Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone is living in the Carolinas. My family and I may be interested to move there in a couple of years.
We are a family of 4. Hubby in I.T, a 9 year old and a 17 year old.

Is North or South better for cost of living, weather, schools, good days out, shopping?
Whats the crime like?

Or Florida???

Really general stuff but any info would help.

Thank you

Live in Charlotte, NC for the last 5 years, before that I was in Miami, FL.

I like it here, like any city there is crime and some areas I would not go to, but on the whole I am happy here.

OK I may as well be the first to ask...how do you plan moving here? Is one of you a USC...if not what visa would you have?

Not totally sure
Hubby works for a large international company and he may be able to get a transfer with them so I guess get a work permit.

The downside for me of course is I won't be able to work and I really love my job.

A visa should be your first consideration...without the means to live and work in the US it's pointless asking questions about location.

Whether you could work or not depends on hubby's visa.

There are loads of past threads re the Carolinas...the search engine will pull them up for you.

I understand this is very forward thinking and we should get a visa first, but my whole point is I would like to get some feedback about life in the Carolinas or Florida before I even consider moving down there.

I like where I am now, the only real downside for me at the moment is the great Canadian winter. I am looking for sunshine

But, if sunshine is the only good thing that the southern states have over Canada, then it may not be worth the move. I don't want to go from the frying pan into the fire.

Then again, variety is the spice of life, so they say, and it may be fun just to try somewhere else before we're old and grey.

Search the US Forums for Florida/N and S Carolinas....there is plenty of info in there.

Why do you want to move to Florida? Have you been there in the last few years?

why?

If your husband is transferred, he will get a L1 visa which gives you a L2 visa which allows your to work at anyplace desired after you get the EAD (usually about 3 months after your arrive).

You must have been thinking of the H1-B visa where you get the H4 visa and aren't allowed to work. This visa is given to foreigners that are hired by a company and are not a within the company transfer.

OOH thanks for the info!

I think it really depends on what area of SC/NC you move to, as each region eg mountains, coast, centre of state etc is quite varied. Schools are also hit and miss depending on what county you are moving to. For instance I live in Charlotte NC about two miles from SC. The Charlotte/Mecklenburg school system isn't as good as the one in York County SC.

Do you have an idea of what areas in both states your hubby may be transferred to?

I'm just across the border in VA (cheaper by far but with all that NC has to offer) and we only receive NC tv ... go figure! Apparently Greensboro is having a massive investment of funds and public services and is one of the highest, if not THE highest employing area in the US at the moment. A lot changes quickly here tho so in the time it takes for you to get here that may change. Obviously not an issue for hubby but very likely you'll be able to get a work permit too so that might be an issue for you. If you like to eat out and shop, Durham, Raleigh and Greensboro have it all - and if you're like me and like a little rural but with cosmopolitan near enough to run to when you need a fix, those areas are good. Durham and Raleigh might be a bit pricier due to being university areas but that's why you have everything you need on your door step.

I've only done the Myrtle Beach SC experience and so can't help there. Think humidity if that's an issue for you - NC is much friendlier on your joints and your hair if you hate it humid but still has a really good climate. Avoid the Outer banks for living if you don't like the idea of evacuating at least once a year lol Altho definitely don't avoid them for visiting .... they're gorgeous if a bit, um over run with rich kid wannabe surf dudes at times of the year I's dtill live there if I could afford to tho - I'd just stick out like a sore thumb.

What part of Florida? North, South, East and West are quite different.

Florida could be OK if your husband's coming with a job, the unemployment rate is higher than the national average.

We lived near Charlotte in NC for 10 years and really liked it. Five minutes and we were out in the country and I miss that. We moved from Houston so after the flat countryside here and the never-ending heat it was wonderful.. It was so nice to have 4 seasons again. I prefer NC to SC, that is just personal preference and I would not like to live in FL, again, because of the heat. And trust me, you can certainly have too much sun.

Thanks
Really not sure where he is being transfered to yet, but just starting to put some feelers out.