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I’m interested in hearing things about Wake Forest that I may not learn unless I actually lived there. We visited the area and really liked it but it was hard to pick up a vibe/culture there unlike other parts of the Triangle.
How do you experience living/visiting WF?
The historic downtown is super cute but was pretty dead the Saturday afternoon we were in town. Do people regularly congregate there or only for special events?
Do residents usually stay in the WF bubble or do they regularly drive to Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill for entertainment?
How are the public schools? Their online ratings aren’t spectacular aside from the Heritage schools but I’m assuming that has more to do with socioeconomics.
We definitely see the appeal of living in the Western suburbs of Wake Co. but for our current situation, I think being further out in WF might be a solid trade off for what we can get in Cary/Apex right now.
How likely is it that in ~10 years the highways will be expanded enough to make commuting to other parts of the Triangle less of an ordeal from WF?
…which really is sad because it wasn’t long ago that the schools were considered a benefit to moving here.
I would say if it’s between a newer bigger house in WF, or a smaller “older” house in Cary, I’d choose Cary all day. But it really depends on what you want to be near.
Yikes! And that was pre-pandemic data. I’m partial to public schools since one of my children is on an IEP and the other has a 504. My impression of private schools (at least here in Texas) is that it’s sink or swim and they rarely make accommodations for students with extra needs.
Have lived in WF since March of 2017; Heritage specifically. I can try to throw some ideas at you. Usual caveats about sample size and anecdotes apply.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LonghornMelly
I’m interested in hearing things about Wake Forest that I may not learn unless I actually lived there. We visited the area and really liked it but it was hard to pick up a vibe/culture there unlike other parts of the Triangle.
WF is not all that far removed (time wise) from its small town roots. My neighbor is from North Raleigh and WF was where they went as teenagers to party because there was nothing out here.
Cary had a population of 20K going back to the 1970s....WF was less than 20K people into the 2000s.
Culture/vibe is really based around what/who you seek out. It doesn't have the diverse population that Cary does, but it isn't homogeneous demographically/politically. Half our neighbors are natives half of them are transplants.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LonghornMelly
How do you experience living/visiting WF?
The historic downtown is super cute but was pretty dead the Saturday afternoon we were in town. Do people regularly congregate there or only for special events?
Do residents usually stay in the WF bubble or do they regularly drive to Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill for entertainment?
The historic downtown has renewed quite a bit in the time we have been here. Handful of new bars/restaurants, a couple of breweries, Strike and Barrel.
It isn't a huge destination in the people who we socialize with; many of whom are way more "social" than we are, short of an event going on; Friday Night on White, Home Brew tourney at White Street.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LonghornMelly
How are the public schools? Their online ratings aren’t spectacular aside from the Heritage schools but I’m assuming that has more to do with socioeconomics.
The three Heritage schools are highly thought of based on what we hear from friends who have either had kids go through them or are in the elementary school now. Our home is mapped to Jones Dairy Elementary. Two principals ago JDE was very highly regarded. Won a bunch of awards. The last principal pissed all over that success and the current principal seems to be trying to get back to the glory of a few years ago; but on a personal level, I find her communication skills completely lacking.
Some of the Cary-ites here and I have shared WCPSS war stories (my kids are in 2nd and K) and have heard more than once "ya, what you're describing wouldn't fly in Cary schools")
Quote:
Originally Posted by LonghornMelly
We definitely see the appeal of living in the Western suburbs of Wake Co. but for our current situation, I think being further out in WF might be a solid trade off for what we can get in Cary/Apex right now.
How likely is it that in ~10 years the highways will be expanded enough to make commuting to other parts of the Triangle less of an ordeal from WF?
I appreciate any and all opinions on Wake Forest!
We never looked in Western Wake, other than passing through Holly Springs. Cary wasn't even on our list; probably because the way I described what we were looking for (we moved here from MA, I told our RE Agent before we came down for our look see I wanted no part of an area full of transplanted M*******s and NYers given we were leaving MA, in part, because of the general attitude of the populace there....her reply was "well, we won't look in Cary then") (No disrespect to my Cary based NYers and M******* friends on this board)
Having said that, I certainly get the appeal of Western Wake. Further along the development lifecycle, many of the growing pains facing WF already dealt with, seemingly better schools with better level of expectations set. More cultural things to do (better food options, entertainment options, closer to the bigger cities)
Commute is an eye of the beholder thing. 45 mins or less wouldn't even register as a commute compared to what I had into Boston before we moved down. But I WFH now (and have for the better part of 15 years, with the exception of the commute into Boston, so consider the source).
I don't see the drive to Durham ever getting appreciably better simply because 98 is what it is. I have got to the airport in rush hour in 45 mins on 540.
Overall we have enjoyed our time here in WF. Great neighborhood for the kids to flourish in (which is what I really wanted moving here), a town big enough to offer most things, but still small enough to have the charm of its former self. Schools are OK and many of our native friends have moved here specifically for them, so that must count for something.
Obviously no place is perfect, and depending on what culturally you are looking for, it may not be a fit. Even the "issues" we have had here are more individual things than "happened because it's WF".
