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Hey everyone - I've been hunting for info on the MB area (real life opinions, not flashy websites and 'oh everything is so perfect') and this seems to be a pretty down-to-earth forum.
Some background: I grew up on Long Island, live in Upstate NY and am starting to recognize the strangling effects of the taxes and corrupt government in my wallet. I grew up near the ocean, I miss the ocean terribly, and let's face it, snow is great when you're a kid but as a grown-up trying to commute to work, I'm over it.
I have OH so many questions!
Has anyone been to or been treated at Grand Strand med ctr? Looking for experiences to evaluate how solid their care is - I'm considering applying there, I am an RN. Bonus points if anyone knows nurses who work there and what the wage might be.
Property taxes? Is it really like, $700 a year? The houses I'm looking at are in the 100-150$k range. I have an eyeball on a sweet place in Socastee, off of 707, so I'm curious about the neighborhoods too. Is that a place full of retirees, or relatively young families with kids and stuff? Are tourists a big problem in that area? What areas would you probably stay away from if buying a house? Is homeowners way expensive because of the hurricane threat?
Electric rates? I am lucky enough to be in a place with hydroelectric 4-cents-per-kwh region and I realize I won't find that ANYWHERE else, but my heating bills are still insane here, it's more temperate year round down there.
Internet rates/cable rates? I can't imagine it being much different (50/mo for cable-based internet).
Gas prices? We live over $3/gal here, now.
I guess most of my concern is cost-of-living based. Anything anyone would like to add, I would realllly appreciate! Thank you!
Has anyone been to or been treated at Grand Strand med ctr? Looking for experiences to evaluate how solid their care is - I'm considering applying there, I am an RN. Bonus points if anyone knows nurses who work there and what the wage might be.
My husband went to the emergency room at Grand Strand Regional a couple months ago. He was very pleased with the care he received until the bill came in the mail. $5000 to be told he had a kidney stone and just needed to go home and wait it out. It is no wonder the insurance rates are so high.
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Electric rates? I am lucky enough to be in a place with hydroelectric 4-cents-per-kwh region and I realize I won't find that ANYWHERE else, but my heating bills are still insane here, it's more temperate year round down there.
You may not get 4 cents per kwh here unless your home is very green but the rates are still very good. I think I am paying 8 cents, which is 5 cents less than in MD, but the condo I am in has NO energy efficient ANYTHING so there is no discount for me.
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Internet rates/cable rates? I can't imagine it being much different (50/mo for cable-based internet).
Cable / Internet rates don't seem any different down here to me. I pay $90 for Digital cable with DVR and Home Networking.
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Gas prices? We live over $3/gal here, now.
Gas at Krogers today was 2.77
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Some background: I grew up on Long Island, live in Upstate NY and am starting to recognize the strangling effects of the taxes and corrupt government in my wallet.
The taxes are definitely better down here but I am not a homeowner so I will let someone else address that. I love it here but I can't imagine anyone selecting the area because the government is more appealing.
1. Corrupt govt is everywhere. This is the "Good Ol Boys Club". And everything works (or doesn't) in slowwwwwwwwwww motion. The police and local officials, including mayors, judges, etc., seem to enjoy getting arrested for DUI, public nudity, trying to have someone killed, etc. Always something "interesting" going on, that's for sure.
2. Yes, property taxes are around the range you were quoted, once you fill out the Homesteader's forms at the tax accessor's office.
3. 707 is a very busy highway. They have promised to widen the roads for years now. My parents have a home off there. Some places are retirement age people, some aren't. Depends on where you are. One part is considered "Little Mexico". No, tourists are NOT a big problem there. Traffic is, however. But not as bad as 501.
4. I find the electric rates about the same as NY. Except you use the central air from May until Sept, heat around Oct/Nov to Feb/March. (That's us at least)
5. Internet/cable is about the same, however you have far less options here. My sister and brother in law in MD pay less than we do.
6. Gas prices are a bit under $3.00 right now, maybe $2.89? Think that's what I paid yesterday. But if you belong to Costco or Sam's, it's usually a much better rate.
7. Food is the same, if not more (for most ingredients, not all). Veggies and fruits are outrageous for some reason. And they are sub par quality wise, compared to what you are used to up north. My sister complained to me last weekend when we went for a visit about the prices she pays until I told her that hers were cheaper, and my mom confirmed it. And this was at her "expensive store"!
8. VERY little in the way of multi-cultural ethnic stores, foods, and restaurants, sadly. There's always Charleston, however!
9. Do your homework about jobs, schools, etc. before making a decision. Apples and oranges to what you're used to.
We had what seemed to be a decent job opportunity in the MB area and turned it down. It just didn't feel like a place where we wanted to live..might be a fun vacation spot, but I felt we'd be bored living there permanently. How many trips can you make to the Market Commons or Broadway at the Beach until it felt old? The ocean is somewhere buried behind the high rises or deep inside a state park.. and we hear now that it's one of the 12 dirtiest beaches in the country! Add in the traffic when tourist season arrives, the heat, questionable economy and crime.. and our decision was made. And, there is no decent talk radio, unless you want to listen to sports or religion... We're staying in beautiful Eastern TN on the lake.. and in the Fall we have the VOLS. No boredom here.. just no good bagels. Guess you can't have everything!
