I just got a job outside of Darlington, in the middle of nowhere. I'm looking for an apartment or house to rent for a year or so, to see how the job pans out and if there's a house somewhere I'd want to buy.

Can anyone shed some light on the good (or bad) places to live? So far I've been looking at rental properties in Florence and Hartsville, as recommended to me by the guys I'll be working with. At this point I'm expecting a commute on the order of 30-45 minutes no matter where I end up renting, since most everything is spread out in this part of the state.

Any insight is appreciated.

2/5/2011 8:16:37 PM

I live and work in Hartsville. Where exactly are you working at? Darlington is a real shit hole, but so is most of the area around here. Hartsville has some nice neighborhoods and Florence has plenty of options.

I used to rent in Florence at a place called Habitat 2000 (sounds ghetto), but for the money it could not be beat. This was back in 2003, but I was paying $450/month for a 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment. Place is close to US76 which meant it was easy to get to I-95 and I-20. I own a home now in Hartsville in a neighborhood I really like.

Hope you have a girlfriend because meeting any females here is FTL. I was lucky as I did not have to endure the "single scene" down here, but another engineer I work with did and it was brutal for him.

2/6/2011 8:06:45 AM

The job is at an automation company at the Darlington County airport on 401.

At this point I've pretty much accepted that I won't find anywhere I want to live in Darlington. It looks like Hartsville is a little closer than Florence, but I haven't ruled out either one yet. Any recommendations on apts or neighborhoods to check out in Hartsville? I'm making a trip down this week to check out a few places, and also to just drive around looking for "For Rent" signs.

I do have a girlfriend, I'd definitely be worried about meeting someone if I didn't... lol

2/6/2011 10:10:36 AM

You are working close to Society Hill. Hartsville is as close to where you are working as Darlington. Pretty much every apartment complex in Hartsville has an income limit. Some builder called Rehab Builders just built a nice looking complex (clearly the largest and nicest in the city), but I've heard that it has an income cap. If that is not true, then you may be able to find something there. Your commute would be fairly easy 20-25 minutes.

Most rental property in Hartsville (for people who actually have jobs) is through renting a home. I can give you a contact of a guy I work with who does rentals like this if interested. If you really want to be in an apartment complex, then Florence will be your best bet. The commute will be longer, but you might save more money than renting a house, especially on utilities.

There are actually quite a few NC State folks in Hartsville. Sonoco employees probably 30-40 just in Hartsville so you'll see some folks driving around with their Wolfpack stickers, license plates, etc.



[Edited on February 6, 2011 at 10:29 AM. Reason : c]

2/6/2011 10:29:35 AM

Man my grandmother used to live not too far from there. There is nothing in those parts

2/6/2011 10:46:15 AM

^ That is a little exagerrated. Hartsville has some things to do, but you have to know the area and understand that "some things to do" are oriented towards families and/or older people.

Yeah in Society Hill there is basically nothing to do, but within the general area there are some things to see, events, etc. Plus Charlotte is only ~1.5 hours away, Charleston 2 hrs, Myrtle Beach 2 hrs, Columbia 1 hr so you can always do day trips too.

2/6/2011 11:06:25 AM

I do know that SC has some cooler beaches and you're surprisingly close to a lot of stuff in SC, like Atlanta and Charleston, both amazing cities of the South. It's really not that bad. A lot of my fam was born in SC, and I used to live in Charleston. I would have to give it two thumbs up. Get a boat! There's a lot of water accessible in the Badlands.

2/6/2011 11:09:21 AM

^^ Yeah, ie it's boring as hell when you're a kid going to visit grandma's house

That that where she lives now has much more to do. She's just on the other side of SC near Asheville lol.

2/6/2011 11:15:20 AM

^ I won't disagree that western SC is much better than the rest of SC outside of Charleston. That is obvious, but people on TWW like to shit all over SC all the time just because they drove through it on their way to Florida or something.

Yeah there are a lot of podunk towns and ghetto people, but that is true in every state. But for people to write off a whole state, outside of Charleston, when they've barely seen any of it is just ignorant. SC has been devastated by the loss of the textile industry and it has really hurt the central part of the State.



[Edited on February 6, 2011 at 11:59 AM. Reason : er]

2/6/2011 11:58:30 AM

Girlfriend going with you?

