Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

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Longtimelurker
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Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by Longtimelurker »

My wife and I are looking to move to a lower cost of living area with better weather. We currently make $250k - $350k per year in NYC. This doesn't go very far and we live in a 1200 SqFt apartment for $4k per month. We are looking to move south for a better quality of life. Our income would only go down about $10k per year due to the move. Our #1 choice at the moment is Charleston, SC - and specifically Mount Pleasant. Does anyone have experience moving from the HCOL North East to the South? What was your experience? Opinions on Charleston? Any other thoughts that could aid us in this critical decision?
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ivyhedge
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by ivyhedge »

Close relatives relocated last August from downstate NY to Beaufort, SC.

They love certain aspects of the state (mainly lessening of the financial noose), but dislike the state's politics (they knew what they were getting into). Utilities are costlier (per unit of use) than expected, but most expenses are substantially discounted.

One curious note was that they thought the SC income tax forms for partial time periods were convoluted. I recall the same thing after moving to Cola 15 years ago (I'm no longer there).

Charleston will remind you of NY: especially with so many NY plates you'll see in the summers...Much good, though, in that town.
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3CT_Paddler
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by 3CT_Paddler »

Grew up in Charleston, and I still have family there. Mount Pleasant is probably one of the more desirable areas because of the schools and proximity to the beach. It's relatively expensive, but it sounds like you can afford the area at your projected salary. Traffic has progressively worsened, especially in that area. The summers are another level of hot, and the mosquitos are awful for a couple months. With a couple universities in the area (College of Charleston, The Citadel, Charleston Southern), there is a lot of youth, culture, arts downtown.

I would definitely visit and get a feel for the area before making any permanent moves... especially in July/August.
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You get to leave the cockroaches behind in NYC.
They are called Palmetto Bugs in SC.
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by TT »

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bigfun
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by bigfun »

I spent a year in "low country" and I felt relatively isolated in terms of access to air travel. If you've never *not* lived close to a major airport, you may want to consider how your travel plans will change. If you don't have a tight travel schedule, it is workable. It's easy to take a major international airport for granted - without it, you're losing a day on either end because your flexibility decreases. I may be overthinking the air travel aspect, but that's the first thing I remember, and I'm prone to cabin fever.

All the best with your decision!
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by stan1 »

bigfun wrote:I spent a year in "low country" and I felt relatively isolated in terms of access to air travel. If you've never *not* lived close to a major airport, you may want to consider how your travel plans will change. If you don't have a tight travel schedule, it is workable. It's easy to take a major international airport for granted - without it, you're losing a day on either end because your flexibility decreases. I may be overthinking the air travel aspect, but that's the first thing I remember, and I'm prone to cabin fever.

All the best with your decision!
Air travel is a little better (and cheaper) now with Southwest and Jet Blue flying into CHS. There are some nonstop flights to Boston, JFK, LGA, EWR, DCA and Miami in addition to the usual East Coast/Midwest hubs.

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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by Watty »

I was in a much different position but years ago I moved from the Bay Area to Oregon to get more affordable housing and to improve the quality of my life.

The more affordable housing was nice but realistically on a day to day basis you get pretty used to where you are living, unless you have a bad commute. Having a house in Oregon compared to an apartment in the Bay Area was nice enough but all the other quality of life advantages of Oregon are what I found to be the biggest advantage of moving. Pay a lot of attention to that and less on the cost of living since that is not a big issue to you.

Choosing to move to a different area with a better quality of life was one of the best decisions I have ever made made.

I've only been to Charleston a few times to visit and I am sure that it has lots of nice areas but I was not overly impressed by the city. It would be good to be open to other alternatives and travel to see some other possible locations.
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by fishndoc »

While I have not lived in Charleston, I have spent a good bit of time in Savannah.
For someone not personally familiar with the heat and humidity you will be facing, I would highly recommend spending maybe a month - July or August - in Charleston before making the move. I realize some people can deal with it, but some of us can't.
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jaj2276
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by jaj2276 »

OP, I made your exact move 6 years ago after living in Manhattan (3 yrs) and Long Island (3 yrs). I'm not a native New Yorker (and don't know if you are) so moving FROM New York (to anywhere) was very appealing. Needless to say, I love it and can't imagine not living here.

