our families instead of a long plane ride!
It's just a beautiful area and the people are friendly. And the traffic is non-exsitent compared to what you're used to in LB.
We moved from the Bay Area to Cary a couple of months. It hasn't really been long enough to give a full review (haven't lived through our first NC summer yet!), but so far we absolutely love it. So much less congested, but big enough that we have everything we need. We've been thoroughly impressed with how friendly everyone...that's a huge difference from the Bay Area.
Is it perfect? Probably not. But we are absolutely thrilled with our move.
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Bay area to Raleigh
