Moving to Piedmont region of NC - Intro!

Hello everyone! This is my first post here but I’ve really enjoyed reading the forums etc off and on for a few months. Thanks for sharing so much info - it’s a great resource for newbies like me!

I will be moving to central North Carolina in December/January, and wanted to see if anyone had any advice on how to find rural (or chicken n garden friendly) rental properties in the area? I’ve been hunting on Craigslist, Facebook, house rental sites and it’s been slim pickings- though maybe that’s just the way the market is? I am in California currently so that does make the search more challenging.

Also - I’ll take any advice I can get! :) I’m looking to just do some gardening and maybe have a few chickens for the first year or so while I really get my bearings. NC is so beautiful but the terrain varies so much that I feel like I’d have a lot to learn before I’d be ready to buy land. What would a person new to the Raleigh/Sandhills area need to know before signing a lease? :)

-Julie

things are much different in western part of state/ashville ect, i have friends in statesville area and it seems there are either litte neighborhoods
where the houses are 50' apart or large farms. i found it takes a lot of looking to find what your after. rent to own might be better for long term gardening/homesteading.
if you got job your going to that limits where you can look you might contact realtor or search zillow or landandfarm.com or whatevcer the web site is called

Thanks for the feedback Bruce! I may end up closer to Asheville one day - it sure is beautiful, and I am lucky that I have some flexibility with where I settle, as long as there’s good internet. :)

You have a good point about rent to own being easier for homesteading. It’s a tricky thing when how you want to live is outside the typical rental norm. :)

-Julie

the piedmont region has much different climate than the edge of the smokies. in my opinion its just nicer farther out west here and the people are nicer is what i've found, cost of land is less also depending on where you look

Greetings,

The backyard flock for Raleigh NC is 4 hens. No roosters allowed.
Rents for Wake co are going high (but, perhaps not compared to CA) imo.
Zillow is not bad for "quickview" of properties, suggest trulia & check crime rate as this will effect
quality of life for your neighborhood.
Wake is listed as 7B but is 'warming' & acting more like a 7A/8B (look at all the bananas)
Other cities & most locations fall back to city/town ordinance for poultry would need a perusal
of that locales www site.
I would chat with your future landlord about gardening & get their opinion. Beware of developments
with covenants as this will limit options on accepted land use. City Y for poultry, subdivision mandates NO chickens allowed.
bol & welcome to a quite dry NC (send rain)

Thanks Ron! I appreciate the info very much. :) Rent is still cheaper than LA for now, thankfully! I’m looking a little south of Raleigh in Lee/Moore/Harnett counties and it just seems that more rural properties are scarce. I guess that makes sense. I’ll definitely be discussing any gardening/chicken aspirations with any potential landlord - no one needs more drama in their lives, right? :)
I’d love to send y’all some rain but it IS Southern California here - we forget what rain is.

Julie, welcome to permies!

Here is the result of a google search for property management companies for Lee/Moore/Harnett counties.

Several of them looked like they might be able to help you.

https://www.google.com/search?q=property+management+co+for+Lee%2FMoore%2FHarnett+counties+nc&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b-1

Oh!!! Anne, you’re brilliant! I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me to reach out to the management companies and let them keep an eye out for me! Thank you so much for the idea!!!