pros/cons to living in NC?

[Angelhalo]

I've been reading with great interest this Charlotte thread. Sounds like a wonderful area! DH & I plan on a move sometime in the next decade out of Massachusetts. I have a question for the Charlotte people. Might sound a little odd...
Do the trees lose all their leaves in the winter in the Charlotte area? Do you know what I mean. We have a beautiful autumn around here. The trees are gorgeous colors, but then, they go absolutely bare for the next almost 6 months. I'm getting tired of that bleakness after such beauty!
Thanks.

Some do and some don't. A lot of the trees definitely lose their leaves, but what I like is that not ALL of them do. I once visited a friend in NH in the winter and that was dismal.

 

[casajump]

As a Raleigh native, NC sucks! Try to avoid it at all possibilities! I'm trying to move up north because there can't be anyone left there!

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

LOL!
I think I see more people that I graduated with when I am in NC then in NY!!

 

[bcvgal]

They do lose the leaves but start budding early spring.

 

[MomsOf2boys]

I was born and raised in California, moved to Ohio when I was 17, then to Florida for 12 years while married...and now I have landed in Charlotte, NC. I love it here. All the seasons come and go without too much extreme weather situations. There are the mountains just 2 hours away (I love Asheville and wish to retire there) and the beach. We go hiking and slushing for gems and gold and museums and so many parks and just everything so conveniently located. I am very happy to be raising my children here.

 

[MomsOf2boys]

Pssst.... I almost forgot... Just an 8 hour drive to Disney as well.

 

[MomsOf2boys]

We were looking around Hickory, I can't really put my finger on what we did not like, it just did not feel like "home." We did like Kanapolis but with the new campus that is being built there I am sure the atmosphere will be changing soon.

I think the state mental hospital is in Hickory.

 

[Swimnoid]

I live in Lexington which is a small town 20 minutes south of Winston-Salem (where I work) I moved here from the Pittsburgh area and love it here. I like that Lexington has that small town feel where everybody knows everybody but its close to bigger cities. I travel all over the state for work so I'm familiar at least a little with most of the cities. I'm not crazy about Charlotte just because it has gotten so big so fast its hard to get around but there is tons to do and lovely suburbs. Asheville is beautiful. I really like Wilmington. DD lives in Boone and it is the bomb! Not really crazy about Fayetteville.

 

[Angelhalo]

I live in Lexington which is a small town 20 minutes south of Winston-Salem (where I work) I moved here from the Pittsburgh area and love it here. I like that Lexington has that small town feel where everybody knows everybody but its close to bigger cities. I travel all over the state for work so I'm familiar at least a little with most of the cities. I'm not crazy about Charlotte just because it has gotten so big so fast its hard to get around but there is tons to do and lovely suburbs. Asheville is beautiful. I really like Wilmington. DD lives in Boone and it is the bomb! Not really crazy about Fayetteville.

Lived in Charlotte for 17 years and never thought it was hard to get around in. Quite the opposite actually. Especially now with 485.

Boone IS the bomb! Went to college there!

Ahhhh Lexington, we call it BBQ-land! WOOOHOOOO! Yummo!

 

[bcvgal]

I live in Lexington which is a small town 20 minutes south of Winston-Salem (where I work) I moved here from the Pittsburgh area and love it here. I like that Lexington has that small town feel where everybody knows everybody but its close to bigger cities. I travel all over the state for work so I'm familiar at least a little with most of the cities. I'm not crazy about Charlotte just because it has gotten so big so fast its hard to get around but there is tons to do and lovely suburbs. Asheville is beautiful. I really like Wilmington. DD lives in Boone and it is the bomb! Not really crazy about Fayetteville.

Davidson Co girl here. Love Lexington BBQ. It's kind of hard to find good bbq place down here in CLT area.

 

[Angelhalo]

Davidson Co girl here. Love Lexington BBQ. It's kind of hard to find good bbq place down here in CLT area.

I agree. I like Stamey's in Greensboro. My parents like a little place called Greg's on the corner of 51 and Monroe road. But if you're out near Davidson, that would be a LONG drive for you.

 

[Papa Deuce]

Lived in Charlotte for 17 years and never thought it was hard to get around in. Quite the opposite actually. Especially now with 485.

Boone IS the bomb! Went to college there!

Ahhhh Lexington, we call it BBQ-land! WOOOHOOOO! Yummo!

