Carolinas For Boomers

Guide to North and South Carolina Retirement Communities

Tis the Season to Visit Wilmington, NC

Public Beach access on Kure Beach on North Carolina’s Atlantic coast.

One of the many great things about living in Coastal North Carolina are all of the holiday festivals and events available to enjoy in the area.

Here are just a few of the events on tap for the next month:

November 24th & 25th, December 1st & 2nd, 8th-10th, & 13th-22nd – Enchanted Airlie
November 20th-December 31st – Cape Fear Festival of Trees
December 1st – Island of Lights Christmas Parade
December 2nd – Christmas by the Sea
December 2nd & 3rd – Old Wilmington By Candlelight
December 1st-3rd – Holiday Flea at the BAC
December 3rd & 4th – Jingle Bells Holiday Tea
December 1st & 2nd, 8th-10th, & 15th & 16th – A Merry Little Christmas Festival
December 9th – Christmas Stroll through the Past
December 8th-17th – A Christmas Story The Musical
December 31st – New Year’s Eve Soiree on the River

One of the best ways to visit and experience some of these great events is to take part in Brunswick Forest’s Coastal Discovery Package, which gives you a 3 day-2 night stay with VIP tour of Brunswick Forest and the Wilmington area.

Brunswick Forest is just 10 minutes from historic downtown Wilmington, NC, and within 30 minutes of pristine beaches—yet set apart on 4,500 heavily wooded acres containing parks, nature trails and creeks. It includes a wealth of amenities in place for residents to enjoy today, such as a top-rated golf course and some of the most diverse real estate offerings in eastern North Carolina. From upscale links-side estates to low-maintenance patio homes, this coastal North Carolina community has something for everyone – whether you’re looking to get in on the action or get away from it all. There’s also a vibrant town center that offers convenient shopping, dining and access to medical and other important services.

Premier Home Sites are available from the $70s and Elegant Homes are priced from the mid $200s.

Request More Information

US News & World Report Best Places to Retire in the Carolinas

Let’s face it, “best places to retire” lists are a dime a dozen.

Everybody’s got one, but somehow, I think that’s a good thing.

While each list is different because they use different data to come to their conclusions, it’s great to check them all out because they can bring different places to your attention.

To come up with their best places to retire list, U.S. News & World Report analyzed data for the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the USA to assess how well they meet Americans’ retirement needs and expectations.

Top criteria include the happiness of local residents, housing affordability, tax rates and healthcare quality.

Here are the places in the Carolinas that made the list, and a snippet of what they said about each place:

#13: Greenville, SC

“Greenville encompasses big-city amenities without attracting the same unpleasantries that come with a more populated, urban metro area. The 10-block stretch of Main Street is lined with a variety of boutiques, restaurants, businesses and bars.”

#17: Raleigh-Durham, NC

“Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill also encompass beautiful green spaces, family-friendly museums and a growing art and music scene defined by monthly gallery walks, summer concerts and music festivals like Hopscotch.”

See Also: Retirement Spotlight: Durham, NC

#18: Charleston, SC

“Its unique brand of Southern style shines in the bespoke boutiques that line downtown’s King Street, while Southern hospitality radiates from the award-winning dining establishments.”

#22: Charlotte, NC

“You’ll still hear “y’all” dropped into casual conversation, but Charlotte is a metro area on the rise, and has its own culture, culinary sophistication and unique feel that’s making it a more enticing place for people from all over the world to settle down.”

See Also: Retirement Spotlight: Charlotte, NC

#43: Greensboro, NC

“Greensboro, North Carolina, is one of those places that’s big enough to have everything you need, but small enough for you to regularly bump into people you know.”

#57: Winston-Salem

“This slow-and-steady growth has preserved the region’s small-town feel while allowing for improvements like repurposing the old textile and tobacco factories into loft apartment spaces, and building the new $48.7 million baseball park downtown.”

#82: Columbia, SC

“Columbia’s population of nearly 800,000 is small enough that traffic is relatively mild and the streets are rarely overcrowded, but large enough to support trendy shops, cafes, bars and other businesses that make urban life enjoyable.”

You might be surprised to see seven Carolina cities made the US News & World Report Best Places to Retire list, but keep in mind they studied metropolitan areas, not just cities by themselves.

That said, if the Carolinas is not your only consideration, their list gives you a bunch of other options to consider.

You can see the full list here.

The Meadows Neighborhood Now Open at Woodside

Woodside, a master-planned Southern Living Inspired Community located in Aiken, SC, recently hosted the official ribbon cutting ceremony for The Meadows park and its newest model home there, The Berkshire.

With live music and a beautiful sunset in the background, Woodside residents came together to toast their “Meadows Mojitos” to the newest community offerings.

The Meadows neighborhood is the newest addition to Woodside. Residents enjoy the quiet reprieve of the wooded home sites in The Meadows, several of which offer lovely views of the pristine and lushly landscaped Meadows Park.

The park, which features a lighted walking path, rustic picnic pavilion for community gatherings, and brick fire pit with seating, includes a variety of verdant plants from the Southern Living Plant Collection.

Adjacent to the neighborhood is a community flower gardening area with a delightful garden shed constructed from the Southern Living House Plan Collection as its focal point.

