NC VS. SC
 

I am originally from NJ now in a beatiful part of Floida where everyone is Not old. Nice mixture. I am looking for a vacation home in either state. I like to be in the outskirts of cities but not too rural. I like areas where the line of country and suburbs are close. One area I looked at on line was Fort Mill. Anyone familiar with this area? I am jewish my wife catholic. We are very tolerant of all religions and do not want to be asked about the topic. Also Politically I am an independent and my wife could care less about politics. Again I am very tolerant of a persons political persnality except for fringes on both sides. I know there will always be this Northern vs. Southern fight but as long as it is kept to joking I am fine with it. I have no tolerance for ignorance from both areas. Also looking for an are where there is a low crime rate. I understand there is crime everywhere but we are still looking for an area where it won't be a major problem. If this is not a good are please recommend others. Thanks in advance for your answers.

Sorry about my first sentence. I am usually making fun of others spelling and I see I spelled beautiful and Florida wrong. Just typed too fast. Not as dumb as I sound.

Bigal,

I've lived almost my entire life in the Carolinas. Good luck finding a small town where people won't ask what church you go to--it just comes with the territory. You're especially going to find this in smaller communities, like Fort Mill, on the outskirts of large cities like Charlotte.

Based on your criteria, I would look at:

Asheville NC
Hilton Head SC
Charleston SC (or nearby beaches, like Isle of Palms, Sullivans Island, Kiawah)

All are either cities of some size (NC and SC don't have lots of mega-cities) or near a city of some size. And all are either fairly progressive or have enough influx of folks from other places that they are becoming so.

Charleston probably has the largest Jewish population anywhere in the Carolinas.

Face it though, with baby boomers hitting 60 this year, any nice places on the coast with a moderate climate will soon be over run.

Beach Dweller, what about the Lake Lure Area? Is this close enough to Asheville? Problem is my 8 year old likes to go to sporting events. I thought that Fort Mill would be close enough to Charlotte that it would be more tolerant.
Go Travel- I do not necessarily need to be near a huge jewish population just around some diversity and religious tolerance.
Thank you both for your responses and look forward to anything else you may have to add.

I'd say Asheville. It sounds like a very good match.

One comment about not wanting to be asked about religion. I've recently moved back to a small Southern town after living and working there 20 years ago. I've realized that folks are not prying - they are asking so they can invite you to join their congregation or recommend one for you. I suppose I "knew" but didn't really realize how central the church is in a rural (not just Southern) community for one's social life. It's not just a joke that some folks go to church 3x a week. They do - but as much for social reasons as religious onoes. In rural communitites with limited activities, one's church and the local football team are the center of the community.

Having said all that, Asheville is very liberal, very tolerant and has LOTS of things going on all year round. A friend who moved from Atlanta goes to more concerts, is involved in more activities in Asheville than ever was in Atlanta.

The coastal communities are nice but feel more transient to me. But, that may be more of what you are looking for.

Starrsville,is there enough for an 8 year old and a 4 year old to do in Asheville? My son really loves going to sporting events. Again, we are looking for a vacation spot. Does not have to be liberal but not too conservative either. Aheville sounds nice but may be too far away from sporting events. What about Lake Lure? Is that too boring?

What are you referring to when you ask about "sporting events"? Are you asking about taking them to NBA, NFL, etc. ballgames? If that's what you want, you know what cities to locate to.

There is soooo much for kids to do to stay active - in Asheville and elsewhere. Beach locations offer obvious activities.

One NC friend talks more about MudCats baseball than any other team.

Not sure what you want. My nephew enjoyed Braves games - but heck, we didn't go to that many when he lived in Atlanta. I wouldn't choose a vacation home location based on major league teams. If that's important to you, then take that in consideration I suppose.

Starrsville, I don't have to be in a city to go to a professional game. I was just asking if there are sporting events in the Asheville area to go to. I will not spend most of my time,as you said,at a basketball or football game. But would like to go once in a while.
I guess none of you are familiar with Lake Lure. I hear it was only and hour and a half from Charlotte and an hour from Asheville. Oh well. Thanks for the replies.

Take another look at Fort Mill--or Charlotte proper. We have a wonderfully active Jewish population with a very active large community center. We have a world class hands on science museum. NFL and NBA--AAA baseball (in Fort Mill actually). Our newest "jewel" for children is Imaginon--a downtown facility that incorporates a children's library, theater, and activity museum. Then there is the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center with an opera and symphony, plus Broadway shows and other theater.
Charlotte is now a large cosmopolitan center with many religions and even a few atheists probably. Churches are an important part of life here, as are synagogues. Our Baptist church once housed Temple BethEl until it built its center at the Jewish Community Center. There is also a Hebrew school if that is of interest to you.
In my opinion, Lake Lure is a bit far away from many things.
There are many small communities on the outskirts of Charlotte. I suggest a visit to see what is here.
There are also several art museums, several history museums, plantation historic centers, raptor center, AND we are about 3 hours from the beach and 2 hours from the mountains. A fine corporate community that supports many many projects that contribute to a nice quality of life for all Charlotteans.
Oh, and good restaurants!!

