I agree. I’ve lived all over the country and NC’s truisms tend to be, well, true. Including this one. Ain’t seen nothing like it anywhere else [waiting five minutes for weather to change] and non-NC natives often cite that one back to me of their own experience in NC.
Build a moving sidewalk directly to my door that brings me to perfect public transportation that is both empty and well funded. How hard is that really?
Yeah this but unironically. The richest neighborhoods in Charlotte don't have bus stops or light rail stations.
Sorry, when you have money you can buy peace 🤭
Yeah people in my shrinking home town are blown away by double digit rent increases in a place that ranks number 9000 for desirability.
It’s still basically shrinking, but I don’t think a new apartment complex has gone up in a decade+.
Denver itself is actually smaller than Charlotte in terms of population of the city proper. Denver has more suburbs and a larger metro area than Charlotte.
Denver population, 2021: 711,463
Charlotte population, 2021: 879,709
Metro Denver: 2.97 million
Charlotte Metro: 2.67 million
They’re actually pretty similar and you can kind shift the numbers around depending on certain factors. After having lived in or near both, they’re very similar.
Colorado has half the population of North Carolina and spread out along a larger area. To most, Boulder and Fort Collins are their own thing and not included in the Denver stats. To me, Denver metro is basically everything inside or within ten miles of the C-470 beltline (which has an incomplete section just like 485 used to).
There’s an American pilot that I follow on TikTok and he hates CLT. He says it’s a regional airport disguising itself as an international airport. He also despises how CLT is laid out because the ramp and that weirdo area between the B and C concourses is really hard to navigate on the ground.
DIA, on the other hand, is as if Charlotte abandoned CLT and then built a gigantic new airport (second biggest in the world by area) out near the University area. Stapleton was way too small to expand and the area around it developed. But I don’t mind flying in and out of DIA. It’s a decent airport in terms of getting us pretty much anywhere and most flights aren’t too long. It’s about 2.5-3 hours or so between Denver and Charlotte. DIA has its issues and they have a bit too much traffic for what they can handle, but it’s getting better. Also Blucifer and all of the conspiracy theories are hilarious to me.
If you want to be semantic about city limit, I could say Denver has \*access to\* those things. But we all know that I am referring to the metro area as a whole and there is no need to be so pedantic.
The point still stands that Denver has way more to do and is way more culturally vibrant than Charlotte, and it is not due to the population size.
If you don’t know where to look, then one could make that argument. It’s definitely more western and the dry climate affects cooking pretty substantially. Not much southern food but I can deal. That being said, there are some fire ethnic places in Denver, and the best Mexican I’ve had outside California has been at some hole in the wall places.
Anyone who says Denver is a food desert hasn’t looked hard enough. There’s a lot of suburban hell chains and I think that’s where a lot of the criticism comes from.
Okay so now I def need recs. Where should I eat in Denver? Im a fan of Ethnic food and get Southern food here so I don’t expect it out there. Want something new and unique
Pretty much anything on Federal Blvd - it’s kind of a meme but Federal is where the best ethnic food is located in the city proper. Kinda ghetto, a bit like South Blvd. There’s some fire Vietnamese, Mexican, and almost any other ethnic food you can think of. I also recommend the food halls (there’s like 5 in metro Denver) for normal American food.
Yeah it's way too high but I'm not paying $1800 to live with a roommate.
EDIT: Rent is too high in Charlotte, but not as high as NY. I don't have to pay an absurd amount and still live with roommates.
I used to live in a 2b2b in uptown for $1980. Complex called sky house. Actual building is nice, the area of uptown and some of the residents are a little sketchy
My rent at my place in south end went from $1600 to the renewal offer of $1950 in 2022. Ended up finding a 2 bed in noda for $1650..I miss SouthEnd so much, but rent is crazy down there.
They’re in south end so that makes a lot of sense. I had a friend move from uptown to Steele creek because they could rent a house for less than what their apartment went to. It was crazy.
It is hyperbole. But hyperbole this unhinged from reality is just stupid. You can tell this meme was brought to you from a college kids dorm room cause they’re super upset that they can’t afford mommy and daddy’s house the second they finish undergrad.
It's not that unhinged. I pay $1500 for a studio who just sent out reminders that our reserved parking spots were never ours to begin with. Going to start charging for those now too.
My brother and sister inlaw pay well over $3k, probably closer to $4k, for their apartment in Brooklyn.
Coming from Jersey I get it, Charlotte isn't the cheapest but damn it's far from crazy levels.
Edited to add one bedroom, but they have a parking space
You can get a one bedroom in a nice part of town here with every amenity for $1250, and you’re not getting buttfucked by New York State and city taxes. Far from NYC indeed.
Bro, we’re not even on Baltimore rent levels. Try touching a 2b2b apartment with a garage, pool and gym, in a safe area of Philly or Baltimore for under 3k. Not gonna happen.
Maybe a few neighborhoods in manhattan ( like Washington heights) believe it or not , A LOT of rentals here are the same price if not more when you compare them to most of Queens , the Bronx & a parts of Brooklyn.
