Moving To Charleston, SC
If you’re new here, this is part of our year-long series where we try out living in different cities so you can read all about the experience before making the jump yourself. This article is all about our experience of moving to Charleston, SC.
Population
Coming from Chicago, I don’t think we were prepared for how small Charleston really is. The city itself is super old and while that comes with its enchanting aesthetics, it is certainly not a “big city”. There are no real skyscrapers downtown and it seems like most people live in the suburbs around Charleston proper (Mt. Pleasant, West Ashley, North Charleston). When we remarked about this “no skyscraper” concept, someone told us that it’s because there is a rule in Charleston that you can’t build higher than the highest church steeple in the neighborhood. Wasn’t able to confirm this, but as you walk around the city, it seems to check out. All in all, Charleston has a very small city feel.
Weather
Charleston is known for its generally moderate weather. It never snows, very unlike the Midwest where we’re from. April - May (when we were testing out the city) was probably an unfair time to judge the weather, though. After coming back to Charleston a year later, we had the wonderful pleasure of experiencing Charleston summer… and let me tell you it is hot as hell. And very humid. You feel as if you are walking into a sauna every single day for months. So be warned, if that’s not your thing. I will say, it seems to do wonders for the skin.
There is lots to do in Charleston if you love history and the outdoors. It is considered the “low country” so there’s no mountains or anything nearby but there’s lots of beaches within 30min - 1hour drives that are great for surfing or frolicking in the sun. People also love to kayak in the creeks and rivers while observing all kinds of wild life. So here’s a bunch of our favorite activities we did while checking out Charleston, SC:
Places
These were our favorite locations for weekend exploration in Charleston, SC
Food
When you move to Charleston, or even if you’re just visiting you have to try the following foods:
Activities
Since it’s warm almost year-round, there’s lots of fun things to do outside in and around Charleston, SC including:
We lived in the Factory at Garco when we were testing out Charleston. It is located in the Park Circle community within North Charleston which is technically a suburb I believe. Like most apartment complexes in the Charleston area, it was outfitted with a small gym, pool, community BBQ area, and dog park. It was really nice to be in walking distance to the cute shops and restaurants in Park Circle but it’s definitely a slow neighborhood compared to many of the lively neighborhoods in Chicago that we’re used to. In fact, most of the desirable neighborhoods in Charleston seem to be quite chill. It was disappointing to us that no matter which neighborhood you live in, you will need a car. We haven’t found a fully walkable/bikeable neighborhood in all of Charleston…Some areas in Mt. Pleasant might come close, but not anywhere near what you might be used to coming from a big city. So with that being said, here’s our top neighborhoods in the Charleston area:
l’On Mt. Pleasant
We like Mt. Pleasant because of its accessibility by bike. There’s nice bike lanes that you can take all the way to the Charleston Peninsula by way of the Ravenel Bridge bike/pedestrian crossing. L’On, specifically, is a very manicured community with a Second State Coffee and other cute shops nearby. Like most “neighborhoods” in Charleston this is a real estate development project so it can feel very prescribed if you’re coming from a big city where neighborhoods developed more organically. That being said, L’On is close to Shem’s Creek where there’s lots of fun restaurants and activities to be done. It’s also close to our favorite activity in Charleston, weekend volleyball behind Santi’s in Mt. Pleasant.
Park Circle
This is where we lived during our “test period”. It had most things we needed in walking distance but it’s very close to all the factories on the Cooper River which can make for some weird smells and super loud train noises. The neighborhood is very quaint and honestly way more diverse than most neighborhoods in Charleston, but if you’re a light sleeper the train sounds are no joke, beware. There is a freight train that goes through the neighborhood and can block traffic for more than hour sometimes. (While living here, I learned that freight trains take precedence over any other form of ground transit…) The trains also don’t stop, they come and go at all odd hours of the day. But train noises aside, I quite enjoyed our time in Park Circle. There’s lots to do outside (the park even has a frisbee golf course) and lots of great restaurants and street festivals to enjoy.
Daniel Island
We actually currently live on Daniel Island and it’s okay. If you’re raising a young family it’s probably really awesome. It’s super safe (here’s kids as young as 7 biking to school all by themselves). I really like how quaint the new downtown-y area is, there’s a couple of nice coffee shops (Blondie’s and the Dime), there’s restaurants of every type, there’s a couple of workout options (but no regular gym), and people are quite friendly. The downsides of Daniel Island do exist though. There’s very little diversity on DI, there’s no public High School (only the private Bishop England), and much to my husband’s dismay you can’t really bike off the island so you can feel a bit trapped in suburban bliss at times.
Folly Beach
Ok, a lot of people call Charleston a “beach town” but in reality there’s no actual beaches on the peninsula. Folly Beach was our favorite beach neighborhood (compared to Sullivans Island and Isle of Palms). It’s more low key and less resort-y. Folly Beach also has far superior surfing waves than the other beach towns, if that’s what floats your boat. Real estate on Folly Beach is expensive (although cheaper than other beach areas) and you risk being caught in hurricanes and other types of bad weather.
Is Charleston a “Beach Town”?
Kind of. People love to call Charleston a “beach town” but honestly you have drive pretty far from downtown just to get to a beach. Our favorite beach is by far Folly Beach but it’s at least 30 min from downtown and that’s when there’s no beach rush. On a regular weekend you might be stuck in bridge traffic for over an hour trying to get onto the island. Even though the peninsula of Charleston is surrounded by water, there’s not really any place to swim directly off the peninsula since there are freighters every where.
Are there ALLIGATORS in Charleston?
Yes, there are gators all over the place. We currently live on Daniel Island and there are ponds everywhere on this island but you can’t swim in any of them because of gators. There are also signs everywhere that there’s fresh water telling you to beware of gators. Honestly I’ve never seen a gator do anything but float around in a pound though, so I don’t think there’s much to worry about. Just know that you won’t be swimming in any nearby ponds.
Is Charleston Income Tax High?
Yes. I thought moving to a southern state from Chicago would mean less income tax, but I was wrong. This totally depends on your income range, since both cities have sliding scales for income tax, but for us, we ended up paying more income tax in Charleston than Chicago.
Are there a lot of bugs in Charleston?
Yes. There are tons of bugs in Charleston and they come with each season.
Palmetto Bugs are cockroach-like flying insects named after the state tree in South Carolina. They are frequent from late fall to early spring.
Fire ants are also super prevalent throughout Charleston. If you’re allergic to fire ant bites, be sure to wear closed-toe shoes and stay off the grass as these are pretty nasty bites.
No-see-ums remind me of gnats. They’re very common in spring in Charleston and their bites are pretty annoying because you can’t really see these tiny creatures and can only tell they’ve been around once they bite you and it starts to sting.
Mosquitoes are just as common in Charleston as anywhere else in the United States
Why Is Everyone Moving to Charleston?
Most people cite the warm weather as the primary reason they move to Charleston. The cost of living is also generally cheaper than other areas.
All in all we rated Charleston, SC as a 8/10. We ended up moving to Charleston for a year after our experiment so it’s definitely a good place to check out. If you’re not into bugs, hate the heat, scared of gators, or looking for a less manicured place to live, then Charleston probably isn’t for you. If you’re someone who loves warm weather, wants to go surfing often, doesn’t like how crowded big cities are and doesn’t mind driving, then Charleston might be the place for you!