What a great idea!!

Gretchen is right. Renting any where you are thinking of moving -- renting for a whole year -- is the rational thing to do. We did it before we bought our "winter" condo in Richmond, and we had done it before we bought a condo in Naples, FL.

But if Greenville is too small, why suggest Beaufort, which is a small town?

wasn't thinking about the size of the town. Beaufort is close to the ocean, near enough to Charleston and Savannah for day trips.

Which Beaufort? S.C.? Trying to find the place to spend part or most of the year. We're getting killed with taxes and heating costs up North but we'll spend part of the year on the Cape.

I was looking for a place that had galleries, good restaurants, a vibrant theatre scene, a place that wouldn't shut down off-season as the Cape sort of does, has a sports venue, etc. Does Charleston have a vibrant theatre and sports scene?

Is Charleston a nice place to visit but not so great to live there?

Charleston is a fabulous place to live.
Expensive.
But fabulous.

http://www.beaufortsc.org/

Beaufort is a small town (yes) but in between Charleston and Savannah and would give you a good mix of things to do there (near the water) and a lot more options nearby. It's a great mix. And less expensive than Charleston.

You need to come and stay for a month or three and check the area out.

It may sound silly but read of some of Dorothea Benton Frank's books to get a taste of lowcountry living.

http://www.amazon.com/Dorothea-Bento...477555&sr=8-26

That's not silly at all. I think I just finished a Dorothy Benton Frank book; I'll check the title later.

So, Charleston has the same vibrant downtown scene as the much smaller, Greenville? Seems like they packed a lot into the small city/large town that is Greenville.

I would have been happy in Augusta, GA if the Riverwalk hadn't become a creepy ghost town. Now, it's just the suburban sprawl of Evans, etc. that draws young families there. It's not where we want to be.

To me Charleston has just gotten their entire act together in the last 30 or so years and it is humming. Their mayor literally saved the historicity of it from urban renewal, College of Charleston became THE place, and of course The Citadel. But it is also humming with tourists from what I see (not as a resident) because of that salvation. It is just a wonderful city--I think the most "European" of American cities with its walkability, history, quaintness.
I think Greenville may have come along that same path, but isn't the same thing at all.
When you go, visit a wonderful bookstore--The Blue Bicycle.

It's not correct to state that Greenville is smaller than Charleston. Be careful comparing city sizes by the reported population numbers. Some metro areas are actually much larger than the official city population.

While there are only about 60K people in the city limits of Greenville, there are over 450K in Greenville County (the largest county in the state). Charleston has 123K in the city limits and 350K in Charleston County. I was surprised to find that Greenville county also has almost 1.5x the population density as Charleston County.

Having said that, I think you may be expecting too much from downtown Greenville, which while nice, will not give you the same level of restaurant/art/shopping/activities options as Charleston. But with Charleston, you get much higher rents and lots and lots of tourists around all the time.

Thanks, everyone, for painting an objective and attractive picture of both places.

How conservative are both places?

"It's not correct to state that Greenville is smaller than Charleston"
I may have missed it but I don't remember reading anyone saying that.

"Having said that, I think you may be expecting too much from downtown Greenville, which while nice, will not give you the same level of restaurant/art/shopping/activities options as Charleston"
Exactly.

"I would have been happy in Augusta, GA if..."
No. You would not. Believe me, you would not. No matter the "if".

suewoo: city data.com was a great resource. Greenville's out as an option.

out.

You will have to deal with SC politics as they are today. As a mid-19th century politician said--and geez, how true today--South Carolina is too small for a republic and too large for an asuylum. LOL

The Cape is a tourist destination for most of the year. We're not sure if we want to deal with another tourist destination during our time off the Cape, which is my concern regarding Charleston.

Augusta, Evans GA specifically, is home base to some of our children and grandchildren. We don't want to live next door to them but closer would be nice.

I'll take a peek at Beaufort.

Charleston is not Ptown or the cape. There is no "tourist season" in Charleston. Half the stores do not close with wait staff commuting to Key West for the other six months.

You have some interesting preconceptions about some of these towns/cities.

But if you know Augusta as you have recently indicated and consider it viable, then Greenville may work for you after all.

While tourism is Charleton's main industry, it's a living breathing city: people work there, raise familes, etc. There are always tourists in the Historic District, but if you live out from there you don't notice any unless you are at the beach in summer. Didn't you just go to Charleston? Did you walk around the HD? That's the "scene".
http://spoletousa.org/
http://www.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=t233

You might want to google SC politics.

I guess my best advice is, if you want to live part of the year in Charleston, don't expect for it to be cheap. many people want to relocate because they think it's cheaper but Charleston is not. It's a very desirable place to live, getting stacked up with people from off, and its popularity keeps drawing national attention.

Sue nailed it--near the Market and that area it will be teeming.
But it is such a wonderful charming city near the ocean, history, things to do. Other places are that way also. You pays your money and you takes your choice?
The very things that saved Charleston's historic buildings have made it a destination for people to buy Battery homes for their pied a terre from NYC (articles in the paper).

Thanks again.

We pays our money in the Northeast; I know the lovely places in the world aren't accessed cheaply.

I WISH I could afford to buy a little pied a terre along the Battery!

The best advice is to live in these places for an extended period of time and try to get a feel for their pulse. You've all helped so much.