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I'm relocating to NC in August, and haven't visited yet. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a safe area to live that is still close to busy areas (colleges/jobs/shopping/grocery stores). I'd like to be in/near an area with alot of people my own age (early-mid-20's) but with affordable rent and a low crime rate (I'm a single young female moving alone).. I'm open to any suggestions!
Also, how far is Raleigh/surrounding areas from any beach or lake? I love to be near water and want to learn to surf.
Thanks
I think most of the main core of Raleigh, particularly areas on the west side of downtown, are what you are looking for. Colleges are there, as well as nightlife, shopping, dining, etc.
Lots of good apartments for young professionals and recent graduates, many of which are pretty affordable. But you should also considering where your work will be and live decently close to that.
There are lakes in the area...Jordan and Falls are two big ones that are state-protected parks. The beach is about 3 hours away or so, depending on which specific beach you go to.
Where will you be working? This is a pretty big area, and I hesitate to recommend an area without knowing what kind of commute you're looking for.
That said, you can probably have great luck finding something close to the colleges, especially with the turnover in August, if you start looking now. You've got NC State near downtown Raleigh, Duke in Durham, and UNC in Chapel Hill.
We are about 2 1/2 hours from the beach, although I don't know how good the surfing is in NC. There are a couple large lakes, Falls Lake north of Raleigh, and Jordan Lake to the west. You can take boats out on these lakes, so that'll be the closest for you. The beach is definitely a doable day trip.
Thanks! I'm a hairstylist, so I'll probably need to be in or near a metro area for a selection of salons, giving that my career depends all on how busy the area is usually. I'd rather not have a commute longer than 20 minutes, if possible. I have yet to take a trip down there, but I am just looking for suggestions before I actually do check out the area so I can focus on a certain section.
What is considered the 'west side of downtown'?
Oh yeah, if you're into hairstyling, start with downtown area...there's a bunch of high-end salons there these days. I even saw one recently that serves cocktails while you get your hair done!
What I meant by "west side" was downtown, and those areas to the west of it including the NCSU and Cameron Village areas...and so forth. Areas just to the north of downtown, like Five Points, are also big among young singles.
I've just returned from a very fast "look see" trip to Raleigh, and what I can recommend is get down there sooner rather than later, tour around, make some connections with salons and get to know the area. The city of Raleigh itself has a lot of great neighbourhoods I'm sure you'd love - but there are outlying cities/towns that might suit your purposes as well. As for me, well, if I do relocate, I'm aiming for the cameron village neighbourhood as my "first year landing area" because it's well located, is really convenient and is quite nice.
Thanks a bunch! I appreciate the help..Good luck to you, ejm...
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