Long Lake... (Raleigh, Morrisville: sale, rental, HOA)
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, CaryThe Triangle Area
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Does any live in the Long Lake area? How do you like it? It seems super crowed, the houses are packed together. When I drove through, it did seem pretty quiet though. Is it family friendly? Thoughts?
Long Lake was built by Pulte. I sold one of the first homes in there to a couple from Conn. that wanted a basement for their snow blower! I laughed about that for months!
There is a pool for the residents. People love the location. The biggest negative I've heard is that its so "cookie cutter" but most of Pulte's neighborhoods seem to be that way.
Pulte built Breckinridge in Morrisville and then Long Lake, using the same plans for the entire neighborhood.
Some backyards especially in Regatta way are quite noisy. You can hear Glenwood traffic quite well. Also, my friends mentioned that the HOA is $70 or $75/month. But the biggest negative as Vicki mentioned, the neighborhood is "cookie cutter."
Good Points:
1. Good area (N. Raleigh), close to a lot, grocery store anchoring the neighborhood.
2. Some homes have basements.
Bad Points:
1. Homes on top of each other and cookie cutter
2. Narrow streets, and a lot of people park there cars on them making them seem even more crowded and narrow.
3. The one street that isn't narrow, the main passageway through the neighborhood gets high use from the residence, a lot of speeding.
4. Pulte doesn't have the greatest of reputation in this area. That said, the better home builders can build bad homes and the worst can build a gem. Just get a good inspector.
These are just my opinions; I know it sounds more negative but the neighborhood is not a bad option in this area, its just not for us. When they first started building there 6 or so years ago we were really interested. It would have definitely worked then, it just doesn't suit what we are looking for now.
oh, and I see a lot of young couples and families there. I would stay away from the townhomes though, but I have that opinion about any mixed development of single families and townhomes. What I mean to say is, I would not purchase a single family home that was backed up to townhomes based on past personal experience. I am sure there are communities where this is fine, but I think the prices of the townhomes for purchase and rental in some neighborhoods such as this lend themselves to younger occupancy. Nothing wrong with being young but a 23 year old will have a different agenda from a 30 something married couple.
As for Pulte's repuatation...I'm sure all tract/production builders have that same type of reputation. Not to stick up for Pulte, but I sold a few of their homes and have inspections and no problems. Actually sold a re sale of Pulte's 3 years later and the Home Inspector determined that the blower to the fireplace had never been wired. We called Pulte and they actually sent someone out to hook it up...3 years later...2nd owner.
It just so happens that Pulte built the townhouses in Long Lake and Hilburn and Delta Ridge and Pinecrest Townes. These are very nice townhouses. I've also had home inspectors inspect these...no problems. These are all located in North Raleigh, have always had good appreciation and due to the HOA keeping these in good shape, they look good. I would not hesitate to have my buyers purchase these.
As for these "type of hoods" having a short shelf life...how short is short? These townhouses have been around for quite a few years and the neighborhoods have held up, looking good, appreciation is good, so again...how short is short???
It just so happens that Pulte built the townhouses in Long Lake and Hilburn and Delta Ridge and Pinecrest Townes. These are very nice townhouses. I've also had home inspectors inspect these...no problems. These are all located in North Raleigh, have always had good appreciation and due to the HOA keeping these in good shape, they look good. I would not hesitate to have my buyers purchase these.
Vicki
I do think the 3 story townhouses are nice if you need to share a wall. We looked at those as well when we were seeking our first starter home. Long Lake is great for anyone desiring a townhome as most anyone purchasing a townhome has already conceded that they will have redundancy of floor plan and less than .10 acres of yard space... Two of the main drawbacks many people looking for single family homes seem to note (cookie cutter and houses on top of each other). I'm mainly saying that if I DID buy a single family home there, it would not be one that was backed by the townhomes in the neighborhood.
I don't have to tell you, most builders sub contract work, so I do know there are no absolutes. That is great the your buyers have had good experiences with Pulte. I'd wish nothing less on anyone. All that said, there is a reason Pulte doesn't have a great reputation.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
reply
