Property taxes can be high here in NC too. I think Gaston county has a lot of crime. Charlotte is wonderful, that's where we go to do decent shopping/dining. Charlotte is definitely where it's at as far as I am concerned. Wilmington is nice but too close to coast, hurricanes. Personally I like Asheville a lot. Lots of art and culture there including hippies. I don't have a clue about the schools in any of the areas I mentioned. I live in Hickory, NC, small city with the traffic of a large city, yuk. Winston Salem is also nice. Greensboro is near and High Point although I don't know what High Point has to offer. Carla

Well, if you're looking in Mecklenburg county, look at Matthews. There you have the Little League,the Farmers Market,local businesses,access to I485,strong town leadership,a town green where they hold spring/summer/fall concerts/arts and crafts shows/childrens carnival. Matthews is very independent of Charlotte. They even repave their own roads. Taxes are cheaper than Charlotte and the town has plenty of corporate and manufacturing tax support. Good banks..BB@T is the strongest most solid bank in North Carolina (no TARP funds needed). Local theater for plays. Lots of church variety to choose from. One church has its own K-12 school (Covanent). Matthews School (elementary) is still excellent. There are actually multiple elementary schools,middle school and high school although assignment is determined by your location and schools are part of Mecklenburg County public school system. Big, new, town library. Presbyterian/Matthews Hospital. Marios Pizza, Carrabas and tons of other good eateries. Siskey YMCA (huge indoor outdoor facilities) The weather is a micro climate in most parts of Matthews. It can be a touch cooler/colder than Charlotte and Pineville but in 20 years and one hurricane (Hugo) I found the worst of the weather skips west of Matthews. Water quality is good, better than what we have in Union County (different source). Of the Mecklenburg towns, including Charlotte, I'd say Matthews has best adapted itself to accommadating northern transplants while retaining the Southern flavor and hospitality.

igloochic, that was printed on a T-shirt sold in the Wall St area (clogged with tourists) of Manhattan a few years ago. Welcome to NY on the front Now go home on the back. Yeah, I wanted one.

I am an ex-New Yorker (Long Island) living in Asheville for 5 yrs. It's true, there are as many Florida plates--I read statistics that about 90% of people buying homes here now are from out of state, the biggest percentage from Florida. Asheville is always in the top 10 of every Best Places to Live list, and it made in the top 12 of Frommer's Best International Places to Visit list for 2007. It's a beautiful, progressive and artsy city with the friendliest people on the planet. As far as advertising in other cities in Craigslist, it is possible. I did it when I sold my last home in the area. If you check out craigslist under homes for sale in Asheville you will see listings from other states. If you don't want to pay an agent, use a discount broker. Ben Case is a good one. There are quite a few in the Asheville area. You pay them a $500 fee and they put you on the MLS. What this does is eliminate the listing agent who gets 3% for doing nothing but getting your listing. When it goes out to the MLS, you will get calls from "booking central; they set up appts. with agents and then call to inform you when they are coming. You also get a lock box and a sign. This is a good deal; you still have the option of selling it yourself and paying no commission or if an agent sells it, you only have to pay 3% (instead of the usual 6%). I sold my house 2 years ago this way. Good luck.