Moving to ?? In Western North Carolina (Asheville, Henderson: for sale, real estate, to rent)

[Mel42]

Hello everyone! My husband and I are looking to move to the mountains of Western North Carolina. We were thinking of Asheville at first but now are wondering if we would be better off in a smaller (less traffic) area. We are moving from St Petersburg Florida which is in the Tampa Bay Area. My husband is a Master (ASE Certified) Automotive Technician with over 30 years of experience. I do not think it will be very hard for him to find a job with his qualifications. So the biggest problem we have right now is finding a nice quiet area to live with our 2 yellow labs. We are looking to rent a home with at least an acre of land for the first year while we find a home or land to build on (we would like to have at least 3 acres). My husband is from Northern New Hampshire (been in FL 28 yrs.) and I am from Northern Kentucky (been in FL 29 yrs), and we have had it with the heat, super high homeowners policies (even though we have not been hit by a hurricane in Tampa Bay in over 60 years), and outrageous property taxes! We are trying to sell our home here but it is hard as the property values have dropped over 48% in the past 4 years! Plus our new Governor is about to make things a LOT WORSE than ever. I have no clue why anyone would want to move here to FL!!
I am disabled due to Scleroderma, Lupus, and Severe Rheumatoid Arthritis and the constant stresses with the increased violence (3 St Petersburg and 2 Tampa cops killed in less than 7 weeks, 2 deaths every day from Rx drug
abuse in our area, sixteen separate shootings in 1 week, and the pedophiles
and sickos that prey on children, etc) and environmental issues are making me
sicker. My doctors have suggested a move to the mountains as the elevation
and clean air alone will make me feel better not to mention the cooler
weather. The heat and humidity of Florida are hard on people with R.A. I know
I feel great when it is cold (36-70 degrees) and so do my dogs!
And I get mad when my husband says I talk too much!! Just kidding! I am a
very happy person most of the time and I love to meet new people!
Unfortunately, people in our area do not feel the same way. I have been
reading the blogs on Western North Carolina and I truly believe we will be
very happy living there. You all seem very down to earth and friendly and that
is what we are looking for!
Now, can anyone give me some ideas on small towns that are within a 30
minute drive to a group of car dealerships or where there is a demand for
honest, dependable auto techs? I love the old fashioned small towns and want to live in one, but every once in a while I may need a good dose of a full day
of shopping in a large mall! Lol Seriously, every woman needs her shopping
days...right? My husband is wanting to buy or build a log home and
eventually live "off the grid" meaning solar, geothermal, etc. I just want a
large vegetable garden and room for my dogs to run! Any feedback would be
greatly appreciated!
Also, can anyone give me any information on the area hospitals? I need to be within a 20 minute drive to one ...a good one! It can be difficult sometimes as I need to see a variety of specialists monthly.
Have a wonderful evening! I look forward to our coming trip to job and house hunt! Maybe we will even meet one day! If you sew or quilt, I know we will!
Melissa

[Catbirds]

Hi Mel, I have a dear friend that has RA like you. She also has some other ailments and spends most of days in bed now. I am so sorry for your pain but it sounds like you have a great outlook on life and that is good. The reason I am posting you is she says that the dryer and more consistent weather like out west is actually easier on her health. We are in Blowing Rock, Boone area which is higher, and the sudden changes in the atmosphere can be debilitating. It would not be as extreme in the Asheville area or lower elevations, but it is still constant changes. I think you should check out the areas in the different seasons to see how the weather would affect you. I am sure it would be better that the constant heat, but it may not be as good for you as you may think. Good luck to you and your hubby and critters.

[garth]

Welcome to the forum Mel.

You have lots of questions and everyone here could write you a book of suggestions. I'm going to take it a little different for you.

Considering all of the things you want, it looks like the limiting factor is the distance to the hospital. You wrote that you wanted to be within 20 minutes of a hospital - "a good one" as you described.

I would be surprised if someone said I was wrong on this. Hands down, the absolute best hospital in the region is Mission Hospital in the center of Asheville. It was recently rated as one of the top 100 hospitals in the nation. The only way you could do better is to be next to something like Mayo Clinic or Duke, but then you wouldn't be in WNC.

Since you wanted to be within 20 minutes of the hospital, I would jsut take a map and draw a circle out from Mission Hospital. How far would that circle be? Well, 20 minutes at 60 mph is 20 miles. However, you won't be traveling 60 mph in the city, nor on remote mountain roads.

Instead, I would start at a 10 mile circle and draw another one at 15 miles. You will find a variety of areas within that region, most of them being urban-type properties. However, you get farther out in your range and you have a chance of finding the acreage that you're looking for.

