Suggestions for Visit November 7 (Asheville, Henderson: real estate, crime rate, houses)
Western North CarolinaThe Mountain Region including Asheville
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Hello, I've been reading CDF for quite a while and appreciate the wealth of information and perspectives available here. I've finally scheduled a week long trip to western North Carolina on Nov. 7th.
I would very much like to meet up with a realtor and see a few houses if possible as well as learn first-hand about the area. I'm considering the Boone, Blowing Rock area and thereabouts. From what I've read about Asheville, I'm thinking it might be too hectic and comments about increased crime are concerning. But I'm happy to look into some of the surrounding areas.
I live in ruthlessly hot, parched L.A, well worse actually, the San Fernando Valley. I lived briefly in the PNW years ago. For me, that climate is ideal--cool with plenty of rain, closest to my Irish roots. But that area has changed tremendously in not desirable ways, so I'm focusing on some of the beautiful mountain towns in North Carolina. I'd like to teach part or full time, but if that doesn't work out, it's not a deal breaker.
If anyone has ideas about a realtor (and what clothes are best to wear) as well as any insights on communities or other topics I should look into in a week-long visit, please let me know. I appreciate any insights!
I would not let the talk of high crime rate scare you off of the Asheville area. Most of the crime is centered on certain demographics and geography.
The Boone, Blowing Rock area is indeed has a bit different, a small town vibe. I would expand your search area over to Banner Elk, NC
Boone is home to ASU with is a 20,000+ student university, while Banner Elk is home to Lees-McRae College, a tiny 800 student College. There are plenty of public Elementary schools in the area, and a few Middle and Highs to match.
The area from Boone to Banner Elk is in a Temperate Rainforest area, which is a wetter, cooler climate than much of the state, but at elevation.
There are several good knowledgable realtors in the area. Check out these threads:
I agree that Asheville is definitely worth a visit for you. If you are coming from LA I think it will be a better choice. Boone is the biggest of the towns in the High Country of NW NC and it's not big at all. Permanent population of Boone is under 20,000 people.
Wear whatever clothes you like. Jeans and a flannel shirt are common choices, but anything goes.
Hello, I've been reading CDF for quite a while and appreciate the wealth of information and perspectives available here. I've finally scheduled a week long trip to western North Carolina on Nov. 7th.
I would very much like to meet up with a realtor and see a few houses if possible as well as learn first-hand about the area. I'm considering the Boone, Blowing Rock area and thereabouts. From what I've read about Asheville, I'm thinking it might be too hectic and comments about increased crime are concerning. But I'm happy to look into some of the surrounding areas.
I live in ruthlessly hot, parched L.A, well worse actually, the San Fernando Valley. I lived briefly in the PNW years ago. For me, that climate is ideal--cool with plenty of rain, closest to my Irish roots. But that area has changed tremendously in not desirable ways, so I'm focusing on some of the beautiful mountain towns in North Carolina. I'd like to teach part or full time, but if that doesn't work out, it's not a deal breaker.
If anyone has ideas about a realtor (and what clothes are best to wear) as well as any insights on communities or other topics I should look into in a week-long visit, please let me know. I appreciate any insights!
Any realtor recommendations will have to come as Direct Messages - it's against forum rules otherwise.
Your concerns about Ashville being too hectic may be overblown. Anywhere you would visit/settle in WNC will be a drastic change from LA/San Fernando Valley environs. As for crime, that's relative to what one has experienced in another location. There's plenty of crime in LA but you know where to go, when to go and what to avoid - same applies here. You may or may not enjoy Asheville but I think it would be a mistake to avoid it totally when here and just rely on what you THINK it may be like. There is much to see/do/explore.
Not sure what changes you are referring to but I'll take a guess at politics and advise only to come visit with an open mind. You will find every stripe of political belief here, some in clusters and some dotted throughout. But mostly it's a live and let live world. There are of course some who are more vocal or visible as you'll find anywhere.
Plan for layers that you can peel off or not as the day requires. I've spent Thanksgiving in shorts and t-shirt and I've also spent early Nov in woolies - ya never know! Check the 10 day before your trip and you should get a reasonable idea of temps. Even on chilly days the sun is very warm - if the sun comes out. If you have footwear for wet weather that would be good to bring because even if it doesn't rain when you're here, if you plan to do any hiking at all you'll run into foliage wet from dew. And it would be a shame not to explore and hike a little while here - lots of natural beauty. Everything here is casual.
