Renaissance Park in Raleigh

[tompope]

Originally Posted by Bmachina

Tompope, thanks so much for the detailed info! North to South means that I am up in Ohio currently, not Northern Raleigh.

From your description, it does sound like what we are looking for. We aren't looking for a spawling McMansion subdivision with big yards set up for kids.

Are there any other neighborhoods fairly close to the city with similar styles homes?

In particular, I really love the homes with the classical style of architecture, crown moldings, wainscotting, etc. Historical reproduction homes such as the Charleston style with 2 story outdoor balconies, etc. Renaissance Place has a lot of these, but I also see some generic big box "McMansions" in the mix. A well-kept urban historical street would nice, but all I am seeing listed are mostly fixer-upper historical homes that need rehabbed.

Yeah, realistically, at present there really just aren't any other large developments in Raleigh that are quite like Renaissance Park, at least not anywhere near as close to Downtown as Renaissance Park is. And yes, due to the supply and demand dynamics of the housing market in Raleigh, it can be hard to find older homes on urban streets that are not either tiny, lacking in distinctive architectural detail, falling apart, or outrageously expensive (sometimes even with more than one of those traits). Because Raleigh was not a very large city until the last few decades, there simply aren't a very large quantity of pre-1960 homes that exist in the city (there are some, and some very nice ones, but relatively fewer than in other cities of Raleigh's size). And since the boom in Raleigh's growth—including a lot of upscale growth—in recent years, there's been tremendous demand for those historic houses that do exist, especially those that are in good condition, are particularly striking or distinctive, or large enough to meet the common expectations of modern families. So they tend to be quite expensive. The higher your housing budget and the more compromises you're willing and able to make, the more options you'll have to choose from. Otherwise, the pickings can be a bit slim, but I think you can find something suitable if you're patient and persistent. While Renaissance Park is the only big development quite like it near Downtown Raleigh, two smaller and more expensive developments that come to mind with sort of a similar aesthetic to parts of Renaissance Park are Ramblewood and The Oaks at Fallon Park, both located a little ways north of Downtown Raleigh, and perhaps worth checking out if you haven't already. Both always seem somewhat sleepier and stuffier to me than Renaissance Park, with a more suburban feel and profile, but I suppose those can be either good things or bad things, and they're certainly convenient to lots of stuff (Ramblewood is literally short walking distance from the popular shopping/mixed use complex North Hills, but personally, of the two I prefer The Oaks at Fallon Park on the whole, and it's a bit closer to Downtown). Beyond that, there actually are a number of places all around the outskirts of Downtown where I see individual houses kind of like the ones in Renaissance Park that have been built over the past five or ten years, and are sometimes for sale at relatively reasonable prices. But since they're usually just one single house or a small handful of houses scattered here and there in established neighborhoods in various parts of town, I think it could be hard for you to locate any one particular one that would suit you. Modern real estate informational tools like Zillow can be helpful in that respect, and so could just the right kind of real estate agent. But it's still a bit of a needle-in-a-haystack sort of thing, so it's tough. Even in 2013, one of the most effective ways of finding a certain kind of home within a relatively compact, medium-sized area like the older portions of Raleigh can be to just drive around and explore a bit to get a sense of specifically what's out there and available. So, if that's practical in your situation, that may be a useful tool in your search. If not, and you're relying largely on searching from afar, then clearly it's a lot simpler to just focus more on a large, coherent development like Renaissance Park. And as it happens, from what you've described, I think Renaissance Park may be quite a good choice for your situation.

