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PDXMom, as soon as I read the first post I thought of you. Glad to see you had some time to respond!
Fester, I live in the Southpoint area, too (Woodcroft) and truly love it. It's amazing to me how quiet it is here considering how close we are to so many things. You will find some homes in Woodcroft in your price range, but the selection isn't as great now (there were many more in the spring). For other neighborhhods north of I-40, you might also try Woodlake, Mary Dell, Hope Valley Farms, Hope Valley Green. Personally, I prefer more established neighborhoods like Woodcroft and Mary Dell, but that's just me. I think you may find more selection in your price range in the neighborhoods just south of Southpoint Mall, but I haven't been watching the MLS too fiercely lately, so who knows!
My wife HATES the way South Hampton clear cut the trees also. We will not be looking at those houses at all.
I told my realtor that I wasn't going to waste my time looking at those homes for that very reason. We've been visiting our friends in Fairfield once every couple of years since they moved in 15 years ago. I was shocked when I arrived this spring and saw the clear cut that is now SouthHampton. I immediately marked it off my list w/out even stepping in the office.
If you have kids there are alot of younger kids (under 8) in my neighborhood, Oakhaven. In Fairfield there seems to be a lot of kids at a variety of ages, but I think it's 250-300 homes. But I've seen lots of professionals without kids and empty nesters there too.
Have you checked out Chancellors Ridge? They have a pool I believe. I personally did not like the smaller lots and I have to say the names of the streets killed me. I'm not sure I could have 101 Freshmen Dr on my return of address. It also did not seem to have as many trees.
There is also Grandale right beside Fairfield. In fact the two will connect via Fenwick Pkwy. It's mostly new construction. We looked at it last summer but again I did not want to build. I don't remember the starting range there. But I do remember them saying they would have a pool.
If you have kids in Elementary the Grandale kids go to Parkwood and Fairfield kids go to Creekside.
BTW, our friends in Fairfield built there because at the time he worked in Chapel Hill and she worked at RTP. Since then their jobs have taken them to different locations in the Triangle but they still have been very pleased w/ their location & commutes. Her parents moved from California to Cary and tried to tempt them over to Cary. But they stayed because of the reverse commute as well as really liking Fairfield.
There is also Grandale right beside Fairfield. In fact the two will connect via Fenwick Pkwy. It's mostly new construction. We looked at it last summer but again I did not want to build. I don't remember the starting range there. But I do remember them saying they would have a pool.
If you have kids in Elementary the Grandale kids go to Parkwood and Fairfield kids go to Creekside.
We did not look at Grandale because it was not in the Jordan HS district. From what I have read and heard, if you are in Durham you should buy in the Jordan HS district. Is this true?
We are young(29 + 27) with no kids, but we plan on starting a family where ever we move...
You also won't get into Grandale now at 350k. They are selling only their Sovereign line of homes there now. Base prices start about 380k, and you generally can count on adding about 100k to the house to make it doable.
Our neighborhood (Wyndcross) has several homes for sale right now. They should range from about 240k - 330k. It is a decent community and has a pool. The homes were built btwn 99 and 03. There is a St. Lawrence community right beside us (off Herndon Road btwn Fayetteville and Barbee), but I'm drawing a blank on the name right now. Nice houses. They also have a pool. I think they'll be 300k+, for the most part.
Woodcroft is nice, but all are somewhat older homes. Very mature, nice-looking stuff, though.
I've heard good things about Chancellors Ridge and Eagles Point, which are within a mile or two from Southpoint, too. You should have decent options there up to 350k.
I saw a couple of comments about Brightleaf. I love Brightleaf (in fact, we're building there right now), but I don't view it as being incredibly convenient for working in Chapel Hill - especially when compared to the Southpoint area.
And, shockingly, the traffic around here isn't bad at all.
Good luck. Feel free to PM me with any specific question about the area. We thought about staying in this area when we were looking recently. I will miss it. Although I love Brightleaf, this area is so much more convenient for us. I just couldn't find exactly what I was looking for here.
We did not look at Grandale because it was not in the Jordan HS district. From what I have read and heard, if you are in Durham you should buy in the Jordan HS district. Is this true?
We are young(29 + 27) with no kids, but we plan on starting a family where ever we move...
Just so you know, Woodcroft is not in Jordan HS's district at this time. It's just on the other side of the dividing line.
Jordan HS is supposed to be great & if I had children in middle or high school, I would want to be in Jordan's district. But - like you - we don't have kids yet so that wasn't a major concern for us. Plus, if we do have kids, it will be nearly 2 decades before we have to worry about the quality of the high school. That's plenty of time for lots of things to change - change for us, change for the school, etc. I can certainly understand purchasing a home for the schools, but there's only so much you can do.
Looking down the road, though, when it comes to resale, Jordan vs. Hillside is supposedly a big difference and selling point. But also like you put it 'at this time'. The lines can change.
Looking down the road, though, when it comes to resale, Jordan vs. Hillside is supposedly a big difference and selling point. But also like you put it 'at this time'. The lines can change.
Even so, we figured that we'd rather live in a place we love now than try to predict what the market may do later. And we really love Woodcroft. Plus, my husband and I have had to move a few times already in the 5 short years we've known one another, so I'll be extraordinarily surprised if we're still living in NC by the time our kids enter high school. This is where we are now, so we bought in a place that makes us happy now.
I'm certainly not saying you have to follow the path we did, though. You have to do what makes you and your spouse happy.
We did not look at Grandale because it was not in the Jordan HS district. From what I have read and heard, if you are in Durham you should buy in the Jordan HS district. Is this true?
Right, I forgot that it was not Jordan. I knew there was another reason that we did not look at Grandale but could not remember. And I forgot about Wyndcross that Mikeheel mentioned... even though I go by it ever day.
Mike I'll wave the next time we go by!
Yes, if you are looking in SW Durham then I would buy in the Jordan HS District.
Since you mentioned that schools are something you are thinking about down the road I'll share a bit of what I know. Creekside is the Elementary for Fairfield, Oakhaven, Oakhurst, and many of the neighborhoods mentioned. Creekside is new (3-4 years old) and it is already beyond capacity, like most schools in The Triangle. DPS says it is going to add a Middle School to Creekside, that would house 300 kids. A year ago they were saying this school would be complete by 2010-2011, just in time for my oldest. Now they are saying that it looks more like 2015 (not in time for either of my kids, but maybe yours). They are also suppose to add onto Creekside for the Elementary part of it. And there is talk about adding another Elementary School somewhere down here in Southern Durham County. I don't think they have the land identified yet. So there is no time frame on it.
Where ever you choose call the district before you make an offer to double check school listings. Our middle school was listed incorrectly but I was ok with that. I would call even if you don't have kids, because it could affect resale if you need to sale for some unforseen reason. Also, if you look at Lakehurst (down the road from Fairfield) keep in mind it's a split neighborhood for Elementary. Part of the kids go to Creekside and part go to Parkwood.
Creekside is a good distance from Fairfield. So it is possible that by the time you need Elementary Schools that those kids are going to be sent somewhere else.
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The Southpoint Area
