Bollinwood Condos in Chapel Hill...what's the catch? (Raleigh, Durham: apartments, lease)

[TarHeelNick]

So it is looking like I may be getting promoted at my current job in Chapel Hill in the coming months; which means I'm more sure now that I'll be sticking around for a while. I was very close to buying a townhome in Carrboro (Canterbury) back in May but backed out because I felt like I was going to be spending too much (and I think I was right, as the asking price on it has now dropped to $2k below what I had offered) and it just didn't feel right as the closing day was approaching.

In the short term I will probably be living in Durham with a couple friends of mine who will be working in Raleigh. Thinking long term, especially as an investment; I really think that I'd like to buy in Chapel Hill within the next year.

My price range (under $120k) doesn't really buy much in Chapel Hill/Carrboro; pretty much exclusively smaller/older condos and townhomes. Even those are at the top of my price-range...with two notable exceptions; Camelot Village near UMall, and Bollinwood Condos off Umstead.

Camelot seems to be all 1 bedroom 1 bathroom and look run down and small, not at all intriguing.

Bolinwood on the other hand, appears spacious (3 bedrooms 2 bath) in decent condition, and in a nicer area. But I am almost turned off by how cheap they are. Most in the 80k range. I can definitely afford that very comfortably and with 3 bedrooms it would be a great opportunity for me to rent it out further down the road...but I have to wonder what the catch is? Is there something about that particular neighborhood that makes it less desirable than similarly sized and aged places like Finley Forest?

I'd really prefer a townhome-style place like Brookwood or Village Green, and even Canterbury where I almost bought last time; but if I can get more square footage and bedrooms for $30k less, it would seem like the smarter buy; just want to know if I'm missing something.

Again, this is all probably about a year away as the friends I'll be living with want to sign a year lease in Durham; just trying to get a good grasp on things to plan ahead.

[poppydog]

Nothing wrong with Bolinwood. Go check 'em out. There are a lot of families that live there now. Used to be very popular student housing. Good neighborhood. May be dated, but that's about it. Not sure if they have some of the amenities that other communities do — not sure if there's a pool for example, but I don't think there are any hidden issues. Don't buy in Camelot Village. It sits in the flood plain and floods every couple of years.

[TarHeelNick]

Yeah I have no desire to buy in Camelot Village; it seems pretty sketchy and I was shocked that they were even privately-held condos when I saw listings for them online. I have driven though there (on accident) before and it seemed like a run-down place.

Bolinwood appears to have a pool (small one, but still) and assigned parking spaces. They have decent sized balconies which I like too. HOA fees are sky high though, $2500/year.

A coworker who is also a pretty good friend of mine bought a brand new townhouse in Ballentine near Lake Hogan Farms for a great price through the Community Home Trust program; but that whole thing seems a little strange too. You are guaranteed to not lose money on the house but you also cannot profit more than 2% no matter how long you own it. He highly recommends it but they have very limited supply and you can be on the waitlist for years. They are definitely nicer homes than the ones you can get market-rate in Chapel Hill though.

[Francois]

Maybe because of their age? They were apartments when I was in college there in the early 80s--among the nicer apartments students lived in.

You might want to be sure they aren't still known as "student housing" choices, if you're worried about the noise, etc.

[TarHeelNick]

I don't mind a neighborhood being mixed with student housing as long as they aren't the overwhelming majority. I lived in University Commons, also privately owned condos, off smith level my Junior year at Carolina (2009) and it was over 90% undergrad students; I know I wouldn't want to buy there.