Rental Property Investor · Honolulu, HI · Member since 2019 · 12 posts · 6 votes
Greetings! I am transitioning out of the military and will be moving to North Carolina with my girlfriend in May. I’m really excited but we are having a difficult time narrowing down our focus on a specific area..
Is there any NC residents that can share their thoughts and insights on certain areas or pros and cons?
Rental Property Investor · Chapel Hill, NC · Member since 2017 · 144 posts · 89 votes
5y
Hi Zach - I live in the Triangle and invest in Winston Salem so I’ll chime in here. The Triangle is thriving, with top universities, corporate relocations, biotech, great restaurants, awesome airport, etc. Lots of young people moving to Raleigh especially, The Triad has a lower cost of living and is more of a manufacturing and distribution hub. Winston Salem specifically still has some good white collar jobs but the loss of its various corporate headquarters - most recently BB&T bank - through mergers means a lot of office vacancy and that will slow down downtown investment. There is no Starbucks downtown for example! I don’t know much about Charlotte. Good luck with your decision.
Rental Property Investor · Honolulu, HI · Member since 2019 · 12 posts · 6 votes
5y
@CJ S. Thanks CJ!
I know HI is awesome right!? Will definitely miss it but we are moving because it’s closer to family and less expensive. Plus housing is way more affordable than Hawaii.
She works remotely and I am in supply chain and logistics.
She loves Winston Salem but idk much about that area and google only provides you with so much. Do you have any experience with that area?
Rental Property Investor · Winston Salem, NC · Member since 2018 · 102 posts · 66 votes
5y
@Zachary Steidl
Good afternoon Zach and happy holidays, I am standing in one of our homes in Winston Salem North Carolina so I guess I will reply to you with some thoughts about Winston Salem. We first moved to Winston Salem in 2003 because the company I worked for has corporate headquarters here. I’ve come to realize Winston Salem is a great town and one of the reasons is its got a lot of old infrastructure, read that as old money and it’s got a lot more going for it than a town you would normally think for 250 - 300,000 people. In addition to that it’s spawned off a lot of great industry players, yes some of it them moved on to Charlotte and other places but a lot of it is still here. In addition it’s only about a half hour ride to Greensboro, 90 minute ride to Raleigh Durham, maybe two hours to Fayetteville and 75 minutes to the Charlotte airport. Since you’re on BiggerPockets I assume you want to work in real estate in some manner and that means you could probably live in any of those cities and get to any of them to manage any of your properties or any of your jobs in an hour or two. The weather here is great. They would like to tell you you have 12 months of golf... it’s not true!it’s 10 to 10 1/2 months but it’s really a beautiful climate. I hope that helps and wish you luck good luck with the move! Thanks for your service and have a great holiday!
Rental Property Investor · Carolina Beach, NC · Member since 2017 · 441 posts · 462 votes
5y
@Zachary Steidl, it’s hard to beat Carolina Beach! We absolutely love the beach and it’s a great short term market. Are you thinking about house hacking? I’ve always wanted a cabin in the mountains haha. Cabin hack!
Rental Property Investor · Honolulu, HI · Member since 2019 · 12 posts · 6 votes
5y
@Joe Prillaman hey Joe! We would love to house hack! I think it’s totally worth it to start off investing that way but I’m open to SFHs as well depending on the area.
I love the beach too! Definitely got a lot of it being here in Hawaii
Rental Property Investor · Honolulu, HI · Member since 2019 · 12 posts · 6 votes
5y
@Richard Weinberg Thank you Richard and happy holidays to you too!
Although I’m looking for a job in supply chain/logistics I’d be willing to work in the real estate industry as well in order to better hone my skills in the field and gain more experience. If you have any recommendations on realtors or brokers let me know! I’ll be starting the hunt around March/April time frame!
Real Estate Broker · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2020 · 27 posts · 10 votes
5y
@Zachary Steidl Hello Zach - I was born in Winston Salem, Grew up in Hendersonville (where my mom is the Mayor!) and then moved to Charlotte...So, I know a little about NC. I would agree that NC is a great place - but I'm probably a bit biased. The triangle is a hot, happening place right now, with lots of folks from the Northeast flooding in. Asheville/Hendersonville is doing well with the beer scene and has lots of outdoors activities. Charlotte, is your "big town" feel with the NFL, MLS and NBA all playing here along with the uptown restaurant, bar, museum, cultural scene.
It really depends what you are looking for...if you want to chat more about specific areas I'm happy to talk on the phone and if you are interested in listings from Charlotte or Asheville/Hendersonville for a new home or rental, I'm a real estate agent so I can help you there too. Drop me a line, I'd be happy to share my knowledge with you.
Good luck on your move and I hope to meet you herein NC!
Rental Property Investor · Honolulu, HI · Member since 2019 · 12 posts · 6 votes
5y
@Peter Volk Thanks for the insight Peter! I’ve never looked into Hendersonville, as my partner and I have focused more on Winston-Salem and Raleigh but I will keep that in mind because we are open to any NC area really!
If everything works out I’ll be visiting NC in April for a few days and I’ll be sure to reach out to you before then! Take care!