I've worked in Cheraw for 6 years now and still commute 3 hrs a day from Asheboro, NC...
Wife says hell no to moving down there.

2/6/2011 1:31:37 PM

My first job out of school was in Florence. It wasn't to bad and there are some good apartments in Flo-town and some stuff to do.

2/6/2011 7:43:52 PM

GF will be moving down eventually.. probably after a year or so.

the owner lives in Hartsville, it looks like there are some pretty nice neighborhoods in/around that area.

keep it coming, I've got a line on a few different places, but nothing serious yet

2/6/2011 8:33:31 PM

also, rflong you've got a PM

2/6/2011 11:32:28 PM

go build your robotic arms elsewhere jessie...that and stay away from the dirt track in lancaster. who knows, you may find yourself sporting a mullet and nascar t-shirt in no time Sincerely though, good luck out there.

2/6/2011 11:36:29 PM

Hartsville is good times... http://www.heraldonline.com/2011/02/07/2814124/man-shot-to-death-at-super-bowl.html

Quote :

"HARTSVILLE, S.C. -- Investigators say one man has been killed and another man wounded in a shooting during a Super Bowl party in Hartsville."

2/7/2011 12:26:39 PM

^ That is pretty common in the area. Lots of violent crime. I know it sounds shitty, but you kind of become immune to it. There are just so many dumbass thugs around here that think they are above the law.

2/7/2011 5:05:46 PM

I live in Florence and work in Hartsville. There is not a lot to do out here but expenses are pretty cheap. I chose to live in Florence because Hartsville seemed too small and its at the intersection of 95/20 so it's good for roadtrips. It'll be good to have some more State people around since I don't see any when I go out to watch games. It also takes some getting used to hearing Carolina and it not meaning UNC.

2/7/2011 8:17:05 PM

^ I correct people on the Carolina thing all the time...

2/7/2011 8:51:38 PM

I've taken to always referring to USC as Carolina.

Just because it sends UNC fans into an immediate, uncontrollable rage.

2/7/2011 10:43:46 PM

bttt

went down to Hartsville on Thursday, found a nice 3br for rent on the west side of town, just off 151

going back next week to sign the lease and get keys

thanks for the help, i'll bump this thread again once i'm moved in. see if we can't get some of these ncsu people together

2/12/2011 9:53:45 PM

I live in Columbia. Just moved here about 10 days ago. Don't really know too many people other than my brother and his friends. I'm sure I'll run into some people I went to high school with at some point (lived in the Myrtle Beach area before going to NC State). Would be nice to find some other NC State fans here!

2/12/2011 10:41:22 PM

^^^and it took me a while to get used to calling USC "Carolina." It still doesn't feel right to tell people "I go to Carolina."

2/13/2011 7:33:21 PM

^^^ Hey man sorry I never heard back from the guy I work with (really he works in the same plant as me, but I do not see him that often). Glad to hear you found a rental though.

2/14/2011 10:07:14 AM

Hartsville is a shithole. Avoid at all costs.

2/14/2011 10:27:47 AM

^^ no worries. i had a few people tell me that the market for vacant rentals in town is practically non-existent. as soon as a vacancy comes up, somebody grabs it. just like I did with this house

^ its a little late for that. my options are: hartsville (house), florence (apt), or darlington (double wide). i feel pretty good about the choice i made

2/14/2011 11:09:49 PM

^^ SF with some more amazing analysis.

2/15/2011 4:00:38 PM

I could break it down further for you, but the fact that I've spent an ungodly amount of time there over the past several years dealing with Sonoco pretty much makes me a subject matter expert, so I'll keep it short and sweet. It's a sleepy, poor southern town with a significant minority population and limited leisure outlets. If you're an 80 year old retiree who is content to sit on the porch and watch gameshows all day, I'd endorse it wholeheartedly. For a mid 20's male, its basically a hotter Fuquay Varina. I hope you're a social troglodyte. Best of Luck.

2/15/2011 4:31:10 PM

all you guys that work at Sonoco, Nucor, or the Robinson plant (or anywhere else around here)--

what are some of the good places to get a beer and watch the acc tournament?

and is there anywhere around here that's open on sunday mornings besides church

3/10/2011 10:21:38 PM