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.
My family and I are moving to the Chapel Hill area by Christmas 2011. I will be working in Chapel Hill (university) and my husband will be working in Durham. He is fortunate enough that he can work from home a couple of days a week. We have 2 kids, 4 and 10 and currently live in St. Louis MO.
I would like to get some feedback on:
1. places to rent. We have decided not to buy a house until we know the area, so we are renting first.
2. the commute from CH to Durham.
3. School districts.
I have read many blogs and have heard that Carrboro is not that great, Chapel Hill is expensive and Durham is a bunch of gangbangers (Hmmmm, we currently live in St. Louis MO and I can't IMAGINE a place higher in crime that here). However, not sure where all of this leaves me. Please help me understand what's TRUE and whats not. We're in our mid to upper 30's, fun, and outdoorsie. We bike, hike, and have a pop-up camper. We love the country but also love to be close to library, stores, downtown, etc.
Sounds like you've heard all the stereotypes! Carrboro is called Paris of the Peidmont. Its an artsy liberal community. Chapel Hill is a college town, more like a quaint village. Some very expensive areas, some average. Durham is 8 miles away down 15/501. Its a city of 220,000+ people. Its very diverse and trendy. It has the problems any city its size has. It also has great resturants, sports, arts and entertainment. On a 1-10 scale with the average in the USA a 4, Durham would be a 6 and St Loius a 10
Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed
1) Chapel Hill has TONS of rentals. So does Carrborro. I suggest looking in person
2) The commute to Durham should be 15-30 minutes depending on location.
3) dont know
Carrboro is "hip and cool", very "crunchy" as some would say. A wonderful little town to live in; not sure why someone would say it's "not that great". Durham continues to suffer from a bad image problem, but is also really a cool place to live, though yes, there are some definite sketchy areas (generally the east side of town--Chapel Hill is west, so you wouldn't want to be in East Durham anyway, regardless).
You'll really need to come and look, but let go of the stereotypes you've heard. As far as schools, the Chapel Hill/Carrboro district is well-known as the "best" in the state--partly because it's so expensive to live there (you get what you pay for, etc). You might also look into Hillsborough or Mebane.
My family and I are moving to the Chapel Hill area by Christmas 2011. I will be working in Chapel Hill (university) and my husband will be working in Durham. He is fortunate enough that he can work from home a couple of days a week. We have 2 kids, 4 and 10 and currently live in St. Louis MO.
I would like to get some feedback on:
1. places to rent. We have decided not to buy a house until we know the area, so we are renting first.
2. the commute from CH to Durham.
3. School districts.
I have read many blogs and have heard that Carrboro is not that great, Chapel Hill is expensive and Durham is a bunch of gangbangers (Hmmmm, we currently live in St. Louis MO and I can't IMAGINE a place higher in crime that here). However, not sure where all of this leaves me. Please help me understand what's TRUE and whats not. We're in our mid to upper 30's, fun, and outdoorsie. We bike, hike, and have a pop-up camper. We love the country but also love to be close to library, stores, downtown, etc.
Does any one have any thoughts? Thank you!!!
Of all the Triangle, the Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro area sounds like a great fit for your interests.
I wouldn't believe any of the stereotypes. Come here, look around, and see what YOU like and are interested in. My wife and I loved Durham but didn't like CH when we looked at it and didn't want to live there. Plenty of others feel the opposite. Both (and Carrboro) have downtowns that are walkable w/ plenty to do. I live a 15 min. walk to the Bulls stadium and 5 mins. to downtown restaurants, and can walk a block and a half to Duke's campus. (And never felt any sketchiness/worries about crime in the part we're in.)
If one of you is working in CH and the other in Durham -- the challenge there is that SW Durham is the most popular area to split the difference, but while you'll find nice greenways and trails, there isn't a downtown area close by. Downtown Durham will mean a CH commute, though the traffic feels worse at least going CH --> Durham in the mornings.
No matter what, your idea of renting first, getting here, exploring and then deciding is the way to go.
Get a good rental agent. Some folks ride around the obvious parts of Carrboro, see only the old mill houses and wonder what all the hoopla about living in Carrboro is. Believe me there is so much more to Carrboro than the crappy looking mill houses.
If one of you is working in CH and the other in Durham -- the challenge there is that SW Durham is the most popular area to split the difference, but while you'll find nice greenways and trails, there isn't a downtown area close by. Downtown Durham will mean a CH commute, though the traffic feels worse at least going CH --> Durham in the mornings.
No matter what, your idea of renting first, getting here, exploring and then deciding is the way to go.
Good info of Durham (as always). I live in SW Durham and there are lots of folks who have one person working in CH and one in Downtown Durham or Raleigh or RTP.
YOu mentioned wanting to be close to stores. Chapel Hill has lots of smaller speciality, boutique, or locally owned stores. Downtown Durham is trying to follow that trend. Dwntwn D has lots of places to eat and a few shops. But for instance neither place is somewhere you will easily be able to get all your back to school shopping done. SW Durham has Southpoint Mall which is nice for a mall. It has the NC's only Nordstorms as many other shops you would typically find in a mall. And Super Target, Micheals etc is right down the road. SW Durham is probably the best spot for shopping in the places you've listed. But walkablity occurs only in pockets of SW Durham. Some neighborhoods like Woodcroft are walkable and have access to shops & stores. But other neighborhoods like Fairfield are only walkable in the sense they connect to a couple of other suburban n'hoods and you have to get in your car for stores and diners out.
We moved here from an urban, walkable area of Portland, Or so the differences are real. But I've got to say I love how close we are to Jordan Lake for outdoor activities (camping, water activities, hiking). And we can see the stars at night from our back deck. That is HUGE for us. Getting in the car to go get milk is a drag... especially in the beginning. But I've figured out a routine now and am much better organized about about grocery and library trips etc.
Schools.... check out Strongdurhamschools.org for reviews of DPS schools. Parts of Chapel Hill are in the CH/ Carrborro school system, Orange County, DPS, & Chatham County. My biggest disappointment with DPS schools has been the lack of autonomy for teachers and the teach to the standardized test mentality. This year neither of my children will be in a DPS school. But I know many people whom DPS works really well for their kids and their families.
Like BCR said come see for yourself and make your own decision. From personal experience I can tell you that Creekside (teachers & students) are use to getting mid-year transfers and the kids do just fine with the transition.
Good luck! Renting first is a good idea.
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.
