Moving to Florence, SC...Can anyone answer some Q's??? (Myrtle Beach: for sale, real estate)
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My hubby is getting transferred to Florence, SC and I will be joining him when we sell our house. We currently live in a small town in Kentucky about the same size as Florence. We do not have any children, just small house dogs, so schools are not an issue for us. I'm online looking for jobs, but am really not finding much out there.
What are some major companies that are located in Florence or close surrounding areas?
What are the smaller surrounding cities? I think Quinby and Darlington are close, but not sure.
Hurricanes! We are worried about those. How often, if ever, do they affect Florence and surrounding areas? Do we need special insurance on our home if we move there?
I guess I'm just scared. I've lived here all my life and just love my current job. I work as a secretary for a Hospice and HATE to think of leaving. Are there any Hospices around down there?
Any other tips would be appreciated. We were thinking of finding a house/trailer somewhere just outside of Florence...maybe 15-30 minutes away in the 'country', so to speak. Any suggestions ?
Some surrounding areas are Darlington, Timmonsville, Effingham, Pamplico, and Lake City. Hartsville, Marion and Scranton are also nearby...within 20-30 minutes. Florence, by far, is the nicest area of all.
I have lived here for about 3 years now and have never had a hurricane scare. The last hurricane that affected the area I think was Hugo. I think the worst of it was the winds blowing down trees, etc. There will be occassional tornados around here but nothing too serious.
As far as extra insurance. Based on what happened during Katrina, you would want to consider a flood policy on your home if you are in a flood zone. It is an extra policy aside from your normal homeowner's.
I'll check back to see you if post any other questions.
Oh, thank you for your help with the job search and the helpful info! I really do appreciate it.
Can anyone tell me if Florence 'feels' like a small city or if it seems like a large city? Does that sound stupid? I mean, like traffic jams, lots of noise, really crowded? Or is it more of a laid back, everyone waves and smiles at you when you drive by type of atmosphere?
I noticed there are lots of mobile homes for sale there too. Here, you have to fight like crazy to put a mobile home on any land you own. Not very many trailer parks either here. The laws must be more relaxed down there, I guess, or at least it is much more acceptable. (Nothing wrong with living in a mobile home, I used to live in one myself )
How is the cost of living there? High, low, or a happy middle? Taxes?
I guess that is all I can think of for now. I'm just waiting to hear from my hubby.
My experiences with living in Florence are 20 years old, but back in the day, it was a medium sized (for SC) town that to a teen often felt like a small town. Traffic could back up on 76/301 with beach traffic, especially on weekends. Normal city traffic wasn't too bad. (As say compared to all the time I've spent going under 10 on 285/75/85/20 in Atlanta.)
Rural Florence county has the small town feel where people wave when you drive by. This is where the mobile homes are located. The city of Florence has a population of 35,000 but this is misleading because of the strict annexation laws. The population of the Florence metropolitan area is more like 70,000.
The roads in and around the city are in poor shape and cannot handle the morning, lunch, and afternoon rush hours. You will find this especially true along Second Loop Rd. at the Cashua St. and Irby St. intersections. The Five Points intersection where Palmetto St., Cherokee Rd., Hoffmeyer Rd., and Cashua St. meet is also bad.
The Radio Road/McLeod Blvd area has become bad for traffic due the new businesses like Kohl's, Home Depot, Chili's, Olive Garden, and Longhorn Steakhouse which have opened in the past year.
The cost of living is fairly low. Gas (currently $2.75) is below the national average and a gallon of milk is $2.89 at the CVS. This also means wages are below the national average so it balances out. One thing which surprises new residents is the annual property tax on vehicles. There are discussions on this elsewhere on the board. The sales tax in Florence county is 4% on groceries and 8% on other items.
hi and good luck on your move. I work at McLeod and love it very much, they have a wonderful Hospice House that is new and everyone is very nice that I have come in contact with. My husband and I moved from Myrtle Beach in Jan to MARION, which is 30 min from florence. Talk about laid back. The town was started in 1760 and there are still a lot of big beautiful homes around. A few years ago they started really doing a lot with the town and it shows. They have a little downtown area with a lot of antique shops, a few stores and of course a new super Wal Mart will open in Oct. Florence for the busy, traffic filled city is only 30 min away and they have a lot of shopping, a mall and just about whatever you want to eat. Even if you don't consider Marion as a lovely place to live please come visit and see what a wonderful place it is. My husband took a drive from the beach one day last Oct, loved it the first time we saw it and moved here in Jan. This should tell you something. Again, good luck on your move.
