If he takes a Duke job, what area should we consider? (Durham: rent, houses)

[Alicia64]

Can you throw out a few area names? I'm hoping for safe and friendly. Suburb over city living would be good.

If we were to buy a house we'd want something between $265 and $280. Are there nice areas within this price range?

Also, would you say Richmond, VA is a more inexpensive community than the Durham area? (Our gas right now is $3.41)

Thanks~

Alley

[Voltige]

Gas here is more expensive than in VA I think. I've not been able to fill up for less than about $3.60 recently.

Lots of great areas in Durham!! If you like suburbs, check out the Southpoint area to start.

[peperoberto]

I'd recommend renting before buying when you live in any new town. You just can't figure out the right neighborhood for you by visiting a few times.

There are tons of nice houses to be had in Durham for $265k. Check out the areas around Southpoint for new development (last 10 years or so). If you want an older, more established neighborhood look at Hope Valley, as one example among many.

[brocco]

im from richmond but went to school in durham and gas was ALWAYS quite a bit more expensive in durham. that being said, housing prices are cheaper in durham as are drinks at the bar lol. overall durham is cheaper. the gas tax in NC is about 15 cents higher which is the reason for this discrepancy.

[ZimaCheryl]

Can you narrow down "Duke"? College, medical center? Seems like Duke is all over the area between the campuses (two main ones I think) medical center, and various offices. I think they have 3 or 4 offices in the building I work in.

Assuming somewhere around downtown Durham is where his job would be, I'd suggest North Durham (north of 85/Northgate mall). If you go off Guess Road or N. Roxboro road you can find some nice neighborhoods.

I know one house in our neighboorhood is listed around $150/$200K. I believe it was build in the early 70's, has three bedrooms and about 1/2 acre of land. When we were house hunting I felt that newer construction is more expensive but not necessarily giving you any more land or square feet. It really depends on what you want.

Southpoint area is nice, but if you are working downtown it may be a bit of a commute. I honestly don't drive that way often (unless I'm going to the mall) but I believe driving from there to downtown would involve some highway driving & the roads around here some mornings can be pretty congested.

I'd suggest getting a realtor in the area to help you out. If you don't have one you can PM me & I'll be happy to share the name our our realtor with you. She was fantastic considering I was in MA & my husband was here. She met with me on my one fact finding trip to the area so she knew what I wanted in a house too. She totally kept me in the loop on things.

And I'll second what Peperoberto said, if you can swing it, rent for a while and use the time to sort out your commute, check out some neighborhoods and the nearby amenities (stores, library, etc), and view several houses before making the final decision.

[mike052082]

There are lots of home in Durham under that price range. You will need a realtor I am sure. For the most part it depends on if you want to live close to Duke. Will he need to park at one of the lots and bus in or do you want to be in walking/biking distance to avoid that. Also, do you like older homes or newer homes. There's a lot to consider in that price range.

[michgc]

When we drive down from Virginia, we fill up in South Hill, VA on I-85 (exit 12) for 'cheap' gas. (Bonus is that there's a Sonic there, too.) Something to consider on your way down here or on visits back home. Gas is definitely more expensive here in NC than in Richmond.