Advantages & Disadvantages of Moving to Raleigh

You heard many good things about Raleigh and think about moving to this place but still want to get additional information about the city before making your final decision in this regard.

Great! Stick with me since I will show you all the pros and cons of living in Raleigh in the following chapters.

Living in Raleigh – Overview

Advantages of Living in Raleigh

1. Pretty low unemployment rate in Raleigh
2. People in Raleigh can make good money
3. Property prices and rents are still affordable
4. Good medical infrastructure in Raleigh
5. Crime rates in Raleigh are pretty low
6. People in Raleigh are friendly and tolerant
7. Raleigh is a bike-friendly city
8. You will not get stuck in traffic jams often
9. You will find everything you need in Raleigh
10. Raleigh is surrounded by beautiful nature
11. You will find many recreational spaces to relax
12. Raleigh has a great art scene
13. Many interesting museums to visit in Raleigh
14. Population in Raleigh is growing
15. Good future outlook for Raleigh
16. Decent air quality in Raleigh
17. Raleigh has an international airport
18. Raleigh is not as crowded as many other major cities
19. People in Raleigh are rather relaxed
20. Living costs are rather low
21. Overall financial pressure is rather limited in Raleigh

Pretty low unemployment rate in Raleigh

One benefit of moving to Raleigh is that unemployment rate is pretty low and you will therefore have good chances of finding a decent job rather quickly and also don’t have to worry about losing your job that much since even in case this happens, you will still be able to find a new job rather soon.

People in Raleigh can make good money

You should also know that income levels in Raleigh are above national average and if you have decent education and also provide lots of value to the corporate world, you can make really good money in the Raleigh region.

Property prices and rents are still affordable

While property prices and rents have increased significantly over the past decade, the average person can still afford a decent home in Raleigh and while people moving to San Diego or other more expensive places have to spend lots of money on housing, you in Raleigh will have a more relaxed time in this regard.

Good medical infrastructure in Raleigh

Another advantage of moving to Raleigh is that you will also find many good doctors and hospitals and in case you get sick, you can be sure to find good medical treatment so that you can get cured of your health condition in an efficient manner.

Crime rates in Raleigh are pretty low

You should also note that crime rates in Raleigh are pretty low.

In fact, Raleigh is among the safest big cities in the US and this can be great for you, especially if you have kids and want to let them grow up in one of the safest environments possible.

People in Raleigh are friendly and tolerant

Another upside to moving to Raleigh is that you can meet many great people in this region and since people are often friendly and tolerant, you will have an easy time socializing and can make really good friends and have a great time together no matter where you come from.

Raleigh is a bike-friendly city

Raleigh is also considered a bike-friendly city and you can therefore jut get around by bike without having to rely on your car, especially if you live close to the city center where distances are rather short and getting around by bike is not a big deal.

You will not get stuck in traffic jams often

Since traffic is not a big problem in Raleigh yet, chances are that you will also not have to waste as much time in traffic jams as people living in L.A. or other places where traffic is often much worse and you will therefore have more time to spend on much nicer things.

You will find everything you need in Raleigh

Raleigh is also a big city where you will find everything you need for daily life.

In fact, there are many stores at almost every corner where you can find most things within walking distance of your home.

Raleigh is surrounded by beautiful nature

Since Raleigh is surrounded by beautiful nature, you will also have many opportunities to go fishing, hunting, camping and to do many other things outdoors and this can really help you unplug from your stressful life so that you can reload your batteries for the stressful times yet to come.

You will find many recreational spaces to relax

You will also find many parks and other recreational spaces in and around Raleigh and this gives you the opportunity to find a healthy balance between work and leisure activities to minimize the risk of burnout in the long run.

Raleigh has a great art scene

Another upside to living in Raleigh is that the city has a decent art scene and if you are an artist or just interested in art, you will find many great and like-minded people whom you can spend time with and can really enjoy your life in this regard.

Many interesting museums to visit in Raleigh

Since Raleigh is well-known for its art scene, there are also many interesting museums and exhibitions you can visit and will never run out of ideas in this regard.

Population in Raleigh is growing

Another advantage of living in Raleigh is that population is growing in the Raleigh region and this is usually a sign that the region becomes increasingly popular by people from all over the US and if many people move to this region, overall quality of life and public infrastructure may increase even further in the future.

Good future outlook for Raleigh

Since Raleigh is an important economic region and one of the biggest cities in North Carolina, it also has a pretty decent future outlook and will not lose its importance for many years to come while future outlook for smaller villages will be much more questionable since there is a strong trend for people moving to the big cities.

Decent air quality in Raleigh

Another benefit of living in Raleigh is that you will find pretty good air quality in this region compared to other major cities in the US and this reduces your risk of suffering from serious pulmonary problems in the long run.

Raleigh has an international airport

Moving to Raleigh may also make quite a lot of sense for you in case you are a globetrotter and want to travel the world on a regular basis since you will have an international airport from which you can fly to many destinations all over the planet.

Raleigh is not as crowded as many other major cities

Raleigh is also not as crowded as many other major cities and it is also not the most hectic city.

Hence, compared to NYC where you will be surrounded by many distractions all day long, Raleigh is much calmer and you may just be able to unplug from your stressful life much better.