Gretchen,I do plan to come up in a couple of weeks. The reason I asked about Fort Mill was that it did not seem quite as expensive as Davidson,Huntersvill and Lake Norman area. Is this true? Which area is your favorite area within a 20 mile radius of Charlotte? Also, is the crime in the Fort Mill area bad. Or would I be better off in another area surrounding Charlotte?

I am thinking of moving my family south to either North or South Carolina also. My question refers to religion. If you are not religious, are there other acceptable social opportunities? Where we live, many of our neighbors go to Mass daily but that's not something that's discussed with others. Would my children have problems because we would not be affiliated with a church? I love the area and am totally willing to adapt to the regional norms but can't force myself to adhere to any religious aspect. Thanks for any advice.
Sharon

Contrary to popular belief, not everyone in the south goes to church.

My husband and I never go and we aren't the only ones.

No one really cares whether or not you are religious.

My husband did feed most of the rabbis, priests, and preachers when he still actively operated restaurants.

BigA,,,even tho this is not NC or SC and I'm not sure why you have limited a vacation home to those states only, but take a look at bigcanoe.com

It's a gated community about an hour or little more outside of Atlanta in the North Georgia Mountains.

The whole time I was reading this thread I was thinking about Big Canoe as well! I actually have a vacation home in the neighboring community of Bent Tree. I love being in the mountains yet just over an hour to Atlanta. That said, once I leave the gates of my mountain community, I do feel a bit like I'm in hicksville until I hit the Atlanta suburbs about 45 minutes away. But even that seems to be improving little by little...

Ice cu2
I have nothing against other areas,these were just the more popular areas I have heard of.
I checked out the website,looks a little expensive for a vacation home and looks like it is not geared as much to families with young children.
Thanks for the response. Keep them coming.

So much of this just sounds weird. Big Canoe and Bent Tree "not geared as much to families with young children"? Where did that come from?

Which is your preference - mountains or beach?

Why Fort Mill? I'm not sure how you stumbled on it but I wouldn't think of Fort Mill (or Rock Hill or Charlotte) as a vacation home destination.

Yes, we are familiar with Lake Lure. Just can't figure out why that has caught your eye when it doesn't seem to match your criteria. It's beautiful. The HGTV Dream Home is there. Dirty Dancing was filmed there. But, as close as it is to Asheville, it just doesn't seem to match your criteria.

My recommendation would be to meet with a GOOD realtor in the two areas you are interested (Asheville mountains, coastal SC beach) and let me show you some properties and narrow down based on your reactions. When we say "Asheville" we don't (or at least I don't) mean city limits of Asheville. We mean the western NC mountains - it could be Asheville or Hendersonville or Lake Lure, etc.

What kind of budget are you considering? If you have a million, I'd recommend a lake home on a mountain lake in North Ga, or NC/SC area. Do you want a home up on a mountain? Are you willing to be snowed in or out for a while? Does that matter? If you buy at Hilton Head or similar, do you plan to rent out your unit when you aren't there? Do you want a place that is empty when you aren't using it? Do you want it to generate income via rentals?

As GoT pointed out, prices are rising rapidly as the baby boomers age. My "vacation/ retirement" home has doubled in value in just a few years.

Only you know what will make you happy - and maybe you don't know what that is yet. A real estate professional can help you discover that. Good luck with your hunt.

When I buy my vacation home I want it to also be a good investment. I heard that Fort Mill may not be too expensive as compared to the Lake Norman area which already took off. The main reason why I was thinking about staying near Charlotte was because my 8 year old likes to go to sporting events every now and then.
I do want to rent out my vacation home part of the year. This is why I would need to be in a master planned community or at a resort which rents out for you.
I already have my million dollar plus home in Florida. I can not afford another one nor do I want to for my vacation home. When I sell this home down the road,that is when I would get my nice home on a huge lake.
Sorry if I sound like I am all over the place but I hope I made some sense. Again, many people told me the Fort Mill are may take off over the next 5 years and is not as expensive as the Lake Norman area. I just hope I can enjoy it. Wherever I end up I also like to look for commercial raw land 1 to 5 acres that can be developed for small retail. Again, I heard that the Fort Mill area may be good for that. I am always looking for areas where the growth is going in 5 years.
I do not mean to confuse,and thanks again for your help.

check out this website for lake properties in all states -
www.lakehouse.com

You do NOT need to buy in a master planned community in order to rent your house out. Most vacation destinations have realtors who also specialize in vacation rentals.

Again, I just don't see Fort Mill/ Rock Hill/ Charlotte as a vacation destination. I'm sure real estate will appreciate there over time, but I need to drive through that area again soon so see what the draw might be. Most folks consider the western NC mountains or the NC/SC coastal areas when they consider vacation properties. Retirement properties can be different based on a lot of factors.

Still scratching my head over that one, but good luck with your search.

Nice homes can still be had in Bent Tree for around the 150's. I agree with Starrsville that that area makes more sense than the Charlotte suburbs for a vacation home. Wouldn't your son rather watch the Braves play than the...is it the Hornets?