Incidentally, what's the geographic scope of your search? Do you want/need to be specifically within Raleigh, or are you able and willing to be open to the broader region? Since Raleigh's supply/demand dynamic of older homes and older-styled homes can be a bit challenging, you could have more to choose from if you're able to broaden your scope a bit. Durham is similar to Raleigh in many ways, but it actually has a slightly higher inventory of older houses with character that aren't excessively pricey or dumpy. But if, for example, you'd be working in or around Downtown Raleigh, it wouldn't make sense to have to commute from central Durham every day just for some crown molding and wainscoting. Likewise, all of the smaller towns around the area that are now suburban or semi-suburban were once actual small towns, and retain more or less of their historic cores at their centers, often with some very nice older homes of various sizes, price points, and conditions. (Hillsborough, Pittsboro, Wake Forest, Clayton, and Apex are particularly outstanding in that respect, but even Wendell, Cary, Fuquay-Varina, Garner, Zebulon, and others have at least some nice older homes like those.) Again, these towns vary considerably in how convenient to Raleigh they are, so it really just depends on what your situation is and what your needs and preferences are.

Good luck!

[RaleighVB]

Originally Posted by jperryrocks

RP has been under development for ~5 plus years. Many people pass on it for being in an iffy area. Near dowtown is hit and miss and you have to deal with some rough surrounding areas.

For young families with kids and schools, there are better places.

Anytime a well built sub. has still not closed out after 5 years lets you know there's some issues.

Standard Pacific makes a nice home.

I currently lived in Renaissance Park, moved in August 2010. I'm 29 years old, single male with no kids. It's been an amazing place to live. I bought my townhome here (Standard Pacific Townhome) because I had friends that were living in the community. I had visited the community often in the summertime, so I knew it very well and therefore knew what to expect by buying here.

To address the quote above... about not closing out in 5 years... The country we live in had this little thing called a "Housing Crisis", you may have heard of it. With over 1100 homes to complete the neighborhood, I don't think any community during that time could have filled that. As we start to see housing come back, the community sold over 130 homes in 2012 with ever higher projections for 2013. My townhome section has its' last 12 townhomes currently being built. They are the last ones in our section, until we are completed and closed out.

This has been the best buying decision I've ever made and I'm thankful every day that I made the decision to purchase here. I've made so many friends in the neighborhood and summers are especially amazing. Huge saltwater pool, beach volleyball, lighted tennis courts and a very social community. Parts of the surrounding area are not the best and I believe someone had written on here earlier that it was similar to a little oasis. Meaning, while inside the neighborhood it's perfect. Outside of the neighborhood needs some improvement. But the neighborhood has always kept it's safe and beautiful oasis feel. The areas to the East and North of here, between here and downtown, are not the best. To the west you have RGA golf club, almost bordering the neighborhood (heading toward Cary)and to the South is Garner which has enough shopping to handle majority of those needs.

The community has strong communication, quarterly meetings, etc. We have a neighborhood online website for residents in case there's ever a concern, referrals, ideas, meet-ups, etc. They have book reading clubs, card games clubs, tennis leagues, running groups, etc. There's many community events (Chili cook-off, Casino night, beer tasting) taking place in the clubhouse or at the pool.

It's probably not the perfect community for everyone. And I can't speak for those that have kids (most of my friends are engaged, recently married, or just starting a family with children under 2 years old. But for all that live here, I've never met someone that didn't love it. It's definitely a great place to live, especially if you like meeting people.

I do a lot of running, and can easily do 3+ miles without ever leaving the community sidewalks or backtracking on the same sidewalk during my run. So for those that enjoy the outdoors, have dogs, or just like to be able to walk outside in a safe environment, I feel it's a huge benefit. The streets are lined with trees, flowers, etc. Extremely well lit for an evening run as well. This is especially inmportant with the weather that Raleigh, NC provides.

RenPark is extremely close to downtown, so if I'm going out for dining or to have a drink that's where I go. If you want to have a few drinks, a $12 taxi ride home is always appreciated. Plus the Raleigh Amphitheatre is now downtown, along with the multiple downtown events that take place.

Do yourself a favor and come check it out. Preferably on a nice warm evening. Come by the pool on a weekend or just stop by and take a walk around the neighborhood after work. You'll see exactly who lives here and hopefully realize how truly special it is to have an option like this in Raleigh. There's no other place like it.
Renaissance Park :: The Community

Hope to see you around!
-Craig