People in Raleigh are rather relaxed

In general, people in Raleigh are also much more relaxed compared to people living in other major cities since they are less career-focused and more social and you will therefore also be able to hang out with those people in a more relaxed and honest manner while people in other regions are often more shallow and mainly care about your financial standing.

In turn, it is also much easier to make good friends in Raleigh compared to those fancier and more shallow cities.

Living costs are rather low

Compared to other major metropolitan areas, living costs in Raleigh are still pretty low and this means that you can save a higher fraction of your disposable income and invest it so that you will not be at the same great risk of suffering from old-age poverty as people living in San Francisco or other more expensive regions.

Overall financial pressure is rather limited in Raleigh

Since living and housing costs are still affordable, overall financial pressure in Raleigh is far lower compared to other more expensive regions and this just gives you the opportunity to enjoy your life much more since you don’t have to worry in this regard often.

As you can see, there are many reasons to move to Raleigh.

However, it is still not all sunshine and we also have to talk about the drawbacks of living in Raleigh in the following so that you get a more realistic picture of reality and can better decide whether you still want to move to Raleigh or rather want to stay in a different region instead.

Disadvantages of Living in Raleigh

1. Hard to find really good education in Raleigh
2. Nightlife in Raleigh is not great
3. Public transport in Raleigh is pretty poor
4. Raleigh is not the most popular city
5. Your friends may not understand your decision of moving to Raleigh
6. Raleigh is not located at the coast
7. Not many great shopping options in Raleigh
8. You may miss the feeling of big city life
9. Hard to meet many celebrities in Raleigh
10. Raleigh is not popular among tourists
11. Hard to build a strong network in Raleigh

Hard to find really good education in Raleigh

One problem with living in Raleigh is that you will have a pretty hard time finding really good education.

While you will find solid schools and colleges, you will still not find the same world-class education as people living in Boston and may therefore not be able to provide the best education possible to your kids.

Nightlife in Raleigh is not great

Compared to other major cities in the US, Raleigh also doesn’t have really great nightlife and if you are a party person, you may not find many locations where you can party until the early morning and may get rather bored in this regard.

Public transport in Raleigh is pretty poor

Another downside to moving to Raleigh is that public transport is rather poor, especially outside the city center and you may therefore have to rely on your car to get around which will cost lots of money for fuel and will also be pretty harmful to our environment in the long run.

Raleigh is not the most popular city

You should also know that Raleigh is not the most popular city and doesn’t have the same great reputation as NYC or other major metropolitan regions and many people in the US don’t even know where Raleigh is located.

Your friends may not understand your decision of moving to Raleigh

Since Raleigh is not a popular city, your friends may also not understand your decision of moving to Raleigh and you may have to justify quite a lot in this regard and your friends may also convince you not to move to Raleigh but to move to more popular regions instead.

Raleigh is not located at the coast

Another disadvantage of moving to Raleigh is that the city is not located at the coast and while people living in Long Beach or other places at the sea can go surfing or swimming on a daily basis, you will miss out on many opportunities in this regard in Raleigh which may lower your overall quality of life in the long run.

Not many great shopping options in Raleigh

While you will find most things you need for daily life, you will still not find many great and fancy shopping opportunities in Raleigh and if you are a shopping victim, you may be better off moving to Sacramento or other big metropolitan regions instead.

You may miss the feeling of big city life

You will also not find the exciting big city life in Raleigh as you might be used to from other big cities like NYC and if you search for glamor and want to have action all day and night long, you may be better off moving to bigger cities instead.

Hard to meet many celebrities in Raleigh

Since Raleigh is not the most popular city, it is also pretty hard to meet celebrities or other important people in this region and if you want to get the chance of meeting your idols, chances are that you would be better off moving to Holywood or other fancier places instead.

Raleigh is not popular among tourists

Another drawback of moving to Raleigh is that it is also not the most popular destination for tourists and you will therefore have a much harder time connecting to people from all over the world compared to people moving to Anaheim who can meet many tourists on a daily basis.

Hard to build a strong network in Raleigh

Since Raleigh doesn’t attract many highly-qualified people, you will have a much harder time building a strong business network compared to Silicon Valley or other places that attract people from all over the world and you may therefore have a harder time climbing the corporate ladder.

Top 10 Moving To Raleigh Pros & Cons – Summary List

Is Raleigh A Good Place To Live?

Raleigh can be a great place to live since people can make really good money in this region, unemployment rate is low and you can also do many things in nature. However, you should also know that Raleigh is not the most exciting city, nightlife is not great and you may get bored with living in Raleigh in the long run.

Alternative Cities To Live In

If you don’t want to move to Raleigh anymore, you should also have a look at the following articles:

Advantages and disadvantages of living in Kansas City

Advantages and disadvantages of living in Colorado Springs

Advantages and disadvantages of living in Chicago

Sources

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/raleighcitynorthcarolina/POP060210

About the author

This site is about living, moving and traveling to various parts of our fascinating planet.

My name is Andreas and when I was younger, I traveled the world and learned a lot about different cultures and countries.

Thus, I want to share my experiences with you so that you can benefit from them and avoid common mistakes in this regard.

In my articles, you will find everything you need to find the best location for a happy and successful life.