Durham Neighborhoods?

[Sharon R.]

I'm definitely not the victim type, and I've never had a crime committed against me, and I've been in some shady places and situations. It's not so much the crime I'm worried about. It's that I don't want to live in a place where people don't take any pride in the appearance of their homes -- even little, older homes -- and the neighborhood is full of garbage. Because I do like to get out and walk around and I'd like for it to be a pleasant experience.

[NCBOUND123]

I for one can't wait to visit Durham. After hearing so many of you say positive things in this thread and others I am getting very excited about the area and feel this is possibly a dynamic and vibrant city. I was so afraid the whole triangle area, except Durham, consisted of homogenized communities like Stepford, it's refreshing to hear that Durham is so diverse. From what I gather there are all classes of folks rubbing elbows.

[jjimenez]

Hi Sharon - my husband and I are looking to move to Durham in the fall...looking for similiar qualities/area to buy a home as you are...would you mind sharing the list of neighborhoods you got from RaleighBob?
Thanks so much if you can! JJ

[kmflan]

Where is Bull City Rising on this one
He's practically converted me to Durham, lol

[askmisterbrown]

I echo the positive sentiments about the old neighborhoods of Durham. Although I live in Raleigh, I love old Durham and have many friends living there who feel very safe. The beauty, charm, convenience and neighborliness of Trinity Park, Watts-Hillandale, Forest Hills, Duke Park, and Old West Durham are definitely worth the SLIGHTLY higher risk of break-ins. You get a better house for the money, in comparison with most parts of the Triangle. You’ll probably never get broken into at all, and even if you do, they’ll never steal anything as valuable as the $75,000 to $100,000 you saved because of the better deal you got on the house!

I also would have no problem living in Old North Durham or Morehead Hill, but some people wouldn’t be comfortable there.

[tigerlily]

We are very interested in the Durham area as well and due to negatives we heard didn't check out on our first trip to Raleigh in the fall. I've saved most all of BCR's posts. School isn't a concern for us but if you do search using BCR's names you can find all his posts. He has addressed many areas of concern about the Durham area. Here's one I've saved that might be of interest. Thanks again BCR for all your info:
"There are lots of older, traditional neighborhoods in Durham that would meet these characteristics. Most of them are near downtown and are close to some of the real centers of activity and life in Durham, like the Brightleaf Square shopping district (http://www.historicbrightleaf.com/) (broken link), Ninth Street (http://www.ninthst.com/), American Tobacco (http://www.americantobaccohistoricdistrict.com) (broken link), and the farmer's market (http://www.durhamfarmersmarket.com/) (broken link).

Some of the better-known surrounding neighborhoods, filled mostly with older, 1200-1800 sq. ft, early 20th-century homes, but also some newer in-fill development, include--

* Trinity Park (where my wife and I live, and we love it -- closest to Brightleaf and downtown and greenways/trails)
* Watts-Hillandale (near Ninth St. and Duke's East Campus)
* Duke Park (great neighborhood association, and wonderful renovated park)
* Old West Durham (close to Ninth Street, affordable and up-and-coming)
* Old North Durham (closer to downtown and on the edge of gentrification; very strong neighborhood assn. and some affordable options)
* Forest Hills/Morehead (on the south side of downtown, and closer to the American Tobacco Trail and the Super Target/Harris Teeter shopping district)
* Northgate Park (north of these neighborhoods, more affordable)

In many of these neighborhoods, 2-3 bedroom houses with hardwood floors, brick fireplaces, and other touches of 1920s-1940s construction can be found in the $130k-$200k range. At the same time, particularly in Trinity Park/Watts-Hillandale/Forest Hills, you can find larger (3500 sq. ft.+) signature homes from the same time period from the $400s to $700s.

At its core, Hope Valley is a very upscale neighborhood (reputedly, the second-wealthiest ZIP code in all of N.C., after SouthPark in Charlotte.) It has wonderful early-20th c. homes surrounding a golf course -- this was a mini-suburb for executives with the tobacco companies. There are other nice, newer neighborhoods nearby. I would think the schools there would be excellent (I know I've heard good things about Hope Valley Elem. and Rogers-Herr Middle) but would suggest asking, as mentioned above.

* Duke Forest is a pretty area immediately adjacent to the University's west campus. Lots of 60s-70s ranch/contemporary architecture houses, but older and newer, too, on big wooded lots.

* American Village is a series of subdivisions in western Durham. Very popular with Duke grad students and some staff. I find it lacks character somewhat but is a fine place to live for that kind of subdivision structure.


Check out Willowhaven - looks nice

If you're looking for loft/condo/townhouse options, there's a great deal of new development and adaptive re-use going on, in walking distance of downtown, Brightleaf, etc. These include condos at American Tobacco, the Trinity Lofts project (http://www.urbandurhamlofts.com/) (broken link), and apartments at West Village (including hundreds more under development now - http://www.bluedevilventures.com/westvillage.html). A local developer is also starting a project called The Chancellory at Trinity Park, 47 condos from $300k-$1mil (http://www.thechancellorycondos.com/) (broken link)."

[Bull City Rising]

Hey, thanks for the kind words and quoting. :-) Glad to hear the advice has been useful.

I wasn't reading this forum when this thread first came up in October, or I'd have had some things to say on the subject, naturally. I'm glad this board now has several Durham residents providing feedback on what life here is like!