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Raleigh NC Welcome Kit- Raleigh Map, Raleigh facts
RALEIGH
Big City Living Without The High Cost
COMMUNITY PROFILE: Metropolitan
Flair But Still the City of Oaks
Named for historian and explorer Sir Walter Raleigh, the City of Oaks was
founded on 1,000 wooded acres purchased in 1792 to establish it as the state’s
capital. Despite much growth, the “city within a park” has retained its wooded
tracts and grassy parks. The blend of modern conveniences and old-fashioned
charm make Raleigh one of the fastest-growing areas in the country. The city
consistently is ranked among the best in the country by publications like
Forbes, Money and Time. Raleigh boasts a thriving business community and an
active arts population and entertainment scene that contribute to a great
quality of life for residents – without the big-city price tag. A recent survey
of newcomers with children revealed that an astounding 96 percent would move to
the area again if they had it to do all over. Now, that’s saying something!
With a diverse local economy that includes many government, education,
healthcare and technology employers, the city has an unemployment rate under
five percent. Money magazine ranked the Wake County Public School System among
the best 100 school systems in the nation.
Raleigh offers prospective home buyers a rich diversity of living options You
can choose to live in a downtown high-rise, an historic home, an established
inside-the-Beltline neighborhood, or one of many modern communities.
Raleigh is a shopper’s paradise. Five major malls, hundreds of strip shopping
centers and several outdoor shopping venues fall within a 20-mile radius, as
well as a number of boutiques and unique shops. Museums, live entertainment and
sporting opportunities abound. Raleigh is a short drive from the Atlantic Ocean
in one direction and the Great Smoky Mountains in the other. |
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NEIGHBORHOOD
| Population: 276,093 |
| City Limits:
117 sq. mil. |
| Urban & Suburban |
| Average Home Qualities
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Home Price: $218,303 |
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Sq. Ft: 2003 sq/ft |
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Lot Size: 0.92 acres |
| Unemployment
Rate: 6.1% |
| Median Family Income:
$62,800 |
| Cost of Living Index: 102 |
| Crime Index: 137 |
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SCHOOLS
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Local |
State |
National |
| Student-Teacher Ratio |
15:1 |
14:1 |
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| Expenditure Per Pupil
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$6,477 |
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| Avg Class Size (first
grade) |
23 |
22 |
19 |
| Avg Class Size (eighth
grade) |
28 |
24 |
23 |
| Avg SAT Math |
486-541 |
494 |
512 |
| Avg SAT Verbal |
476-507 |
481 |
504 |
| % students attending
4-year colleges |
44-72% |
44% |
43% |
| % students attending
junior colleges |
17-33% |
34% |
27% |
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Almost 90 percent of Wake County public school
graduates plan to pursue higher education. Wake County has 124 schools: 79
elementary schools, 26 middle schools, 16 high schools and three
special/alternative schools.
Eighty-seven percent of the 2002 graduating class planned to pursue higher
education. SAT scores for last year’s Wake seniors were the highest ever
achieved in the Wake County Public School System, and the Wake average score was
far above the state and national average. Seventy-nine percent of Wake County
students took the exam, compared to 46 percent nationally.
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Downtown's City Market Area |
Raleigh Memorial Auditorium - Home to the
NC Symphony and NC Theatre |
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ATTRACTIONS
Museums abound in Raleigh. World-class facilities include the
North Carolina
Museum of Natural Sciences,
North Carolina Museum of Art,
North Carolina Museum
of History and
Exploris Interactive
Museum About the World.
Raleigh is home to the National Hockey League’s
Carolina Hurricanes. the
NC
State Wolfpack, and the
Carolina Cobras arena football team. Nearby are the
world-famous Durham Bulls, the
Carolina Mudcats, the Women’s United Soccer
Association champions the Carolina Courage, and
Pinehurst, host to the 2002 U.S.
Golf Open.
