If you are leaving where you live because you hate it there, don’t try to change our place when you move here.
It’s always infuriating to hear people move to the Lowcountry because they love the way it is, only to complain that stuff ain’t done the way it was back home. Well then, if it was so great back home, why did you leave?
this is exactly what happened in Florida. everyone moved down to get away from the NE, then set up these communities with all kinds of rules. i got fined 3 times in one week visiting.
but to answer the OP, i do not live in charleston, just a little south. traffic is not too bad most of the time. i like to visit every few weeks because they have all the best shops.
Reminds me of a t-shirt I saw years ago: “Personally, I don’t care how you did it up North.”
13ft Whaler with 25hp Johnson
If you’re lucky enough to be fishing, you’re lucky enough.
Summerville here - 4 years in the area. I will follow your format…
I thought people would respect personal property - but I was completely wrong. Our neighborhood has been subject to mulitple rashes of broad daylight break ins. My house has been vandalized twice, my boat and dock have been robbed/messed with - via the water.
Move out in the country - Awendaw or similar. Closer to the coast. We moved to Summerville for Dorchester II Schools. They are flat out horrible - horrible. They adopted common core before the state did - kids with special needs are **** out of luck, advanced kids are sitting around waiting on everyone else. I would say that 30% of our friends are pulling their kids to homeschool - so are we.
I LOVE living here - but I miss the Chesapeake Bay. And thats not a negative to Charleston.
As a family, we fit into the local culure - I even think we enjoy it more than some locals… we are not here to change anything - but we were flat out suprised by the concerns above and the crime rate in general.
I thought about moving to Charleston from the upstate, moved to Georgetown, Pawleys to be exact. They can cart me out of here in a pine box. Charleston is an hour away if I need it. Myrtle Beach is 30min to 1hr depending on the time of year. Only have to deal with traffic in tourist season and even then it isn’t bad. wintertime the place is virtually deserted. Crime ain’t bad, Waccamaw Neck schools are good with plenty of private school options as well. Can fish fresh or saltwater whichever need strikes me. Hunting is great and close by.
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
My wife and I moved here 7 years ago. I was in the DC metro area, my wife was living in San Diego. Its the best thing that either of us ever did. Love the people, the restaurants, outdoor stuff to do, fishing the beach. If I could roll back the clock I would have moved here sooner and tried to put enough $$ together to get on SI. I don’t miss anything about DC, but I;m originally from the UK and the only thing I miss from there are old country pubs.
Dear Surf…Come on over. You can choose a really nice place from the coast to the mountains, and never be more than a few hours from either. The coast is quite long and diverse from Little River to Hilton Head Island. The upstate has beautiful mountain vistas, and true 4 season weather. There are beautiful black water rivers and lakes and rolling hills in the Midlands. You can bet that the choices are all truly great values, and like I said you are only a few hours drive from anywhere in the state to most any other part. Don’t get stuck on just the Charleston market…explore the state that has “Beautiful Places and Smiling Faces”. South Carolina is immersed in history, culture, and outdoor beauty of spectacular variety. We’re proud of our state, and quite happy that the vast majority of chuckle heads in the world don’t know about it.
My 2 cents would be to move inland a bit and get some acreage while it’s still affordable. Nothing like peeing off the back porch and walking your property without having a bunch of neighbors staring at you. I hate crowed areas and traffic. Love the rural scene.
I did the acreage thing (25 acres and a house on Lookout Mtn in Alabama) a couple of decades ago and figured out it wasn’t for me. I felt like I had a second job mowing. There were lots of cool things like walking out and seeing deer and turkeys in the yard, and having a pond with plenty of largemouth to catch. And of course, just whippin’ it out and peeing wherever. My wife-at-the-time used to laugh because I’d be inside and I’d walk outside to pee. Hey, I like to conserve water. But I like to travel and I like to fish and generally do what I want when I want, so I don’t want acreage.
What I would like is a backyard big enough for a small veggie garden, a nice outdoor patio, and a separate workshop/man cave to store boat, mowers, etc. I’ve driven around the area some and liked the Maybank Hwy/Bohicket Rd area, Fort Johnson Rd, Mt Pleasant, and I like Meggett but that is a little further out than I want to be. I don’t have kids in school, but want a decent school system since that has such an impact on a community. Being somewhat close to a nice boat ramp would be a plus. And just to dream a little…I’d like to have a neighbor with an offshore boat and I’ll have an inshore boat and we will fish our happy a$$es off.
