Moving On Up

The United Van Lines' National Movers Study shows the migration patterns of Americans and this year North Carolina is the fifth most popular state to move to. This is no surprise since North Carolina - particularly The Research Triangle - offers the things people are looking for when they relocate such as economic opportunity, good weather, and outdoor recreation.

North Carolina is really pretty much perfectly situated globally. We have four complete seasons, but none of them are brutal.  As far as outdoor recreation, we have it all. On one end of the state we have beautiful beaches and on the other side there are mountains, and in between we have the best place I have ever lived - The Research Triangle Region.

Unique to this particular area of the state - and the most of the country really, is that the three corners of The Triangle are each anchored with a major research university. In Raleigh we have North Carolina State University with over 33,000 students, strong engineering programs and the state's vet school. 

Twenty-five miles to the west is Duke University, one of the country's top universities with a hospital ranked number 14 in the entire country by U.S. News & World Reports. And they have a fairly decent men's basketball team.

Nine miles south of Duke, in one of the most beautiful college towns ever, is The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill  - ranked as the fifth best public university in the country.  It boasts a gorgeous, historical campus, its own hospital complex, and a great women's soccer team and men's basketball team. Plus there is one beautiful College Girl there who happens to be my daughter, so clearly this makes UNC the best of the three schools, but I digress.

I believe this triangle of top education is one of the reasons the Raleigh, Durham, Cary, Chapel Hill area is such a great place to live.  It attracts the kind of businesses that need well-educated workers and in turn provides high paying jobs. And because of the Duke and UNC hospitals, we have excellent health care.  The universities provide an abundance of activities ranging from the stunning Duke gardens, to music, theater and that wee college basketball rivalry we have going here.

The other side of the states-people-most-want-to-move-to coin, is the states-people-most-want-to-leave side. According to the Movers Study, that state is New Jersey* followed by New York, Illinois, Connecticut and Ohio.  The common thread seems to COLD.  So if you are looking to escape the cold or migrate for any other reason, I suggest the Research Triangle region of North Carolina.

*New Jersey is Hubby's home state. Number nine on the list of states-people-most-often-leave is my home state of Mississippi. We both hold a love in our hearts for our home states, but I think North Carolina is where we are meant to be.