parkzy

Hello everyone.

I moved from the Uk to USA in 2011, I've just accepted promotion with work which entails us moving from Suffolk Co NY to North Carolina.

I've heard great things about Charlotte, Raleigh etc but I just wanted to ask the good people on here, does anyone live in the areas mentioned and can they recommend a safe, pleasant place to start off.

We have a 16 month old daughter and we will rent until we find the right place so schools at this time are not important but please advise if you can recommend any good schools.

I can really base myself anywhere in central NC so any points of view would be welcomed.

Thanks in advance. Ryan

Pulaski

Raleigh and Charlotte are 2 1/2 hours apart, so in which city are you going to be working, or is it somewhere else? Because even by NY standards I would consider Raleigh- Charlotte to be uncommutable!

parkzy

Hello, thanks for your reply.

I will be field based at home, my company has offices in several locations that I can use as a point of contact, these include Charlotte and Raleigh.

I'm just looking to base myself somewhere that is safe, accessible to highways and is not in the sticks!
Chapel Hill, Cary, Charlotte, Raleigh have been mentioned to me but I have no
Idea as to what they are really like?

Respectfully, Ryan

Pulaski

It's hard to know exactly what you might want out of your new home, and what constitutes "out in the sticks". If you're sure you want the Charlotte or Raleigh areas that limits your choice and will increase your housing cost. I hear there are plenty of good areas around Raleigh, and the area known as "The Triangle" (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill), but not living there I can't really help. What I do know is that the area is something of a technology-medical-education hub, with a lot of international businesses.

So far as Charlotte goes, the best areas are to the south of the city centre, between I77 and Hwy74 Independence Blvd, with housing becoming generally more affordable the further south you go. Outside of the city, to the north is Huntersville, which is also a good area. The Charlotte area is dominated by two large banks, but otherwise has a fairly mixed economy with distribution/ transportation (CLT airport and a major rail hub as well as three major interstates running through the area) engineering/ manufacturing (incl most of the major NASCAR teams) and call centers being major employment sectors.

I live further out and commute into Charlotte, it's an easy drive, and if you don't need to live in a "big" city and aren't constrained by a daily commute then I'd recommend one of the smaller towns that are close to the interstates in the central part of the state, such as Mooresville, Statesville, Hickory, Concord, Kannapolis, Salisbury, Lexington, Highpoint, Winston-Salem, Burlington, etc.

DesertOcean

Pittsboro, small town feel in a beautiful area just 30 minutes from Raleigh. Popular with artist, musicians, university & college professors and professionals who work in an around research triangle. Home of the Shakori Hills Music Festival http://shakorihillsgrassroots.org/ which according to their website starts in 2 days.

Damn, wish I was there!

http://vimeo.com/33280312