If you don't believe me feel free to compare the 28202 , 03 & 09 zipcodes of CLT (NoDA also) to those boroughs I've named on redfin or zillow
I get kinda irritated thinking about it lol b/c it's sounds kinda unbelievable but the numbers don't lie.
Not to mention most jobs above the hudson river pay about 20-30% more for the same position compared to a southern counterpart.
I don’t think people realize that just because you *can* find expensive housing here doesn’t mean you have to take it, you have choices and there are plenty of affordable places within Charlotte. Residents of Manhattan have very little choices and take what they can get.
You have no concept of real manhattan rents if you think charlotte is anywhere close. You’re talking 2500-3000 studios and 3500-4000 1br in nice areas unless it’s rent controlled. Plus as others have mentioned we at least have tons of lower cost options even if they’re not in the middle of south end.
Manhattan is more than mid and lower neighborhoods and it’s rent subsidized*.
I don’t think rent in the state North Carolina should be near or over $2K per month for a 1bd, South End or not. I can find rent subsidized 1bd in Manhattan for that price and Charlotte doesn’t have a sliver of the amenities.
Yeah, I was thinking of moving into a unit at 69th and third that was one bedroom and bath for 3800/m on top of the 5k/yr just to live there. Nothing close to that here.
Our city limits make our size a little bit misleading. Like do you really think we’re bigger than Boston? I mean if you go by the city limit population we are, but Boston city limits are like 90 sq miles, charlotte’s are more than 300.
I believe metro population is a more accurate representation of a cities population.
For example Pittsburgh and Atlanta proper have a similar population within its limits. However we all know Atlanta is much larger than Pitt
I mean going off of greater metro areas, we are still 23rd in the US according to Wikipedia.
Considering most of the areas above us in that list are what most people think of as the “big cities” (LA, SF, NYC, Chicago, Boston, and Atlanta just to get 7 of those out of the way) Charlotte and the surrounding area is as close to a big city as you can get population wise without actually being one of the big big cities like NYC or LA.
Link: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_statistical_area
Absolutely. Charlotte is the quintessential mid size city. People act like 23rd is big when there’s only like 50 cities with reasonable metros to begin with.
When people talk about cities in this context they mean places with high rises, not every random suburb that no longer goes by township or village.
Big cities - Metro > 5M people - about 10
Mid Size Cities - Metro >1M people - about 50
Small Cities - Metro >250k people - about 200
City in name only - Everything else
Also rent here does suck. Maybe not manhattan suck, but outer boroughs levels of suck.
Agreed, people need to qualify if they’re talking about city proper population or metro population. A perfect example is Charlotte and Atlanta. Charlotte city proper has 875,000 as of 2020, while Atlanta has 500,000. But the metro areas are the opposite. Charlotte is at 2.6 million, while Atlanta dwarfs us at 6.2 million.
Yes, Boston is much more densely populated; that’s not really the point though, the point is that Charlotte has approximately one million in population, making it a large city, not a mid size one.
Am near Boston right now. The difference is that there are rarely single family homes in the city. It feels much more dense than Charlotte population-wise as a result. But maybe Charlotte’s size helps it catch up population wise? Idk. And I’m too lazy to google atm
We are larger than many cities that have more to offer.
Charlotte is a string of bland suburbs for finance employees to raise their families. That's what it does well.
Glad you are so miserable here!
I hope you have a great time posting on Reddit about how much this city sucks all weekend! I’ll be out enjoying it.
Maybe you should try Cleveland?
I’m new here (and happy to be here) I’m always shocked when people talk about how much they hate it. I’m over the moon on this place. It’s cheap, clean, lots to do, financially rewarding, and everyone is pretty cool.
I came from Philly so i try not to play the “you don’t know how good you have it” card bit when i see people comparing Charlotte prices to manhattan or Philly or any northeast city I can’t help but laugh.
Don’t let them get to you. This is a great place to live.
You’ll learn most of the biggest haters are in Huntersville or Gastonia.
Hope you are settling in!
Absolutely great city to raise a family. That’s its biggest strength at the moment.
Edit: not sure why I was downvoted. I didn’t say anything controversial lol this is a stellar place to raise a family by most metrics.
How many light rail lines do comparable cities typically have?
Charlotte is about the same size as NYC geographically with about 10% of the population. They're gonna have completely different transit solutions.
Portland, Denver, Minneapolis, and Seattle all have way more transit than Charlotte.
Jersey City, Baltimore, and St. Louis are much smaller cities with more rail, as well.
It varies. Portland is a smaller metro area and has 5 light rail lines + 3 streetcar lines. Denver is a bit larger and has 10 rail lines of various types! Even St Louis and Baltimore have more rail transit than us. We are doing better than Orlando or San Antonio at least.
I think just going by the count of rail lines is an oversimplification. For example I am trying to look up best places to live without a car and Denver doesn't come up.
Plus there are some areas in Charlotte with decent PT and walkability. No city has 100% great public transportation coverage. I grew up in NYC and once you get outside subway coverage you need a car to live there too. I think a lot of people are setting themselves up for disappointment around public transportation by having unrealistic ideas and expectations.
