Calling all North Carolinians.

[yankebabie]

I need your help. We are moving from New York to North Carolina. We are not set on a specific area but do have certain things in mind of where we want to be. We would like to be fairly close to the beach but also near to a bigger city. Don't want to be in an isolated city where there are no stores or malls. Preferrably no more than half hour to beach, or closer. We were thinking about Wilmington area but not sure how built up it is. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. Any Info u can share about Wilmington area or another city that meet our wants of being close to beach/big city criteria. Thanks in advance for any help and suggestions.

 

[taylor3297]

I need your help. We are moving from New York to North Carolina. We are not set on a specific area but do have certain things in mind of where we want to be. We would like to be fairly close to the beach but also near to a bigger city. Don't want to be in an isolated city where there are no stores or malls. Preferrably no more than half hour to beach, or closer. We were thinking about Wilmington area but not sure how built up it is. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. Any Info u can share about Wilmington area or another city that meet our wants of being close to beach/big city criteria. Thanks in advance for any help and suggestions.

Wilmington is probably your best bet. It has everything you need and you are really close to lots of beaches.

 

[yankebabie]

What is the job market like in Wilmington? Also, are the houses expensive. After renting for a short period of time we would like to buy a house. Are they affordable?

 

[PatMcDuck]

Not sure if it relates, but DD (and ME) fell in love with the UNC Wilmington campus. Just beautiful, and a nice comfortable "vibe".

But there were no "upscale" hotels in the area, just motel/hotels of the moderate or lower variety, from what we could tell.

 

[Patience]

Wilmington is the only place I can think of in NC that meets all your requirements. If you can move to SC instead of NC, the Charleston area sounds like it would be a perfect fit.

Good luck!

 

[taylor3297]

The Hilton Wilmington Riverside is a nice place to stay. My daughter and I stayed there when she had to go to Wilmington for a girl scout photo shoot,. It costs about 170-180 a night and is located downtown across the river from the USS North Carolina Battleship.

As to the job market I am not sure. We live 2 hours away and here the job market is only good if you are in a tech field.

As to prices of homes it depends on what you consider affordable.

 

[disprincessatheart]

Another confirmation - Wilmington isn't a big city, but it's the biggest city close to the beach. Unemployment in nc overall is pretty high, not sure if the Wilmington market is any better than the rest of the state.

 

[100AcreWood]

I used to live in Wilmington. It is beautiful but the job market stinks there even in good economic times. I agree with another poster that you should probably try farther south.

 

[Disneefun]

Wilmington will meet your requirements, but unless you have a definitive job lined up already, you may have problems. You don't say whether you are retired or not and that may make a difference. Most of eastern NC has terrible job prospects and Wilmington is no different. Unless you want to work in the hospitality industry or you can do something at the university, there just isn't much industry there.

If you are retired, it is a great place for retirees. There are several "senior" type housing areas where the landscaping, etc. is included in the HOA dues. I have a couple of friends that live there and love it. "Regular" housing prices vary. Obviously the closer to the beach you want to be, the more you'll pay.

If you want something with a smaller town feel and with more historical attractions, I'd try New Bern. It's got stores, etc., but still keeps that small town vibe. Housing, though, is generally pricier, particularly if you're looking near the historical areas and the older part of town.

 

[tar heel]

Don't move to North Carolina without a job. Almost 10% of us remain unemployed. We are not the jobs Mecca we were 10 years ago. Actually, I'm not sure the coast ever was.

 

[SGB13]

Housing is going to be much more affordable here in New Bern, but the shopping is not so great. We do lots of mail order or drive to Morehead City to shop. There are a few nice small boutiques. Not sure about the job market. My DH and I have been in our fields a long time, so I am a little out of touch there. I think there is a lot opportunities in the medical fields. We have lots of seniors in our area. Good luck!

 

[MineMail]

The employment and "half hour to the beach" requirements pretty much rules out most of the state. They just don't exist together, except in Wilmington and that's also limited.

When we moved to RTP, my biggest objection is the distance to the beach (2 hrs, appx.) DH pointed out that we spent 2 hrs driving to the NJ beaches when we lived in NYC, so why should it be a problem now? He's right - the highway to the beach is well-maintained and not congested at all. It's like going to LBI without dealing with GSP tolls.

Employment should be a higher priority than beach access. Just mho.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

Wilmington is a great small city - about 100,000 people. We have reasonable shopping here and lots of restaurants, but most of my favorites are in Raleigh (Nordstrom, Macy's, The Disney Store ). We just got a Whole Foods, and we are getting a Trader Joe's, so we're coming along. Wilmington is two hours from Raleigh - an easy drive up I-40 for shopping, concerts, etc.

Housing is plentiful in Wilmington if you are looking to buy. Renting near the beach might be a problem (you can get some off-season rentals from September-May), but renting inland is fine. Housing prices vary widely based on proximity to the beach. We are about 10 minutes to Wrightsville Beach, so cost per square foot in our neighborhood is higher than the cost in Hampstead or Leland. You can easily get an affordable house 30 minutes from the beach, depending where in New York you are coming from and what kind of prices you are used to. We used to live in Albany and find the housing cheaper here, but Wilmington near the beach is still expensive by Southern standards.

Wilmington has some industry (GE, Corning), but the big employers are UNCW, the county schools and the hospital system. Many of our friends are small business owners or realtors - the local saying is you can't throw a rock without hitting twenty realtors.