Mt Pleasant is a great area (it's where I live) but its housing isn't as cheap as I had hoped (i.e. for $450k, I have a 3000 sqft house with 1/3 of an acre - I was hoping to get that for $250-$300k). You can find cheap(er) housing within Mt Pleasant, but you'll need to go farther north on US-17 to get it. Depending on where you'll work, going north on US-17 might not be the best choice.

I'm not sure what the poster who posted the "quality of life" statistics was trying to prove. Here's a blurb from an article in the local newspaper here (Post & Courier):

--- [snip] ---
More than 38 percent of Charleston County residents 25 or older have a bachelor's degree or higher. Nationally, the average is 28.5 percent, and statewide, fewer than one in four have such a credential.

"Educational attainment in greater Charleston is higher than in the United States overall. In fact, Charleston ranks among the top 15% of all U.S. metropolitan and micropolitan areas in terms of the proportion of residents holding advanced degrees," says the Charleston Regional Development Alliance on its website.
--- [/snip] ---

The article can be read at http://www.postandcourier.com/article/2 ... /140209607.

We have low taxes down here and a big reason for that is the government tends to run on the small(er) side and doesn't provide every service that you might be used to where you're at.

Anyways, feel free to PM me if you want any more details.
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by ychuck46 »

We left Upstate NY four years ago for TN. While I cannot speak for the Charleston area, I can speak for much of the South in general. Our costs dropped dramatically - substantially lower property taxes, no state income taxes, utilities (except for water) that are decidedly lower, and so on. The wool was pulled over the eyes of many in NY for years, mostly to mask the general fraud/waste in the state, and the extremely high welfare costs. Leave that state to the zombies and save yourselves a few $. Oh yeah, Southern people are extremely friendly and very generous of their time and effort. Good luck.
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by LadyGeek »

This thread is now in the Personal Consumer Issues forum (moving).
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by fishnskiguy »

I lived in Mt. Pleasant for nine years during three Navy tours in Charleston/King Bay GA. Although I am a cold weather person by nature, I loved Charleston. Great food and you will be amazed by how much less a really fine dining experienced will cost compared to NYC.

Yeah, it's hot, but so is NYC in August. It's just hot four months longer, but you get monster thunderstorms often enough to ease the heat.

If we ever had to leave the Colorado Rockies and go back east, Charleston/Mt. Pleasant would be the only place we would consider. OK, maybe Savanna.

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22twain
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by 22twain »

jaj2276 wrote:We have low taxes down here
Property taxes are low, but the state income tax is rather high: top bracket is 7% and you reach it very quickly, at $14,250 for married filing jointly.
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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by one »

22twain wrote: Property taxes are low, but the state income tax is rather high: top bracket is 7% and you reach it very quickly, at $14,250 for married filing jointly.
Comparing state income tax rates isn't enough for the complete picture. In South Carolina, the base for that 7% is Federal Taxable income. Compare that to Connecticut, for example, where the rate is smaller (3%-6.7%), but the base is greater, Federal Adjusted Gross Income. For many, the reduction in the base due to federal deductions and exemptions will lead to less tax due in SC than in CT even though the rate is greater in SC.

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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by Random Musings »

Longtimelurker wrote:My wife and I are looking to move to a lower cost of living area with better weather. We currently make $250k - $350k per year in NYC. This doesn't go very far and we live in a 1200 SqFt apartment for $4k per month. We are looking to move south for a better quality of life. Our income would only go down about $10k per year due to the move. Our #1 choice at the moment is Charleston, SC - and specifically Mount Pleasant. Does anyone have experience moving from the HCOL North East to the South? What was your experience? Opinions on Charleston? Any other thoughts that could aid us in this critical decision?
I would believe you have been to Charleston before. What are your impressions? What are your reservations?

Being there myself a bunch of times, I really like that area but it can get toasty in the summer, but that is the South.

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Re: Potential Move - NYC to Charleston SC

Post by fandango »

When we retired we considered the "low country" (Charleston, Hilton Head, and Savannah).

We love to visit these areas but declined to live there full time.

Things for you to think about:

1. Home insurance can be difficult to get and very expensive when you do find some. Friends who live there are paying 3X what they paid in the Piedmont.

2. Some of these areas were hit by hurricanes or evacuated recently. How do you feel about packing your valuables up and heading for the hills when a storm approaches?

3. Lots of tourists.
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