Looking for an Elevator building (Rental) in Chapel Hill/Durham

[CapitalBlvd]

Originally Posted by Jkgourmet

I think you're expectations of elevator apartment buildings (high rises) are leading to your frustration. That's certainly common in Philadelphia, the 5th largest city in the US with a population of 1.6million. The population of Chapel is is less than 60,000.

As far as lower cost of living - we moved here from Phoenix, AZ. Our COL has dramatically increased. NOTHING is cheaper, except gasoline.

For those that relocate from the NE, I suspect one of the major benefits of a decreased COL is in Real Estate taxes. Since you are the renter, it doesn't apply (directly). And Chapel Hill is the highest COL area in the Triangle. Maybe consider Durham?

Yup. Remember also that almost all the mid-rise buildings are firetraps with wood frames instead of inherently safe fire resistant materials.

Only a disastrous fire will change the lax building codes. A firefighter said there will be a road filled with body bags when one of these new buildings goes up in flames. The Raleigh FD does a great job but cannot overcome the lax building codes accepted to reduce costs to developers in both single family and multi-family homes.

[olderandwiser456]

Originally Posted by Jkgourmet

As far as lower cost of living - we moved here from Phoenix, AZ. Our COL has dramatically increased. NOTHING is cheaper, except gasoline.

For those that relocate from the NE, I suspect one of the major benefits of a decreased COL is in Real Estate taxes. Since you are the renter, it doesn't apply (directly). And Chapel Hill is the highest COL area in the Triangle. Maybe consider Durham?

Good point about COL in triangle. I'm doing research on the triangle area for possible retirement and not seeing much difference from SE Michigan. Car costs are much higher in NC, especially the first year, and even thereafter with the vehicle property taxes. Roads are terrible in Michigan, and there isn't any vehicle tax, so maybe that's a trade-off. I haven't compared car insurance yet, but Michigan is the highest in the country, so I'd be saving something there with a move to NC. Rents are high in desirable parts of the midwest and in the triangle area of NC, though I'm sure there are more modest areas or specials as another poster mentioned. Depends on what one is willing to trade-off.

Many of the new complexes recently built are very high end, and there is a shortage of more "affordable" (not income-based), but more "middle class" rents, not $2,000 for a 2/2. Many people want to rent (vs buy) these days, and there was a shortage of options, so developers cashed in, in many states and cities around the country, especially where there are tech jobs and younger folks moving into cities. "Walkability" is desirable today, and more dense multi-family complexes (apartments and condos) can be built closer to shopping than individual homes on larger lots. Anyway, it all adds up to expensive rentals in desirable areas.

Question for jkgournet re: COL comparisons: Did you find that medical and dental costs were higher in NC vs AZ?