OP since you're considering a teaching position you might also look at Hendersonville which more/less borders Asheville on the south side. Hendersonville has a very nice downtown in its own right, less expensive real estate, a progressive vibe (less pronounced than Asheville or Boone) and well-regarded Henderson County schools.
If looking to teach at the university level another option to check out is Cullowhee which is 50 miles southwest of Asheville and home of Western Carolina University with an enrollment of around 12K. The neighboring town of Sylva is a nice choice for housing.
I grew up in the Seattle area, lived in Hendersonville NC for two years and moved back to the Portland OR area. My wife grew up in Asheville. You couldn't pay either of us enough to move back to NC.
My advice is to spend some extended time in Asheville before deciding to move there. For someone from the East Coast, the Asheville climate is an improvement; for a West Coaster, it sucks, hot, humid and very rainy in the summer. cold in the winter.
Lots of locals are still fighting the War of Northern Aggression and are not particularly friendly compared to the West Coast. While Asheville is pretty liberal, the surrounding area is very conservative if one or the other matters to you; some of the small towns are hotbeds of radical anti-government sentiment. Crime is indeed relative, but allowing for population size, it's just as bad in
WNC as anywhere else.
Oh, and don't criticize anything you notice in WNC; you'll likely be told that if you don't like it you can move the hell back to LA.
I grew up in the Seattle area, lived in Hendersonville NC for two years and moved back to the Portland OR area. My wife grew up in Asheville. You couldn't pay either of us enough to move back to NC.
My advice is to spend some extended time in Asheville before deciding to move there. For someone from the East Coast, the Asheville climate is an improvement; for a West Coaster, it sucks, hot, humid and very rainy in the summer. cold in the winter.
Lots of locals are still fighting the War of Northern Aggression and are not particularly friendly compared to the West Coast. While Asheville is pretty liberal, the surrounding area is very conservative if one or the other matters to you; some of the small towns are hotbeds of radical anti-government sentiment. Crime is indeed relative, but allowing for population size, it's just as bad in
WNC as anywhere else.
Oh, and don't criticize anything you notice in WNC; you'll likely be told that if you don't like it you can move the hell back to LA.
This post just goes to show we all have different preferences. Your comment about rainy, cloudy winter weather is quite descriptive of the Seattle-Portland area. We looked extensively at the west coast before deciding on WNC; we would never live in the Portland area. We find the people friendlier here. Not sure when you lived here, but many of the smaller towns in WNC are fairly balanced politically, with a lean toward the right (e.g., Brevard, Black Mountain, Hendersonville). The crime in WNC doesn't even compare to that in Portland.
Hello, I've been reading CDF for quite a while and appreciate the wealth of information and perspectives available here. I've finally scheduled a week long trip to western North Carolina on Nov. 7th.
I would very much like to meet up with a realtor and see a few houses if possible as well as learn first-hand about the area. I'm considering the Boone, Blowing Rock area and thereabouts. From what I've read about Asheville, I'm thinking it might be too hectic and comments about increased crime are concerning. But I'm happy to look into some of the surrounding areas.
I live in ruthlessly hot, parched L.A, well worse actually, the San Fernando Valley. I lived briefly in the PNW years ago. For me, that climate is ideal--cool with plenty of rain, closest to my Irish roots. But that area has changed tremendously in not desirable ways, so I'm focusing on some of the beautiful mountain towns in North Carolina. I'd like to teach part or full time, but if that doesn't work out, it's not a deal breaker.
If anyone has ideas about a realtor (and what clothes are best to wear) as well as any insights on communities or other topics I should look into in a week-long visit, please let me know. I appreciate any insights!
The first thing a college student buys when going to school at Boone is a pair of good snow boots. I don't know how you will get a teaching job there. I went to school 30 miles down the mountain and we had overflow teachers from the spouses of the professors from that area. You would do better to be a college professor. Ashe County is the next county north of there and in my opinion is a much better place to live. Other counties in the area would be a good fit too.
You might do better in Wilkes County with the housing market. Lowes has moved many of their employees to Lake Norman area and that left more inventory to choose from for someone who is a family type person that goes to church on Wednesday too. Good luck.
To let you know the type of people in Wilkes County, if you remember President Obama saying that the people at the school where he was visiting were nice to you even if they were not of your political party. he was talking about the high school I attended. I am not telling you the name of the school because any school from that "Mitford area" are basically good Christian people and that would apply to all of them in that county and those counties around them.
Last edited by NCN; 10-19-2023 at 12:23 AM..
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