Interesting to the post above since I went to college in East Tn...i love it there.....but I love it much better here.
We live a normal life just like anywhere else you would live ...we don't hang out at Market Commons or BATB. We go there occasionally but not enough that it feels "old". We do go to the beach at Huntington Beach but there are plenty of place we drive right up and hop out and there is nothing around. I don't think the traffice is any different than Knoxville. As for talk radio I have never lived anywhere that has as good talk radio as the Knoxville station as I could access it on the radio from the last few places I lived...but I listen to HHH and Phil on the computer when I need my fix and the rest of their line up is on 99.5 here just in different time spots.
I am not being hateful but the first thing you have to realize when you move to a "vacation" area is that if you try to live like you are on vacation you will burn out quick.
Yes we swim more, we eat out better, we go to the ocean a lot but pretty much we go to work, take kids to school and hang out at our house.
Appreciate your comments about MB. Maybe we didn't have the right people showing us around. Our relatives are golfers and had a different perspective on the area. They are retirees who golf alot and go to shows at the Palace Theater. And that's about it...
We are NY area transplants, which is how I ended up on this particular post. Even moving to the East TN area, we have had to adjust to less media options, less food choices and some culture shock. But we never have seen such beautiful mountains or miles of waterways as we do here in Tennessee. And living amongst the Orange gives us something to do on fall weekends...
Anyway, glad you are enjoying MB.. and I see you are from Murrell's Inlet. I do believe that is where we would have ended up if we would have headed that way. However, as for you guys swimming more, maybe so.. but I do really enjoy my boat and waverunner! I guess we both have it pretty good. Have a happy summer!
Endicott, NY. Near Binghamton... There isn't really culture here, there's not a whole lot going on other than bars. The schools are pretty terrible, just last year someone (>18, i think it was an employee?) got charged for getting a bj from a 16 year old in the girl's bathroom.
I know every area has its own unique quirks and problems. I don't imagine that I'll move down south and live in a utopia, it just seems to make fiscal and emotional sense.
Our house up here is going to have a limit on its worth for multiple reasons, even if we put a fortune into crazy things like granite countertops and so forth - a house closer to the beach in a warmer, more temperate area, that's newer and more updated is more likely to appreciate in value much higher than our current home - and every month we'd put way more equity into it than up here. Half of my mortgage payment here is going to property taxes and insurance. I could get a bigger, better house in MB and maintain the same mortgage P.I.T.I payment but have a 15 year fixed rate instead of at 30 year fixed rate based on the property tax difference. Plus, if we decided to vacate MB for whatever reason, it's more likely that house is worth more in a few years once the economy picks its head up out of the toilet.
And shoot, I miss living near the ocean. I have dreams about the ocean, crazy or not!
This is just my two cents worth to address your questions. I can't decide if the government here is corrupt or just stupid (too long to get into on this post), but you're gonna have that from Maine to Florida. As far as snow, I haven't shoveled the sunshine since I've been here (5 years).
Can't speak of Grand Strand Med Center, but I am very pleased with Waccamaw Hospital in Murrells Inlet. And for that matter, my GP, dentist, surgeon and all of my medical care here have been great (better that that in the Baltimore area). The Myrtle Beach Sun Times consistently has job listings (each Sunday edition) for various positions at the hospital. This with the proviso that you should certainly have a job lined up before moving here.
I have a 2,800 sq.ft. home on 1/4 acre in Murrells Inlet and my property taxes are $845/yr. My homeowners insurance is $1,800/yr. (high because of hurricane and earthquake). Socastee is a nice, although mostly blue-collar, area with a touch of a Hispanic community. It's close to Myrtle Beach and has a good deal of traffic for this area. Not sure if your looking for single family or condo, but with the market downturn $100-150K is probably doable. Check out Murrells Inlet while you're at it.
My electric (Horry Electric Coop) is on a budget plan of $216/mo. This is using an electric heat pump (my home has 2 units) for heating and cooling. My neighbors tell me that their AC bills in summer are usually a slight bit higher than heating in winter. Cable TV is $44/mo. with HTC (Horry Telephone Coop) for Digital HD with DVR. Some communities include basic cable (70 channels or so) in their HOA fees (so HD and DVR might run you $12 a mo. if that's the case). HOA fees can run as little as $35/mo. for some older communities and can get up to $100/mo. and you'll find that as the fee goes up, so do the services. (like whether it includes water, cable, trash pickup, pool and amenities center, etc.).
Can currently get gas at the Kroger in Surfside Beach for $2.74/gal.
Life here is what you make it, my wife and I get involved in church and community volunteer activities (keeps us busy). And we hope the feeling we have that we've been on a 5 year vacation never goes away.
Gov't is broken everywhere, but in NY it costs me money all the time. Slow/stupid... I can get over that
I appreciate the hint towards the georgetown system(Includes Waccamaw), I peeped a map and didn't realize how close it was to the area. I already sent their nurse recruiter a query email!
And every single thing you've listed is cheaper down there versus here, except for the homeowners insurance. Not a lot of hurricanes in landlocked, upstate NY. Thanks again for the info!
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$5000 to be told he had a kidney stone and just needed to go home and wait it out. It is no wonder the insurance rates are so high. 