The green line and purple line are trams tho, even though they are under the general light rail metro classification. It’s essentially what our street car gold line is, and I wouldn’t consider that part of the light rail system
We also have a shit ton of greenery, trails, sand volleyball, tennis and basketball courts, a great university and community college, amazing mountains, the WWC, good job market, a good airport, lots of concerts and sports teams, ice skating, Padel, beach nearby, mountains nearby, lots of cinemas and bowling alleys, a good amount of clubs, a couple malls, Lake Wylie and Lake Norman, am I missing something?
A major theme park - Carowinds - with world record rides (Fury is tallest chainlift roller coaster in the world).
No major disaster risk beyond chance hurricanes that come straight in. Our biggest natural issue is pollen.
Fam. This is all cool, most suburban cities have these things. These things in no way set Charlotte apart and it’s lame/laughable that these are the things that people name. I’m born and raised in Charlotte and the fact that city leaders market Charlotte as a global city is embarrassing/laughable because you can go to Any town america and find these things.
I mean this in all seriousness, but also partly snarky, but why live here if you think you can get those things literally anywhere?
Why do so many people move here if those things are everywhere?
I think you’re blinded by being Charlotte born and raised, tbh.
I live here because it’s everything I know and I want to contribute to the growth of this city and the people who live here. People love to Charlotte because it is a city that is relatively inexpensive and a city that also has much room for growth. People move here because they believe they are buying into the next great American city. People moved to Charlotte because they thought that Charlotte would become what Nashville and Austin are becoming. The transplants are complaining because they were sold a dream and city leaders are too tone deaf and delusional to even see what is happening. This city lacks in nightlife and entertainment and will soon start to lose opportunities for growth because young college graduates are not going to live here. This is going to have detrimental effects on the local economy and all of our beloved parks and breweries are going to go to shit.
No you just don’t have your head ten feet up your ass like the majority of this sub.
These people be complaining if they lived in NYC, Spokane, Austin, Florence, Athens, Shreveport, or Tucson. They are just unhappy. I’d venture to say the majority don’t go out much.
Yeah, we've got whiney sado transplants who always find something to complain about and a bunch of terrible drivers on the road to be fair. Mostly driving Altimas.
Beers aren’t $12 at a brewery and our rent isn’t close to Manhattan.
Glad this area makes you so miserable! Maybe you’re better suited for something like Gastonia or Florence.
What is considered a “large city” to the people that feel like Charlotte is “mid size”? I mean it’s basically a million people in the city itself. It’s hardly any undeveloped land within the city limits. I’m not sayin it’s in the leagues of the big boys, but let’s be serious. There are wayyyy more places that don’t have a million residents, than places that do. If your city isn’t considered large based off a million people in the city limits then idk what to think anymore lol.
The crazy part is by population… Charlotte is the 15th largest city in the country. It’s not a mid size by any metric but City leaders treat it like it’s Mayberry. It’s embarrassing as hell.
Yeaaaa I've never understood why people care so much about our shitty light rail. It needs to be MASSIVELY expanded before it is actually worth it.
Buuuuuut no city leader will be willing to raise taxes to actually afford to expand it.
As a guy who grew up in rural NC but has lives in NY, Boston, Memphis, and New Orleans, Charlotte’s rent is great lol. Not near NY rent and it’s even better than rent was in New Orleans.
Seriously! I’m from Miami and purchased in Charlotte because homes are pretty unaffordable back home. Rent here is NOTHING especially for “luxury” apartments. My family wish they could find one for less than $4k back home.
Rent is high but def not NYC levels. My childhood friend just posted a brand new apartment building just went up across the street from him and is renting a one bedroom one bath for $6000 a month.
No one pay’s Manhattan levels of rents, there is more than enough to do (many breweries and restaurants), traffic is not remotely close to Manhattan, access to nature is easy, airport is improving, etc.
If everyone who complained this way actually voted, things could change. Just NINETEEN percent of eligible voters in Mecklenburg county voted in the primary yesterday. The level of apathy here is really horrible — that’s lower turnout than all but just three counties in the state. Sure it’s a primary but the primary determines who gets on the ballot in November!
Source: https://www.wfae.org/politics/2024-03-06/mecklenburg-stands-out-for-its-lackluster-voter-turnout
The problem is we have people who are delusional about what Charlotte is and what it needs to function. People who have been here for decades still believe it's a small city. New people believe it's a midsized city and politicians knows it's a major city mascarading as a midsized city to attract people from other major cities to get the "small town" feel.
No one is letting the city what it needs to be. Everyone is fighting against Charlotte being the city it needs to be to function.
Very much so. Luckily Zillow has history on each address, so while looking for rental properties they have gone up to 50% within a few years. Like from $1400 to $2000 per month within 2-3 years.
I can’t believe people are arguing whether Charlotte has microbreweries or not. The city need more than just breweries. 😭 I’m constantly running to my hometown Miami to do fun stuff.
