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I'm considering moving to the Raleigh area (=> Raleigh, Cary, Morrisville, Apex...) with my wife and my elementary-school-going child. I've done my internet research, including the sticky thread on this forum, and I think I have a reasonable idea of what to expect in terms of schooling, commutes, airport access etc.
I have a few questions, and here's some context before -
- I've seen Raleigh/Cary, was there on work for a couple of months and loved the area
- My work is based out of DC, though technically I need to be in our office only a couple of Fridays in a month
- I did my research on buying a house/living in NOVA and it's ridiculous how expensive it is and how horrid the commutes are, so I figured I might as well move to a great place, buy an affordable house and manage my commute (fly/drive) once a while (my company pays for the commute at least until end of 2013)
I'm interested in 3 things
- great school(s)
- close to the airport as I need to fly a lot
- a compact < 1700sqft. condo/townhome/apartment to buy. We don't want big houses.
My home research is based on Internet sites, and so far I'm leaning towards Cary, Morrisville - something close to either 540 or 40 is a big plus to reduce travel to RDU.
Would love to hear your opinions/advise on
- My choice of neighborhoods given my circumstances and
- Recommendations on good housing agencies/communities where I might be able to buy.
- How long does it take to close? We want to buy a 3BR at < 200K. Is it possible to "seal the deal" so we can move in 1-2 months? (Ideally before March)
- Can my daughter be enrolled into 1st grade in the middle of the school year? (we move from NJ)
I have a previous client that works in the DC area and does what you are saying...he lives in South Cary, from home, but a couple of days a week, flys into DC to work.
You should have a good selection of townhomes to choose from in the Morrisville/Cary area. That would be closest to the airport and have great schools.
North Raleigh would be worth considering, as well. Takes about 20 min. to get to airport.
Takes approx. 45 days from contract to close. A good lender can get you closed in 30 days, if seller agrees.
Yes, you can enroll child once you are under contract or have moved here, no matter when in the school year that is.
I would certainly suggest you look at Amberly and Cary Park for new construction and resale townhomes rather than condos.
Also, scattered townhome resales around Cary and Morrisville.
You easily can be within minutes from the airport.
Your time frame is pretty easy to meet or exceed.
The lender will set the schedule for closing. Everything else will fall into the lender's schedule. 30-40 days is common.
Connect with a lender who will have initial underwriting performed on your file, and with a contract and an appraisal, you can close very quickly, under 4 weeks. Maybe under 3 weeks.
540 stretches out pretty far. I would recommend Falls of Neuse and Northeast Raleigh, too. Both of these locations are very close to 540. The school policy has just changed in Wake County as well. So, make sure you check out school scores in your prospective neighborhood.
I do not like Cary because there is a lot of suburban sprawl. Housing prices are outrageous too. Apex might be a more desirable location now. As for character, I like Raleigh and Wake Forest the best.
We moved here from MD and just recently had to drive to DC and couldn't make it back before the rush hour. Oh boy, I just wanted to kiss the ground when we finally got back home. What a mess!
Both Cary and Morrisville would fit the bill, I think, and they're really close to the airport. Make sure to check the Greatschools web site, but I believe any school there would be pretty good. Apex is OK, but it'd be longer commute (both to the airport and I-95). In Cary I like the area around Tryon / Cary Pkwy / Walnut because it's close to shopping and has easy access to major freeways. Unfortunately, I don't know what's the situation with condos/townhomes since we were searching for a SFH.
We recently closed on refinancing and barely made it in 30 days, they seemed to have large volume of applications. Also we closed in winter time on the first mortgage and the bank's corporate office got snowed in causing a few day delay. Just something to keep in mind.
I'm going to keep Apex in mind, but certainly the areas near 540-40 intersection / Amberly look very interesting to me. It's true that the further south I go, the longer my commute to the airport will be (which I might need to go to/from at least 2 - 4 times a week) and to I-95 or I-85. North Raleigh near Van Neuss seems nice but a bit too far to the airport.
Also relieved by the fact that I can move my child to school without too many issues, and I will be checking the greatschools ratings for where to get a house, but it seems most schools in the Cary area are pretty good. I'm not terribly bothered by a school getting a 8 vs. a 9. Proximity to shopping will be a plus, but given that the commutes in that area aren't horrible, adding a few minutes makes little difference.
I'm still amazed at how much more expensive the areas around DC are, and how horrible the commute is, and in contrast how much nicer the Raleigh area is.
If anyone has any recommendation to specific housing communities/agencies etc. that'd be great. My primary source of research is realtor.com (which has an awesome iPad app)
I'm hoping to be a "beneficial transplant" in that I won't take a local area job but I will contribute to the local economy
Don't forget about the northwest Raleigh area like the Leesville Rd schools. Super convenient to the airport (less than 10 min) and a nice area to live in.
I hadn't considered Leesville Rd - do you mean the area between LeesVille Rd and Glenwood Ave?
We're looking for a smaller condo/townhome, something like 15 - 1600 sq.ft. which puts us in the range for <200K budget, and I don't see a lot of availability in that range, in that area. But I will keep my eyes open, thanks!
And I take it that we have no alternative to Times Warner for high speed Internet (>25Mbps)?
I hadn't considered Leesville Rd - do you mean the area between LeesVille Rd and Glenwood Ave?
We're looking for a smaller condo/townhome, something like 15 - 1600 sq.ft. which puts us in the range for <200K budget, and I don't see a lot of availability in that range, in that area. But I will keep my eyes open, thanks!
And I take it that we have no alternative to Times Warner for high speed Internet (>25Mbps)?
We have no FiOS.
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What a mess!
