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Every time I read these threads where the price point for housing is 400k+ I can't help but wish I had moved to Raleigh from anywhere else. Growing up here doesn't seem to give you any edge in being able to afford such expensive housing. This isn't an anti-transplant rant this is how the hell is it possible that so many people moving here from other states have such large incomes in comparison to the average native. Are NC businesses paying too low or are these people in debt to their eyeballs to live like that. I'm not mad,I'm jealous.
You are seeing people with the means to move.
People without the means to move tend to stay put, and there are plenty of them in the North.
And we get plenty of transplants with average incomes.
FWIW, when Heart Throb and I moved here in 1997 from small town PA, we were in shock at the price of housing.
Every time I read these threads where the price point for housing is 400k+ I can't help but wish I had moved to Raleigh from anywhere else. Growing up here doesn't seem to give you any edge in being able to afford such expensive housing. This isn't an anti-transplant rant this is how the hell is it possible that so many people moving here from other states have such large incomes in comparison to the average native. Are NC businesses paying too low or are these people in debt to their eyeballs to live like that. I'm not mad,I'm jealous.
I think it's a combo of people moving from places with a higher COL who sold houses and have larger down payments (who get super excited at their purchasing power here) and people who already lived in larger, more higher-end homes in more expensive areas who move here and get houses for a steal.
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Location: Sodo Sopa at The Villas above Kenny' s House.
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I really didn't mean to hijack the thread but it's just struck me this morning how often I read that. People looking at half million dollar homes and worrying about it being safe,bad neighbors etc... I know COL indexes vary. I remember moving from TN to here in the 80's. Our modest house there sold for 30k and our newly built house here was 80k and not much larger. My father still lives in that house btw.It's just jarring to me the price many newcomers are willing to spend in order to live where they consider to be decent. I know very few people that consider a 500K house a possibility or a good deal and then on here it's par for the course to be looking in that range.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cyn7cyn
I really didn't mean to hijack the thread but it's just struck me this morning how often I read that. People looking at half million dollar homes and worrying about it being safe,bad neighbors etc... I know COL indexes vary. I remember moving from TN to here in the 80's. Our modest house there sold for 30k and our newly built house here was 80k and not much larger. My father still lives in that house btw.It's just jarring to me the price many newcomers are willing to spend in order to live where they consider to be decent. I know very few people that consider a 500K house a possibility or a good deal and then on here it's par for the course to be looking in that range.
If you look at it from the other side of the coin, though, you would see a much different story. In many of these big, expensive cities, people are struggling because they cannot find affordable housing. But they have a decent enough job, so they don't move because it's hard to get started in a new city. But many would love to move to a city with a lower cost of living so they wouldn't be struggling to make ends meet. We moved here from the DC area where it's hard to find a 1-bedroom apartment to rent for less than $1200 - even moving far outside the city center. In some ways, it can be like going back in time to be able to buy a single-family home for under $300K in a decnt neighborhood. Because they just don't exist in some cities, like DC.
I imagine it's frustrating to see people buying $500k homes like it's a cheap price, but many of these people put up with buying an expensive home, an older home, and a long commute for many years, and the bonus that they receive at the end of their time in their city is a decent resale value. So it's not like these people were sitting pretty their whole lives. And as someone else mentioned, there are many people who cannot afford to move from their high-cost city because they bought at the height of the bubble or they can't save anything because their housing costs are so high. We don't see those people, coming here, so we often see (or at least notice) the ones who can spent a fair amount on housing.
If you look at it from the other side of the coin, though, you would see a much different story. In many of these big, expensive cities, people are struggling because they cannot find affordable housing. But they have a decent enough job, so they don't move because it's hard to get started in a new city. But many would love to move to a city with a lower cost of living so they wouldn't be struggling to make ends meet. We moved here from the DC area where it's hard to find a 1-bedroom apartment to rent for less than $1200 - even moving far outside the city center. In some ways, it can be like going back in time to be able to buy a single-family home for under $300K in a decnt neighborhood. Because they just don't exist in some cities, like DC.
I imagine it's frustrating to see people buying $500k homes like it's a cheap price, but many of these people put up with buying an expensive home, an older home, and a long commute for many years, and the bonus that they receive at the end of their time in their city is a decent resale value. So it's not like these people were sitting pretty their whole lives. And as someone else mentioned, there are many people who cannot afford to move from their high-cost city because they bought at the height of the bubble or they can't save anything because their housing costs are so high. We don't see those people, coming here, so we often see (or at least notice) the ones who can spent a fair amount on housing.
I absolutely can relate to what you're saying here, but I think that cyn7cyn's larger point was that there are plenty who weren't "sitting pretty" here in NC their whole lives who went to school, got through college, got themselves good-paying jobs here, and cannot plunk down over 500k on a house.
Not even as couples who both make incomes that are potentially similar to the incomes of people who are transplanting into the region.
