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You don't specify whether or not you'd be willing to consider an apartment rental or a house rental.
My apartment was in Morrisville at a very nice apartment complex (pool, clubhouse, weight room, tennis, car wash, etc). We had 1050 sq ft and 2 bedrooms/2 bathrooms + a 1 car garage that we used for storage. Our rent was about $1000/month.
We are also relocating, but from Charlotte- with a baby 4 months old. I can really empathize! It has been hard for me to move with a baby.
I guess that, as with anything, the farther you get from the City the more bang you get for your buck house-wise. I have been using this website: www.greatschools.net to get info on schools in the area. We have been looking in Holly Springs and Cary, and we have heard great things about Wake Forest.
You should be able to find a great rental for your price range. Oodle.com has great rental info on rental houses and also apartments.
Good Luck, we love NC and the Raleigh area, I think u will too.
If I get this job offer and we make this move, I'm looking in Chapel Hill (would be working in Durham). I also have a 16 year old so I've done lots of research on schools. When I was thinking Wake Co, I was looking at Green Hope HS in Cary. But Wake Co is going through some pretty stressful growing pains and I wasn't comfortable with how the school board seemed to be handling them. I have two younger school age kids (I know that you don't) and the issue of my oldest being on traditional year (all HS in Wake Co are traditional year) and my other two possibly being year round and/or being redistricted year after year made me too uncomfortable. I'm also coming from New England and the overplanned development atmosphere of Cary (where I thought the best Wake Co schools were) just didn't do it for me. So I looked in Chapel Hill. Excellent school district. Two HS right now, a 3rd opening in August. Carrboro (part of the district) might be a bit cheaper. Chapel Hill is definitely spendier than other places in the triangle area but it had more character in my opinion and wasn't so "planned". We're also looking at rentals for 6 mos to a year for several reasons and I've been looking online and figure that we could find a 4 bedroom for anywhere between $1500-2500 (much cheaper than where we live now--I know it's different for you in TX). However, you probably only need 3 bedrooms, or even a townhouse or nice condo which I think you could definitely find in Chapel Hill for that amount of money.
If you want to stay at Wake county, Cary's Green Hope HS is definitely the best choice. check out their records at Wake County Public School System. I have just helped my cousin found a home here because school is definitely his top priority for his kids.
Chapel Hill has great schools too, but living cost is more, and commute time for your husband will be more than 20 min. Your decent 3-bed rental may be more than 1200$.
If it's for work....do it....go to NC and see what you think.
I am from the Houston area, moved to NC (near Wake/Johnston County line) and I am happy to be back in Houston.
The racial tensions in the Triangle made me think I had moved to Beaumont or Vidor while traveling back 25 years in time.
Then there are the roads. I can only speak for the Raleigh/Durham area, but they are deplorable. Single-lane country roads are backed up for miles every morning trying to get into the city because I-40 is a parking lot. Construction that should have been done 10 years ago when the area first started growing is just being done now, and the roads that are there are falling apart. You will learn how blessed Texans are to be where their highways are maintained. Your tax dollars go into something.
Oh, and while we're on the subject of taxes.....NC has a state income tax for individuals and Texas does not. It's about a $1,500 difference for someone making around $26K/year. Wake County just increased their property taxes (homes and cars) and if you have a house and lot valued at $200K then you will pay about $1,900/year if they don't increase them again. The state of NC is ready to increase taxes across the board because the state does not know how to manage money. When you buy a car in NC, whether it's from a dealer or an individual, you have to pay for tags titles, registration and insurance (about the same overall as in Texas; liability-only insurance most anywhere in NC is a bit less than in the high-population counties).
But then there's more money to go to the Tar Heel state - there is a "road tax" and a property tax on your vehicle. The "road tax" is apparently to pay for the privilege of driving on North Carolina's hazardous and outdated roads teeming with drunken rednecks and yuppie soccer moms with a baby bottle in one hand and a cellphone in the other going 70 mph right along with you. Unfortunately it does not seem to pay for anything besides marble paperweights and leather seats in the state capitol. Then your vehicle is taxed on its Blue Book value every year just like your house.