The good thing about the limitation that you set, is that it also puts your husband close to just about every auto dealership in the region. If you happen to settle mroe to the south of your circle, anything in Buncombe as well as henderson County will be within his 30 minute drive.

The downside to your 20 minute drive limit, if Mission Hospital will be your choice, is that it includes a lot of urban real estate and less of the rural real estate. However, you are still left with a few nice selections.

For example, you said that you like a small town. Weaverville fits that qualification to a T. It's a wonderful little town with easy and quick access to A'ville. However, it limits your husband's access (30 minute drive) to any Henderson County auto dealership because it's north of Asheville. Pretty much anything in Buncombe County remains available.

It's going to take a little research on your part, including driving around to get a feel for what you can do and where you feel comfortable going. You desire things like "living off the grid" and 3 acre properties. That tends to indicate a little more rural area, because develpment has engulfed regions close to town and, if acreage is available close-in, it's usually cut up smaller than 3 acres.

Plus NC has a really stupid law in my "not so humble" opinion, about requiring new developments to form HOAs. If you look at some kind of lot, it's going to have an HOA and I bet that they won't be inclined to "off the grid" houses in their midst.

That means you have to find something outside of a development, which I would think pushes you further away. If there happens to be something closer-in, the price is going to go up or water and sewer will have been run near to the land so it'll be divided in smaller sections for sale.

Don't take anything I've just said about land as gospel. I'm almost sure someone can and will post something closer-in that meets your criteria. I would just consider the issues I mentioned as a general rule of thumb.

Otherwise, nothing will substitute for visiting and looking around. You gotta' do it, so good luck and I wish you the best.

[garth]

I just thought of another hospital for you. It's Pardee in Hendersonville. It didn't get rated like Mission did, but I haven't heard anything bad about it.

If you again drew a 10 mile and 15 mile circle out from it, you'd open up more rural areas than around A'ville. Henderson County has had quite a bit of development, just like Buncombe County, but it seem like there's still some open either side of town. I'm thinking of areas like Edneyville, out Hwy 64 towards Bat Cave, or the other way out towards Horseshoe.

In these cases, I wouldn't call them "small towns" like Weaverville. Your town is going to be Hendersonville. However, you could find something to build "off-the-grid" or with the 3 acres you're seeking.

[motordavid]

I am with garth: very good questions, but encyclopedic in scope.

Some of your needs, wants and desires are in conflict with what's available, imo, but here's my 50Cts:

-Yes, the 'air' is less humid here than in FL, (especially FL summers), but there are days when air quality is greatly reduced due to increased atmospheric ozone, most frequently in the mountain 'summer.' And, ridge tops or higher elevation, eg 3500-5,000 ft, generally experience better air quality readings than lower elevations. Humidity is quite variable, but there are periods when it is quite humid, even in cooler months.

-Temps are better, more frequently, than FL, but lower elevations can be quite warm and humid in many of the 'summer' months. Not FL summer humid/hot, but not necessarily cooler, unless one is 4,000 ft or higher.

-Your husband's quality credentials should afford good employment, but western NC does not seem to pay what he might be used to or expects. There are lots of car dealerships, even some in the smaller towns, and dozens of independent auto repair shops. Doubt the pay is comparable to a large metro area, however.

-Off the grid/remote does not seem to parallel your health condition, in terms of a favorable goal, but what do I know...

-No hospital/health care expert, but besides those mentioned, Waynesville has a 'decent' hospital also, and Waynesville/Canton etc. offer more acreage opportunities and smaller towns than Asheville area, fwiw.

-Quilting: there are several quilt guilds in western NC ranging from traditional to art quilters/fabric artisits.

Maybe some more detail on your initial needs/wants would help in responding.
GL, mD

[gigimac]

Hello Mel,
I ditto Waynesville, nice small town, hospital, check out Lake Junaluska properties if you can afford it, they have a "greenway" for walking to Waynesville, most of the acreage and homes have a view of the lake. But if that's too expensive, there are plenty of properties and homes with some acres up in the hills overlooking Waynesville. There are hills everywhere you look from Main Street. Waynesville is a 45-minute drive all freeway to Asheville, so not good for commuting, but Waynesville should have plenty of work for your husband, you'll have to check out the job listings steadily as you look at diff towns for his kind of work, see which ones have the most openings, newspaper and NC Employment Security Commission will have them.

