Rutherford county, NC

[AppyMom]

We are considering putting an offer on a property in Rutherford county (20 mins from Tryon) and I’m hoping to hear from people who know the area. Is it a good place to raise kids, is there enough to do that you don’t feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere? We currently live in a unique farm that is on a golf course and in a nice walkable neighborhood. We are close Greensboro so we have everything we need right there. The new farm will be an hour from any major city but it looks like there are stores and restaurants in Forest City. Our main motivation for moving is to be closer to my parents.

Also, I will need to put in an outdoor arena and make some modifications to the existing barn, plus replace most if not all the fencing. Looking for recommendations for all of this. I ride dressage, hubby is doing dressage and low level eventing, kiddo will prob start in hunters.

Recommendations for horse care. Vet (sports med specialist also) farrier, saddle fitters, massage.

Trainers. This is tough. My trainer boards her horse with me and I haven’t broken the news to her yet. I’m secretly hoping she’ll move with me, but since that’s not likely I need trainer recommendations. I am retiring my mid level horse to be my husbands low level horse after US Dressage Nationals this year. I have a young GRP mare I’m developing that will most likely be my daughters hunter pony when she’s ready. I need a dressage trainer who can help me develop a young horse and eventually need a hunter trainer to teach her to jump as I do not jump. Once she moves on to Hunter training my plan is to get an upper level prospect for myself. I need an excellent dressage trainer to help me develop these horses either by coming to my farm to give lessons or I’m willing to haul to theirs. I do not wish to keep horses in full time training, except for the hunter pony when the time comes. We also need someone to help my husband and older (sound and well trained) horse learn the ropes of the lowest level of eventing.

This is a lot I know, but looking forward to some recommendations! Thank you! Moving a farm is stressful

[Clov3rLily]

For dressage trainers around the area, I recommend Susan Shelton. She’s worked with a variety of horses new to dressage up to the upper levels, and just so happens to really love GRPs. You’ll find that being around Tryon opens you up to more showing opportunity other than through the equestrian center, mainly through FENCE and the FRC, but also the WNC Combined Training and Dressage schooling circuit further north. These offer great schooling experiences for young horses at a fraction of the cost it would be to take a greenie to TIEC.

As far as whether there’s much to do in Rutherfordton County, from my impression after a few visits it’s pretty empty, mostly containing farmland. I don’t know much about the schools but do know that nearby Polk and Henderson County schools are pretty decent. Most things to do in that area seem to be closer to the Tryon and Landrum.

[mroades]

It is one of the most depressing places I have ever been…

[AppyMom]

Can you explain what is so depressing about it?

[fivestrideline]

@Clov3rLily

As far as whether there’s much to do in Rutherfordton County, from my impression after a few visits it’s pretty empty

It is. The Tryon area is similar in the sense that there’s the horse parks and downtown Tryon… and pretty much nothing else.

If you’ve never lived rural, like “we just go tearing up dirt roads and hang out in old tobacco barns for fun” rural, Rutherford County might take some getting used to. It’s very nice to be so close to horse venues, but the infrastructure is minimal. This somewhat includes access to vets and farriers without hauling btw.

Also, a lot of the recreational draw for the general area (like Lake Lure) was wiped off the map by the hurricane. That has changed things dramatically.

It really just depends on what you want from your area. As with most places, good horse farm land is pretty far from All The Things, unless you’re ready to pay out the nose for it (and even then you probably still will).

[GraceLikeRain]

Have you visited? It is rural. Not as bad as some places in the south but that’s small small town to me. As a mid 30s DINK it would be too quiet and isolated for us. For a family, I’d be more inclined to buy on the SC side. Much younger demographic and Spartanburg county had seven school districts. The NC side all around there is the intersection of deep generational poverty and old old money. Your $2M farms and your single wides. I’d spend a long weekend at a minimum driving around if not a week visiting your zoned school along with local library, park, grocery stores, etc.

[Clov3rLily]

Agreed, OP if you don’t want such a drastic change but still want to live within 40 minutes to an hour away from TIEC, I recommend finding something in Henderson County. The schools there are pretty decent, and there are still quite a few things to do in the area since they didn’t get hit nearly as bad by the hurricane as surrounding areas (think hiking, trail rides, tubing, etc), especially since it’s a mountainous region. I would recommend looking at the Mills River area, several barns surrounding it, local horse shows, proximity to Biltmore when the equestrian center reopens for shows and trail riding, plus it seems to constantly be growing, with a lot of middle class and upper middle class families. Trainers around there for dressage are Sellers Shook, Bri Ambrosic, Natalya Gryson, and as I previously mentioned, Susan Shelton, who is actually closer to the Hendersonville/Mills River area than Tryon (20-30 minutes rather than 40-1 hour). I honestly can’t think of any other NC area in proximity to Tryon that would be what you’re looking for, so maybe also look at places in Spartanburg County.

[AppyMom]

I haven’t visited yet, but I am this weekend. I would love to find a farm in Landrum but haven’t seen anything that will work for us. Either not enough acreage or priced over our budget… we have a healthy budget but not willing to spend $1.5 million for something that needs another $300k to set it up for horses. The property in Rutherford county (Bostic specifically) is well under budget and totally turn key for horses except for the arena, but there is plenty of room to put one in. Bonus the house is gorgeous and has a pool. I plan on checking out Forest city since that’s about 10 mins away and it’s about 25 mins to Shelby which is the largest town close by. I’m worried about how rural it is considering we are 15 mins from everything in our current location. I should add that our main motivation for moving is to be closer to my parents who live in Lyman (near Greer). Bostic is an hour from then which is a little further than I’d prefer but doable.