No offense to the NC folks here - in fact, I could trade some brisket for eastern NC-style pork BBQ and Duke's mayonnaise. North Carolina's a great place to visit, but not to live.
If it's for work....do it....go to NC and see what you think.
I am from the Houston area, moved to NC (near Wake/Johnston County line) and I am happy to be back in Houston.
The racial tensions in the Triangle made me think . . . . ..
Then there are the roads. . . . . .
Oh, and while we're on the subject of taxes.....
But then there's more money to go to the Tar Heel state . . . . .
No offense to the NC folks here - in fact, I could trade some brisket for eastern NC-style pork BBQ and Duke's mayonnaise. North Carolina's a great place to visit, but not to live.
That's one opinion. . . .
Another opinion. . . My wife and I love it here.
Another opinion. . . I was in the Home Depot in Apex yesterday and noticed that the flooring saleswoman had a Dallas Cowboys T-shirt on. We struck up a conversation and I learned that she moved here 2 years ago from Dallas. She said she loves it here and can't imagine ever going back to TX.
I checked out Green Hope HS for our 16 year old son also aware that's probably the best bet in Wake County. The problem was, I didn't like that part of Cary--too overplanned for me, coming from a small quaint suburban Boston town. However, I know that Cary is probably laid out like a lot of Texas, so perhaps that won't be an issue for the original poster. Also, GHHS has about 2500+ students (our local HS has 900) and between that, the constant redistricting, the block schedule and year round schools, I wound up looking at Chapel Hill instead. We'll also be renting initially and are looking to spend under $2k/month and I think it's do-able.
Granted, I'm sure the "commute" from Morrisville to RTP is easy compared to the Metromess - all the same, I'm glad you, the person in Home Depot and I all agree that Dallas sucks.
My fiancee came with me to Houston....born and raised in NC....she says she doesn't miss it. It all depends on what you're looking for.
Getting around, if you're not coming in or out of Raleigh, is not too bad, unless there's even a little bit of ice or snow. North Carolina gets winter weather most every year without getting any better at handling it. One ice storm this January (right before I moved back) caused ~250 car accidents just in Raleigh proper in two hours. They have these banked bridges and onramps in and around the Triangle which become warzones as soon as a sheet of ice forms on that road. Not good.
Another Texan (Houston) chiming in here. I am so jealous of y'all who have already made the move or are about to. We are still about 2.5 years out and I can hardly wait. As for the brisket thing, there must be a joint some place in the area with a good smoker that could throw a brisket on for a few hours. I think the only real difference in Texas bar-b-que is the sauce - it is sweeter, smokier and thicker than the kind you'll find in the Carolinas.
I need to open a restaraunt or at least get all the Texans on here in NC to come to the house for a good ole Texas bar b que. I've got the real wood smoker and can get the briskets at Wal Mart. Just need to have somone bring the Ranch Style Beans from Texas. Our private stash is getting low. But Bojangles cajun pintas are close. lol
Back on topic, we first lived in Morrisville and rented an apartment. There are a lot of apartments in Morrisville. I came out here first and found a place. Then my wife and son followed about two weeks later. We used the PODS to move our stuff. Had to put most in storage since it came from a house in Texas. The apartment was different but temporary. It gave us a place to live so we could look for a house. We actually had a six month lease. Dont know if you could get one now. Most places might be o.k. with a 6 month since for a lot of people it is just temporary. Ours tried to talk us into longer, but we went with 6. We looked online at apartments and called a few places before leaving Texas. Then we found a realtor here. We had GMAC mortage in Texas and went with them here in NC. We now live in a house north of Raleigh in Franklinton, and I can continue with the "honey do" list on the house, and the Home depot trips. We kind of wanted quiet and out of the way. Hope your move goes well. there are lot of people here that will offer advice. I wish I had found this before our move.
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TX to NC
But Bojangles cajun pintas are close. lol