Wow. My SIL lives right near Mount Carmel Avenue I think... at the busy times it takes 20 minutes just to get to the shopping area 1 mile away.... The area where Red's BBQ used to set up in a gas station on Saturday mornings.

 

[Papa Deuce]

Davidson Co girl here. Love Lexington BBQ. It's kind of hard to find good bbq place down here in CLT area.

It sure is.... My BIL loves "Bill Spoon's".... I have no idea why.

 

[SereneOne]

Brutal summers?

It is the Carolinas, not Florida or New Mexico, etc. I live in Greenville, SC, the weather is beautiful! I love the seasons personally and we are about a seven hour drive from Disney.

It is so beautiful in the Carolinas and so much to do. We have the mountains one way and the beaches another. I am a Florida girl, however I do appreciate the Carolinas, beautiful states, lots to do!

 

[safetymom]

Boone is a quaint little town. It was very nice when I visited. Doesn't seem like there is a lot to do in that area or I missed it.

 

[bcvgal]

I agree. I like Stamey's in Greensboro. My parents like a little place called Greg's on the corner of 51 and Monroe road. But if you're out near Davidson, that would be a LONG drive for you.

Sorry to confuse you. I'm from Davidson County not the town of Davidson, which is a cool little town. I live in Indian Trail now. Been to Greg's but it don't come close to Lexington bbq. The Rock Store bbq in Stallings is pretty close.

 

[Swimnoid]

Lived in Charlotte for 17 years and never thought it was hard to get around in. Quite the opposite actually. Especially now with 485.

Boone IS the bomb! Went to college there!

Ahhhh Lexington, we call it BBQ-land! WOOOHOOOO! Yummo!

Its not so much hard to get around as it just has too much traffic for my taste. I always get stuck in jams.

DD is at App. She loves it and it is so beautiful there.

Love Lexington BBQ or Honey Monk's as the locals call it!

 

[feedthebirds]

So glad for this thread! We may be moving to NC as well due to a job transfer.

Tell me about commuting to Durham(work). Is it possible to commute from Wake Forest to Durham? Have some friends in that area and would love to live there. Where else near Durham would you recommend that I can find acreage?

Also, boat slips. Where is a good area to rent a boat slip on the ocean. We may "inherit" a boat ( an old beat up but water worthy boat), my dh loves ocean fishing and exploring.

Thanks!

 

[PamNC]

We live about 25 minutes west of Winston-Salem NC - in the beautiful Western Piedmont. I can tell you, there are no CONS in my opinion to living in NC. The summers are hot and humid, yes. But that doesn't bother me because I love summer so I can't call that a CON. If you're from the northeast and the heat bothers you, of course it could be a CON for you. However, the spring and fall are absolutely gorgeous!! And, for the most part, the winters are mild. Compared to MA especially.

I may be bias, but I think we live in the most beautiful state in the union. Our mountains are spectacular! The Blue Ridge Parkway is something I'm obsessed with. Then, on the other end of the spectrum we have the Outer Banks.

Housing prices aren't crazy like other parts of the country! Lots of people from larger cities cash out and move here and pay cash for their homes. With all that's going on with the real estate market now, that may not be so easy to do.

I love that the landscape varies...from the mountains, to the rolling foothills of the western piedmont (you shoud see Davie County where I live!), to the sandhills, to the coastal plain.....it's just breath-taking.

And, we're a friendly lot of folks. We throw our hand up and wave at people we don't know. We help our fellow man, and expect nothing in return. Of course, this isn't the case for everyone, but I can tell you that's how it works in my neighborhood.

In our area, wineries are opening up everywhere. We have two within 10 minutes of where we live. Wineries are starting to pick up where tobacco left (or is leaving) off.

If you made me come up with a CON, I would say WORK...textiles and other manufacturing corporations have taken a hit here. I don't work in those areas, so I don't feel the pain first-hand.

You'll find beautiful pottery and the best zoo I've ever been to in the sandhills region.

Variety - it's the spice of life here in NC.

And, best of all, it's only an 8-9 hour drive to Disney, depending on where you live of course.

Come join us now, ya' hear?????

PamNC

 

[PamNC]

As a Raleigh native, NC sucks! Try to avoid it at all possibilities! I'm trying to move up north because there can't be anyone left there!

As a fellow southerner, I know what you're saying.

My father had a bumper sticker that said, "Welcome to the South, now go home!"

You see - are we REALLY as nice as I said we were or does the hospitality run a mile high and an inch deep.

It's for us to know and ya'll to find out.

PamNC