Asheville, NC Reviews

Once a good city, now a place one should avoid. - 8/14/2022
Lived around this city my entire life, and have spent countless hours in every part of it- at one point, Asheville was the place to be, it had a high standard of living, a low cost of living, and friendly, welcoming people, but the natives of the city have slowly been pushed out by people moving in from elsewhere.

Transplants in and of themselves aren’t a problem, quite the opposite in fact, however, where Asheville is concerned, the people who’ve moved in have fundamentally transformed the city into something different, something more resembling west coast cities like San Francisco, than what you’d expect in a North Carolina city. The cost of housing has skyrocketed, and as of 2022, there are 15 known gangs operating in a city with under 100,000 residents, a shocking number given how low the crime rate is in the rest of the region. On top of that, Asheville has recently entered the top 1% of cities for crime, meaning that it is more dangerous than 99% of US cities, an Read More

What happened to Asheville? - 7/3/2021
Asheville has changed dramatically over the pass twenty years . At one time downtown and the charming family friendly neighborhoods within, reminded me of The Waltons now it resembles The Lord of the Flys. Asheville according to recent FBI stats is now in the Top 10% of the Most Violence City’s in America . Too make matters worse 1/3 of the police force has quite due to lack of local support. Getting voice mail when reporting a crime is not what you want, but Asheville is almost there. It’s a shame that a few vocal carpetbaggers can move into the area displace the locals and through the ballot box destroy a city . Natural beautiful, Southern charm, safety and history have been replaced by crime, homeless encampments, panhandlers, gunfire, high taxes and filth …
Read More

Not what is appears to be - 6/19/2021
This city is very deceiving. Small but if you look close you see big liberal city problems in this town. Mainly because it is overwhelming liberal. Far left liberals. Read More

For such a small town it seemed unsafe - 1/2/2020
I recently visited some friends in Asheville, I was there for a week. It is a beautiful area, mountains and the town. I was excited to stay at a hotel right in Asheville where I could walk to shops and restaurants. Unfortunately there is something very odd about being in the town after dark. I never felt safe, the homeless population seems to be out of control and the number of times I heard police sirens while trying to sleep was crazy. I’ve lived in a few larger cities, live in DC now but this town really creeped me out. Maybe because everything closes so early but my next visit I’ll stick to hiking and biking and stay out of the actual Read More

Many outsiders have changed this town. - 9/25/2019
Asheville used to be a great place until the mass exodus of Floridians and Californians came to town. Now it is overpriced (feeling the same pain Washington State felt when Californians came calling) and it is hard to find sustainable work. I do love to visit because of the scenic beauty, but the South it used to be has changed because of the liberal demographic and also the crime has greatly climbed because of the same naivety taking over government. They love our milk and honey, but they want to complain and change everything. Guest that have overstayed their welcome and the true natives and locals can feel Read More

Check It Out-Asheville has something for Everyone! - 9/22/2019
Asheville and the greater metro area which includes the six county area around it is a truly up and coming community. I've owned a home there for most of the past 13 years. The pros: 1. WNC, in general, and Asheville, in particular, is beautiful. Set in the Blue Ridge mountains, the geography of the area is what initially draws most people to this part of the state. 2. Lots to do. If you like the outdoors, you will never want for activities. Hiking, biking, fishing, golfing, on and on... 3. Mild climate. With just enough elevation, the summers aren't too hot (at least not too long) and the winters aren't too cold (or at least not too long). 4. Health care is very good. Yes, there are lots of retirees, but HCA Mission Health has long been recognized as provider of quality healthcare. 5. Robust economy. For a fairly small community, there is lots of positive development with many new businesses, a healthy manufacturing community, and overall low unemployment below the national Read More

Hard to make a living and get decent housing - 7/9/2019
I lived there from 2000-2013. It's very hard to make a living wage and afford a rental much less a house. Since the job market is dominated by the service industry, the pay is not only low, but it's also seasonal (think tips if you're a server). Couple that with the fact that home prices have been skyrocketing for years and are out of reach for many residents due to at least two factors: 1) wealthier people from the North or Florida move there and buy homes at peak prices (because to them peak prices in Asheville are cheap) and/or 2) people have moved there as well-paid remote workers for their out-of-state/town employer. As expected the cost of rent followed suit. Many people need to have roommates to afford their apartment, and let's face it — if you're well out of college, it stinks having roommates. Or, people end up renting dumps, and there are plenty of those. Two-income households could swing a house purchase, but if they had kids or planned to, their expenses would be through Read More

Wishing for the Good ol Days - 6/28/2019
20 years ago Asheville was a wonderful place to visit ,live, but now not so much today
Violent gun crimes have increased over 50% in just 3 years, the city has always been liberal , but now the police have their hands tied , if they make an arrest the PC media jumps on them, seems it always becomes racial
Middle class are forced (taxes) out for the wealthy , downtown parking is almost impossible to find, and you don't want to venture too far from safe Read More

Do your research. Visit before you buy - 5/18/2019
Don't believe all the hype.
We travel a lot, domestic and international, and if a single day goes by that someone doesn't say "Oh, we LOVE Asheville" or "We are planning a move to Asheville" it is a rare day.
Asheville is trendy. It is bringing millions of tourists annually to clog the downtown streets (tourists looking at tourists looking at hotels). Trendy means expensive. Planning to visit and want to stay downtown? Figure $300-500 per night in season. Want to move here? Figure $300k minimum for a 2 bedroom 1 bath bungalow in a trendy area. Condos downtown $600k-1.5m with beer tourists peeing on your front walk at 2AM.
Do your research. Asheville is likely on the crest of a huge housing and tourist bubble. We rarely hear from tourists who visit who want to come back. Largely one and done.
Before you even think of buying here, come and stay for a minimum of a week. Experience the traffic. Experience literally zero available parking downtown on the Read More

Beautiful, unlivable city - 5/15/2019
Take a hard pass on Asheville. Beautiful area but there is no middle class (as in 0...none), only relocatees (often retirees) who have driven house prices thru the roof, and they are served by an army of low-paid hotel and restaurant workers who cannot afford to live here. Downtown is easy on the eyes, but is so laden with hotels that it is not the real, vibrant heart of a city that it should be, only mere window-dressing for tourists who pass each other on the street and drunkenly comment on what a lovely place we have here. It is a broken economy. Read More