Rental Property Investor · Chapel Hill, NC · Member since 2017 · 144 posts · 89 votes
5y
Hi Zach - I live in the Triangle and invest in Winston Salem so I’ll chime in here. The Triangle is thriving, with top universities, corporate relocations, biotech, great restaurants, awesome airport, etc. Lots of young people moving to Raleigh especially, The Triad has a lower cost of living and is more of a manufacturing and distribution hub. Winston Salem specifically still has some good white collar jobs but the loss of its various corporate headquarters - most recently BB&T bank - through mergers means a lot of office vacancy and that will slow down downtown investment. There is no Starbucks downtown for example! I don’t know much about Charlotte. Good luck with your decision.
Real Estate Broker · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2020 · 27 posts · 10 votes
5y
@Greg Fitch - I read an article in the WSJ talking about a 3 month delay to get a moving van from NYC to North Carolina because of the people running from the high costs up there...I know I have a few friends from up North headed to the triangle.
Last few times I was in Winston it was pretty quiet. Covid has made it even MORE quiet though...the triangle is booming though.
Investor · Hendersonville, NC · Member since 2013 · 754 posts · 281 votes
5y
Zachary, I vote against the Hendersonville/Asheville area because it's where I live.
Hehe kidding. Kind of. Call me protective of my backyard. I had to move from Charleston, SC because the money-grabbers, as the Rolling Stones once said of the folks in Manhattan, moved in and crowded me out.
Real Estate Broker · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2020 · 27 posts · 10 votes
5y
@Jason Merchey - Then you probably know my mom! Downtown H-ville has come a LONG way since I was a kid. Imagine - we didn't have a single brewery back in the day, LOL!
Investor · Hendersonville, NC · Member since 2013 · 754 posts · 281 votes
5y
I WILL say that my post is probably foolish because the Sun Belt is taking full advantage of folks fleeing CA because it's an expensive and hard place to live and NY because it's an expensive and cold place to live. If I want to enjoy rent increases in DAL, ATL, and PHX, I guess I should be okay with folks piling into NC as well. In fact, if you're a Democratic voter (read: not a conspiratorially-minded authoritarian personality), come here! The state was "red" by like 1.5% this year. Obviously back in the day folks were lynching people and making them drink out of separate drinking fountains and making them recite the US Constitution from memory in order to be able to register to vote, so being 1.6% away from a majority of voters is a net positive!
Sheesh I'm going to be lucky if this thread doesn't get my account put on probation :p
Rental Property Investor · Chapel Hill, NC · Member since 2017 · 144 posts · 89 votes
5y
Zach I'm sure you could figure this out by looking at a map so to repeat the obvious, if you are thinking about real estate investing throughout in the state or outside whatever town you land in, you might think about easy access to major markets which would put you near I-85. It connects the Triangle, Triad and Charlotte. Also consider I-40 which partially overlaps with I-85 and connects Raleigh and Winston Salem which I-85 misses.
Real Estate Agent · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2016 · 107 posts · 51 votes
5y
My family and I moved to Raleigh from New Orleans 6 years ago and love it! We looked at a few places in North Carolina and chose Raleigh because it's a larger city that still has a small town feel. The area is booming, and our rental properties here have appreciated significantly. In addition to living in a great town, we've got beach and mountains within driving distance for easy getaways, and are close to other growing areas where you we may invest in the future (Garner, Youngsville, etc). Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Real Estate Agent · Winston Salem, NC · Member since 2020 · 1 post · 0 votes
5y
Great responses here. My wife and I live in Winston Salem—she’s a born and raised and I’m a transplant from NY. Been here about 20 years. I’ve watched our downtown go from dead to sprinting the past decade. Obviously Covid has stalled growth, but it won’t be permanent. The city completed Business 40/Salem Parkway renovations this past year—a much needed update that modernized highway transport through the city. We’re currently building a beltway system that will (eventually!) increase access for folks around the city, especially those in suburban areas.
With large investments in biotech and medical in the area, I think we’ll see continued growth even if other industries are moving to bigger cities (ex: BB&T to Charlotte). We’re in a sort of limbo (as are many cities) due to Covid. The rise in remote work will bring more city residents to realize they can continue to work and afford a solid home living in small/medium sized city (Forsyth County is closing in on 400k people). So I think you’ll see a large increase in population over the next decade here which will result in more economic growth.
As far as quality of life, I like to say that Winston Salem has a little bit of everything. Breweries, coffee shops, new public library, major infrastructure updating, a focus on arts and an appreciation for history (home to Old Salem). As others have said, you’re about 1-2 hours from hiking/mountains and about 3-4 hours from the coast.
Real Estate Agent · Colorado Springs, CO · Member since 2019 · 79 posts · 77 votes
5y
@Zachary Steidl My husband and I are currently stationed on the coast and planning to invest here long-term. We enjoy the coastal life, but I can understand if you need a break from it. I was raised for a significant part of my life in CO and miss the mountains, for sure!
The main thing I would keep in mind is people want to be outdoors more than ever. Thankfully, NC has a lot of that to offer from the mountains to the coast. Zoom has changed the game for so many people who now work from home and have the opportunity to live almost anywhere they want. Basically, the general trend I've seen is opting for access to outdoor sports and commuting when necessary.
Wow guys.. I just got out of work and saw all the awesome responses. Definitely did not expect all that feedback so thank you! Its great to hear from people that actually live in NC so this will definitely help me narrow down my decision.