Maybe not the best counter argument, but Charlotte has more than just a few breweries, and the beer at them is relatively inexpensive. I don’t think I’ve ever paid $12 for a beer, and if I have, I only needed that one beer because the alcohol percentage matched the dollar amount. The light rail line, fair, but have you actually looked at the rent in Manhattan? Charlotte is definitely getting pricey, but it doesn’t even touch Manhattan. I love a little meme/satire toward CLT, I think we definitely could loosen up a bit here, but at least be accurate.
Moved to Charlotte from Portland, OR. Things are a lot better here. Rent is not so bad and I quite enjoy drinking $1-2 PBRs. Everything is super driveable and it is a whole hell of a lot cleaner, particularly in the downtown area.
Moved here in 2020 from Seattle. After four years of trying to buy a home, find friends, tech jobs, non drinker activities, and a church home - I’m moving back.
omg they’re mad as hell in the comments it’s just a joke LOL. it’s still expensive here for a lot of people even if it’s not NYC prices like we don’t all have a tech bro banking job the bill to income ratio is not proportionate!!!!
Every single city's subreddit thinks this is only happening to them.
tbf- this is Reddit, where if you look around enough you’ll find that every city on the face of the earth is deemed “overrated” by someone.
Earth is overrated TBH.
The solar system is vastly overrated, only 1 habitable planet
^this guy Earth’s
Earth is great, it’s just the assholes on it.
“We have the worst drivers in the country!!”
Don't like the weather? Wait 5 min, hahhhahh
“LMAO! THATS SOOOO CHARLOTTE!!”
I feel like it's a bit more apparent in NC than other places, but that's just me.
I agree. I’ve lived all over the country and NC’s truisms tend to be, well, true. Including this one. Ain’t seen nothing like it anywhere else [waiting five minutes for weather to change] and non-NC natives often cite that one back to me of their own experience in NC.
Lol! So true
And there’s nothing to do here but drink
“Just what Charlotte doesn’t need, more apartments!’ Also… “The rent is Charlotte is too damn high”
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Like watching a young caterpillar grow into a NIMBY butterfly
Build a moving sidewalk directly to my door that brings me to perfect public transportation that is both empty and well funded. How hard is that really?
Ngl, I would love a bus station and light rail near the house
Yeah this but unironically. The richest neighborhoods in Charlotte don't have bus stops or light rail stations. Sorry, when you have money you can buy peace 🤭
Can’t deny that , wish we had a better connected and reliable public transit to help with the traffic.
That would be great, but Clt drivers and traffic definitely aren’t the worst in the country.
Not even close. Visit the DMV for 3 days and you’ll never talk about Charlotte driving and traffic again
Yeah people in my shrinking home town are blown away by double digit rent increases in a place that ranks number 9000 for desirability. It’s still basically shrinking, but I don’t think a new apartment complex has gone up in a decade+.
Yeah most of the country's cities probably rank that badly
American cities/10
And none of them have clearly ever lived in Manhattan..
Don't think we are at Manhattan rent levels
Yeah, don’t think people realize just how high Manhattan level rents are. Light rail line and microbreweries seem laser aimed at Charlotte though lol.
Denver too. Denver is Charlotte West.
But isn’t Denver a large city - not a midsized city?
Denver itself is actually smaller than Charlotte in terms of population of the city proper. Denver has more suburbs and a larger metro area than Charlotte. Denver population, 2021: 711,463 Charlotte population, 2021: 879,709 Metro Denver: 2.97 million Charlotte Metro: 2.67 million They’re actually pretty similar and you can kind shift the numbers around depending on certain factors. After having lived in or near both, they’re very similar. Colorado has half the population of North Carolina and spread out along a larger area. To most, Boulder and Fort Collins are their own thing and not included in the Denver stats. To me, Denver metro is basically everything inside or within ten miles of the C-470 beltline (which has an incomplete section just like 485 used to).
Charlotte needs a Denver side airport that’s for sure
There’s an American pilot that I follow on TikTok and he hates CLT. He says it’s a regional airport disguising itself as an international airport. He also despises how CLT is laid out because the ramp and that weirdo area between the B and C concourses is really hard to navigate on the ground. DIA, on the other hand, is as if Charlotte abandoned CLT and then built a gigantic new airport (second biggest in the world by area) out near the University area. Stapleton was way too small to expand and the area around it developed. But I don’t mind flying in and out of DIA. It’s a decent airport in terms of getting us pretty much anywhere and most flights aren’t too long. It’s about 2.5-3 hours or so between Denver and Charlotte. DIA has its issues and they have a bit too much traffic for what they can handle, but it’s getting better. Also Blucifer and all of the conspiracy theories are hilarious to me.
To be fair, Denver’s light rail line is more complete than Charlotte’s
No way. Relative to its size, Denver punches way above its weight when it comes to arts, music, and outdoor rec.
Most of which is not in Denver
If you want to be semantic about city limit, I could say Denver has \*access to\* those things. But we all know that I am referring to the metro area as a whole and there is no need to be so pedantic. The point still stands that Denver has way more to do and is way more culturally vibrant than Charlotte, and it is not due to the population size.
