What I Need to Know about Moving to North Carolina
North Carolina Climate
Part of the Sun Belt group of states, North Carolina has temperatures that may be in the lower 100’s for several days in a row, but also can winter days that may drop below zero—even in areas east of Raleigh! Temperatures near the coast can range from 56* in January to 89* in July. For the Piedmont, the winter temperatures can be as low as the mid 50’s to high of 88*in July. For the mountain regions the temperatures are a bit cooler—upper 40’s in winter to the low 80’s in summer. The southern coastal region of North Carolina be prepare for a subtropical climate much like you would find in northern Florida.
The average annual rainfall for North Carolina varies from region to region—the mountains receive about 33 inches, the Piedmont gets approximately 43 inches and the coast/Wilmington has 53 inches.
Economy & Commerce in North Carolina
Since 2004, the state’s leading industries have been finance, insurance and real estate. Approximately 25% of NC’s workforce is employed in manufacturing. The primary manufactured items are textiles, with over 70,000 workers producing furniture.
Charlotte is the send largest banking center in the United States, and the Research Triangle Park area (Raleigh, Durham & Chapel Hill) is becoming well known for its technological advances and state of the art medical research centers. The unemployment rate in Charlotte, NC, is 3.90%, with job growth of 2.14%. Future job growth over the next ten years is predicted to be 23.77%. Charlotte, North Carolina’s sales tax rate is 7.50% with income tax at 7.00%. In Charlotte the income per capita is $30,552, which includes all adults and children. The average household income is $54,242.
North Carolina Education
North Carolina is home to over 600 academies and, as of 2006, 36 colleges or universities with over 75,000 students attending. In Charlotte, NC, schools spend $5,961 per student. There are 15 pupils per teacher, 685 students per librarian, and 383 children per counselor in Charlotte, NC schools. For specific school ratings by county go to http://www.dpi.state.nc.us and check out the school by county and individual performance.
For a list of the best private schools in North Carolina check out our private school guide.
North Carolina Population
In 1990 the state demographers estimated North Carolina’s growth to increase by approximately 16% over the next decade; however, when the numbers were tallied, they found it was an unexpected 21.4%. In 2000 the population was 8,049,313 and by July of 2006 the population had reached 8,860,341.
Politics of North Carolina
Democrats outnumber the Republican in the General Assembly and hold the top state offices. In 2005 there were 2.5 million registered Democrats and 1.8 million registered Republicans in North Carolina.
North Carolina Real Estate
As one of the state’s largest industries, real estate brings in billions of dollars to the state’s economy. According to NC law, real estate, as distinguished from personal property, is land. According to a 2002 business directory, there are more than 6,300 NC real estate firms of varying sizes with 1,000’s of listings. In Charlotte, the average home is valued at $253,600. Home appreciation is 2.10% over the last year. Renters make up 38.94% of the Charlotte, NC, population with only 6.36% of houses and apartments in Charlotte, being unoccupied.
Religion in North Carolina
47.97% of the people in NC are religious, meaning they affiliate with a religion. 8.53% are Catholic; 32.95% are Protestant; 0.55% are LDS; 3.50% are another Christian faith; 1.22% in are Jewish; 0.10% are an eastern faith; 1.12% affiliate with Islam.
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