We would probably live near Raleigh if we didn't live here. The job market is probably better in the Raleigh area, particularly if you are science or education-oriented. I also like Charlotte a lot, but you would be about 4 hours to the beach. Charlotte has large banking presence, but not as much actual industry. Other reasonably sized cities include Greensboro and Winston-Salem, but you wouldn't be close to the beach.

Moving into SC, Charleston is probably your best bet. I think it is more expensive than Wilmington, but it is beautiful and we love to visit. SC doesn't have many larger coastal cities (except Myrtle Beach and Charleston) - much of the population of SC is in Charleston, Greenville/Spartanburg, and Columbia, as well as near Charlotte on the SC side of the line.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

 

[yankebabie]

You guys are the best, I really do appreciate all your input. We are not retired and are moving down south as we have just become new grandparents and our son lives in W. Virginia so we need to be closer thank New York. I have had a civil service job for the past ten years working for the county. My husband is commerical truck driver. Sounds like we may have to sacrifice being closer to the beach in order to seek good employment. The suburbs of Raleigh sounds like it might be where we may need to settle in order to find work. We are four hours from the beach now here in NY so if we were 2 hours from the beach to Wilmington that would be an improvement. I would assume there are alot of civil service jobs in Raleigh as that is the capital. Any suggestions on suburbs of Raleigh within a half hour ride to the city. How are housing prices in the burbs there? We would probably be looking for a 3 bed/2 bath house. with a max of $150,000 budget. Really appreciate everyone's help. you guys have been great!

 

[taylor3297]

You guys are the best, I really do appreciate all your input. We are not retired and are moving down south as we have just become new grandparents and our son lives in W. Virginia so we need to be closer thank New York. I have had a civil service job for the past ten years working for the county. My husband is commerical truck driver. Sounds like we may have to sacrifice being closer to the beach in order to seek good employment. The suburbs of Raleigh sounds like it might be where we may need to settle in order to find work. We are four hours from the beach now here in NY so if we were 2 hours from the beach to Wilmington that would be an improvement. I would assume there are alot of civil service jobs in Raleigh as that is the capital. Any suggestions on suburbs of Raleigh within a half hour ride to the city. How are housing prices in the burbs there? We would probably be looking for a 3 bed/2 bath house. with a max of $150,000 budget. Really appreciate everyone's help. you guys have been great!

OK, now you are talking about the area in which I live. I live in Morrisville (the Raleigh Durham Airport is located here). Other towns around Raleigh that you might want to consider are Apex, Cary, Morrisville, Wake Forest, Holly Springs, Fuquay Varina, Knightdale, Wendell and Zebulon.

The suburbs tend to run together and depending on the time of day it will make a difference of how long it will take you to get into Raleigh.

As to getting a 3 bed/2bath home in our area will be very tough. If you can go to $200,000 you will be better off.

If you need more information pm me and I can help you get the information that you need.

 

[disprincessatheart]

You guys are the best, I really do appreciate all your input. We are not retired and are moving down south as we have just become new grandparents and our son lives in W. Virginia so we need to be closer thank New York. I have had a civil service job for the past ten years working for the county. My husband is commerical truck driver. Sounds like we may have to sacrifice being closer to the beach in order to seek good employment. The suburbs of Raleigh sounds like it might be where we may need to settle in order to find work. We are four hours from the beach now here in NY so if we were 2 hours from the beach to Wilmington that would be an improvement. I would assume there are alot of civil service jobs in Raleigh as that is the capital. Any suggestions on suburbs of Raleigh within a half hour ride to the city. How are housing prices in the burbs there? We would probably be looking for a 3 bed/2 bath house. with a max of $150,000 budget. Really appreciate everyone's help. you guys have been great!

In that price range you need to be looking at knightdale, zebulon, holly springs, fuquay varina and maybe clayton. Anything closer to raleigh will be out of your price range for a 3br 2 ba. Also, I would be looking for jobs first, as there are plenty of houses, but not so many jobs.

 

[tar heel]

It can't be said strongly enough that you need to find jobs first. Yes, Raleigh is the capital and there are lots of government jobs there. Positions have been cut not added for the past four years, however. Unless you have a lot of savings, you would be making a huge mistake to move to North Carolina without first finding jobs.

 

[peggster]

It can't be said strongly enough that you need to find jobs first. Yes, Raleigh is the capital and there are lots of government jobs there. Positions have been cut not added for the past four years, however. Unless you have a lot of savings, you would be making a huge mistake to move to North Carolina without first finding jobs.

As a resident of the area you're now thinking about, I can't agree with tar heel more strongly. In addition to the excellent point about needing to have income secured before making the move, you'll also want to think about where you want to live in relation to where you would be working. The traffic around here can be difficult at times, depending on where you're going to and from. It's not unheard of to have an hourlong commute (each way).

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

As a resident of the area you're now thinking about, I can't agree with tar heel more strongly. In addition to the excellent point about needing to have income secured before making the move, you'll also want to think about where you want to live in relation to where you would be working. The traffic around here can be difficult at times, depending on where you're going to and from. It's not unheard of to have an hourlong commute (each way).

Right on both counts. You don't want to move without a job, and you don't want to live in south Raleigh if you are working in north Raleigh.

 

[MineMail]

Think about renting a house before you buy. It gives you time to become acquainted with neighborhoods and traffic patterns. There are many houses for rent in the Triangle. Most developments have Home Owner Associations, which aren't as common in NY, so you'll want to investigate their do's and don't's before you commit to a neighborhood.

Civil positions have been cut drastically at all levels, so start looking for a job now. The state universities are another option to consider.