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12 North Carolina Family Dollar Stores Fined For Overcharging Customers

More than a dozen North Carolina Family Dollar stores were fined for overcharging customers. 5 of those are in the Charlotte area. The fines are considerable at over $256,000 dollars….

12 North Carolina Family Dollar Stores Fined For Overcharging Customers
(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

More than a dozen North Carolina Family Dollar stores were fined for overcharging customers. 5 of those are in the Charlotte area. The fines are considerable at over $256,000 dollars.

12 North Carolina Family Dollar Stores Fined For Overcharging Customers

According to our source, The Charlotte Observer, 14 stores in all over 8 counties had to pay up. The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' Standards division says the problem was excessive price scanning errors. A Union County store was fined along with four stores in Mecklenburg County. The Charlotte area stores paid up to $44, 825 dollars combined. And in Union County that store was fined $14,430.

Family Dollar Is Not The Only Offender

Family Dollar stores are not the only alleged offenders.  According to our source charlotteobserver.com, back in 2023 dozens of stores including Walgreens, Wal-Mart, Auto Zone, and Circle K were fined. Those fines came to a whopping $462,480 combined.

Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler had this to say in a statement released to our source, The Charlotte Observer. "Many of the stores penalized this year that are facing fines had multiple failed inspections." He also says they have a high rate of overcharging errors. He also took this opportunity to remind customers to check those receipts and make sure the prices are correct. And if you see a problem be sure and talk to the manager.

12 North Carolina Family Dollar Stores Fined For Overcharging Customers

(Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

State inspections can be unannounced and periodic. Inspectors check to see if shelf and register prices match.  The North Carolina Family Dollar stores fined include these in the Charlotte area. They are located at 8500 C Pineville Matthews Road in Pineville.

Other locations include the Family Dollar at 4130 Rozzlles Ferry Road in Charlotte. The 2176 West Sugar Creek Road Family Dollar Retail Store was also fined.  And the Family Dollar store at 4005 Sunset Road. For more information on this story get details from the charlotteobserver.com.

Here’s How Much Money It Takes To Live Comfortably In The 5 Major North Carolina Cities

It's hard to not be stressed or depressed about money these days. Prices have skyrocketed and I often joke that the value of everything seems to have gone up- except me. But goods and services don't tell the entire pictures when it comes to cost of living. So how much money does it take to live comfortably in each of the major cities? A lot. The financial experts at Smart Asset recently conducted a study about the salary needed to live comfortably in cities across the country.

How Much Money It Takes To Live Comfortably

Smart Asset recommends a budget they describe as the 50/30/20 budge. This means that 50% of your salary should go to to needs. They include costs such as housing, transportation, and groceries in this category. The 30% is allocated to entertainment and hobbies. While the final 20% should be used to pay off debt, or if you're lucky enough to be debt free saving or investing.

So to conduct this study they took the "local cost of necessities and taxes" and factored it into the 50/30/20 budget to determine the "pre-tax salary needed to live comfortably" in the 99 largest U.S. cities. They found that $96,500 is the amount needed for an individual to live comfortably in a major U.S. city. 5 North Carolina cities were included in this study. The five largest in the state- Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro, Durham, and Winston-Salem. When it comes to the amount of money it takes to live comfortably in North Carolina cities, only two were less than average. I thought the south was supposed to be cheaper!

These days it truly feels like most people are living paycheck to paycheck or at least not able to save significant money. Even though when it comes to salary people are making higher than they have before that money doesn't go near as far as it did even a few years ago. Keep reading to see how much money it takes to live comfortably in each of the 5 largest North Carolina cities. Don't say I didn't warn you though, it may sting a little!

Read the full study from Smart Asset here.

Winston- Salem

Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA Downtown Skyline.Kruck20/Getty Images Royalty Free

According to this data the most affordable North Carolina major city to live in is Winston-Salem. This Triad city is the fifth most populous in the state. It features a vibrant downtown, historic sites including Old Salem, and lot's of character and charm. It's the home of Wake Forest University, and provides easy access to other areas of the state as well.

Hourly Wage Needed For A Single Adult: $39.36

Salary Needed For A Single Adult: $81,869

Total Salary Needed For Two Working Adults And Two Children: $194,605

Greensboro

Drone Aerial of Downtown Greensboro North Carolina NC SkylineKruck20/Getty Images Royalty Free

Staying in the same area the next city on this list is Greensboro. It's slightly more expensive than Winston and located in Guilford County. Greensboro is the third most populous city in the state.

Hourly Wage Needed For A Single Adult: $41.88

Salary Needed For A Single Adult: $87,110

Total Salary Needed For Two Working Adults And Two Children: $203,674

Durham

Durham, North Carolina, USA downtown cityscape.Sean Pavone/Getty Images Royalty Free

We now move to the Triangle. The third most expensive city to live in is Durham. The city offers lots of great jobs in tech and is home to Duke University. Downtown Durham has lots to offer from breweries and restaurants, to sports, arts, and entertainment.

Hourly Wage Needed For A Single Adult: $47.62

Salary Needed For A Single Adult: $99,050

Total Salary Needed For Two Working Adults And Two Children: $233,043

Charlotte

Charlotte SkylineMark Borja

No Charlotte doesn't require the largest salary much to my surprise. The largest city in the state is the 2nd most expensive. And that hourly wage? I don't know many people making that.

Hourly Wage Needed For A Single Adult: $48.72

Salary Needed For A Single Adult: $101,338

Total Salary Needed For Two Working Adults And Two Children: $235,123

Raleigh

A colorful daytime cityscape of downtown Raleigh North CarolinaMark Howard/Getty Images Royalty Free

Which means the city where it takes the highest amount of money to live comfortably? The state capitol of Raleigh. Though it was a close race and fair to say the cost of living is fairly comparable between Charlotte and Raleigh. But hey if they want to win this one I'm ok with it since it impacts my bank account!

Hourly Wage Needed For A Single Adult: $49.40

Salary Needed For A Single Adult: $102,752

Total Salary Needed For Two Working Adults And Two Children: $235,872

Catherine Lane is the morning show co-host and midday host on Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. She has been with the station for the past 24 years and is a recipient of the Academy of Country Music Major Market Personality of the Year award. Catherine has been on air in both radio and television in the Queen City for 38 years. As a content creator for Country 1037, Catherine writes blogs on local events and restaurants. She also writes about great travel spots and out of the way places in the Carolinas. Anything outdoors, travel, food, animals or the many country artists from the Carolinas.