Charlotte, NC?

[Dsnymouse]

Anyone out there live in Charlotte? We may be relocating to North Carolina by the end of the year. Tell me what you love and dislike about Charlotte? Can anyone recommend family friendly (master planned) communities. What are the better school districts? We are hoping to purchase a new home, who are reputable builders in Charlotte?

I would appreciate any help you could offer. My DIS friend always pull me through when I have questions, even when they aren't Disney related.

 

[james'mommy]

The better public schools are located in South Charlotte area. Others will tell you to live in a cheaper county that has good schools but I think really depends on where you are going to be working. If you are going to be working Uptown (downtown) it's not wise to live far way from work. Traffic here is horrible. We live 12 miles away from DH office and it takes him 45 minutes to get to work. He leaves work at 5:30 and gets home around 6. If he leaves work at 5 he still gets home around 6. Learn to love sweet tea. If you order "tea" you will get sweet tea and may be suprised. The best part is it's only 8 hours (the way my DH drives) to Disney!

 

[Dsnymouse]

Thanks James'mommy - we have no idea of where my dh office would be. Thanks for the heads up on traffic. I wondered how long to Disney and if annual passholder was worth it. An 8 hour drive is not bad!

Thanks! Anyone one else, I'm all ears!

 

[diamondpixienc]

I am a transplant form Louisiana (Pre-Katrina) DH's job moved us here 11yrs ago. Anywho, I still love the general atmosphere of the area. Now, I have to agree w/ one of the earlier posts, the public schools are a mess right now, and South Carolina, i.e. Fort Mill schools are better however, the school system can provide a quality education if you are able to take advantage of the school choice program. I have a 6yo, a 4yo, & another one on the way & we decided to go catholic school & we love it. Very, VERY reasonable compared to some of the other private non religious schools in the area. You should check out this really great networking site for the area called www.charlottemommies.com There you will find links to other local sites about the schools, pediatricians, parks & recreation etc. Check it out.

 

[santa's surpriz]

I used to live in the Lake Norman area and desparately want to move back! It was great place to live! Lots to do, very family oriented. Huntersville has great schools and it is a short commute to Charlotte and uptown. You'll find Charlotte is very diverse, a melting pot of transplants. Good Luck, you're going to love it too! (It's only a short 8 hour commute to WDW from there by car, )

 

[Dsnymouse]

Thank you Diamond for the link I will check it out. What is this program you talk of called "school choice"? Santa's thanks for the advice, I am very excited about this possible move. Good to know Charlotte is a melting pot and has lots of transplants. I won't feel out of place.

Does anyone know of new construction in the area? Subdivisions with amenities such as pools, playgrounds, etc. How bad a year taxes? Also need to know of good home builder in Charlotte.

Thanks everyone!

 

[stacy6552]

sending you a PM

 

[Dsnymouse]

Thanks Stacy! Anyone else have information?

 

[Dsnymouse]

bump

 

[DawnM]

We live in Marvin, which is in Union County. The schools are great and there are loads of sub-divisions all over Charlotte. Our local high school is only 2 years old and they are adding an IB program this year.

We can't be of too much help there as we don't like sub-divisions and chose one that didn't have an HOA, pool, community house, etc.....we chose one that had a lot of privacy, trees, extra land (we have 2.5 acres) , etc....but we are surrounded by sub-divisions that DO have those things.

DH works in Uptown Charlotte and drives to the train station (Lynx) in Pineville and takes that in the rest of the way. It works well for him. He gets to work in about 35 min. This is partly because he goes in early and leaves early to avoid the heavy duty traffic. But after living in Los Angeles this traffic is manageable....it is all relative!

It is a very nice place to live. I am a CA girl at heart and miss it terribly, but that doesn't mean Charlotte isn't a good place, just my preference.

Dawn

 

[bean]

Hi! We live in Fort Mill, SC and love it. My preschooler goes to school in South Charlotte (although there are plenty of preschools in Fort Mill-we just love this one). My first grader is in our local elementary school in our neighborhood. We walk to school each day and have been sooo happy with the academics and parent involvement. We moved from a great school district in Montgomery County MD and have been very impressed with the schools here. We live in Baxter Village (villageofbaxter.com) which is similar to Celebration in Orlando. We really love our neighborhood. Neighbors are close, we have a small town center, and many ammenities. There's a neighborhood activity director for events such as music in the park and movie night. The YMCA and library are in the neighborhood. We have 2 pools, a zero entry and one more traditional pool. Can you tell that I love my neighborhood? We shop in Charlotte and many people work in the Uptown Charlotte area (bankers, etc). PM me if you have any questions. Also, my two closest friends who live in Charlotte send their kids to private schools b/c they feel that the Charlotte Mecklenburg schools are a mess. The schools north of the city near Lake Norman are much better. The Union County schools are also good.

