Still trying to move... (Piedmont, Tega Cay: transplants, house, find a job)

[edcolandra]

As I have posted before, my wife and I, I'll be 65 in Oct, she'll be 64 in Dec. are trying to find a slice of Southern charm.
Originally we were sold on Florida, pri.marily for the tax advantage since we both have 401Ks that are worth over $500K, and since it was never taxed by any state, we'd save a lot of money by not have to pay a portion to a state with income tax. We are currently in New Jersey, and for the first time in 50 years of working, I've never written a single check to the Feds or the State. With high property taxes (capped at $10K deductible vs a payment of almost DOUBLE that), I was prepared yet stunned to write a check for $13K to Uncle Sam, and $4K to Governor Murphy.

Our oldest son, his wife and 3 wonderful grandkids live in Weddington, NC. We've looked at Lake Norman, but my wife was not a fan. The tax rates and what is considered tax-ABLE is much lower in SC, from my research, than NC.

I will have around $500k available to spend on a home. We've been looking at Tega Cay, Clover, Ft. Mill, and Indian Land. Those of you kind enough to contribute to this board likely know the why's and why-nots.
Basics (for me)
4 BR, Master on the first floor
2 Baths
Dining Room
Formal Living Room
.25 acre lot
2 car garage
Ability to fence in a yard since we have the cutest Pembroke welsh corgi
Built after 2000 so we don't have to start redoing kitchens and baths

So here are our questions:
Of the towns I mentioned (or add your own), which one would you consider the "friendliest" to NJ Yankees?
Which one has the best amenities: i.e., restaurants, grocery, healthcare (hospital, doctors, dentists, labs)?
Big no-ways as defined by my bride and princess of 30 years
Lots of stairs
My wife is a pre-school teacher. How hard do you think it might be to find a job? I'm lazy, She's not
Is Tega Kay water deep enough to have a small boat and motor to take the boys (Grandpa, Dad, 2 boys) out fishing?

Finally, and this is often like putting the hook in my own mouth, can you recommend a realtor? NOT PUSHY SINCE WE ARE PROBABLY A YEAR SO MY WIFE CAN GET MEDICARE. This is a baby step, though a year goes fast. No need for banker/lending since selling my house will net me $500K and I really hope I don't need to spend more.

Apologies for the longish note, but I wanted to provide as much detail as possible.

Thank God for your advice, and maybe we'll be neighbors.

[Girl]

All of those towns you listed have what you are looking for. Plan a trip to visit your oldest son and spend a day visiting TC, FM, IL and Clover - you'll probably figure out pretty quickly which town you prefer.

This entire area is an area of transplants, so your neighbors will likely be former residents of NY, NJ, OH, PA, CT - just to name a few. There are very few "locals" around here any more. I've been here 12 years and only know a small handful of folks that actually grew up in the area.

The area is all pretty close together so amenities are easy to get to. The big hospitals are Atrium, Novant and Piedmont. YMMV as to which one you prefer. But they are all within 15-30 minutes to get to a dr office or hospital site. Plenty of options for grocery, restaurants, etc. no matter where you settle down.

Yes, Tega Cay has boat launches from which you can go onto the water.

I'll leave the realtor recommendations to someone else, but there are a couple "big fish" teams in the area, notably the Linda Hall team with Century 21 First Choice and the Stephen Cooley team.