Cary vs. Chapel Hill (Raleigh: house, safe neighborhoods, school district)
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, CaryThe Triangle Area
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Hi,
We are looking at the possibility of moving to either Cary or Chapel Hill next summer. My husband is in IT and I am an accountant. We are getting tired of sky rocketing home prices in MD.
2 of the areas we are interested in are Cary and Chapel Hill. The following are our priorities.
(1) Very good public schools- My kids will be in 1st grade next year
(2) Proximity to work
(3) Peaceful, safe neighborhoods to raise our kids
(4) Decent homes for 350- 400k
(5) Cultural diversity since we are Asians
Which of these two areas are better for each criteria?
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Nisha
[SIZE=3] [/SIZE]
Either of these towns meet your requirements. But depending on where in Raleigh he will be working, you might want to concentrate on Cary. I have a friend that used to commute from Chapel Hill to downtown Raleigh and absolutely hated it. He has since moved to Cary.
Both towns would meet your criteria, but CH can be a bit more expensive. Cary is also more centrally located to Raleigh and the RTP. I moved to Cary from Herndon in 2000 (also lived in Montgomery Village near Gaithersburg before that). Cultural diversity is comparable in both towns, but Cary has an inordinately high concentration of Indians, tons of Indian grocery stores, restaurants and cultural activity. We love it in Cary and can't dream of moving out. It is a slightly slower pace of life here but it grows on you eventually
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nisha125
Hi,
We are looking at the possibility of moving to either Cary or Chapel Hill next summer. My husband is in IT and I am an accountant. We are getting tired of sky rocketing home prices in MD.
2 of the areas we are interested in are Cary and Chapel Hill. The following are our priorities.
(1) Very good public schools- My kids will be in 1st grade next year
(2) Proximity to work
(3) Peaceful, safe neighborhoods to raise our kids
(4) Decent homes for 350- 400k
(5) Cultural diversity since we are Asians
Which of these two areas are better for each criteria?
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Nisha
[SIZE=3] [/SIZE]
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
9,777 posts, read 15,781,748 times
Reputation: 10881
Where in Maryland are you coming from - Baltimore or outside DC (or somewhere else)? I ask because the commutes here are significantly better than in DC, so don't be deterred from looking at places that are farther commutes than people in the Triangle are used to. People here think 30 minutes is the max commute to put up with. In DC, as you know, if that's where you are, 30 minutes would be a dream commute.
Having said that, I think you need to rank your priorities. Is it school district? Is it commute time? Is it size of house or is it cultural diversity? Both places are safe and "family friendly" for kids.
If size of the home is more important or commute time, then Cary might be a better bet. You get more for your money there than in Chapel Hill and it's closer to Raleigh.
If school district is more important then Chapel Hill is probably a better bet since the system is much more stable in terms of school assignments (and schools are pretty equal to each other even if they do get reassigned). Overall, Chapel Hill schools have higher test scores than Wake County schools, if that's important to you. Although I know Cary schools are very good, you may not be able to confirm where your kids will be going before you move due to the "choice" plan.
I'm not sure which is better in terms of diversity. Overall, I think you will find less diversity here than in Maryand if you are outside DC (and probably Baltimore, too depending on where you are). There is diversity here, but not as much as I am used to coming from the DC area but it's not Montana. But if you are specifically looking for Asians, there are parts of Chapel Hill that have high Asian populations - particulary the area that feeds into East Chapel Hill High (I think about 25% of the school or more is Asian). I am not as familiar with Cary to comment on its Asian population.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
9,777 posts, read 15,781,748 times
Reputation: 10881
Quote:
Originally Posted by evaofnc
They're getting rid of the choice plan and going back to a node system according to the latest from WCPSS.
Ha! I'll believe it when I see it, err hear it on C-D. Seriously, I know they are headed that direction, but then I thought they said they're keeping assignments as is for one more year? I don't know - I can't keep up with Wake County's assignment plan.
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Seriously, I know they are headed that direction, but then I thought they said they're keeping assignments as is for one more year? I don't know - I can't keep up with Wake County's assignment plan.
