I Am Totally Lost! RTP, Raleigh, Durham, WHAT?! (Marshall: transplants, work)

[scorp200]

Originally Posted by rock23

Some of the sterotypes might be a little over the top but there is some truth to them as well especially the sterotype of Durham. The only place I would ever consider moving in Durham would be eithor the Southpoint area or the part of Durham near the Raleigh border around Brier creek area. Durham is very spotty in terms of ghetto vs nice areas so I would only consider the areas I just described which are nice and growing areas of Durham.

I dunno, I'm not a resident here yet, but I spent a lot of time driving around Duke and the neighborhoods yesterday and did not once go anywhere near "ghetto". I think the original poster, being from Chicago, would do herself a huge disservice if she didn't check out these same areas as well. I don't know if I drove through Southpoint or not but I don't think so.

You really have to look for yourself. Where I live in St. Petersburg, FL people think it's spotty if they are not there...meanwhile homes are selling for $500,000 and the neighborhood is consistently written up in national newspapers as a great creative community...too bad the homeowner's insurance has made it impossible to buy there.

[LindaGlover]

lorax...the advice I give my clients is see what or where it feels like home as well as where you feel comfortable. Any neighborhood that interests you, go to the shopping center, resturants, gas station, etc. Be a spectator. This is where you will be doing business. Are you comfortable and like the surroundings. Try a few areas and get a feel for what fits your needs.

Of course everyone on this board has a favorite area and for various reasons, but you have to make the ultimate choice.

Good Luck!

[cathie recca]

Good morning to you. Without a doubt, Raleigh is the best area for young professionals to live, work and play.
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There are many smaller towns around RTP as well that aren't quite as pricey as Raleigh and they are even closer to the RTP area.
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[procfreq]

I'm a Chicagoan living in Durham. Been here for 3 years now. Not sure where you lived in Chicago, but I feel safer here in south Durham than I ever did in any of the Chicago neighborhoods I have called home (UIC-medical center, west Lakeview, and the Loop). As a Chicagoan, the idea that Durham is "ghetto," is completely laughable.

We came here for my husband's work and didn't know where I'd find a job. Since I thought I'd end up working in the RTP, we bought in south Durham b/c of its proximity to NC54 and I40--and indeed, it's a relatively painless commute, though I ended up finding work at Duke.

Why not find a house to rent for a year? If you don't like the idea of an apt or townhome, but feel like you need time to learn the area before committing to a mortgage, there are plenty of single-family homes for rent. I can think of 3 right now within a 2-block radius of my own home. That might be a good option for you guys while you try to sort the rest of it out...

[brightmidnight]

There's also Chapel Hill-- it's right next to Durham, 35 minutes from Raleigh and has tons of stuff to do.

[velocitygirl2]

I moved from Pittsburgh, PA to Raleigh, NC in January 2005.

To reiterate what others have said, yes the descriptions you have are stereotypes.

Traffic can be a pain in the butt around here! If you are working at RTP, it is best to live somewhat near RTP. There are parts of Durham that are really nice. Those include South Durham and Southwest Durham near Lumley and TW Alexander. They are affordable. Also, just north of Leesville at 540 is the Harrington Grove development. Part of Harrington Grove is in Raleigh. The other part is in Durham. It's a gorgeous area and relatively close to RTP.

Glenwood at Brier Creek is a good area. That's considered Raleigh. Traveling from RTP near Durham, if you take Davis Dr, part of those homes are considered Durham and part are considered Morrisville. Morrisville is a very nice area for families.

It depends on where you are moving here from. In Pittsburgh, I lived in Wilkingburg, which is kind of considered ghetto. Compared to Wilkinsburg, there is no ghetto in Raleigh. There are parts of Durham that are bad. But they are spotty and spread all over. Downtown Durham has been revitalized and is a great place to hang out! But again, be careful WHERE you hang out. Brightleaf Square is great as is the old Tobacco buildings near the Bulls stadium.

Downtown Raleigh is equally fun and a nice clean place to hang out.

Cary is expensive, but also traffic is a pain to get all the way to RTP. Apex and Holly Springs are an ok distance if you shoot down 55. Those are very surburban areas with the soccer moms.

Inside the beltline in Raleigh is expensive and soccer mom-ish. East Raleigh towards Knightdale is probably going to end up being a 35-40 minute drive to RTP, but is very affordable and a great area. Wake Forest is "hoyty toyty" and very family oriented, suburban.

We are currently having a house built in Holly Springs to eventually do the whole family thing. I work closer to Raleigh/Cary than I do RTP. IF I worked at RTP, I would definitely look around Harrington Grove and Leesville Rd off of 540 and Leesville. If you go further down 540 (Creedmoore, Six Forks, Falls of the Neuse, Capital Blvd), it's going to end up being a longer commute with a lot of traffic to even get to 540.

If you are doing a real estate search, check the NW and W areas of Raleigh near Brier Creek. It's a very nice area with a huge mix of people.

Brier Creek is a large shopping plaza area with a ton of restaurants. Southpoint (in Durham) is an even better shopping area, but you will have problems with resale in Durham that you wouldn't have in Raleigh. My friend's $220K 4 bedroom house in Durham is gorgeous, but has been on the market since September. If that same house was on the market in Raleigh, it would be sold in under 60 days, I'm sure.

I learned quite a bit about the area when working with realtors as well and also when we started looking into building a new home. It's a GREAT area! Your boyfriend made an awesome choice!

[coltank]

You are going to get a lot of strong opinions from a lot of different people, so honestly the best thing to do is check the areas out for yourself.

Personally, I grew up in Chapel Hill and spent a lot of time in Durham and Raleigh as well. I like Durham b/c of it's diversity and central location to Raleigh and Chapel Hill. All three cities have some great things to offer (as well as newer areas), so being more centrally located and getting more home and land for your money was most ideal to me.

Also, if you're working in RTP, most of it is in Durham, and yes there is more traffic coming from Raleigh or Cary. Chapel Hill is pretty stingy on it's development, and b/c of Durham's bad stigmata there has been less growth until recently.

[scorp200]

OK now I live here and I still vote for Durham, even more emphatically than I did before! The area around Duke is great, there's a lot going on here nightlife/arts/culture/food wise, and it's a very young community (I seem to be the oldest no matter where I go...)

I work in RTP - 20 minute commute, no traffic.

[welovedurham]

If I was 20-something, I would be living in a loft in downtown Durham in a heartbeat!

[Southpoint]

Originally Posted by Lorax

\Durham:
Ghetto
If you want to live in an affordable house, you'll get shot in that area
Cheap housing, but dangerous areas are everywhere
Traffic not so bad
If you work in RTP you should live here
Nothing to do
Old city, run-down
Not many bars, restaurants, shopping areas
Traffic can be bad in the city, but not too bad to get to RTP and back[/b]

I live in the Southern Durham Ghetto near Southpoint. In my Ghetto, everyone is a Scientist or a Doctor and drives a BMW.