Concert venues include the
RBC Center and
Walnut Creek Amphitheater,
BTI Center
for the Performing Arts,
Carolina Ballet,
A. J. Fletcher Opera Institute,
North
Carolina Symphony Orchestra, bringing world-class music, dance and theater to
Raleigh’s doorstep. Additionally, Raleigh’s many restaurants and pubs host live
music performances on a regular basis.
Raleigh Parks and Recreation offers four lakes, seven large parks, 19
mini-parks, 19 staffed community centers, and two year-round aquatic facilities.
Lake Johnson offers boat rentals, picnic shelters, concessions, conference/party
room, classes and recreational opportunities, 3.5 miles of paved greenway trails
and 1.9 miles of unpaved trails. Johnson Lake is great for fishing, largemouth
bass, shellcracker, crappie, bream, catfish, and carp. During the summer months,
enjoy the outdoor concert series.
Lake Wheeler offers fishing, bass tournaments,
in-water new boat shows and demos, evening waterfront concerts, the annual Tarheel Regatta, outdoor equipment expos, and water/nature-based educational
programming. Lake Wheeler also has picnic rentals, conference room rentals,
private boat launchings, and non-motorized boat rentals.
Raleigh is also home to a botanical garden, rose garden, arboretum, theaters,
historic homes, art galleries, golf courses, state fairgrounds and flea market,
and many festivals and events.
AVERAGE COMMUTES
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| Apex |
20-30 minutes |
| Cary |
15-20 minutes |
| Chapel Hill |
35-45 minutes |
| Durham |
20-30 minutes |
| Fuquay-Varina |
30-35 minutes |
| Garner |
10-15 minutes |
| Raleigh/Durham Airport |
20-25 minutes |
| Research Triangle Park
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25-30 minutes |
| Sanford |
45-50 minutes |
| Southern Pines
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1 hour, 20 minutes |
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| LINKS OF INTEREST |
Exploris is Raleigh's newest museum - it's
fun for the whole family with lots of interactive exhibits.
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Moore Square Park in downtown Raleigh |
RALEIGH NEIGHBORHOOD DESCRIPTIONS
More information:
http://www.communitylink.com/raleigh/homes3.htm
Brier Creek
Adjacent to Research Triangle Park and surrounded by a spectacular, private,
Arnold Palmer Championship Golf Course, Brier Creek is one of Raleigh’s most
prestigious addresses. The homes in Brier Creek Country Club afford an uncommon
standard of excellence due to their superior design, quality craftsmanship and
numerous customizing possibilities. From elegant carriage homes and golf villas
to luxurious executive homes, Brier Creek offers something for everyone.
Carriage homes begin at $300,000 and executive homes run from $300,000 to
$450,000.
Crabtree Valley/70 West
Crabtree Valley encompasses the area surrounding Crabtree Valley Mall on
Glenwood Avenue, including Highway 70 westward toward the airport. Home prices
in established neighborhoods, such as Harrington Grove off Leesville Road, range
from $130,000 to $280,000. Cluster homes are available in Pemberton off Westgate
Road near the airport for $130,000 to $180,000. More expensive residences —
priced at $280,000 to $570,000 — are located in Bridgeton Park or Pinecrest
Park.
Downtown
For city dwellers, downtown residential options have grown more
enticing due to the area’s increased dining and entertainment facilities.
Apartments, condominiums and single-family homes are within walking distance of
everything from City Market to the state government complex. Condos at the
trendy Cotton Mill — formerly a warehouse off Capital Boulevard — range from
$100,000 to $325,000. More trad-itional homes are available in the Mordecai
neighborhood from $130,000 to $500,000, in Boylan Heights from $140,000, and in
historic Oakwood from $130,000 to $500,000.
East Raleigh
East Raleigh stretches from Capital Boulevard near the I-440 Beltline
to New Hope Road. Homes in older neighborhoods, such as the golf course
community of Hedingham off U.S. 64, are priced from $97,000 to $250,000. The New
Bern Avenue area offers convenient access to Raleigh Country Club. New
development occurs mainly around Buffalo and New Hope roads. Home prices in
Cobblestone range from $94,000 to $130,000, while houses in New Hope Crossing
cost $110,000 to $160,000. The U.S. 401 corridor is a growing center of activity
with new subdivisions.
