relocation
 

I am interested in any info on living in central/western NC. My husband and I are thinking of Ashville. We are 30 and 33, with a 3 year old and a 10 month old. We live in Pensacola, Fl now and plan to leave in a little over a year. We have lived in Peoria, IL and Atlanta, GA. My husband is a mechanicl engineer with tons of experience. The problem is, he gets bored or we hate the area we chose to live in. We love the mountains and small towns. We do prefer to live semi-close to a larger town for some shopping, arts, fun, ect. We have also thought of virginia. Not familiar at all with Virginia. Need a fun amd family friendly town we can grow old in. We no longer want to move around and are looking for our new home sweet home.

Boy is this a reoccurring theme! The areas that you are mentioning are not exactly hot spots of economic growth and industry. I would strongly suggest you do some research on where your husband could find a job first and then go from there. You can look at www.findyourspot.com and it may help narrow down your choices.

I agree Leahinsc, this is a becoming common.

Sillybilly, how did you come up with Asheville? Was it from something like findyourspot.com or a friend's recommendation?

I wouldn't move without a job, but that's my style.

Lawsy, is everyone moving to the mountains of NC/GA?

Go: Well, <i>I'm</i> not, but it sure seems like it, doesn't it? I guess places like Asheville or Austin seem like cultural oases or something....

Most I know of are doing it because they're getting the cooler summer weather, while still enjoying the benefits of being in the south. They're also getting away from the hustle and bustle of larger cities while still having Asheville nearby for cultural amenities and a somewhat larger city feel, which includes incredible views.

First of all, what's wrong with wanting to relocate to a nicer part of the country. It sounds like we are trying to invade your space or something. We have lived in too many big cities over a ten year period and are tired of it. We always loved NC and we love the mountains. We have been to find your spot.com and Asheville did come up number one. That doesn't mean we will love it, but Asheville does sound nice and peaceful. We plan to visit over Thanksgiving break. We have always moved for the job and now we want to move for us. The job will follow. We want to make a good effort for our future and stop letting jobs, ect. dictate our happiness. NC is also a good location for us to stay close enough to family who are in FL. Thank you for your responses. I really do appreciate a helpful attitude.

Asheville is getting prohibitly expensive.

There is a new subdivision up the road from my mother in laws that isn't anything special and the homes start at $1 million.

This is at least the nine or tenth post on moving to this area.

Do a search on &quot;moving&quot; or &quot;relocating&quot; and you'll see what we mean.

sillybilly, glad to know findyourspot puts you in Asheville. I guess what Leah and I were getting at is your the thrid or fourth person recently asking about moving to Asheville.

The search function here is kind-of faulty (ok, it is faulty), but if you click under North Carolina you should see some other responses.

Good luck.

Sillybilly- There have been several posts recently from people seeking to relocate to Asheville, NC or nearby areas. If you do a search for Asheville, you can see what has been said. The posts have received many responses, and I think some fodorites may be tiring of them. The original posters often seem to have a condescending attitude towards the South even though they are interested in moving here. The typical post is something like this: &quot;I want to move to Asheville from [insert northern state here], I want to live a simpler life out of the fast lane and where the cost of living is lower but I still want plenty of cultural opportunities, 5* vegetarian restaurants, excellent schools, lots of other liberals like me, and a high paying job.&quot;

Thanks everyone. I will do a NC search and see what comes up. One other alternative for us is Roanoke, VA. I have never been there, but it also came up on findyourspot.com. I have heard that Virginia is beautiful, But like NC, it is a big state to narrow down. Thanks again!!

I did want to mention that Pensacola is also expensive. We moved here in December of 2004. We bought a 2500 sqft brick house for 350,000K. We paid 80,000 more than what the previous owners paid when they bought it only eleven months before us. They sold due to all the hurricanes. It is a nice upscale neighborhood in the NE escambia county area. We just hate FL. We grew up in S FL. Housing is such a rip off right now and I know it's not going to get any better. It's hard to find that dream home now a days.

Sillybilly...Living in Asheville it seems that every morning when we turn on the TV we hear about another factory that is downsizing, closing or moving out of the country - occasionally, very occasionally, we'll hear about one moving in or expanding but it never seems to equal out. My husband and I feel very fortunate to have jobs. Asheville is THE most expensive area in NC, thanks to housing costs, utlitities, medical care, gas prices, etc. I live within walking distance of downtown Asheville in a nice but not fancy neighborhood that has issues with crime and drugs and a 1500sq ft house built in 1927 on .1 acre just sold for $265,000 - in ONE week.
As I have said before in these postings - while it is important to find a place that you like in terms of lifestyle, culture, weather etc - because of the economic conditions here it is just not a place to come without a job offer or at least some very good prospects. Some other areas that are relatively close by that you may want to check into - Greenville and Spartanburg SC, Hickory/Lenoir, NC. I have also heard good things about the Roanoke area and while I think N.GA is really beautiful I am not sure what there is going on in terms of jobs.
Best wishes to you and your family. I

Unfortunately, Asheville and the surrounding area is no different than most of the rest of the country when it comes to plants closing and jobs moving offshore. That's the world we now live in.