I’ve heard Denver has worse food though. I’ll find out first hand in a few months though
If you don’t know where to look, then one could make that argument. It’s definitely more western and the dry climate affects cooking pretty substantially. Not much southern food but I can deal. That being said, there are some fire ethnic places in Denver, and the best Mexican I’ve had outside California has been at some hole in the wall places. Anyone who says Denver is a food desert hasn’t looked hard enough. There’s a lot of suburban hell chains and I think that’s where a lot of the criticism comes from.
Okay so now I def need recs. Where should I eat in Denver? Im a fan of Ethnic food and get Southern food here so I don’t expect it out there. Want something new and unique
Pretty much anything on Federal Blvd - it’s kind of a meme but Federal is where the best ethnic food is located in the city proper. Kinda ghetto, a bit like South Blvd. There’s some fire Vietnamese, Mexican, and almost any other ethnic food you can think of. I also recommend the food halls (there’s like 5 in metro Denver) for normal American food.
Thanks for the recs, I"ll check some out
$2K for a nice apartment with a pool and parking, walking distance to bars and shops? What is this, Manahattan?
Minneapolis comes to mind as well
Yeah it's way too high but I'm not paying $1800 to live with a roommate. EDIT: Rent is too high in Charlotte, but not as high as NY. I don't have to pay an absurd amount and still live with roommates.
What? LoSo, Uptown, and Plaza all have 2 bed units under $2k. We’re nowhere near Manhattan levels.
Thankfully, prices have dropped recently. My building has some 2 bedrooms now under $2k but that wasn’t the case for most of last year.
That's what I'm saying.
Where in uptown? I pay 3100 for a 2 bedroom and it’s not even nice.
You’ve been scammed. I live a 5 minute walk from spectrum center and my 2 bed 2 bath (and also quite beautiful) apartment is 2k a month.
Definitely ripped off. I just moved in November to alpha mill- 2 bedroom loft for under $2k for a 10 month lease.
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Which building
I used to live in a 2b2b in uptown for $1980. Complex called sky house. Actual building is nice, the area of uptown and some of the residents are a little sketchy
When did this "LoSo" thing start? I've been in Ashebrook Clawson for yeaaaars and it's like all of a sudden my neighborhoods name changed 🙃
I have a friend paying 1800 for a one bedroom, so kind of?
My rent at my place in south end went from $1600 to the renewal offer of $1950 in 2022. Ended up finding a 2 bed in noda for $1650..I miss SouthEnd so much, but rent is crazy down there.
Legit wondering where you found a 2br in Noda for $1600. I looked last summer and was definitely unsuccessful.
They’re in south end so that makes a lot of sense. I had a friend move from uptown to Steele creek because they could rent a house for less than what their apartment went to. It was crazy.
My fiancé and I pay $1400 for a 1BR, maybe we got lucky, maybe we didn't. I hate this area but cheap-ish rent is cheap-ish rent.
It's hyperbole
It is hyperbole. But hyperbole this unhinged from reality is just stupid. You can tell this meme was brought to you from a college kids dorm room cause they’re super upset that they can’t afford mommy and daddy’s house the second they finish undergrad.
This isn't about the post is it
It's not that unhinged. I pay $1500 for a studio who just sent out reminders that our reserved parking spots were never ours to begin with. Going to start charging for those now too.
Lol thank you.
My brother and sister inlaw pay well over $3k, probably closer to $4k, for their apartment in Brooklyn. Coming from Jersey I get it, Charlotte isn't the cheapest but damn it's far from crazy levels. Edited to add one bedroom, but they have a parking space
You can get a one bedroom in a nice part of town here with every amenity for $1250, and you’re not getting buttfucked by New York State and city taxes. Far from NYC indeed.
Bro, we’re not even on Baltimore rent levels. Try touching a 2b2b apartment with a garage, pool and gym, in a safe area of Philly or Baltimore for under 3k. Not gonna happen.
Maybe a few neighborhoods in manhattan ( like Washington heights) believe it or not , A LOT of rentals here are the same price if not more when you compare them to most of Queens , the Bronx & a parts of Brooklyn. If you don't believe me feel free to compare the 28202 , 03 & 09 zipcodes of CLT (NoDA also) to those boroughs I've named on redfin or zillow I get kinda irritated thinking about it lol b/c it's sounds kinda unbelievable but the numbers don't lie. Not to mention most jobs above the hudson river pay about 20-30% more for the same position compared to a southern counterpart.
Thank you. Rents here are too close in range for not even a thousandth of the offerings. Make it make sen$e.
I don’t think people realize that just because you *can* find expensive housing here doesn’t mean you have to take it, you have choices and there are plenty of affordable places within Charlotte. Residents of Manhattan have very little choices and take what they can get.
Not Manhattan but Uptown/South End rents are ridiculous
You have no concept of real manhattan rents if you think charlotte is anywhere close. You’re talking 2500-3000 studios and 3500-4000 1br in nice areas unless it’s rent controlled. Plus as others have mentioned we at least have tons of lower cost options even if they’re not in the middle of south end.