When we moved here in 1987, we considered WF. The population was only around 4,000. But it seemed to be stuck in the late-1950s, when the town struggled to recover from losing the university. Between that and the daunting commute to RTP, we decided against it. Now the population is over 45,000 and the growth is basically indistinguishable from Cary, Apex, F-V, Knightdale, etc.
NCDOT's plan to convert US 1 to limited access as far south as I-540 will help, but otherwise I think it's status quo for roads around WF. It's already seen major improvement with the construction of the NC 98 bypass and New Falls of Neuse Road. I don't think NC 98 westward toward Durham will be four-laned anytime soon.
I have lots of clients that purchased in Wake Forest. I have some that purchased smaller homes/townhomes and after a few years, we sold those and they moved into a larger home, still in Wake Forest.
I live in North Raleigh but getting onto 540, I can get to WF in about 15 minutes. I like the small town feel.
Many of my clients ended up in WF because North Raleigh was too expensive. However, in the last few years, WF home prices have gone up as quickly as the rest of the area.
Most of my clients say they have no reason to leave WF for shopping, grocery stores or bars!!!
…which really is sad because it wasn’t long ago that the schools were considered a benefit to moving here.
I would say if it’s between a newer bigger house in WF, or a smaller “older” house in Cary, I’d choose Cary all day. But it really depends on what you want to be near.
Agree with this. We didn't look in WF because we had family in Apex and Cary before we moved here, but have paid many a visit over the years to various parts of WF.
and GvoR's post.
Bottom line, WCPSS has probs, not the least of which is a whole host of inexperienced, panicky administrators. And that is almost straight from the mouth of a former superintendent....there just isn't the personnel. Lots of young teachers seeing an opportunity for advancement but no experience. And I can tell you I am no fan of our HS principal, but she's been around a LONG time, and I've appreciated her the last few years with all the pandemic BS and the fallout from that. She has a provided a steady hand and honestly aside from having to wear masks everything about this year feels totally normal.
Aside from that the people I know who moved here from NY to Wake Forest....the "I need the biggest house possible for my money to prove I made the right decision moving" is not my cup o' tea. Cary gets a bad rap for having NE transplants but most people I know here from the NE (which is not a lot TBH) are "live and let live" types. But you'll find all kinds everywhere. My sense of WF having been there many times - particularly for school events - is it is a major mix of rural and transplant, and I'm not sure the twain will meet. It's where Cary was 30 years ago. The differences are stark, but I don't think it causes any problems.
Suffice to say, I've not regretted choosing Cary over WF, ever. To me the biggest advantage of WF is being slightly closer to NY if you're going to drive back a lot.
Agree with this. We didn't look in WF because we had family in Apex and Cary before we moved here, but have paid many a visit over the years to various parts of WF.
and GvoR's post.
Bottom line, WCPSS has probs, not the least of which is a whole host of inexperienced, panicky administrators. And that is almost straight from the mouth of a former superintendent....there just isn't the personnel. Lots of young teachers seeing an opportunity for advancement but no experience. And I can tell you I am no fan of our HS principal, but she's been around a LONG time, and I've appreciated her the last few years with all the pandemic BS and the fallout from that. She has a provided a steady hand and honestly aside from having to wear masks everything about this year feels totally normal.
Aside from that the people I know who moved here from NY to Wake Forest....the "I need the biggest house possible for my money to prove I made the right decision moving" is not my cup o' tea. Cary gets a bad rap for having NE transplants but most people I know here from the NE (which is not a lot TBH) are "live and let live" types. But you'll find all kinds everywhere. My sense of WF having been there many times - particularly for school events - is it is a major mix of rural and transplant, and I'm not sure the twain will meet. It's where Cary was 30 years ago. The differences are stark, but I don't think it causes any problems.
Suffice to say, I've not regretted choosing Cary over WF, ever. To me the biggest advantage of WF is being slightly closer to NY if you're going to drive back a lot.
Ya my point about NEers and not wanting to be surrounded by them is really about wanting an "immersive" relationship with my neighbors/community. I've shared before that we lived in our first house for four years in MA and never even met half our neighbors. NE'ers are famous for their less than warm relationships to people not in their circle of trust...that was what we wanted to avoid.
Given we were leaving behind all of our family and friends, we didn't want a repeat of the "never met em". We wanted a more social/tight knit neighborhood to build out that network; both for the kids and for us.
I never lived in MA so I don't claim to understand the mentality there, and parts of NE have a different vibe from NY/NJ where that infamous gruffness comes from a combination of being in a hurry and initial distrust of strangers though what lies beneath is most often friendly and genuine (not that those in MA or the rest of the NE are not).
A few years ago I came across an online article about the MA mentality of indifference which to the uninitiated comes across as offensive but actually comes more from a place of minding one's own business. It was really insightful and news to me and I've searched for it a few times but could never find it again. It was a long article by a person from there from his perspective and I couldn't help agreeing with a lot of it. Such as how the misconception of unfriendliness is more of giving the other person space combined with not wanting to be bothered.
Thank you all for the insight! There are many things to consider and we will definitely spend a little more time in Wake Forest on this next trip. It sounds a lot like the suburb of Austin we currently live in. The area has changed markedly in the last decade and we know the pains of growth all too well.
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