On the other hand, Asheville has consistently had the lowest unemployment rate of medium and larger-size cities in NC in the last few years. It has weathered many of these plant closings (many of which, to be honest, have occurred outside of Asheville). I will also say that I know experienced engineers are still in demand by some employers in the area. Your husband may not be happy with the cost of living and wages he finds in this area, but that's offset by the quality of life for many of us.

At the last second, my friend who was moving to Asheville changed her mind. The home owners (I was wrong when I said they bought it already) in High Vista made a counter-offer, so my friends were off the hook on their offer. Their reasons included, but were by no means soley based upon, the high cost of real estate.

SO...there is at least one engineering job still open in Asheville (The one my friend's husband turned down, sorry I don't know the company).

They've left their house on the market, and plan to build in northern G'ville, (S.C.) county in the future. Apparently all the driving back and forth to A'ville made them realize how close you are to the mountains if you live on the &quot;right&quot; side of town!

Litespeed - yeah...maybe they can look into Tryon/Saluda area...that's sort of midway. The worst time for traffic on 26 into Asheville is during leaf season for the lookers, Bele Chere or of course an accident on 40 heading west which will tie up things for miles. My husband sells round houses if they are interested in something like that.

Anyone know anything about living in Blacksburg, VA? Is it a nice family town? I came upon it while looking around the mountain regions of NC and VA. I still have hopes for Asheville, but we do need a backup if it doesn't work out. Also, what are the major professional companies in Asheville? What are these people doing for a living in order to pay for these exspensive houses.

Blacksburg is a university town, home to Virginia Tech. It's nice, but it's definitely a college town. It is relatively close to Roanoke, however (about 45 minutes' drive).

The major employers in the Asheville area that might be most likely to hire mechanical engineers are Eaton Cutler Hammer (I know several who work there), Volvo Construction Equipment (which has its headquarters and a plant in Asheville), and BorgWarner (which just announced an expansion last week).

Thank you very much. My husband has informed me that he is a software engineer. I guess there is big difference between a software engineer and a mechanicl engineer. Who Knew...

What about Charlottesville, VA?

Sillybilly - while I find it rather strange/curious that you didn't realize your husband was a software engineer and not a mechanical engineer I'll go ahead and answer a couple of your questions...As to how people are affording these expensive houses in Asheville 1. They lived here before they got expensive and now they can't afford to move; 2. They can't afford them and live in outlying areas like Madison County; 3. They move from more expensive areas like the North/New England/California and then this area seems relatively cheap
As far as employers for your husband in software engineering...you should look into local papers and their on-line classified ads for employment or look at monster.com.

Now that is strange. YOu might think about the Research Triangle.

leah, don't leave out South Florida. It seems like everyone is moving from South Florida.

My mother and father in law afford their house because they've lived in it for 50 years and my mother in laws hobby since the beginning of time is buying up real estate. Not selling, just buying and sitting on real estate.

My husband graduated with his master's in mechanical engineering and he has held different positions with various jobs. With two young children to care for I guess I never realized that his title had changed. I never really gave that much thought. He is very talented, but to be honest, I don't always understand what he is talking about when we disscuss his work. He is posted on Monster and we will continue to look online for employment .
Research Triangle is a possibility for us. We were just trying to get closer to the mountains first. We are concerned about the build up in that particular area over the next five plus years though. Chapel Hill sounds pretty. Not sure if it's got that small town feel we are looking for to raise our children. Housing seems possible out there so far(Chapel Hill).
Thanks so much for everyone's help.

I don't know if 'small town' and software engineer positions coincide.

Gotravel, I agree. We wish we had other skills that could be used outside of the city. I guess we are hoping for a nice medium town that my husband could maybe communte a short distance. He is concidering starting his own contracting company. He is tired of working towards other peoples goals and not his own. We know it will be difficult, but not impossible.