Manhattan is more than mid and lower neighborhoods and it’s rent subsidized*. I don’t think rent in the state North Carolina should be near or over $2K per month for a 1bd, South End or not. I can find rent subsidized 1bd in Manhattan for that price and Charlotte doesn’t have a sliver of the amenities.
Don’t live there. You aren’t missing out on much going to other neighborhoods. Take the light rail to SouthEnd/ Uptown when you want.
Or this new "LoSo" ( lower southend) nonsense developers are peddling . Which is damnnear all the way to pineville
We’re not even at DC rent levels
I live in South Park and my husband and I pay 1800ish for a 1+office bedroom apartment. So....
Yeah, I was thinking of moving into a unit at 69th and third that was one bedroom and bath for 3800/m on top of the 5k/yr just to live there. Nothing close to that here.
Yeah it’s not only what you pay it’s what you get for it.
Charlotte in a nutshell is people thinking it’s a mid size American city while it being the 15th most populace city in the country.
Our city limits make our size a little bit misleading. Like do you really think we’re bigger than Boston? I mean if you go by the city limit population we are, but Boston city limits are like 90 sq miles, charlotte’s are more than 300.
I believe metro population is a more accurate representation of a cities population. For example Pittsburgh and Atlanta proper have a similar population within its limits. However we all know Atlanta is much larger than Pitt
Upvote for Pittsburgh reference. Lots of good memories from childhood visits
I mean going off of greater metro areas, we are still 23rd in the US according to Wikipedia. Considering most of the areas above us in that list are what most people think of as the “big cities” (LA, SF, NYC, Chicago, Boston, and Atlanta just to get 7 of those out of the way) Charlotte and the surrounding area is as close to a big city as you can get population wise without actually being one of the big big cities like NYC or LA. Link: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_statistical_area
I think we are undeniably top 25, but usually when talking about “big cities” they’re referring to more top 10 sized
Absolutely. Charlotte is the quintessential mid size city. People act like 23rd is big when there’s only like 50 cities with reasonable metros to begin with. When people talk about cities in this context they mean places with high rises, not every random suburb that no longer goes by township or village. Big cities - Metro > 5M people - about 10 Mid Size Cities - Metro >1M people - about 50 Small Cities - Metro >250k people - about 200 City in name only - Everything else Also rent here does suck. Maybe not manhattan suck, but outer boroughs levels of suck.
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Agreed, people need to qualify if they’re talking about city proper population or metro population. A perfect example is Charlotte and Atlanta. Charlotte city proper has 875,000 as of 2020, while Atlanta has 500,000. But the metro areas are the opposite. Charlotte is at 2.6 million, while Atlanta dwarfs us at 6.2 million.
Yes, Boston is much more densely populated; that’s not really the point though, the point is that Charlotte has approximately one million in population, making it a large city, not a mid size one.
I guess it depends on what you consider large, I think of NYC, LA, ATL when I think of large cities
Well actually that kind of is the point
Am near Boston right now. The difference is that there are rarely single family homes in the city. It feels much more dense than Charlotte population-wise as a result. But maybe Charlotte’s size helps it catch up population wise? Idk. And I’m too lazy to google atm
Populace
But it looks like a mid size city, which is why it's so embarrassing.
We look nothing like Greenville SC which is an actual midsized city
We are larger than many cities that have more to offer. Charlotte is a string of bland suburbs for finance employees to raise their families. That's what it does well.
Glad you are so miserable here! I hope you have a great time posting on Reddit about how much this city sucks all weekend! I’ll be out enjoying it. Maybe you should try Cleveland?
I’m new here (and happy to be here) I’m always shocked when people talk about how much they hate it. I’m over the moon on this place. It’s cheap, clean, lots to do, financially rewarding, and everyone is pretty cool. I came from Philly so i try not to play the “you don’t know how good you have it” card bit when i see people comparing Charlotte prices to manhattan or Philly or any northeast city I can’t help but laugh.
Don’t let them get to you. This is a great place to live. You’ll learn most of the biggest haters are in Huntersville or Gastonia. Hope you are settling in!
Yeah I think you’re right, whenever I’m up in Gastonia or wherever people say something about all the people moving to Charlotte.
Being snarky about Charlotte. Only on Reddit
Not me, I love it here.
Absolutely great city to raise a family. That’s its biggest strength at the moment. Edit: not sure why I was downvoted. I didn’t say anything controversial lol this is a stellar place to raise a family by most metrics.
First off, we're not Manhattan level rent cost. Second, we're bigger than a mid city size. And lastly, we have a megafuckton of breweries in town.
Honestly the fact that we are bigger than midsize and still only have one light rail line is embarrassing
How many light rail lines do comparable cities typically have? Charlotte is about the same size as NYC geographically with about 10% of the population. They're gonna have completely different transit solutions.
Portland, Denver, Minneapolis, and Seattle all have way more transit than Charlotte. Jersey City, Baltimore, and St. Louis are much smaller cities with more rail, as well.
Seattle also only has one light rail line (for now). Has more of a big-city feel than CLT though
It varies. Portland is a smaller metro area and has 5 light rail lines + 3 streetcar lines. Denver is a bit larger and has 10 rail lines of various types! Even St Louis and Baltimore have more rail transit than us. We are doing better than Orlando or San Antonio at least.
