Help us find a place to live (again) (SE USA)

In My Humble Opinion
1

About 8 months ago, my husband and I moved to Australia, where he’s from, in order to be closer to his family (his father was very sick) and to do the Australian lifestyle thing. We’ve decided it’s not working out for either of us. My father-in-law has since passed away. We’re both really homesick for the U.S. (which has been a funny thing for my husband to go through). We can’t really live the lifestyle we could in the U.S. because our money just doesn’t go as far here. Sooooo, we’re coming home (eventually, like maybe in about 18 months or so).

Where should we live?

Here are our criteria:
[ul]
[li]on the East Coast, between (or including) Virginia and Florida[/li][li]3-4 bedroom houses can be bought around the $150k price range[/li][li]proximity to a body of water (anything…ocean, river, lake, pond) is a plus[/li][li]proximity to a university and/or some sort of “culture” is a plus[/li][li]diversity of people (i.e., we would prefer not to live somewhere where we’ll be the only “outsiders”)[/li][li]cool falls and cold-ish winters (snow isn’t necessary, but I have to at least be able to wear my sweaters)[/li][li]the X-factor…that certain coolness that some towns have…you know what I mean[/li][/ul]

A job isn’t too big of an issue (my husband is a PT), but he currently holds a South Carolina license, so a SC town with the above criteria would be the most preferable. We used to live in Surfside Beach (just south of Myrtle Beach) and the area was okay, but too resort-y and a little lacking in the cultcha. Truth be told, unless we find something that’s an absolute perfect fit, we’ll probably end up going back to that area, but with your help, maybe I’ll be saved!!

Places we’ve considered (and we’ve just started thinking about it, so the list is a little short):
Columbia, SC - don’t know much about it, though
Greenville, SC - pretty much ruled out because I can’t see myself taking an art class at Bob Jones or Furman
Asheville, NC - has everything, but the real estate prices may be out of our league

2

I would recommend the Charlottesville, VA area. If I weren’t stuck here in Massachusetts, I move move there in a heartbeat. I have tried to before even though I have no ties to the area. Houses in town may be more expensive than you desire but it gets much cheaper as you move away from town.

3

I love Columbia - it’s my home, though, so I’m not coming at it as an outsider. One can buy fairly big houses for not much money, particularly if one dosen’t mind living in the “high growth” part of town, in the northeast. Unfortunately, that’s the part of town with the lowest diversity - white middle class families with kids. However, it’s still quite possible to find large houses in your price range elsewhere (on the east side, where we are, for example) in more diverse areas that are still very nice. (It is more expensive to really live “in town”, but even living out the farthest you can live is only about a thirty minute commute almost everywhere.)

There’s a lake nearby, Lake Murray, for boating and fishing and such. People also go to other lakes in the state for fishing and boating and other recreational water use, and the beach is a few hours away. It’s also only 4ish hours from Atlanta and maybe 2 or so from historic Charleston.

It has a university, state government, and Fort Jackson. The university brings a lot of different people here, from many countries and backgrounds. (So does the fort, in a different way.)

The library (Richland County) was Library of the Year in 2001 and is quite excellent. One might think that a city in South Carolina is by definition not a city of readers, but one would be quite wrong. You can get quite a good education in local schools (but it does help to watch the districts when you buy your home.)

It gets cold enough for me - right now it’s 28 outside and you better believe I’ll be wearing my sweaters all week. It does get quite warm in the summers, although the last few have not been up to historical heights. In a “normal” summer it will top 100 several days. It is also pretty humid, and people from elsewhere sometimes find it difficult.

I’d suggest a visit, really, to find out how cool my town really is. There’s a great zoo, a nice State museum and a decent art one, many historic houses and other buildings, a large university, old tree-lined neighborhoods, etc. I think it’s a great place to live.

4

Shagnasty, you know, we had discussed living in Charlottesville many years ago, but for some reason, it didn’t occur to us for this move. I guess we assumed that it would be too expensive. My uncle actually lives outside of Charlottesville and works at UVA, so we’ve been up there, and you’re right - it’s fantastic. I might have to check out the latest housing costs.

Zsofia, I’ve actually been to Columbia, but only for business meetings, so I didn’t get to see much of it, just a bit of downtown. Could you tell me the names of some of the cool neighborhoods and which are the better school districts? The fact that it’s the capital and that USC is there are huuuuuuuuge plusses for me. Lake Murray appeals to my husband. Also, since we lived in Myrtle, we have some good friends there, who would be nice to have within driving distance. Anything you could tell me about different residential districts, outlying suburbs, etc., would be hugely appreciated. I looked at some houses online in Lexington…how’s that area? We’re sort of in the position that wherever we move, unless it’s back to the Grand Strand, will be sight-unseen (or little-seen). We’ll have to set up apartment stuff & job from overseas.