My husband and I do not have children, but we are in our 30's and are looking for a lot of dif. things incl. a lower cost of living than Long Island NY, mountain views, and much less snow. So we had done years of research, finally came up with 2 places, the first one and where we will prob. end up is Knoxville Tn. The second ares is Winston/Salem NC. There are jobs there (for instance Dell just moved in there) and both areas have all we are looking for. We are going this coming wk to just pick the one we like best. But if you want to stay in NC, check out Winston-Salem and the surrounding towns to live....btw, they are both up and coming cities.
Just a thought.....faythe
PS- we have 2 other friends(couples) and one has a baby, that are relocating to Knoxville soon, and we know one other couple from Long Island who moved last year with 5 kids.

I forgot to mention in my last post, we did check out Ashville NC too. My husband is a musician and it is an artsy area - but the area is very expensive. It reminds me of the Hamptons on Long Island (although not as expensive I'm sure). faythe

www.franklin-chamber.com My wife and I operate business in Atlanta and found this hidden treasure just 2 hours from Atlanta. (1 hour from Asheville). Purchased mountain home with 60 mile views and acreage under 200. We commute practically every weekend. Will soon &quot;retire&quot; there. Every activity and culture very close by.

As the old saying goes, be careful what you wish for. Moving to a small town sounds wonderful but it is a big adjustment and a culture shock. It's a totally different way of life and is not for everyone. After 2 years I have realized that &quot;country livin&quot; isn't really my thing but like someone else mentioned it has gotten to the point where you can't afford to move. I have watched homes in the large cities near me double in value within the last 2 years. I can't say the same where I am. I guess if I wait long enough the city will come to me in time. You say you get bored with the towns you live in - you might want to keep that in mind when looking at small towns. Those cute little shops close and roll up the sidewalks, at least around here, by 5 p.m. In this day and age I'm stunned that someone would move first and expect a good job to follow, but maybe in your husbands profession it's possible. Have you checked any of these towns stats as far as economy, schools and crime rates? I would check into the Cary or Apex areas as another possibility. Think twice - move once is my advice.

Wow! thanks so much for all the input. We are now thinking that Roanoke,Va or Charlottesville, VA would be a nice place to relocate. We are planning on going up Thanksgiving week to check them out. Any input on those cities would be great. Believe me, we only want to move once. We will continue to research and mull it all over until the move is possible.

I came across this site while I too look for info on relocating to Western NC. I just wanted to say that I just came back from a week trip to Franklin, NC with my 5 year old daughter and 2 dogs. We are going to move from SW Fl soon- so we went to check it out and it is beautiful. I have been doing research for these areas as well, as I am looking to simplify our lives. I too would like to have all the culture along with other things. I choose not to spend as much as it takes to get into those areas. In Franklin there is Drake's Software which is the largest employeer in Franklin. You would be close to Ashville, Atlanta and Greenville, SC. I have lived in many places and I want to enjoy what I have and not work to have. It isn't a big town but it has enough, Lowe's, Wal-Mart, K-Mart- restaurants,movie theatre a Fun Factory for the kids. I fell in love with Cowee Valley. Go to http://www.coweeharmonygardens.com and look how awesome and beautiful. Who knows maybe we'll meet up there.

Also to check out this posting- go to MSN Real Estate 8 cheap place you'd want to live- Ashville is # 1.

SillyBilly - Since you are coming up to Asheville around Thanksgiving, I'd highly suggest that you check out Polk County while you are here. It is about 45 minutes south of Asheville, just off of 26, one exit above the South Carolina border. It has a great small town character to it (Tryon, Saluda, Columbus)....lots of nice mountains, flatlands, streams, forests, horse farms, vineyards, organic gardens, a little theatre, and an interesting history.

Many writers, artists and actors live here. For a tiny area, there are lots of activities and groups to get involved with, if that is the sort of thing you like to do.

You can hike, tube on the Green River, kayak, etc. Rents are reasonable, and real estate has not gone through the roof yet. People are friendly. They'll chat with you in the grocery store line, wave as you pass their house, and tip their hat as they pass on the sidewalk.

Jobs are almost non-existent, which is probably why the cost of living remains low. But, if you are willing to spend a little time in the car in exchange for the lifestyle....Spartanburg, South Carolina is only about 20 minutes away....Greenville is 40 to 45 minutes away and hosts large companies like BMW and many smaller ones where your husband might find employment.

Also, many people move here and make dramatic life-style changes....creating their own jobs or switching careers.

It's definitely worth looking into.

Many of us &quot;transplants&quot; to the area love the moderate year-round temperatures, the fact that we get to experience all four seasons and the slow pace of life surrounded by awesome beauty.

Just a leisurely Sunday drive around the county would show you what we have to offer here, and newcomers are always welcomed with open arms.

Since this post is over a year old, I'd bet sillybilly has moved by now.