I'm sure it's got to be frustrating to work very hard and to be living in what's considered a fairly reasonable COL area and find yourself priced out of nicer homes that you would not be priced out of if the market hadn't ballooned so much from people pouring into the region from other places with a higher COL who think nothing of paying much higher prices for homes because they paid that same price or more for a less attractive home.
I can see it from both sides, really.
I know that I wouldn't be living in a home that's much like she's describing if my husband and I weren't fortunate enough (and we are incredibly grateful for the opportunity!) to wind up in some of the highest-paying jobs to be found around here in our respective fields.
Even if I was looking for homes as a single person (such as I assume the OP is doing), I would probably be looking in the 400-450 range for a home, (maximum) because that's the most I could afford as a single person.
Realistically, I'd probably want to keep it under 400k.
Suffice to say, if I was making what most people make in my field, I'd be lucky to be looking for something in the 200-250k range.
So, yeah... I do get what cyn7cyn is saying. I really do. I'm sure you do, too, michgc.
It's not like we live in an overcrowded area here in the Triangle with wretchedly long commutes, terrible traffic and oppressive RE taxes and we need to get out and find a place that's not so horribly congested and that has lower crime. If so, I'm sure that some of us could sell our places to people who are moving here, make a tidy profit off them, and sweep into a lower COL region and buy ourselves quite a spread. Of course, we'd have to leave our extended families behind and leave an area that's quite nice by most standards (weather, traffic, safety, good place to raise kids) to accomplish this.
Which is why it's tough for the locals. That's what I'm saying.
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Location: Sodo Sopa at The Villas above Kenny' s House.
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Agree with both.Yep,I'm the girl who loves the new coffee house and microbrewery in walking distance till I can't afford to live near it anymore.I'm the Pioneer . Hey it's a new year and I'm pretty sure gentrification and million dollar homes won't be on the radar for awhile. Living in downtown Garner I'm just thankful the former crack house/pit bull breeding operation across the street has finally been renovated into an Hispanic church. At least if the hipsters and yuppies come this far to invade I'll have Jes'us on my side. LoL.
Agree with both.Yep,I'm the girl who loves the new coffee house and microbrewery in walking distance till I can't afford to live near it anymore.I'm the Pioneer . Hey it's a new year and I'm pretty sure gentrification and million dollar homes won't be on the radar for awhile. Living in downtown Garner I'm just thankful the former crack house/pit bull breeding operation across the street has finally been renovated into an Hispanic church. At least if the hipsters and yuppies come this far to invade I'll have Jes'us on my side. LoL.
+1 (got to spread it around to rep you again)
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I understand the point...in some senses we faced the same thing up in NoVA although we are on the beneficial side here. It was a bit of planning, a bit of luck, and quite a bit of sacrifice that got us to this point though...
Both my wife and I worked and were paid well to allow us to afford our housing in NoVA and when we saw an opportunity, we ended up having to deal with some very long commutes to have a nice home in a nice area to raise our kids. We couldn't afford everything that some friends and neighbors could, but we did fine and over the 20+ years we lived in that area, our house more than doubled in value.
Honestly, some of the neighborhoods we visited - including the one we selected - in the area remind us of that area of NoVA over 20 years ago...I can foresee the same thing happening here over time. I guess that is both good and bad. While it was a great location to raise our kids, it is becoming very over crowded to the point it isn't a place we enjoy being any longer. Well before we started looking at homes in the area, we had been discussing retiring in NC. When we started looking aat options, we decided it was time to make the move even though I'm not retired yet...
As a comparison, if you could pick up this home and put it in NoVA, we could definitely sell it for twice what we paid for it. I'd say that was pretty much true for every house we looked at if you consider all the variables.
I'm from the Triangle, my family are from the Triangle, and most of my clients are moving within the Triangle. The only socio-economic distinguishing factor I know of is college education and the white collar jobs they typically have now.
as to the original post - there are areas in downtown Raleigh and around North Hills which will definitely fit the bill. Downtown will be more expensive, and zoned as for the times as small (<.2 acre) lots where you're 10-15 ft from a neighbor. North Hills was built from late 50's-early 70's and will have larger lots (0.3-0.5 typically)
Last edited by BoBromhal; 01-02-2015 at 08:47 PM..
Reason: forgot to be on-topic
Thank you all for your replies. This information is very helpful! We know with a wishlist we won't get everything we are looking for. But most important to us is a community feel and family friendly. As I said, we are coming from DC which is the most expensive area in the country. It has been a challenge as a young family to keep up. We are looking to sell our house before our son starts school and make some profit and move south where there might be a slower pace. And better weather
We will check out the North Hills area and the above mentioned areas. Any thoughts on what the best neighborhoods are as far as community and family friendly in the $450k and less price range in the suburban areas?
Thanks again!
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