13ft Whaler with 25hp Johnson
If you’re lucky enough to be fishing, you’re lucky enough.
Dear Surf…Come on over. You can choose a really nice place from the coast to the mountains, and never be more than a few hours from either. The coast is quite long and diverse from Little River to Hilton Head Island. The upstate has beautiful mountain vistas, and true 4 season weather. There are beautiful black water rivers and lakes and rolling hills in the Midlands. You can bet that the choices are all truly great values, and like I said you are only a few hours drive from anywhere in the state to most any other part. Don’t get stuck on just the Charleston market…explore the state that has “Beautiful Places and Smiling Faces”. South Carolina is immersed in history, culture, and outdoor beauty of spectacular variety. We’re proud of our state, and quite happy that the vast majority of chuckle heads in the world don’t know about it.
Sol Mate
Mako 20B
225 Optimax
You should do a commercial for SC! And I agree with you, SC is a wonderful state. TX used to be my favorite since that is where I grew up, but I think I like SC even better.
13ft Whaler with 25hp Johnson
If you’re lucky enough to be fishing, you’re lucky enough.
I never thought I would say this but… after spending two years in Beaufort right after getting married, I miss the accessibility of the water there when compared to Charleston.
You will find that the job market is a bit softer in Charleston than in Atlanta. Not sure about all industries, but in mine (Software and IT), you can expect to take about a 30% pay cut to work in a company down here. The key is to work for an out of state company and work remotely. That’s what I do
I’ve always said, there are only a few places that I would be willing to live long term: Sydney, Miami, Charleston. Fortunately, I have had the opportunity to live in all 3. Charleston can get a bit small sometimes compared to other places, but it’s a great place to live. Miami is no longer on my “long term” list. I still love to visit there, but day to day life is much easier in Charleston than in Miami, if you don’t enjoy dealing with assholes.
Cost of homeowners insurance can be a costly surprise on the coast. Sometimes 2x the normal homeowners policy cost. Public schools can be an issue…there are still some good ones. As the old saying goes…location, location, location. Check the property taxes also.
I never thought I would say this but… after spending two years in Beaufort right after getting married, I miss the accessibility of the water there when compared to Charleston.
Beaufort is very appealing but I am afraid that the job market would be too restrictive for me. That is why I am looking at Charleston and Jacksonville. I’d prefer CHS over JAX, but I would prefer either one to Atlanta.
13ft Whaler with 25hp Johnson
If you’re lucky enough to be fishing, you’re lucky enough.
Couldn’t have said it any better. And yes, there are many people moving down here and being local since I was born, it frustrates me that Charleston is not the same. It is more tourist than local to me. I see more out of state license plates than I do SC plates
quote:Originally posted by claim
My only advice is:
If you are leaving where you live because you hate it there, don’t try to change our place when you move here.
It’s always infuriating to hear people move to the Lowcountry because they love the way it is, only to complain that stuff ain’t done the way it was back home. Well then, if it was so great back home, why did you leave?
/my rant’s over.
“I am constantly amazed at the stupidity of the general public.”
~my dad
Equipment:
190cc Sea Pro w/130 Johnson
1- 18 year old ( has decided being with parents isn’t cool)
1 - 15 year old (still does not mind hanging with the 'rents)
1 - wife (The Warden)
I never thought I would say this but… after spending two years in Beaufort right after getting married, I miss the accessibility of the water there when compared to Charleston.
Beaufort is very appealing but I am afraid that the job market would be too restrictive for me. That is why I am looking at Charleston and Jacksonville. I’d prefer CHS over JAX, but I would prefer either one to Atlanta.
13ft Whaler with 25hp Johnson
If you’re lucky enough to be fishing, you’re lucky enough.
You’re not kidding. Those two years I drove from Beaufort to North Charleston every week day for work.
I would not recommend it.
That being said, right after we moved back they finished widening 17 the whole way down there and bumping the speed limit. When I was driving it was always under construction with reduced speed limits.