The Meadows offers four unique home plans designed in collaboration with John Tee, an Atlanta, GA architect with extensive Southern Living home plan design experience, and constructed by Carolina Signature Homes, a member of the Southern Living Custom Builder Program.

The Berkshire

One such plan, The Berkshire, has recently been built as a model home that you must see to believe!

Be sure to plan your Woodside visit today to come and explore both The Meadows Park and The Berkshire, a 2,157 square foot model home with land included for under $345,000.

Want more information about Woodside?

Get more information about Woodside

Benefits of Choosing an “Established” Community


Brunswick Forest near Wilmington, NC started development back in 2007.

Yes folks, it is fun and exciting to learn about brand new communities that are just coming out of the ground.

There’s a sense of urgency that everyone feels when a community starts pre-construction sales, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

But on the other hand, there are a lot of great things about well established communities that have been around for a few years and still have plenty more new development ahead of them like Brunswick Forest does.

Want more information about things like floorplans, pricing, and availability at Brunswick Forest?
Request More Information

One thing, you get with established communities that you don’t get with brand new communities is a certain level of comfort…and well, certainty…in knowing that a developer and their community have been able to stick around and keep making progress, even though a portion of its history took place during the Great Recession.

Other benefits that come along with established communities are more mature grounds and landscaping, more and better established clubs and activities for residents to take part in, and more.

Here are some highlights of the development of Brunswick Forest:

2007- Brunswick Forest opened its doors officially for sales and began welcoming families into the community by year’s end.

2008- Many of us remember this year as the downturn in the economy, but Brunswick Forest was just getting started welcoming over 100 families that year.

2009- This is the year Brunswick Forest opened and sold through the communities of Ashwood and Belshaw. This is also the year they started our ever-so-popular Concerts in the Park!

2010- The year of Cape Fear National. Brunswick Forest opened their 18-hole, championship golf course designed by Carolina native, Tim Cate, to rave reviews! They celebrated the grand opening with Bobby Clampett and a few new Cape Fear National neighbors.

2011- Hammock Lake Park opened this year and the Annual Cardboard Boat Regatta & Race was born!

2012- Brunswick Forest turns 5 and what a celebration it was!

2013- Life was GRAND with the welcoming of Brunswick Forest’s 1000th family!

2014- This was the year Brunswick Forest was honored to have two Ideal-Living Homes in their community, The Amelia by Logan Homes and The Adeliade by Legacy Homes by Bill Clark.

2015- Brunswick Forest opened their charming, southern wonder, Cypress Pointe, and a world of new southern traditions!

2016- Kicked off their “Share Brunswick Forest Property Owner Referral Program” and had their first gala to celebrate all those who shared their LOVE of Brunswick Forest!

2017- 10th Anniversary Celebration

We’re excited to see what the next decade brings for our friends at Brunswick Forest!

Want more information about things like floorplans, pricing, and availability at Brunswick Forest?
Request More Information

Master Down Townhomes Available at Creekside at Bethpage


AV Homes has begun selling “Master Downstairs” Townhomes at Creekside at Bethpage, their active adult community in the popular Brier Creek area of Durham, North Carolina.

Townhomes are a great option for retirees to consider because they offer “lock and leave” convenience which is perfect for those who plan to snowbird initially or travel even a moderate amount.

The downside though, is that a lot of townhome models have their bedrooms (including the master bedroom) upstairs which can pose a problem for some people down the road.

That’s why these “master downstairs” townhomes are such a great idea.

Construction of these Master Down “Publisher Edition” townhomes will begin this fall during the community’s third phase and are priced starting in the mid $200s.

Want to see all of the great floorplans available in Creekside at Bethpage?

Get more information about Creekside at Bethpage

“Our Master Down Townhomes have been a topic of conversation among prospective buyers and real estate agents since we first broke ground on our active adult community nearly two years ago,” said Bill Kiselick, President of the AV Homes Carolinas Division.

“It has been exciting to debut our townhome designs and start the pre-selling process to see how that initial demand has grown. We are very pleased with the reception these units have received thus far.”

Homebuyers can choose from three floor plans: Bloomsbury, Arbordale, and Harper, which were named after popular publishing houses.

These ranch-style townhomes offer 1,294 to 1,342 square feet of living space and have two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and attached two-car garages as well as Craftsman and Farmhouse exterior elevations, open floor plans, and covered porches. AV Homes plans to build twelve buildings with a total of 56 townhomes.

Each building will include high-quality construction and low-maintenance exteriors.

“Knowing that there was great interest for townhome units in Creekside at Bethpage, we took our time designing the plans and selecting the features and finishes to ensure they would delight buyers,” said Marie Lorimer, AV Homes Carolinas Division Vice President of Marketing.

Perhaps the best part about the Publisher Edition Master Down Townhomes in Creekside at Bethpage is that they are located within walking distance to the community’s 13,000 square-foot Hemingway Hall.

This well-appointed clubhouse includes a fitness center, social rooms, aerobics and yoga studio, computer center, art and pottery room, and billiards and game rooms. Just outside of the clubhouse, residents have recreational facilities like an outdoor pool, outdoor kitchen, community garden, lawn bowling, and sports courts for tennis, pickleball, bocce ball, and shuffleboard.

Want to see all of the great floorplans available in Creekside at Bethpage?

Get more information about Creekside at Bethpage