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Looking for a warmer state (than VT) to move to in a couple of years. We are NOT big city people and prefer living in the country. My husband operates heavy equipment for a portable crusher and could probably get a job anywhere. I work in administrative type positions.
It'd be nice to be about 20-30 minutes from a small city/large town that has the typical big box stores and restaurants. Maybe a movie theater and places to go dancing etc.
We have dogs and horse(s). Our son will be just entering high school when we move. We love to be outside riding bikes, dirt bikes, hunting etc.
Prefer NO snow at all but don't want to be too near the coast; hoping to avoid hurricane issues.
For SC, you could look at Anderson, or one of the burbs around Greenville, like Simpsonville. Also Aiken SC about 20 minutes from Augusta GA. Anderson and Greenville are both closer to the mountains than Aiken/Augusta. Aiken is a big horse town and Anderson has a good number of horse people as well.
Greenville SC has a fantastc downtown area with a waterfall right off the main street.
Greenville / Anderson and western SC is the best place in the state and the country in general as far as avoiding natural disasters, and there isn't much snow, rarely more than 2 snowfalls a year. You will get more snowfall in NC especially in Greensboro-Wnston Salem, and western NC in te Asheville and Boone areas.
Aiken is a big horse town and Anderson has a good number of horse people as well.
Raleigh and Asheville are the two most liberal Democrat areas but if you stay out in the burbs, all the SC and NC burbs are primarily Republican areas.
100 people will give 100 different answers (though since you asked this on the NC forum, you'll get more NC bias. I am guessing you also posted on the SC board? Same thing there).
Neither "NC" or "SC" are monolithic as if you can instantly tell you've crossed the border from one to the other. There is way more difference between the mountains of NC and the beaches of NC, than the beaches of SC and the beaches of NC. I think you'll need to narrow down what kind of terrain (I see where you don't want "a lot of snow"--trust me, compared to Vermont, nowhere in this region of the country has "a lot of snow), rural vs urban, job prospects, etc. It used to be that SC was much more conservative than NC, though NC currently has an extremely socially conservative legislature and governor (note that Southern "Conservative" means something different from Northern "Conservative", typically, with Southern conservatives being much more religious and social issues-focused while Northern "conservative" generally means cutting taxes with not much to do with social issues). But in general, we will not be able to tell you "which Carolina is best for you", because even within either state, there is a huge diversity of areas, and they are overall probably more alike than different at the "whole state" level.
As far as "goods and bads of each state"--again, any one of us could write pages and pages on each; you've simply got to do some independent research on the cities, culture, etc of both places, preferably by visiting for yourself, before a bunch of strangers on the Internet can tell you "Oh, you would DEFINITELY like ___ better!" because we do not know you. How do you know that what I like is anything like what you like, for example?
You might start with why you chose these two states over all others, and investigate specifics about those reasons (specific = something a lot more pinpointed than "which state is better?"). Are you dead set on the Carolinas, or are you considering other places? I would at very least read the Wikipedia pages on the major cities in both states, get out a map if you don't know what those are, and City-Data itself has a wealth of info on states, cities, and even neighborhoods if you leave the Forum area and click on the City-Data.com up in the top Left corner.
There are dozens if not hundreds of places "near a town with big box stores"; you could almost throw a dart at a map and get that (in almost any states, certainly in the Southeast). That's why the more actual knowledge you have of both areas, preferably after visiting and scouting around, the more you can rule out some areas while honing in on others.
Not blowing you off, but we simply can't give a good answer on such a vague question, especially if you have never even been here to have reference points.
My husband is a heavy equipment operator for Pike Industries. Pike is owned by Old Castle. They are all over the world. Right now there are openings in both NC and SC for what he does and in NC they are in: Fletcher, Louisburg, Morrisville, Greensboro, Spruce Pine, Lilesville.
In SC: Holly Hills, Walterboro.
We have a son who would be entering high school.
Can someone tell me about these towns/cities. We live in a town of under 4000. Our nearest big city with 40K people is almost 2 hours away. We don't need a close city, just a couple of restaurants, Walmart/Home Depot/Lowes etc.
How are the schools in these areas? Cost of living compared to other places in NC or SC?
Property taxes are cheaper in SC, so is electricity, gasoline and most other items that are taxed compared to NC. Property is also cheaper, if you are in the Upstate region of SC and not at the beachy areas. Summer's for the most part are hot and humid in both states, SC being mostly like Eastern NC. Greenville is growing and there is lots of empty space compared to say Wake County, NC.
My husband is a heavy equipment operator for Pike Industries. Pike is owned by Old Castle. They are all over the world. Right now there are openings in both NC and SC for what he does and in NC they are in: Fletcher, Louisburg, Morrisville, Greensboro, Spruce Pine, Lilesville.....
Can someone tell me about these towns/cities. We live in a town of under 4000. Our nearest big city with 40K people is almost 2 hours away. We don't need a close city, just a couple of restaurants, Walmart/Home Depot/Lowes etc.
There are City-data profile on each town in your list. The one for Lilesville tells me that it is a tiny town of about 500, but it is not far from the suburbs of Charlotte. The profile will give you the income levels and other demographics and the cost of real estate in each town. Here is Lilesville: https://www.city-data.com/city/Lilesv...-Carolina.html
I can't do all the research, but off the top of my head, Greensboro is a large city which may be too large for your tastes. Morrisville is a close-in suburb of Raleigh, and may be too congested for you. Louisburg is a smaller town near Raleigh, which you might like.
Fletcher is out in the mountains near Asheville. It would be my top choice for you, but it might be too close to the Asheville airport. Spruce Pine is a tiny town out in the mountains, with few amenities. It is too small for me, but you might like it.
To get a quick comparison of schools, I usually recommend Schooldigger or Greatschools because not many people will have personal knowledge of all the alternatives. Generally speaking, the better schools in North Carolina are in the suburbs of the large cities. The tiny towns can't offer many electives and don't have as many resources. However, your kids could do well in a small town.
Walterboro and Holly Hill, SC are out in the country outside of Charleston. They are both small towns with not much to do besides fishing. You might like them, but don't expect good schools. SC does not spend money on schools.
Last edited by goldenage1; 05-09-2016 at 03:29 PM..
Two similar states....neither is going to be blanketed in snow each winter but one of the locations you listed near Asheville (Fletcher NC) would be looking at significantly more than the other areas. you posted in a NC forum so you'll probably get more NC suggestions.
Two similar states....neither is going to be blanketed in snow each winter but one of the locations you listed near Asheville (Fletcher NC) would be looking at significantly more than the other areas. you posted in a NC forum so you'll probably get more NC suggestions.
Oh pshaw... Fletcher doesn't get much snow... averages 11" annually. Yes, it's more than the other NC locations listed, but "significantly more" makes it sound like more than it really is.
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