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My wife and I might be looking to move south. She loves the beach and warm weather. We were born and raised in Iowa. We would like bigger city areas but have a 1 1/2 yr old with one on the way in Sep. Looking to rent or buy in the 125k range in family neiborhood. Have read some threads on Conway SC, Or Lakeland FL area. Any suggestions on other areas or these would be great. we'll prob. visit in march so any suggestions would be great. Thanks
Savannah is nice.. not sure what the COL is there. We opened a business there several years ago behind the Savannah Mall - on Abercorn I think it was.
Conway, OTOH, is a nice town. Close to the beach and has essentially everything you'd need pretty close by. Conway is an older historic town as well yet it offers many new communities with nice amenities.
Lakeland, the last time I was there, didn't impress me that much. Granted, it has been 10+ years since I was there and I wasn't there but a few days (work related). I know that one of our Floridians can chime in with some info about that particular area.
I lived in Lakeland Fl for 1 1/2 years, it seemed like the crime capitol of the world, and coming from rural Iowa it would probably be alot of culture shock too. Conway as I remember was an OK town, and close enough to the beach to enjoy it. Lakeland was about 1 1/2 hours to the beach since you have to fight the Tampa traffic and the 1 million (well not that much) traffic lights in Pinellas County.
Go for South Carolina, it wont be quite as warm as Florida, but the quality of life would be more enjoyable.
True, Lakeland is about an hour to the beach. It does have some crime ridden areas and some fairly safe areas, as well. It is convenient to Tampa and Disney World. I don't know much about Conway, but I do know that while it is moderate, a lot of South Carolina still experiences 4 seasons. Winters are very short, but around Lakeland, a cold spell would last maybe 3 or 4 days tops. Most of the year is pretty hot. Based on what you are asking, Lakeland may be more what you're looking for. Good luck!
I don't know anything about about Lakeland, FL but I live in Conway, SC and can answer some questions. Taxes are low, weather is great, people are friendly and it's a short drive to Myrtle Beach. You can find a house in that price range but I if you are looking for more than three bedrooms it will be a little tough. Like rrufast explained, it's a historical town and it also has an nice downtown area where they have a couple festivals throughout the year.
Even with the depressed housing market in FL, 125K won't go very far, although Lakeland may be a bit cheaper. LOTS of people are leaving FL (many going to SC). Keep an eye on issues such as homeowner's insurance and property taxes- two big issues right now. Our insurance has gone up 400% in the last few years, and the taxes on our house would have gone up 300% if we just moved here. We live closer to the coast, so HI may not be as bad inland. We're moving to SC in a couple years, mostly b/c we wanted rural acreage for our empty nest years, and miss the change of the seasons. The recent hike in the cost of living (without an equivalent hike in pay) has just pushed us harder.
Thanks for everyones input. I was kind of leaning toward Conway area or Charleston areas. Just so its not to far of drive to things we need. Such as mall, or big box store. Any areas we want to avoid in coastal SC. But still want to stay affordable.
Savannah is nice.. not sure what the COL is there. We opened a business there several years ago behind the Savannah Mall - on Abercorn I think it was.
Conway, OTOH, is a nice town. Close to the beach and has essentially everything you'd need pretty close by. Conway is an older historic town as well yet it offers many new communities with nice amenities.
Lakeland, the last time I was there, didn't impress me that much. Granted, it has been 10+ years since I was there and I wasn't there but a few days (work related). I know that one of our Floridians can chime in with some info about that particular area.
The cost of living here in Savannah is kinda high but not too bad. It's about the same as it is in the Charleston or Myrtle Beach area [because of it's tourism based economy] but being from Columbia...i know it's kinda overpriced here at times.
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Originally Posted by winiowa
Thanks for everyones input. I was kind of leaning toward Conway area or Charleston areas. Just so its not to far of drive to things we need. Such as mall, or big box store. Any areas we want to avoid in coastal SC. But still want to stay affordable.
Hilton Head is a place to avoid...nothing to do with crime...just it's kinda expensive to live there. The Charleston area is nice and will have everything you need, but it's more expensive to live there than in Conway, but it's a bigger city area and will be less of a headache during the summer month's when everyone flocks to myrtle beach giving you a traffic nightmare.
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