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I see plenty of threads regarding moving to these areas but I am interested in hearing from people that made the move. Any regrets? How are thing's different from what you may have imagined? We are in Maryland.
I can say that we do not regret making the move, but we spent a great deal of time evaluating where we wanted to move (what state) and then even more time deciding where in SC we wanted to live. We looked up state, the Charleston area and Myrtle Beach. We thought a lot about what we wanted in our new location and near the top of the list was relatively easy access to the beach. Of course, up state was way to far away, Charleston area (Summerville) was just to far to the beach with traffic so we then focused on the Grand Strand. We made several more trips and spent many days looking at communities from Little River all the way to Murrells Inlet. Once we decided that we wanted to be near but south of MB, we spent even more time finding out as much as we could about various areas/communities and looking at where shopping was, churches, schools (although we don't have small kids), grocery stores, the airport, etc. Then, once we decided exactly where we wanted to be, we rented for a year just to be certain we had selected the right area for us. So, as you can see, it's not something we rushed into.
As far as regrets, there's not really any except that it's getting more crowded every day with more and more people moving here. Of course, that's what people who had lived here awhile when we moved here 10 years ago probably said about our moving here...LOL.
I don't think things are different than what we imagined because we spent so much time visiting here with the purpose of getting to know the area (not in vacation mode). But, with you coming from MD, I would provide some advice of things to be aware of....it's very hot and humid from Memorial Day through Labor Day EVERY day. This is a tourist town and traffic is very heavy on the weekends during the summer....don't go near RT 501 from Friday afternoon through Sunday. Get to know the back roads to avoid the tourist traffic. Shop during the week...never the weekend. This is a very red state politically...don't count on changing it when you move here. There is no "downtown" in MB...just a series of strip malls and one enclosed mall. Conway has a quaint downtown area but very small and limited. Most politicians are locals...not many outsiders get elected. It takes forever to build or rebuild a road/highway. If you don't live within the city limits of a beach town, prepare to be soaked for parking anytime you want to go to the beach unless you buy a season pass to the state park. Nearly everyone you meet will be from someplace other than Myrtle Beach originally (not many natives). Most people are pretty nice and friendly. Housing is getting more expensive every day. When you look for a house, make sure it's not in a flood zone...the ground is flat here and water, once it leaves it's banks, goes wherever it wants to go.
Those are just some random thoughts. Hope it helps. My recommendation to anyone thinking of moving here is to visit/explore as much as you possibly can before deciding to move, rent first, and if you're not retired make sure you have a job before you come. Jobs are hard to come by especially in the winter and pay is much lower than up north.
I can say that we do not regret making the move, but we spent a great deal of time evaluating where we wanted to move (what state) and then even more time deciding where in SC we wanted to live. We looked up state, the Charleston area and Myrtle Beach. We thought a lot about what we wanted in our new location and near the top of the list was relatively easy access to the beach. Of course, up state was way to far away, Charleston area (Summerville) was just to far to the beach with traffic so we then focused on the Grand Strand. We made several more trips and spent many days looking at communities from Little River all the way to Murrells Inlet. Once we decided that we wanted to be near but south of MB, we spent even more time finding out as much as we could about various areas/communities and looking at where shopping was, churches, schools (although we don't have small kids), grocery stores, the airport, etc. Then, once we decided exactly where we wanted to be, we rented for a year just to be certain we had selected the right area for us. So, as you can see, it's not something we rushed into.
As far as regrets, there's not really any except that it's getting more crowded every day with more and more people moving here. Of course, that's what people who had lived here awhile when we moved here 10 years ago probably said about our moving here...LOL.
I don't think things are different than what we imagined because we spent so much time visiting here with the purpose of getting to know the area (not in vacation mode). But, with you coming from MD, I would provide some advice of things to be aware of....it's very hot and humid from Memorial Day through Labor Day EVERY day. This is a tourist town and traffic is very heavy on the weekends during the summer....don't go near RT 501 from Friday afternoon through Sunday. Get to know the back roads to avoid the tourist traffic. Shop during the week...never the weekend. This is a very red state politically...don't count on changing it when you move here. There is no "downtown" in MB...just a series of strip malls and one enclosed mall. Conway has a quaint downtown area but very small and limited. Most politicians are locals...not many outsiders get elected. It takes forever to build or rebuild a road/highway. If you don't live within the city limits of a beach town, prepare to be soaked for parking anytime you want to go to the beach unless you buy a season pass to the state park. Nearly everyone you meet will be from someplace other than Myrtle Beach originally (not many natives). Most people are pretty nice and friendly. Housing is getting more expensive every day. When you look for a house, make sure it's not in a flood zone...the ground is flat here and water, once it leaves it's banks, goes wherever it wants to go.
Those are just some random thoughts. Hope it helps. My recommendation to anyone thinking of moving here is to visit/explore as much as you possibly can before deciding to move, rent first, and if you're not retired make sure you have a job before you come. Jobs are hard to come by especially in the winter and pay is much lower than up north.
Thanks for all the info! Can you explain the beach parking/city limits? I know you can get a yearly permit for Huntington Beach but what about Garden City and Surfside if you're a resident of MI?
Red state...that's why we're moving there. We love seeing the displays of patriotism.
Murrells Inlet is not an actual town but, rather, an unincorporated portion of Horry County and thus is treated like a red-haired step sister by the beach towns...LOL. As a county resident, I know that you have to pay for parking in all of Surfside. I believe, but am not positive, that there are a limited number of non-metered parking spots in Garden City but unless you're there early or just lucky, you have to pay to park there as well. I don't believe either town sells permits to non-residents.
Myrtle Beach sells a limited number of parking permits to non-residents for I believe $200/year. Other than that, it's metered or paid parking lots.
I see plenty of threads regarding moving to these areas but I am interested in hearing from people that made the move. Any regrets? How are thing's different from what you may have imagined? We are in Maryland.
"Murrells Inlet is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Georgetown County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 7,547 at the 2010 census. It is about 13 miles south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and 21 miles north of Georgetown, the county seat."
While wikipedia is technically correct, most of the area between Socastee and the Georgetown county line has a Murrells Inlet address and most people think of it as part of Murrells Inlet.
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