You will need to go find your clothes or replacements for the ones you all wore in Kentuck and NH, soft thin long underwear and a great coat, lots of hats, gloves, jackets, and easy-to-put-on boots, all make winters bearable. Be sure to find a home with alternative heat, like fireplace or woodstove, or put one into your house via the no-vent type thing in the wall where you use propane or similar stuff, makes hanging out in the living or family room much more bearable, very handy when occasional loss of electric happens, and electric banket is a MUST for the bed. Fence your yard for your labs, because leash law, at least in Buncombe County (Asheville), is enforced everywhere, so it's nice to be able to just let them out to play for a few hours and not have to walk them everywhere (altho we would also take ours for walks in various parks around Asheville, even over at UNCA grounds, when we were still able).

Asheville does have its quiet neighborhoods, tho, some with big old yards, each one is a little different from another, and where I live, just outside the city limits, I got a half-acre with a view and a creek, and I'm fine, altho I will NEVER live on a double-yellow-line road again....ha! I have neighbors, but they are all hidden by trees, hills. I also elected Waynesville, like MD did, because traffic is less than, say, Hendersonville, and is a little less worn than, say, Weaverville. Black Mountain is always popular, but mainly because of the cute ranchers east of Lake Tomahawak and their walking distance to the folksy downtown, about 20 minute ride to Asheville. Those homes, tho, don't have acreage, just great ambience. And there are gated communities all around Asheville, east and south, that might really do the trick for you, you get the convenience of Asheville and yet the peace and quiet and space and beauty you like for home. Still.... that drive thru traffic to get to it MIGHT be a problem, unless your hubby gets a job within a few blocks of your community. But really, traffic in Asheville and getting around is NOTHING compared to where you are now.

I definitely think since you are wanting to check out the smaller towns surrounding Asheville, then take a plane to our airport, rent a car, and go to all the ones that will be mentioned in this thread, and by being there, you will "know" which one feels like home. Also, of course, check out the real estate listings online for each of those towns, sometimes it will give you a feel for a town, and each town should have its own website to check out and see what it looks like in bigger pictures. If you decide the higher elevations are for you, like Boone was mentioned and it is a lovely place, also check the temperatures, because as rough as summers are, WINTERS are worse when you get older! I had a chance to move halfway to Florida, to Charleston SC, would love to live on St. James Island, despite hurricanes and flooding, mainly because I like the heat and sea. It's all a compromise and tradeoff, but our NC mountains are cooler without being impossible, plus it's mighty pretty with the four seasons.
GG

[memorytheatre]

With conditions such as yours I would do exhaustive research in regards to your health care situation. If I'm not mistaken, you cannot have a lapse in coverage of more than 63 days or the insurance companies can deny coverage for pre-existing conditions. In addition, many NC companies put a 3-6 month or so probationary period before you can get on their group plan so it can be tricky. If your husband has access to COBRA coverage from your previous employer, and it provides benefits in North Carolina, it might be advisable to accept that option to avoid any lapse of coverage. If your lupus/RA meds are expensive small shops might have a hard time covering you because the cost would raise their group rate through the roof. I'm not an insurance expert, but my son has horrible Crohn's disease (also auto-immune) and his current medicine (Stelara) is $4000 a shot once a week. Auto-immune disease meds are EXPENSIVE! Best of luck to you. It definitely sounds like you need a change, but I know the thought of a lapse in coverage terrifies me and I have known folks who moved to NC and then were shocked when they tried to get insurance with a pre-existing condition.

[motordavid]

Very good advice on the health insurance issue/concern, imo...

We are 'healthy', and have had NC BC/BS for the decade we have been NC residents, but getting it was a chase through different agents, a blood test and mini-physical, and hard shopping for plans that differed greatly and were difficult to make comparos. We have the MajorMed deal, with a $5000+ deductible and pay ~$800 month for that 'privilege'. I was 54 then, 64 now, and I would not want to be out now shopping to try and secure even that Catastrophic Ins that we have. It's a nightmare for those of us without a company sponsored lifetime ins deal, lack of portability, etc.

Medicine and doctors' visits?! We rarely go; all of that care that so many take for granted or, take advantage of, is all on our own dimes.

I can't imagine the hurdles the OP might bump into, as they wander into NC, a new state, a new program, with those kind of pre-existing condition(s), etc.
GL, mD

[saucystargazer]

I think the OP's husband should actually get a job offer in the area first before moving. No matter how marketable she my think he is...but what do I know?

[QuilterChick]

Totally agree .... scraping by can get pretty tiresome after awhile, and then they could literally be up the creek. It takes a lot of Chutzpah to go somewhere unfamiliar convinced you can get a job. The job market in WNC is not good under the best of circumstances.