Asheville vs Greenville (Charlotte: credit, new house, buying)
Western North CarolinaThe Mountain Region including Asheville
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I'm considering a move from Florida. I've narrowed it down to Greenville, Asheville (maybe Roanoke?). Essentially, the southeast US with mild winters near the mountains with a decent city population.
We are leaning Greenville, but I have some concerns.
First of all, what we are looking at doing is buying a few acres of land, so affordability of land is nice. It seems the areas outside Asheville are slightly cheaper than the areas outside Greenville. We don't want to live in the city, but ideally a 20 minute drive to the city. In Asheville it seems like this gives us a lot more choices than in Greenville.
In Greenville we are looking at north of Greenville (Travelers Rest, maybe Greer) because we want to be closer to the mountains. We like to hike, bike, kayak etc. It seems like Asheville would allow us a more beautiful/picturesque piece of land to live on and closer proximity to the mountains. But, at the expense of it being colder and having a less desirable downtown city to go to?
My wife is a teacher and I've heard NC is one of the worst states in the country for teachers, so that hurts Asheville as well. I think I'll be able to find work in either city myself, but Greenville would likely bit a little easier. Still working that out.
As far as internet connectivity, it looks like either city (and it's surrounding cities) should have stable high speed internet?
I was hoping you guys could give me some insight and pros/cons and anything I might be missing? I REALLY want to like Asheville because it seems way more beautiful. But... aside from beauty, it seems like Greenville is just better in most areas? We are planning a trip in December to get a better feel for each area though.
I would never move to Asheville without a job, unless I was a restaurant server or bartender, or could live on $8 to $10 an hour. Frankly, I don't think I'd move to Greenville without a job either, as its not a large city. What do you do?
Personally, I think a lot of the NC teacher thing is overblown, although its certainly not the greatest place to teach. I doubt SC is a whole lot better.
Both downtowns are great. I would never move to Asheville without a job, unless I was a restaurant server or bartender, or could live on $8 to $10 an hour. Personally, I think a lot of the NC teacher thing is overblown, although its certainly not the greatest place to teach. I doubt SC is a whole lot better.
I'll have a job before I move. I work in a very niche field, but I'm pretty sure I will have work in Asheville. My wife has read horror stories about teaching up there though
I've never done a serious land search in either area, but I lived in Greenville for 4 years (2008-2012) and am pretty familiar with the Asheville area. I'm surprised to hear you say that land is less expensive in the Asheville area. Are you sure that tracts you are considering are useable and not steep slopes?
The two cities have completely different personalities, and only you can determine which is a better fit for you. Personally, I would lean toward Greenville because, among other reasons, it has a "real" economy that's not based on tourism and 2nd homes.
Add: Plus Greenville is an easy drive to Asheville and surrounding areas... a breeze for day trips. To me, Greenville is the best of both worlds.... and I LOVE the mountains and live in the mountains.
I'll have a job before I move. I work in a very niche field, but I'm pretty sure I will have work in Asheville. My wife has read horror stories about teaching up there though
Land is quite pricey anywhere within a reasonable drive to Asheville. The average home price is getting to be close to $400K, and will need work on top of that. Agree w/Road Pony -- anything barely affordable will likely be very pricey to build on; and building codes for mountain land are strict. (You didn't mention your price range. ? ) 20 mins. from downtown Asheville, depending on your price range, may shock you.
Traveler's Rest and the areas near Greer would be a much better place to 'grow into'. Plus, you have the airports (Greenville/Spart.) (Charlotte) at your back door. More opportunities, higher salaries, etc. in the general Greenville area.
Coming from FL, the summers in the upstate of SC will be a breeze in comparison; and the winters not as harsh.
I'm not sure where you've got your land price information. I have lived in both areas and travelers rest is significantly cheaper. We almost bought there due to price. We could buy a nice new 1800sf house for 180s. We couldn't touch one for under 300k in Asheville.
The main difference between the two areas is atmosphere. Asheville is liberal and Greenville is conservative. Which do you want? Greenville is also not in the mountains. It takes an hour to get to decent hiking and biking from there. Weather is usually 10+ degrees cooler in Asheville. Jobs are much more plentiful in Greenville. (Hence why we had to live there for a few years.) Ey are close enough to visit at the same time. So do visit.
I'm not sure where you've got your land price information. I have lived in both areas and travelers rest is significantly cheaper. We almost bought there due to price. We could buy a nice new 1800sf house for 180s. We couldn't touch one for under 300k in Asheville.
The main difference between the two areas is atmosphere. Asheville is liberal and Greenville is conservative. Which do you want? Greenville is also not in the mountains. It takes an hour to get to decent hiking and biking from there. Weather is usually 10+ degrees cooler in Asheville. Jobs are much more plentiful in Greenville. (Hence why we had to live there for a few years.) Ey are close enough to visit at the same time. So do visit.
So in terms of land pricing, this is what I'm basing it off of. We are going to build a new house. We have a builder picked out (likely) that builds in both areas. It seems it costs about 5% more in Asheville for the home itself. But the land, based on land searches on realtor.com shows that, within 20 minutes of each city, you can get more land for the same price in Asheville. But it doesn't seem to be a significant difference. Either way, I hadn't considered the extra costs to actually make the land buildable in each area, so thanks everyone for that piece of info to consider.
The biggest concern I have with Greenville is what you mentioned saucy. It takes an hour to get to hiking/biking. I would prefer to be within 30 minutes of those things. My wife and I like to go out every weekend to go hiking/biking/whatever. If it's an hour drive, that's 2 hours total drive time. That's kind of a bummer. Not a deal breaker, but it's getting kinda far for an afternoon out. That's why I'm thinking of going as far north of Greenville as I can without getting into the super rural areas.
In terms of the cities themselves, I do identify better with Asheville in terms of liberal vs conservative. But I realize on the outskirts on either city is going to be conservative, so everyone will just have to deal with this evil liberal. I'm not overly concerned about it though.
The 10+ warmer weather in Greenville is certainly appealing to us too.
In terms of budget for our house, we are looking at spending 50-100k on land (which has yielded many places in Asheville for 2+ acres within 30 minutes of downtown) and approximately 200-300 on the building of the house itself for ~2500ish sq. ft.
Greenville has a reputation for being conservative... Bob Jones University and a preponderance of Republican elected officials, among others. There's not much for a registered Democrat in the local primaries. However, it's a lot more cosmopolitan (don't laugh) and open-minded than it often gets credit for, helped by a substantial international business community. I am left of center politically and not an active church goer, and had no problems getting along just fine in Greenville.
As for easy access to hiking/biking, there are a lot of options between Greenville and Asheville. And even if you were to choose the greater Asheville area, you'll still be driving to trails, unless you happen to pick a location near a particular trail that you use most of the time.
Using realtor.com to get a general idea of availability is fine, but if buying unimproved land in the mountains (or even north of Greenville) nothing is an adequate substitute for "feet on ground."
You might find land that is cheaper per acre near Asheville because much of the lot is pretty steep. With the SC upstate it is more likely you are looking at level or gently rolling land.
... However, it's a lot more cosmopolitan (don't laugh) and open-minded than it often gets credit for, helped by a substantial international business community.
I agree 100% with roadpony on the more cosmopolitan assessment and often use the same description. I don't live there but a friend of mine moved there from NY about 7 years ago and loves it. It may be somewhat conservative but she doesn't find people overbearing with their views. As for hiking, I think it depends on what type of hiking you want - there are plenty of places much closer to G'ville than an hour where you can hike - maybe not strenuous, steep mountain hikes but you'll still get your heart pumping unless you're a triathlon athlete!
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