Moving to Charlotte, North Carolina has been one of the biggest and most exciting changes in my entire life. My family and I moved to the Charlotte area from Maryland in September of 2022. While I love it here so far, there are several things that I wish I had known before moving to Charlotte.
Fortunately, not all of those things are negative. If I had known some of the positives before moving to Charlotte I’m sure I wouldn’t have been as nervous about moving here. So if you and your family are considering a big move to the city, I highly suggest you check out what I have to say below.
Diversity Exists Everywhere
One thing that I absolutely love about Charlotte is the fact that diversity exists everywhere. There is diversity in culture, diversity in people and diversity in the scenery. Coming from the Eastern Shore of Maryland, it has been such a drastic and welcome change.
Where I grew up and lived before there are fields, farms and water. The land is flat. There are no large cities close by, only smaller cities with fewer stores and activities. Coming to Charlotte has shown my family that there are large cities out there that can in fact have a little bit of everything. We love that we can live in rural Monroe and still drive the 30 minutes to Charlotte where we can find all kinds of things to explore and do. There are hills and fields and farms, but there are also skyscrapers, museums, large parks and lakes. I seriously can’t get enough of it.
The culture and the people are so diverse, too! For me this is a great thing. I love that my kids can go to school and learn new things about people that may speak a different language than them or that might celebrate different holidays than them. Sure, there was diversity amongst cultures where we lived back in Maryland. But we are meeting people from other countries and states that we have never encountered before.
Charlotte is Growing So Quickly
One thing that I’m not used to, and that I wish I had understood fully before moving to Charlotte, is the fact that Charlotte is growing exponentially faster than a lot of other cities. Before we began the process of moving to Charlotte we looked into the population and read in several places that it is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. But coming from rural small town America, I just didn’t fully understand that a city can grow as fast as Charlotte is now.
I’m not going to lie, it can be a little intimidating. It can especially be intimidating when you move from an area where the population is only about 10,000 people. I talk to people here around Charlotte and hear the stories of how highways have been built over the last few years and how communities are constantly popping up everywhere. It makes you think a bit more about the future, especially when purchasing a home. If we move to the rural parts, will they stay rural until we’re older and retired? Will the quality of life as a resident and citizen of this area remain the same? These are just two of the questions that I’ve found myself thinking about as we begin the process of deciding where to live permanently.
As the Population Grows, So Does the Traffic
Prior to moving to the Charlotte, North Carolina area we only visited and explored twice. My husband and I have driven in city traffic before as visitors to an area, but we’ve never lived in an area where traffic is really “bad.” After a few outings on my own, I found myself complaining to my husband about the fact that you can’t seem to make left turns on Highway 74. Everything is a right turn, and then a U-turn. As someone who is not from the area and not used to that, it definitely took a bit of time to adjust to it.
Another traffic-related thing that has taken some time to get used to is how people drive around here. When I say they drive bumper-to-bumper, I really mean that they drive bumper-to-bumper. If you’re going to own and drive your own vehicle around Charlotte….well, you might want to make sure your brakes are really reliable.
One last traffic-related thing that has taken some time to get used to are all of the traffic circles. Back in Maryland where we lived before, traffic circles were few and far between. Here in the Charlotte area you encounter them almost everywhere! It’s quite a change from our old home.
Appointments Can Be Hard to Get
As a Mother and household manager, it is my job to schedule the majority of the appointments for doctors, dentists, therapists, etc. When we first moved here I began the task of finding all new doctors and other services, but I didn’t know how hard it would be to find them.
You would think that in such a large city there would be endless opportunities available for all kinds of appointments. That’s not the case, though. Because the city and surrounding areas are growing, the amount of appointments available for important services are limited. I can give you a few examples that I’ve encountered personally. One example is the developmental pediatrician. My oldest daughter needs extra services for anxiety and sensory issues. When we went to get the referral for the developmental pediatrician the earliest we could get an appointment was 1 YEAR OUT. Yes, 1 year. Therapy hasn’t been easy to find either. Luckily most schools have therapists available, so I suggest looking into that service as well.
And it’s not just doctors and therapists…it’s the DMV, too. My husband and I had to travel about an hour away just to get our new licenses at the earliest possible time. I’ve heard stories of the local DMVs being booked out for months at a time. If you know for sure that you’re moving to the Charlotte area, I would highly suggest getting these appointments made ASAP.
You May Get Overwhelmed By the Possibilities
The possibilities in Charlotte are endless. There are so many things to do, places to see and companies to work for. Grocery stores of all kinds exist in a city this big. So if you’re used to only going to Walmart and Aldi like I was, be prepared to explore new stores that you may never have been to before. My new favorites are Harris Teeter and Lidl. I had never shopped at either prior to moving to Charlotte, North Carolina.
I also find the amount of things to do in and around Charlotte to be very overwhelming. There are so many places that I want to explore. As I find them, I save them on my Google Maps app so that I don’t forget where they are or what they’re called. I’ll give you an example…say you’re searching for a coffee shop within ten miles of your current location. There’s a really good chance that at least 10 will pop up, if not more. A lot of times I end up asking Moms in the local Mom groups on Facebook if they can give me suggestions.
When you move from a smaller area like I did, you’re not used to having so many choices and places to explore. But guess what? As overwhelming as it is, it is also very exciting, too! I can’t wait to create so many new and exciting memories with my family.
There are Many Opportunities for Moms in Charlotte
Speaking of getting overwhelmed…guess what Moms? There are lots of opportunities for mothers in and around the Charlotte area! If you’re not sure what I mean, let me explain. Since moving here in 2022 I have found many Mom groups and Mom-related activities in and around Charlotte. Many of them I have found through social media. If you hop onto Facebook and type in something along the lines of “Charlotte Mom groups,” or even using Meck/Union County instead of Charlotte, you will find many, many, many groups with lots of info for Mothers.
I myself have joined several of these online groups since moving to the Charlotte area. Through these groups I have found info about Mom groups that meet in-person regularly, I have made friends, and I have seen many events in the area catered specifically to Moms. Moving to such a big city can be very overwhelming and lonely, so I definitely encourage you to find one of these groups and join right away. Who knows what kind of info, friends and events you’ll find through them!
You Will Love Moving to Charlotte, North Carolina
There will be negatives about any city you live in. With Charlotte and the surrounding areas, all of the negatives still haven’t changed the fact that I love living here so far. I was not expecting to move 8 hours away from my hometown and then love it so much.
There are so many great things about living in this area that I could probably write a whole other piece about why you should move to Charlotte. It’s a great city to get a little bit of everything from. You can get urban and upscale while also getting country and homey. Living in Charlotte will allow you to meet a lot of people and make great new friends that may be going through the same adjustments as you. And moving to Charlotte will hands-down give you a great new place to call home.
My family and I have only lived here for 8 months, but it feels like home. What has drawn you and your family to Charlotte? What are the things that you wish you knew before moving here? Let us know in the comments below!
