Need help picking a subdivision (Durham, Cary: how much, houses, neighborhoods)

[CandLplus2]

My family is planning to move to the Cary area next summer. During a recent visit, we saw a few subdivisions that we liked. They are as follows:

Village Square at Amberly
Highcroft
Cary Park
Harmony Reserve

I was looking to get some fresh opinions on these areas to determine which one would be best for me. We are a family of 4 (kids ages are 11 and 8). We're looking to spend 400 to 500k. We want a family-oriented neighborhood with great schools. Also, we would be comfortable with the traditional or year-round options.

Initially, I'll be working from home so commuting is not an issue right now. However, I would prefer a location that is in close proximity to other amenities. For example - schools, airport, grocery stores, Duke, etc.

Thanks

[annesg]

My sister in law and brother in law and their 3 kids live in Amberly Village Square. I love it there and Highcroft as well. THe lots are SMALL. I am totally ok with that b/c I am not interested in yard work and my husband obviously isn't either since he never does any. Amberly has more in the way of "amenities" if you're interested in the pool and gym and all that. If you don't plan to use it, then that's $95/mo (I think) in dues you still have to pay.

Cary Park is huge so I can't really give any kind of blanket statement about it, only my impression when house hunting w/ and for my inlaws; the house they looked at there looked exactly like its neighbors and had none of the upgrades that seemed to come standard with Amberly and Highcroft houses, so they weren't crazy about that. Don't know much more than that.

I don't know Harmony at all.

I can tell you that in Amberly my sister and brother in law have a very active social life and they've only lived there 4mo. There's an active moms' group and lots of other activities. There seem to be a lot of kids.

*My* fave is Highcroft, but that really just depends on your taste I think.

[Eagle Scout]

All four are very nice communities. Although I like the Highcroft homes slightly more, my favorite of the four is Amberly. It has more social activities and their clubhouse, gym, pools, are nicer than the others (IMO).

Cary has at least a dozen other communities in your range. Give Bellemont or Cameron Pond a look.

Good luck!

[NoneOfThis]

I live in Cary Park. It's hard to generalize about the homes in Cary Park because there are several layers of styles, sizes, price ranges, etc. The greenway/path system in Cary Park is great if you like walking, running, or have a dog. There are two lakes you can walk around. I like the houses and neighborhood. I think the pool is expensive and, IMHO, the playground is too small for such a large neighborhood. (BTW, my kids think the Amberly pool is the tops - looks like a water park pool.)

Amberly is not a bad option. When I was looking, I just remember the homes being smaller than I wanted or being in Chatham County. I think Chatham County is gorgeous, but we wanted the schools in West Wake. The thing about Cary Park vs. Amberly is that Cary Park is most likely to be assigned to Mills Park Elementary and Middle School for the foreseeable future, without reassignments. The smaller neighborhoods around go to different schools - all excellent I might add (Highcroft Elem., Green Hope, etc. ). I can imagine that some of Amberly will be siphoned off to Alston Ridge Elem. when it opens. The school is well under construction now.

I commute to Duke. I like a lot of the neighborhoods further south (especially Highcroft), but I cannot imagine being any further south than I am. The 55 traffic congestion increases dramatically below 540 at rush hour. At least with the Green Level to Durham neighborhoods, you can take back roads. We are all (Cary Park, Amberly, Weldon Ridge, etc.) looking forward to having traffic lights at the major intersections. Backup and confusion at the major intersections abound.

My commute to Duke takes about 25 minutes in the morning and about 35 minutes at night.

You're considering an area with lots of beauty and lots of choice. Good luck!

[coltank]

I think the biggest question will be how much of a commute to Duke are you okay with? They're all nice communities, but are quickly getting further from Duke due to the continued growth of that area. Traffic will just continue to get worse.

[Exit MA Now]

1. Highcroft
2. Village Square at Amberly
3. Cary Park

Harmony Reserve - I can't remember enough about this one to help.

The first 3 are fantastic Cary locations, especially going to Duke yet wanting to keep great access to other places, including RDU. My only advice is to look at the map for where 540 will be built. You may not want to be to close to it.

[ljd1010]

All of the above mentioned neighborhoods are very nice. If I had to pick favorites, I'd vote for Highcroft. Amberly and Cary Park are also very nice but just a bit too large for me. I agree that the pool at Amberly is awesome. Harmony is a bit further down 55, on the Apex line. This area of Cary by Rt 55 is really growing! I live close by and also commute to Duke - takes me 25 minutes, straight down Rt 55 to 147 (Durham Freeway).

[CandLplus2]

Originally Posted by coltank

I think the biggest question will be how much of a commute to Duke are you okay with? They're all nice communities, but are quickly getting further from Duke due to the continued growth of that area. Traffic will just continue to get worse.

We would not be making a regular commute to Duke. It would be a place we would travel to a few times a month. Either way, we currently live near Boston, so we're used to the traffic.

Thanks again for your feedback.

[sls76]

I would say you can't go wrong with any of those although my favorite is Highcroft. My understanding with the schools is Highcroft goes to Highcroft Elementary, Salem Middle (will change when Mills Park opens) and Panther Creek. Those are all excellent options. Cary Park goes to Mills Park Elementary (which is brand new and I assume very good), Salem Middle (will change when Mills Park Middle opens) and Panther Creek. Harmony would go to Turner Creek, Salem Middle and Panther Creek--all great options. Village Square at Amberly goes to Green Hope Elementary (moving to Alston Ridge in 2010), West Cary Middle (moving to Mills Park) and Panther Creek. Anyway, you can see there's a lot of overlap and all four subdivisions will likely have the same high school through 2012.

We lived in a Pulte neighborhood in Cary and we were fairly satisfied, but I probably would chose Highcroft if we did it over again. We didn't like the repetition of floor plans in our neighborhood. I do like the Harmony and Highcroft locations the best, but that's obviously very subjective.

[MikeNC29]

Any of the neighborhoods mentioned would be a great choice! I would definitely make sure any home that you choose is an Energy Star home so you can be sure that you will not have an energy hog that will cost you a lot to keep comfortable.

Mike