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Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Cary The Triangle Area
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Old 02-12-2017, 01:21 PM
 
2 posts, read 6,417 times
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Hello! If someone lives close to the Triangle Area, I'd like some insight, please
I've lived in a small town my whole life and I really like it. I don't want to live in a big city, but I need to live close to it (1-2 hours driving), because that's where most jobs are!

Here some extra info about me (taken from the Virginia's forum):

When are you moving?: June 2017.
Where are you coming from? Virginia.
Why are you moving?: Got married and want to start a new life.
Where will you be working?: Web development. (Hopefully remote).
Have you been here yet?: Just to go to the airport.

Will you buy or rent?: Buy.
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend?: House with 2-3 bedrooms. US$130,000 max (Is it possible to find a good area for that price?). I'd be willing to buy foreclosure. I could pay the whole house with cash only if it's less than US$90,000.

Are you married or single? Do you have children?: Married. No children.
Do you prefer public or private schools?: I would like an area with schools with good ratings, since I've noticed that good ratings means the area is not ghetto.
Do you have pets?: Yes, a dog and a cat.
Do you want or need a yard?: Yes.
Are you keeping a car?: Yes, 1.
Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet?: Calm and quiet.

What do you want to be closest to?: Close to a national park (or a place to go for walks with nature).
---

So please, if you know cities that are in the suburban or rural area close to the Triangle area, I'd really appreciate it, since I don't know where to look for a house. I'm not asking for the best neighborhood, but a nice neighborhood with nice and respectful people. I really value that!

Thank you very much for all the help!!
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Old 02-12-2017, 07:37 PM
 
Location: NC
3,441 posts, read 2,778,625 times
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I really like Roxboro. It's about 1.25 hours from Raleigh, closer to Durham and the RTP. It's very small town, but the people there are super nice (in general). There are a few parks in the area, plus it's close to other areas with nice park areas. There is also Timberlake and Rougemont that may fit what you are looking for. All of them might have a home in the price range you are looking for, though you will likely have to spend a bit more.

Another though is Mebane. Again, maybe 1.25 hours from Raleigh, closer to Durham and RTP. House prices will be similar to the areas above.

You can also go east to Knightdale or Wendell, but that area is really growing and traffic getting back to the Raleigh area is tough, especially in rush hour. Same for the Franklinton and Rolesville areas, which are north/east of Raleigh. All of those areas also put you further away from Durham and the RTP, if you end up with a job in that area (and in the IT field, that's where I'd expect you to be, personally).
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Old 02-12-2017, 08:01 PM
 
Location: South Beach and DT Raleigh
13,966 posts, read 24,005,425 times
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The biggest challenge will be finding highly rated schools in locations where single family homes can be purchased for $130K or less.
Also, be advised that rural areas around the Triangle today will likely become suburban areas of tomorrow. If you are able to grab some land in your home purchase, you might make out in years to come when a developer wants to buy that land as part of a larger assemblage.
As a repeat, highly rated schools and extremely low costs of single family homes are not two things that usually go together in central North Carolina. You can find single family homes all around the outskirts of the Triangle for that price but many (if not most) of them will need a lot of TLC. If you are industrious, I'd look for fixer upper on as much land as you can find in Wake County. That land is most likely to be more valuable in the future, giving you an opportunity to sell to a developer and move elsewhere in the metro as you step up to your next home/property.
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Old 02-12-2017, 08:11 PM
 
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This is a very expensive are to live in. You will not find a single family home with a yard and good schools for under $130,000. I'm sure one or 2 exist, but the neighborhood wouldn't be safe and the majority of homes in that neighborhood would be rentals. Starter homes in and near the triangle are 180,000 to 200,000. You could live near Winston Salem or Greenville SC for that price.
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:29 AM
 
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I was going to suggest northern wake county. You might find an older ranch in that price range, but even the land value alone might price you out of that. North Durham County might be the best option. Bahama, Rougemont area might suit you well. The schools aren't the best, but still a solid education.
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:34 AM
 
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I doubt you'll find what you are looking for at that price. Maybe 10+ years ago but now it's highly unlikely. If you do it will be very rural and not in a great school district. You may have more luck towards the triad though. You could find a townhouse at that price in a decent area but even those are often over the 160 mark.
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Old 02-14-2017, 11:33 AM
 
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OP, I'm in a similar boat to you but single/without kids. A few years ago I thought I couldn't afford more than $130k, so my solution has been to instead save for a few more years until I have a 20% down payment on a 200k house. Not necessarily a bigger house, but one that still has land and a garage and is closer to RTP. I've not bought yet and am continuing to save, but when I do it will probably be North Durham or Rougemont area. I have friends that live there that I visit often and it's a nice country setting.

My advice would be to rent for at least a year, to figure out where in the area you want to live. Spend some time going to local events or outings in these smaller towns around the area to find out which one fits. Rent in a smaller town should be at least a little cheaper than nearer to the city. If you don't already have a job, take that into consideration too, it's hard to find a job (though networking groups help!). If you have $90k squirreled away, then by all means rent first. $50k of that would make a handsome 20% down payment on a home. It's easier to make a well informed decision or wait for the right place to come along to buy if you're patient.

Personally I don't care about the school system so that opens doors for me, and I realize you don't want to buy too much house. I could easily get a 300K loan, but I'm not going to do it because I actually like having money to do stuff with every month. I'm also very handy, so those houses that have good bones but need a full renovation are probably at the top of my list. If I can score one of those for a bargain, then I'll have even more cash left over to do the renovating. Depends on if you want to try and tackle a project like that on your own.
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Old 02-14-2017, 12:41 PM
 
Location: NC
3,441 posts, read 2,778,625 times
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If the OP has $90K cash to put down and only wants to spend $130K, I would say he can't afford to rent a place. If he CAN afford to rent, then he can afford to pay at LEAST $200K for a house, more like $250K. Going up to that amount will open up a lot more options. Though I am wondering where the OP is from because he refers to the cost as US $130,000. Most of us in NC are already aware that our currency is in the US dollar.
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Old 02-14-2017, 01:32 PM
 
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There are definitely houses in that price range near Greensboro. Have you looked into moving there?
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Old 02-14-2017, 02:20 PM
 
390 posts, read 363,642 times
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Agree area North of Durham is a good option.

I'd also look very seriously at Hillsborough to see if it meets your needs. It's expanding and not "exactly" small town living, but as you move outside their downtown area it becomes easier to find options in that price range as long as your expectations are reasonable. School system is decent - better than Durham as ratings go, though I'm not a big believer in ratings. Should only about 1 hour to anywhere in the triangle if you are close to the highway. It's not perfect, but given what you said you want it may be a nice compromise.
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