 

[bean]

Also Dsnymouse, we're working on our fourth trip to WDW this year So we feel that you can get a lot of use out of an annual pass This next trip will be just an adult one. Luckily our neighbors are also Disney lovers so we've had a lot of fun taking trips with them. We made the drive last time in 7 hours.

 

[Dsnymouse]

Thanks Dawn & Bean - More great ideas for me to look into. I have an elementary dd and want to find a good school. Bean, thanks for the heads up on possible annual passes. Thanks everyone, keep them coming.

 

[DawnM]

Oh my! How did you do it? We do it as quickly as we feel we possibly can and stop for only gas and a 30 min. lunch break and still have to take about 9 hours to get there.

Did you speed the whole way?

We are eliminating the 30 min. lunch this trip as we have a lunch sized cooler this time. But even that is 8.5 hours.

Dawn

Also Dsnymouse, we're working on our fourth trip to WDW this year So we feel that you can get a lot of use out of an annual pass This next trip will be just an adult one. Luckily our neighbors are also Disney lovers so we've had a lot of fun taking trips with them. We made the drive last time in 7 hours.

 

[DawnM]

Something to make sure and consider:

Take a close look at the middle and high schools the elem. school feeds into. Some don't do this and then realize they really don't want their child at X middle or higb school, but the house is already purchased and the elem. school was "so great."

We have friends in that situation right now and they are struggling with what to do.

There has also been some re-zoning of schools based on location as new schools are built and new lines are drawn. Be sure to double check that possibility with your realtor before buying. We literally live less than 1 mile from the new high school and I highly doubt one will be built closer!

Dawn

Thanks Dawn & Bean - More great ideas for me to look into. I have an elementary dd and want to find a good school. Bean, thanks for the heads up on possible annual passes. Thanks everyone, keep them coming.

 

[DaParkers]

Thanks James'mommy - we have no idea of where my dh office would be. Thanks for the heads up on traffic. I wondered how long to Disney and if annual passholder was worth it. An 8 hour drive is not bad!

Thanks! Anyone one else, I'm all ears!

That's right! I've driven to WDW from Gastonia, (about 20-25 miles south of Charlotte) and it took us between 7 1/2-8 hours. Also, my DW and myself both worked in Charlotte in the South Park area and our drives to and from work were roughly 30-35 minutes. But we had the luxury of being on I-85 most of the way. I would have hated to drive through Charlotte on just surface streets.

 

[stacy6552]

OMG Bean we tried to buy a house in Baxter a few years ago! Love love love it!

 

[shaylahc1]

I live in Indian Trail which is in Union County. I love it here. Before this we lived in the Apex/Cary/Raleigh area. I definitely like Charlotte better. The downside is there is more crime here. But the school situation in Union County has been much better. There are also great low cost preschools.

I agree that South Charlotte, Union County or Fort Mill, SC would be great options.

 

[Dsnymouse]

Bean & Shay - So, Fort Mills SC look so pretty... The thing that puzzles me is "SC", is it far from downtown Charlotte? Schools good in this area too? We don't know where my Dh office would be yet - this is all still in early planning stages. We use to live in Colorado and I miss the land and beauty very much. It looks like NC will cure my longing for beauty and great land. All the pictures I see are very beautiful! Thank you everyone for all the help. I know of some area's to look and some realtor information.

My Dis friends are the best!!

 

[bean]

Hey Dsnymouse...I would say that the majority of people in my neighborhood work in Charlotte. A number of my friends' husbands work in Uptown Charlotte. The commute isn't bad at all. Our neighborhood is right off of the interstate (I 77) so getting into Charlotte is easy. We're maybe 5-10 minutes from the NC state line. Fort Mill still has a very small town feel but we also have the convenience of Charlotte. All of our schools are highly rated. It's the main reason that people move here I would say.