[GraceLikeRain]

I would expect you can find something closer if you want to in budget. You need a local realtor though. Most horse places won’t hit the open market so you need someone who knows the local gossip. How much of a timeline are you on?

[fivestrideline]

@AppyMom

I plan on checking out Forest city since that’s about 10 mins away and it’s about 25 mins to Shelby which is the largest town close by.

I’m very familiar with both of these towns and I can tell ya - it’s rural. You’ll have actual grocery stores and a few things to do (vs a Dollar General and a gas station type of small town), but if you’re used to the suburbs it’s a big change.

The other things is the terrain and general geography. There’s just not a ton right there, and I’ve you’ve ever lived in a mountain town you know that getting somewhere can take much longer than you’d estimate based on the map. Definitely visit and drive around!

[AppyMom]

I have a realtor there, but unfortunately she’s not an equestrian specialist. I’m not really on a timeline. Ideally we would find something before my daughter starts school in June 2026. In some ways it would work out better to move in the winter after US Dressage finals so I can finish out my show season with my current trainer. So definitely not in a hurry. Landrum looks like the ideal location for me… halfway between my parents and Tryon. Closer to a town with amenities. Hopefully something more horse ready at/under $1.2 will pop up… right now they are either not horse ready or over budget.

[GraceLikeRain]

If you can afford to buy and hold I’d put up an ISO in the local Facebook groups and note that you are not in a rush to physically move. The economy is really scary right now. Someone might be thrilled to do a quiet unlisted sale with a leaseback agreement for 6 months.

[Nikki]

I love it and Tryon. Nicest people and the mom and pop restaurants are amazing. I use to live allover from Florida to Boston. I also have a farm six miles from TIEC.

OP: Best places to eat:

1. Umi’s in Hendersonville, NC (sit at sushi bar and get crab salad. Get the paradise roll and add cream cheese to it).
2. Taco Mundo for Tacos (TIEC horse park)
3. Stone soup for the best pizzas and dinner: Landrum SC
4. Huckleberry’s for best Grab and Goes and Custom meals: Tryon , NC
5. Katie D’s Begels in Tryon (She ships them in from NY).
6. Calverts for Southern food in Columbus, NC
7. Southern Manners in Landrum, SC
8. Open Road for the BEST coffee, pasties and Matcha; Tryon, NC
9. Mountain View BBQ in Tryon, NC
10. All Good things in Tryon NC for bread, cookies and coffee
11. Martha’s Amish Bakery in Tryon for the best Pies, Bread, Cookies and pastries. Can get raw milk too
12. Mill Springs Farm store in Mill Springs for the best meats, ice cream, produce, raw milk and sell small batch heavy cream and half/Half.

[LawsofMurph]

I lived In Forest City and went to high school there. IT IS A DESERT. For entertainment, for shopping, for horses. Everything.
Here are two great examples of what I mean… They just got a Chick-fil-a 3ish years ago and it’s well known for meth production.

Landrum is a much better place. Rutherford County is cheap, but it is not what you want for an equestrian property. Everything from vets to farriers is few and far between and not necessarily up to date. This isn’t true of absolutely everything, but there are a lot of “good ol boy” vets.

Having lived there for a significant amount of years with horses… Don’t.

@AppyMom

25 mins to Shelby which is the largest town close by.

This is also hilarious to consider Shelby a “large” anything

[Amberley]

Agreed, friend lives near Landrum and before that rented near Columbus/ Tryon. Those are both very cute areas with decent amenities and nice people. Greenville is a happening young town, Saluda is very outdoorsy, Asheville isn’t too far away and there are things to do in that area. (Or were, I hate to think what the hurricane has done). When she was shopping for land I went with her and looked at several places in Rutherford County and while it was cheaper it was not very appealing. At that time (just before Covid) it was in the news that most county officials belonged to some very fringe religious group and frankly that seemed about right in terms of what we saw. It got very poor and a bit grim very fast once we left the TIEC / Tryon area. Lots of Dollar Tree stores.

We also looked in Aiken and that was night-and-day in terms of being a vibrant, younger active horse community with great horse amenities and trail riding and overall vibes just fyi if that’s what you are looking for.

A few things to be aware of horse-wise: it rains a lot and the soils are not fast draining so putting in an arena can be shockingly expensive as she found out. There is little to no public land and what there is is VERY heavily used by other user groups due to the proximity of Greenville and Asheville. The much-publicized Tryon area trail systems are private and highly restricted so be very clear on what you get with a property. Prices have gone insane since TIEC opened. When my friend was boarding she got extremely frustrated with the availability of decent places, hence buying her own little place.

As far as young horse dressage trainers Michael Pineo and the Mendozas are located there, and there are numerous other dressage barns aimed at the lower to mid level amateur market that seem very nice (this is my friends world). I think only JM Durr is the only active eventing FEI competitor in that area and schooling / showing opportunities aren’t great- you have to go to Aiken for most eventing things. Lots of hunter or jumper barns catering to the 3’ and under crowd who show at TIEC regularly and maybe travel two or three times a year and a few who do sales or the bigger classes but not many.