Thinking of making a move to Raleigh or the Triangle?

Thinking of relocating? Here are a few of my favorite reasons why I love living in Raleigh, North Carolina. I must admit, as a Raleigh native, I am a bit biased! 

1. Strong job market: Raleigh is home to a number of major employers, including IBM, WakeMed Health and Hospitals, SAS Institute, Cisco, and Red Hat. The city has a strong and growing economy, with a low unemployment rate and good job opportunities in a variety of industries.  This is constantly bringing in new people from all over. 

2. Affordable cost of living: Compared to other major cities in the U.S., Raleigh has a relatively low cost of living. Housing prices in particular are generally more affordable than in other parts of the country. We need to work together to make sure we can continue to make this claim. 

3. Quality education: Raleigh is home to several top-ranked universities, including North Carolina State University, Duke University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. These schools, along with others in the area, contribute to a highly educated population and provide plenty of opportunities for continuing education. Just in Raleigh, we also have Shaw College, St. Augustine's University, William Peace University, Meredith College, and Wake Technical Community College. The public school system is highly respected and offers a wide variety of options for parents, as well as public charter schools, public magnet schools, private schools, online academies, homeschooling and learning pods.  

4. Cultural attractions: Raleigh is home to a number of museums including the North Carolina Museum of Art, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, and the Marbles Kids Museum. Our area is also rich with performing arts such as the Carolina Ballet , the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra, the North Carolina Opera, and North Carolina Theatre. 

5. Outdoor recreation: Raleigh has over 200 parks and the amazing Greenway including the Neuse River Trail, which offers over 100 miles of trails for hiking, biking, and running. The city is also located within a short drive of the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean and the Blue Ridge Mountains.

6. Sports: I always tell my out of state clients who are moving here that they are going to hear about our local college rivalries!  Being born into a Clemson Tiger family, growing up here was a little tough, but it is a lot of fun! That was the other thing I missed when living in CA, the college sports! There are a lot of sports here! Check out my other blog on Local Sports!

7. Weather: As a child I have wonderful memories of sledding in my neighborhood, leaving Canterbury Rd. and heading down Churchill and Grant Ave. We definitely don't get that much snow anymore, but I do love that we have four seasons!  I lived in San Francisco in the '80's for a few years and although I loved it, I really missed our 4 seasons!  Spring is simply stunning with our azaleas and flowers in bloom, and fall is magnificent with the gorgeous leaves. Winters are now not too bad at all, with maybe a small snow or two to get the kids out of school and happy!  The summers can be a bit hot, but a quick trip to the beach or many of our nearby lakes and neighborhood pools can fix that! 

8. Location: Being centrally located in North Carolina, we are an easy drive to a wide variety of experiences. The beach, the mountains, Washington DC, Atlanta, GA, Charleston, SC, just to name a few! 

U.S. News recently published their "Best Places to Live in the U.S. in 2023-2024", and Raleigh was ranked #3 out of the 150 most populous metro areas they analyzed. To make the list, it "had to have good value, be a desireable place to live, have a strong job market and a high quality of life."  If you are planning on relocating to the area, please let us know what kind of information we can provide you! As always, we are here to help!