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Anywhere off 540 in north Raleigh west of capital will put you to RTP within 30 minutes of it's not peak rush hour. Not sure if your husband's job is flexible in terms of times of day he works or not but most companies are. There are some homes in your budget in Harrington grove and falls River I believe. Both are popular for young families. You don't mention kids so not sure if you have any or are planning to but since you mention schools I assume so. Both are in good school districts. Durham may also be an option as your budget will go farther but schools can be hit or miss unless you can afford private.
Thanks for the response Bryan. I looked at Dan Ryan builders too and was surprised at the prices they've for new house compared to other places nearby but I've read over here and other places that south/south east Raleigh is not safe compared to Northern parts. I'm flying down to Raleigh to look at some homes and would be glad to talk to you in person/phone
I would definitely check it out, and also utilize one of the numerous crime mapping tools online. The area we are moving too felt very 'neighborhoody' and the crime map tools didn't have anything beyond what we'd expect. The biggest factor is the cost of the house, and proximity to entertainment, it took us 12 minutes to get from where our house will be to downtown Raleigh.
We currently live in Southpoint area in Durham, and like others, I'd strongly recommend renting first and getting a feel for the area and where you want to live. I'm so glad when we moved down last May that we got an apartment first which allowed us to feel out different parts of Durham & Raleigh. Rent is also incredibly less than what you may have been used to depending on where in NH you're from.
We were living in South Shore area of MA about 30 mins south of Boston and our rent was going to nearly $1600/mo for 1 bed/1 bath, we know pay $989 for a 2 bed/2 bath.
Feel free to message me with any questions, happy to help!
Hi all, thanks for the response. I'm asian and my wife caucasian and expecting a baby end of year and hence don't want to rent and move later. We're looking for places with good diversity and with good school rating and hence had to remove durham from our list. I'm flying down to Raleigh next week to look for houses and explore the area
Hi all, thanks for the response. I'm asian and my wife caucasian and expecting a baby end of year and hence don't want to rent and move later. We're looking for places with good diversity and with good school rating and hence had to remove durham from our list. I'm flying down to Raleigh next week to look for houses and explore the area
I would be looking in Brier Creek Area of Raleigh, Cary, and Morrisville. Very diverse areas with some of the better schools in the area.
Enjoy your visit!
I would seriously consider renting. You can even rent for 3 months if you want at many places.
My wife and I did the "drive around while visiting to buy a house" thing and while we like our house, we completely disregarded or didn't have time to visit many other places. Next time I buy I will take a lot more time to know the area.
I would seriously consider renting. You can even rent for 3 months if you want at many places.
My wife and I did the "drive around while visiting to buy a house" thing and while we like our house, we completely disregarded or didn't have time to visit many other places. Next time I buy I will take a lot more time to know the area.
Yes, I can't imagine what the rush is when the child is just a baby. We had to rush to buy a house as I did not want to move school age kids twice, but with no kids/little kids, hell no - I would have rented and enjoyed the opportunity to explore. Happy where we ended up but I did have help from family already in the area.
Thanks for the recommendations folks. We made couple of offers in Apex/Cary and didn't get it. Finally got a good townhouse in our price range in North Raleigh close to Wake Forest
these places have good houses with good schooling and low crimes but the house prices have seemed to have increased a lot in the past 3 yrs. Are there any neighborhoods in/around Raleigh to buy/avoid with up to 30 mins commute to RTP?
I do hope you realize that it is always going to be the case that
"good schools"
"low crime"
"close to where the jobs are"
= MORE EXPENSIVE. That's just a fact of life wherever you live.
Crime really isn't an issue anywhere in this area that you would consider (very urban parts of Raleigh and Durham), so don't get hung up on that. Wake county schools are generally very good, but a large influx of population is causing overcrowding problem and perpetual new schools being built, but nowhere near fast enough to accommodate the overcrowding. you can check the wake count public schools website, but don't get obsessed with the "very highest" rated ones as most in northern, western, or NW Wake county will be fine. However, your kids might get transferred in a few years as more schools are built.
A lot of people who work at RTP live in Southwestern Durham county, which is cheaper than Wake. You may hear that Durham has bad crime, but that is a very outdated statistic and doesn't apply to the uburbs in SW Durham anyway, which weren't even built when those reports were more true, 20 years ago. Most places in RTP are actually in Durham county anyway. Even Eastern Chatham county is growing due to the population explosion.
If you are going to be in NE Raleigh closer to Wake Forest, your afternoon commute on 540 is going to be brutal. I hope that you are able to negotiate an alternate schedule vs the standard 8-5 or 9-6. We looked at moving out there a few years ago because of being able to get more for our money but it just wasn't convenient to where we work which is on the NW side of Raleigh/Cary area. The traffic may be better than what you are used to coming from the North but we have been forever glad that we didn't make that choice for ourselves. But, commute times is very subjective and what we find abhorrent may not bother you at all
If you are going to be in NE Raleigh closer to Wake Forest, your afternoon commute on 540 is going to be brutal. I hope that you are able to negotiate an alternate schedule vs the standard 8-5 or 9-6. We looked at moving out there a few years ago because of being able to get more for our money but it just wasn't convenient to where we work which is on the NW side of Raleigh/Cary area. The traffic may be better than what you are used to coming from the North but we have been forever glad that we didn't make that choice for ourselves. But, commute times is very subjective and what we find abhorrent may not bother you at all
I imagine that someone living near Wake Forest will be driving down Hwy 98 toward RTP. The traffic comment still applies, as traffic backs up a lot east of Hwy 98 / Creedmoor Rd during rush hour, both to and from RTP. Its no a commute I would want to make, but lots of folks do.
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