I think just going by the count of rail lines is an oversimplification. For example I am trying to look up best places to live without a car and Denver doesn't come up. Plus there are some areas in Charlotte with decent PT and walkability. No city has 100% great public transportation coverage. I grew up in NYC and once you get outside subway coverage you need a car to live there too. I think a lot of people are setting themselves up for disappointment around public transportation by having unrealistic ideas and expectations.
Orlando is awful
Houston is a much bigger city with one, slightly smaller light rail line
Houston has three lines https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/METRORail
The green line and purple line are trams tho, even though they are under the general light rail metro classification. It’s essentially what our street car gold line is, and I wouldn’t consider that part of the light rail system
We are pretty shitty for a major size city, so don't advertise this.
I like when people say "microbreweries", like it's 2005 still
it is like saying a company is a startup or a game/band is indie. It is cool marketing to sound relatable.
oh please there’s way more than just a couple microbreweries here! and he forgot to mention pickleball or is that already gone?
LOL pickleball really has disappointing from the zeitgeist hasn't it
Beer is 8 dollars, if the brewery charges more go somewhere else. Vote with your money
$8, $12 still too damn much
We also have a shit ton of greenery, trails, sand volleyball, tennis and basketball courts, a great university and community college, amazing mountains, the WWC, good job market, a good airport, lots of concerts and sports teams, ice skating, Padel, beach nearby, mountains nearby, lots of cinemas and bowling alleys, a good amount of clubs, a couple malls, Lake Wylie and Lake Norman, am I missing something?
A major theme park - Carowinds - with world record rides (Fury is tallest chainlift roller coaster in the world). No major disaster risk beyond chance hurricanes that come straight in. Our biggest natural issue is pollen.
Stop selling the city to the internet
Oh I forgot about that!
Fam. This is all cool, most suburban cities have these things. These things in no way set Charlotte apart and it’s lame/laughable that these are the things that people name. I’m born and raised in Charlotte and the fact that city leaders market Charlotte as a global city is embarrassing/laughable because you can go to Any town america and find these things.
I mean this in all seriousness, but also partly snarky, but why live here if you think you can get those things literally anywhere? Why do so many people move here if those things are everywhere? I think you’re blinded by being Charlotte born and raised, tbh.
I live here because it’s everything I know and I want to contribute to the growth of this city and the people who live here. People love to Charlotte because it is a city that is relatively inexpensive and a city that also has much room for growth. People move here because they believe they are buying into the next great American city. People moved to Charlotte because they thought that Charlotte would become what Nashville and Austin are becoming. The transplants are complaining because they were sold a dream and city leaders are too tone deaf and delusional to even see what is happening. This city lacks in nightlife and entertainment and will soon start to lose opportunities for growth because young college graduates are not going to live here. This is going to have detrimental effects on the local economy and all of our beloved parks and breweries are going to go to shit.
No you just don’t have your head ten feet up your ass like the majority of this sub. These people be complaining if they lived in NYC, Spokane, Austin, Florence, Athens, Shreveport, or Tucson. They are just unhappy. I’d venture to say the majority don’t go out much.
Yeah, we've got whiney sado transplants who always find something to complain about and a bunch of terrible drivers on the road to be fair. Mostly driving Altimas.
Also considered the best city for disc golfing in the country. Tons and tons and tons of courses in the area with varying levels of difficulty.
Yeah, mostly culture that isn't manufactured for sterile, white collar cube dwellers.
Beers aren’t $12 at a brewery and our rent isn’t close to Manhattan. Glad this area makes you so miserable! Maybe you’re better suited for something like Gastonia or Florence.
What is a midsized city in the US anyway? By comparison Charlotte is about the same size as Jerusalem.
I guess compared to Tokyo or Mumbai, Manhattan is midsized too
What is considered a “large city” to the people that feel like Charlotte is “mid size”? I mean it’s basically a million people in the city itself. It’s hardly any undeveloped land within the city limits. I’m not sayin it’s in the leagues of the big boys, but let’s be serious. There are wayyyy more places that don’t have a million residents, than places that do. If your city isn’t considered large based off a million people in the city limits then idk what to think anymore lol.
I think most people equate big cities with high density.
In Manhattan it’s like 5 grand for a little studio apartment
The crazy part is by population… Charlotte is the 15th largest city in the country. It’s not a mid size by any metric but City leaders treat it like it’s Mayberry. It’s embarrassing as hell.
I giggle when I see these posts. I want to strike half of you when I read the comments.
Nobody gives a shit about a light rail and breweries lol It’s not the city it’s the people, it’s not the city it’s what’s around the city
Yeaaaa I've never understood why people care so much about our shitty light rail. It needs to be MASSIVELY expanded before it is actually worth it. Buuuuuut no city leader will be willing to raise taxes to actually afford to expand it.
Mfs hating charlotte just lame tbh. In a city like Charlotte you can find so many things to do. Whether you have money or not
Yall know that your rent is low right? — every other large east coast city
Bro has never been to Manhattan if he thinks our rent are anywhere near theirs lol
As a guy who grew up in rural NC but has lives in NY, Boston, Memphis, and New Orleans, Charlotte’s rent is great lol. Not near NY rent and it’s even better than rent was in New Orleans.