Inside the Beltline
Old Raleigh, renowned for its established Southern homes along
tree-lined streets, is a premier address. Smaller homes and bungalows built in
the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s in neighborhoods like Georgetown, near Five Points,
are priced from $120,000 to $240,000. Meredith Woods residences, built off Lake
Boone Trail in the 1970s, are priced around $150,000 to $220,000. The older
homes of Country Club Hills, off Glenwood Avenue, surround the exclusive
Carolina Country Club and its golf course, and range from $300,000 to $1.5
million. The Five Points area of Raleigh is very popular right now, and houses
here range from $200,000 to $600,000. Hayes Barton’s estates run anywhere from
$250,000 to more than $1.5 million. Two new, upscale condo complexes have
recently gone up on Glenwood Avenue. Prices at 510 Glenwood Avenue range from
$270,000 to $400,000, and prices at Gardens on Glenwood are $330,000 to
$700,000.
North Raleigh
As one of Raleigh’s fastest-growing areas, North Raleigh is
attractive for its mix of well-established subdivisions and up-and-coming
developments. North Ridge, an older neighborhood close to the Beltline, offers
houses from $100,000 to $900,000. North Hills, one of Raleigh’s more established
subdivisions, has many solid homes — on generous lots — priced between $180,000
and $300,000. New homes cost $200,000 to $400,000 in Falls River, off Durant
Road, and range from $430,000 to $700,000 in Cross Gate, also off Durant Road.
Other new, upscale neighborhoods in North Raleigh include Olde Creedmoor,
Crossmoor, Chatsworth and Traemoor, with homes from $500,000 to $800,000. Homes
in Devon range from $900,000 to $2 million.
Wakefield Plantation, a premier country club community off Falls of Neuse Road,
is one of the hottest developments in Wake County’s history. More than 3,500
homes and apartment units are planned for the 2,200-acre tract, which includes
one of only two Tournament Players Club golf courses in North Carolina;
swimming, tennis and dining facilities; a YMCA; greenways; and an elementary
school, a middle school and a high school. Houses in the Wakefield complex start
at $250,000 and reach $1.8 million.
West Raleigh
North Carolina State University life centers around West Raleigh near
downtown. Hillsborough Street boasts student-filled shops and restaurants, as
well as older homes that stretch to Cameron Village. Trinity Square, off Trinity
Road, is a popular area that features town houses with two-car garages bordering
the RBC Center, as well as houses for around $140,000 to $180,000. Cameron
Village condos average around $110,000, and houses are $210,000 and up. Other
university neighborhoods run along Avent Ferry Road near Lake Johnson. Homes
built in the 1980s in Glencoe range from $206,000 to $315,000. Homes in
Trailwood Hills, near the McKimmon Center, are $140,000 to $180,000, and homes
at Lake Johnson Harbor, adjacent to the park and greenway, are $140,000 to
$200,000.
Raleigh/Wake County has been named to more
than 20 national publications’ and experts’ “top-three” lists. Here are
just a few:
• #3 Best Place to Reinvent Your Life – AARP Magazine, May/June 2003
• #3 Best Place for Business and Careers – Forbes Magazine, May 2003
• #1 Hot Spot for Entrepreneurs in the South – Entrepreneur Magazine,
September 2002
• #1 Best Place to Live and Work in the U.S. –Employment Review
Magazine, June 2002
• #2 City in the U.S. for Relocation – Expansion Management, January
2002
• Five-Star Rating for Best Economic Metro – Demographics Daily, January
2002
• #1 Income-Growth Batting Average – Demographics Daily, October 2001
• #1 “Best Place to Live — Southern Region” – Money, November 2000
• #3 “Best City in the Nation for Entrepreneurship” – Entrepreneur,
October 2000
• #3 Liveliest City for the Elderly – Modern Maturity, March 2000
• #1 Best Cities for Education – Places Rated Almanac, Millennium
Edition
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