Hurricanes are not a major problem that far inland, though a severe storm can bring heavy rain and wind. Hugo (1989) is the only hurricane in the last 50 years that brought any type of damage to that part of South Carolina. Hazel (1954) would have had a medium impact, but no other hurricanes strong enough to inflict significant damage that far inland have hit that part of South Carolina in the last 100 years. You should always maintain flood insurance if you buy a home in a flood-prone area. I wouldn't buy a home in such an area, though.
My hubby is getting transferred to Florence, SC and I will be joining him when we sell our house. We currently live in a small town in Kentucky about the same size as Florence. We do not have any children, just small house dogs, so schools are not an issue for us. I'm online looking for jobs, but am really not finding much out there.
What are some major companies that are located in Florence or close surrounding areas?
What are the smaller surrounding cities? I think Quinby and Darlington are close, but not sure.
Hurricanes! We are worried about those. How often, if ever, do they affect Florence and surrounding areas? Do we need special insurance on our home if we move there?
I guess I'm just scared. I've lived here all my life and just love my current job. I work as a secretary for a Hospice and HATE to think of leaving. Are there any Hospices around down there?
Any other tips would be appreciated. We were thinking of finding a house/trailer somewhere just outside of Florence...maybe 15-30 minutes away in the 'country', so to speak. Any suggestions ?
Thanks!
I was born in Florence and spent 25 of 35 years here. The only hurricane that really effected us was Hugo 15 years ago. Power was out for 3 days, trees blown down etc. Once in the last 15 years is not so bad. No need for other insurance. I would guess you husband will be working for QVC? Darlington and Quimby are close, but not much to do, or shopping. Effingham is south of Florence and is fairly rural. Lamar is not too far West of Florence and has a nice little Counrty Club golf course. Myrtle Beach is 70 - 75 miles way. Lots to do there. resale West Florence is the best school district. We don't have children either, so it didn'y matter to us. Palmetto Shores is a nce very small community around a 50 acre lake, we loved it there. It is between Florence and Darlington. We live in Effingham now. We found a nice house with 31/2 acres of land reasonably priced.Libby Padgett was our Real Estate agent. I knew her from high school and she has worked with me on several houses. Anyone can help you though. Stay away from the North and East side of Florence. Poor resale due to poor schools
Hi! My situation is somewhat similar to the original poster's.
My husband and I have talked for years about moving to the Florence area and I believe we are really going to take the plunge this time. We both work in St. Louis (commute from a nearby city in IL.) I currently work in Insurance & Annuity Operations for A.G. Edwards and we were recently bought out by Wachovia, so things are not looking good for my department. I am not necessarily looking to do the same thing, but it's what I have known for 9+ years. My husband is a warehouse manager, so we don't make a lot of money, we have enough but we want to get out of this city.
I've been to Florence when we visited his family and really liked it (especially compared to some of the places near/in STL.)
We're perfectly okay with a smaller house/modular on an acre or so (tired of busy crowded neighborhoods), both in our early 30s, have no children but two dogs. We figure this is as good a time as any to make our move, especially while I'm more than likely going to be between jobs.
If anyone has additional advice (especially job-wise) I'd appreciate it, too!
Fourangelsmommie - I'd love to hear how you're doing! I'm scared, too, I've lived in IL/STL all my life, but adored the places I visited in SC with my husband's family and I'm done with dirty St. Louis! Best of luck!
McLeod Blvd. can be a pain at times. Oh but there is a sweet little sushi place that looks like a dive. They have some of the best sushi there.
I love Florence and have friends there. Have you applied for any jobs at McLeod Hospital?
I can also get you the names of some modular home subdivisions in that area if you would like. Give me a few days to get back to you on that!
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your move
monty