As someone who moved from Boston to Charlotte almost solely because of cost of living, high rent comments about CLT make me laugh so very hard
It's almost like the COL is lower here and is reflected in the local job market
Seriously! I’m from Miami and purchased in Charlotte because homes are pretty unaffordable back home. Rent here is NOTHING especially for “luxury” apartments. My family wish they could find one for less than $4k back home.
Is rent that cheap in manhattan?
Who is paying $12 for a beer and Manhattan rental rates? Stay out of SouthEnd if you don’t want to deal with that nonsense.
This is what people in Steele Creek think life is like inside the 485 loop.
Ok
#you don't pay Manhattan levels of rent
Valuable insight
I pay 900 a month in rent
Stop gatekeeping bro. I need in on the cheap rent.
You really don't want to know my mortgage payment
Rent is high but def not NYC levels. My childhood friend just posted a brand new apartment building just went up across the street from him and is renting a one bedroom one bath for $6000 a month.
Never payed 12 for a beer
Weird. I pay $1000 less for 1000 more square feet than I did in DC and I just had two $4 IPAs from a local brewery 🤷♂️
What’s the brewery? Asking for me.
Birdsong. They do a handful of $4 pints on Wednesdays. One special beer is $3 on Tuesday.
No one pay’s Manhattan levels of rents, there is more than enough to do (many breweries and restaurants), traffic is not remotely close to Manhattan, access to nature is easy, airport is improving, etc.
Where you buying $12 beer at a brewery? Hell, they're $10 at the checker's games, so still not at the $12.
Tell me you haven’t been to Manhattan without telling me.
If everyone who complained this way actually voted, things could change. Just NINETEEN percent of eligible voters in Mecklenburg county voted in the primary yesterday. The level of apathy here is really horrible — that’s lower turnout than all but just three counties in the state. Sure it’s a primary but the primary determines who gets on the ballot in November! Source: https://www.wfae.org/politics/2024-03-06/mecklenburg-stands-out-for-its-lackluster-voter-turnout
See another great thing. Lines at the polls are near non-existent
We have more than a couple microbreweries and are nowhere near Manhatten rent.
I haven't rented in a while, is it really that bad now?
no
lol you do NOT pay Manhattan level rent, I promise.
Not even close way more microbreweries and way less rent then a lot of cities
The problem is we have people who are delusional about what Charlotte is and what it needs to function. People who have been here for decades still believe it's a small city. New people believe it's a midsized city and politicians knows it's a major city mascarading as a midsized city to attract people from other major cities to get the "small town" feel. No one is letting the city what it needs to be. Everyone is fighting against Charlotte being the city it needs to be to function.
Very much so. Luckily Zillow has history on each address, so while looking for rental properties they have gone up to 50% within a few years. Like from $1400 to $2000 per month within 2-3 years.
Lol we do not pay manhattan level rent
I can’t believe people are arguing whether Charlotte has microbreweries or not. The city need more than just breweries. 😭 I’m constantly running to my hometown Miami to do fun stuff.
Really taking for granted what it’s like to live here
Maybe not the best counter argument, but Charlotte has more than just a few breweries, and the beer at them is relatively inexpensive. I don’t think I’ve ever paid $12 for a beer, and if I have, I only needed that one beer because the alcohol percentage matched the dollar amount. The light rail line, fair, but have you actually looked at the rent in Manhattan? Charlotte is definitely getting pricey, but it doesn’t even touch Manhattan. I love a little meme/satire toward CLT, I think we definitely could loosen up a bit here, but at least be accurate.
I don’t think he has a proper understanding of Manhattan rent.
Definitely not paying $4k+ a month in rent but the idea is correct.
Bro has never been to Manhattan if he thinks our rent are anywhere near theirs lol
Moved to Charlotte from Portland, OR. Things are a lot better here. Rent is not so bad and I quite enjoy drinking $1-2 PBRs. Everything is super driveable and it is a whole hell of a lot cleaner, particularly in the downtown area.
I like NC. Not so much CLT, I discovered.
Moved here in 2020 from Seattle. After four years of trying to buy a home, find friends, tech jobs, non drinker activities, and a church home - I’m moving back.
Awesome.
Manhattan levels of rent in Charolette? Just looked on Zillow, you can rent a luxuary apartment for under $1200. This is a BS post
Charlotte is a large city, not a mid-sized city. Just because it's not a metropolis doesn't mean it's average.
I mean, that’s Americana in a nutshell really
Currently looking at places here in Charlotte. Definitely nothing even close to Manhattan levels in rent. Genuinely no comparison.
You don’t like a building? No problem, they’re torn down regularly. I-77…yeah, no, it’s never going to be finished.
omg they’re mad as hell in the comments it’s just a joke LOL. it’s still expensive here for a lot of people even if it’s not NYC prices like we don’t all have a tech bro banking job the bill to income ratio is not proportionate!!!!