We just came back from NC this past weekend. We did a marathan house hunting trip Sun and Mon, made an offer Tuesday at 4 and it was accepted by 5pm! Yipeeeee! Thanks to everyone up here for giving us recommendations on agents, neighborhoods, schools, etc. It really helped us narrow things down so it went a lot smoother than we anticipated.
We visited a few neighborhoods so I will post my
opinion on those for anyone who may still be looking.
We settled on a house in the Cleveland area of Clayton but we also went to Garner and the east side of Clayton close to 70. I would definately recommend going to a number of places just so you can get a feel for what you like. We are moving from Northern VA but are originally from NC. Although we've only been gone a few years it can seem like a culture shock if you aren't used to the peace and quite and of course livestock.
Our first stop was Winston Pointe. We only looked at one house in that area but overall it seemed like a nice neighborhood. The entrance we came in through actually takes you past some older homes that don't appear to be part of that s/d. Our agent did note that another entrance was in the works so not to worry about that. The house we looked at bordered a creek but the layout was so that we weren't worried about flooding or any of that. The house was just too small for us but someone must have liked it as the onsite agent noted that the same plan down the street had just sold the day before.
We also looked in Adam's Point. Before we went I had heard and read a lot of mixed opinions about it. Everything isn't for everyone so we figured we would check it out for ourselves. We were not at all impressed by the limited parking and narrow streets in the cul de sacs. It just made the entire area look packed in. Also we were turned off by the lots. They claim to be .5 acres but we often saw half of the lot fulled with underbrush and trees. You weren't able to take advantage of all the land. The outsides had nice details with brick, etc but the insides were very plain. No upgrades, no color, no life. There were a number of kids out playing which was a good sign.
We went to both Hunter's Mill and Knolls at the Neuse since we had heard good things about the builder Greg Johnson. We love the things that seemed to come standard in his homes like the ceramic tile flooring, granite countertops, crown molding, and hardwood flooring. We like the layout of the HM s/d since most lots were .3 acres and not too many seemed to share a backyard so you had privacy. Knolls was also good but we were turned off by how far away it seemed from everything. For some people that may be a plus. We didn't see kids out but we also went Monday during the day so hopefully they were in school
.
Glen Laurel was our top pick as you could tell the residents care about the s/d. Lots were all well taken care of, very peaceful, friendly. We went in a couple of homes that were 10+ years but you would never have known it because they were so well maintained. We also noted that you didn't pay for amenties that you don't use such as the golf course. Our agent told us that pretty much the same builders who started building in that area from the beginning are still there which is a good sign.
Plantation Pointe was also nice in both newer and older homes. We didn't like some of the floorplans but overall as a s/d it was tolerable. Our agent did note that some of the covenants can seem a bit strict but that could be because they want to keep their neighborhood in condition.
Overall, the s/d's that we visited had one thing in common-they were not cookie cutter! Glen Laurel had plenty of mature trees and Winston and Plantation Point seemed to be building around the landscaping so as to keep some of the trees there. Most of the lots in Hunter's Mill were clear but it looks like the area around the pond and a few other places will still have trees. Plus it looked like most if not all of the houses had some short of shrubbery outfront which helped. Knolls was probably the clearest that we saw as it looked like the only lots that would continue to have trees would be the border houses that didn't share a backyard.
Anyway that was just our opinion of what we saw. I'd be happy to share my thoughts with anyone else who is considering making the move.
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I found the quiet to addicting. In Portland, I loved living in an urban neighborhood with a bus stop 1 block from my house. I still love Portland, but I don't know if I could handle the noise any more. And now every day I drive by Belted Galloway Cows!!! LOVE that! 