5

Hampton/Newport News/Yorktown/Gloucester/Norfolk/Suffolk/Virginia Beach, VA

6

The northeast part (I-20/I-77 corridor), which I believe is Richland District 2. Also, the northwest part (Irmo and environs). I believe that is Lexington-Richland District 5. Lexington District 1 is also very good (town of Lexington). Traffic is a little intense, but rush hour in Columbia is still not like rush hour in a “real city.” If I were choosing based on school districts, I’d be looking at those areas.

7

I’m sorry I missed this earlier - didn’t realize the thread was still active. If you ask me, and I do have allegiances and attatchments, the best place for kids is Richland 1, particularly to end up at Dreher or Flora for high school. These are “in-town” districts. The awesome 40’s bungalow neighborhood is Shandon, but that’s out of your price range. You can live in-town less expensively off of Trenholm Dr., however, in split levels and ranches. The high growth part of town is the Northeast, the school district is Richland 2. The big “new” high school out there is Ridgeview, but they’re building Blythewood High and that will take some of the load off. Blythewood is sort of the “farthest point” for what people consider a usual commute, at about 30 or 40 minutes. Some of the big “planned communities” out there are Lake Carolina, The Summit, Wildewood, etc. Houses are quite inexpensive out there but they’re less diverse also - white families with kids. Lots and lots of kids.

Another high-growth area is out 26 westbound, towards Irmo (and to a lesser extent West Columbia and Lexington.) It also suffers from being very white and somewhat “family” but is close to the lake. I believe that school district is Lexington 1. To use the Richland County library from Lexington is a 60$ annual fee, which may or may not be an issue for you.

You can also get a relatively inexpensive house fairly close in (possibly for more than you were planning, you’d have to see) in the southeast end of town, out Sumter Highway/Garners’ Ferry Rd. I’m currently living with my family behind the Veteran’s Hospital, where the houses get pretty big for varying prices. You can go out to Hopkins and Lower Richland, which is still in Richland I district but the high school is Lower Richland, for not a whole lot of money. That’s the end of town I’m most familiar with.

Honestly, personally I’d always rather live in-town. The commute isn’t an issue really (at least for me - I’ve lived in Atlanta) but the sense of living in a diverse community that’s not all cookie-cutter is. Realtor.com is good if you know the neighborhood names; the “real estate” names are not always the same as what the residents call them! Please let me know if I can help you with anything; hell, I’ll be happy to see houses and take pictures for you if you’d like. I love this town myself (although I’m a little biased) and I’d be glad to help with anything I can. (Ask me real nice and I might swing you a deal on a hotel room, too.)

8

I’m sorry, Irmo is Lexington district 5.

9

Why not Charleston, SC? It is the only place I’ve ever been in South Carolina, but it was really funky and beautiful and historic, with wonderful food and gorgeous architecture. Not sure how the economy is, though. If not, what about Savannah, GA? Very similar city (both are coastal), and I know the Savannah College of Art and Design is right there.

10

Honestly, Greensboro is a great place for what you are asking, except for that in many aspects not much really seems to be happening. In the imeadiate city there are very liberal colleges in historicaly important districts that give a great old v. new vibe while providing many unique housing and culture activites. Low crime rate, medium price of living, and shopping possibilities in every cardinal direction. On the outskirts of Greensboro you will find many bodies of water and natural wilderness along with a nicely priced housing market - provided you go to the right areas. Probably, though, you could find yourself a nice 2000-3000sq ft. house that would be around 4 bedrooms for $200,000 or less.

Other than that, I would suggest the North Carolina coast, primarily the Outer Banks, although I would imagine you would have hurricanes and high priced housing to contend with.

11

Based on your criteria, I’d look into the following cities. I’ll list them from North to South. The more North you are, the more you can wear your sweaters and sometimes see snow.

Charlottesville, VA
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, NC (The Triangle)
Asheville, NC
Wilmington, NC
Charleston, SC
Athens, GA
Savannah, GA
St. Augustine, FL
Tallahassee, FL
Gainesville, FL

Houses will probably be the highest in Charleston, Asheville and the Triangle of NC. Maybe Charlottesville too, I’m not sure about this one.

All these towns have a metro population of between 100,000 to 500,000 with the exception of St. Augustine being part of the Jacksonville metro of over a million and the Triangle Area of NC also being around 1 million.

Along with Asheville, the big university towns of Athens, Charlottesville, Tallahassee and Gainesville will probably have a more funky vibe for their size.

Of them all, I think that Asheville has the best “x” factor as you describe it.