Might be moving to Charleston, SC...

TerryBPP · 05-03-2005, 07:32 AM

With the pending sale of my house down here in SW FL, I am thinking of relocating to Charleston. My fiance is from Charlotte, NC and wants to move back to the country. So with the money I will make off the house down here we want to buy a house. I looked at some houses up online and found that I could move into a nice 4/2-3 for around $300,000.

My problem is I dont know the bad and good locations, having never been there. Can you guys give me a clue as to where to shop or better yet where not to. We want a house never the city but not in the center of it.

Let me know guys. Thanks

boston95 · 05-03-2005, 09:08 AM

Ah, the low country. Heaven on earth. Married my wife in downtown Charleston when I was a young Ensign in the Navy; stationed there for 7 months. I'lll never forget Hootie and the Blowfish made an impromptu showing at the Music Farm (remember, mid-90s this was a big deal) one night. Make sure to make several trips to Wild Wing Cafe. Yum.

Fiance, huh? Well, I hope she's the one because those College of Charleston women will put you to the test.

Oh, where to live......no question: we lived in Mt. Pleasant. Just a bridges drive away from downtown. Great schools, great neighborhoods, 10 min drive from the beach and the largest Plublix you'll ever shop in.

Good luck and tell Teresa in St. John's to stop drunk dialing me.......

djmcmath · 05-03-2005, 09:31 AM

Mt. Pleasant was up and coming in 99 when I was there. They were just getting their first Gap store, for example. Big deal, that. These days, I understand that Mt. Pleasant locals are too cool to go all the way across the bridge into downtown Charleston. A little farther north, North Charleston has some nice places, and isn't too far from anything important.

Have fun.

928ram · 05-03-2005, 09:36 AM

Heaven on earth huh? 24 more days and I'm outta here!

2nd the Mount Pleasant, probably the best all-around area here and the new bridge is due to open any day now so the commute will become easier.
Anything with "Island" or "beach" in it's name along with Isle of Palms.

Goose Creek (where I'm stuck; did I mention 24 more days?) is pretty much generic suburbia, but not a bad area. Summerville is really popular for new construction right now but a bit farther out.

I'd skip North Charleston all together.

Downtown is nice but tends to be congested because the streets were built for horsecarts, plus it's generally high $$$ to get anything livable.

This area is nothing like Charlotte; more like that drive up I-95 - dead flat with nothing but scrubby pines and a palm here and there. And hot.

TerryBPP · 05-03-2005, 09:42 AM

Where is West Ashley is relation to the good places?

928ram · 05-03-2005, 09:55 AM

West Ashley is close in to Charleston proper, I've not had much cause to ever go there but I understand it's pretty decent with a few not so good spots here and there. For some reason problems with the schools over there sticks in my mind, but I'm really not sure.

This area is one that you really have to visit before you really dig in to home shopping, it's got good areas and bad which sometimes are a little close together so you almost have to know the neigborhood as well as the town. Although at 300K you're pretty well insulated from the bad.

TerryBPP · 05-03-2005, 10:02 AM

Its funny. For $300k down here right now you're lucky to get a house with doors. Partial reason for the move. Thanks for you help guys. If you run across any good deals let me know.

928ram · 05-03-2005, 10:13 AM

I was just speaking with a fellow yesterday about local RE values (we don't own here), he seemed to idicate that values were on a healthy upswing over the past year or so; might be a real good time to buy.