Looking for some easy living? Tired of rushing through 12-hour days in a crowded city and struggling to afford an apartment or workspace the size of a closet? If so, you may want to consider relocating to the Research Triangle area, encompassing the communities of Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, and Cary, North Carolina.
In this burgeoning genomics and engineering community, people trade subways for cars (the only viable form of transportation), skyscrapers for trees, and indoor gyms for outdoor activities in North Carolina’s parks, mountains, rivers, and the Atlantic Ocean. Nowadays, in this somewhat slow-paced environment, you still have room to stretch out, both financially and physically, with real-estate properties only a fraction of the cost of comparable spaces in larger urban centers. The luxury of space provides a welcome environment for lovers of one of the residents’ favorite pastimes: golf. “If anyone is a golfer, they will be in paradise here,” says former Boston resident Shae Flanagan of Triangle-based Xanthon.
But young, single people who live as much for a varied nightlife as for their job should beware: the Triangle has no Greenwich Village or Mission District. Although Raleigh and Chapel Hill ¯ with its many college students ¯ offer some cultural variety, this community is dominated by young and expanding families. But considering the advantages easy living has to offer, that may not be so bad.
— Alison McCook
Population
Percent change, 1990 to 2000: Durham County: 23%
Suffolk County (Boston): 4%
New York County (New York City): 3%
San Francisco County: 7%
Persons per square mile in 2000:
Durham County: 770
State of NC: 165
Suffolk County (Boston): 11,692
New York County (New York City): 66,835
San Francisco County: 16,526
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Snapshop: Cary, NC
Increase in average income, 1990-2000 67%
Median property value: $154,347
Number of stoplights in 1960: 1
Number of stoplights in 2000: 100
Median household income: $60,000
1999 property taxes for Wake County per $100 value: $0.73
Source: National Geographic
Let’s Get Real Estate
Commercial Raleigh/Durham, average rent:
Apartment: $723
Industrial: $3.93 per square foot
Office: $18.14 per square foot
Advance Purchase RT plane tickets
SF to Raleigh/Durham: $390
DC to Raleigh/Durham: $150
Boston to Raleigh/Durham: $170
Source: travelocity.com
Research Triangle Industrial Park
2 miles wide, 8 miles long
Employees: 44,000
Percent working for companies involved in R&D: 99.4
Percent of companies with fewer than 10 employees: almost 40
Average salary of RTP employee: $54,145
Median Household Incomes for Research Triangle cities
Raleigh: $32,451
Durham: $51,732
Chapel Hill: $56,023
Get Outta Town
Cost (transportation, packing) of moving seven rooms of furniture from:
San Francisco to Raleigh: $7,102-$8,723
DC to Raleigh: $3,917-$4,731
Boston to Raleigh: $4,519-$5,482
Source: homestore.com
Give your budget a break
If you earn What you’ll need for the same $60,000 in: standard of living in Durham:
San Francisco $24,890
DC $38,189
NYC $22,123
Boston $32,897
Source: homestore.com
Nicknames for Research Triangle cities
Raleigh:
The City of Oaks. Each New Year’s Eve, Raleigh drops a half-ton acorn made of copper at midnight.
Durham:
The City of Medicine. Durham’s physician-per- capita is four times the national average.
Chapel Hill:
The Southern Part of Heaven
Crime
Annual robberies per 100,000 people:
Average Durham/Raleigh/Chapel Hill: 338
Washington DC: 585
San Francisco: 447
Boston: 419
Annual homicides, per 100,000 people:
Durham/Raleigh: 6.5
Chapel Hill: 0
Washington, DC: 42
San Francisco: 8
Boston: 5
Source: homestore.com
Play Ball!
Carolina Hurricanes (NFL)
Charlotte Hornets (NBA)
College Basketball: Duke (Blue Devils)
University of North Carolina (Tar Heels)
North Carolina State (Wolfpack)
Wake Forest (Demon Deacons)
North Carolina A&T (Aggies)
Number of golf courses in North Carolina: 586
Golf courses in the Triangle: 36
In Massachusetts: 343
In California: 1,050
In DC: 6
How’s the weather down here?
Raleigh Boston San Francisco
Average high temperatures, February: 52° 37° 59°
Average precipitation, February: 3.9” 3.6” 3.2”
Average high temperatures, July: 88° 81° 71°
Average precipitation, July: 4.6” 2.8” 0”
Source: weather.com
Let’s Eat
Magnolia Grill, Durham
Cuisine: American. Avg. Price of Entrée: $17-$26.
Nana’s, Durham
American with French and Italian flair. Avg. Price of Entrée: $15-$25
42nd Street Oyster Bar, Raleigh
Seafood. Price of Entrée: $12 and up
The Angus Barn, Raleigh
Steakhouse. Price of Entrée: $17 and up
Mama Dips, Chapel Hill
Southern Food. Avg. Price of Entrée: $6-14.
Get Educated
Students in Wake County (Raleigh, Cary) Public Schools: 96,787
Mean Wake County SAT scores (perfect=1600): 1,061
Students in Durham public schools: 28,360
Mean Durham SAT scores: 994
Students in Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public Schools: 8,917
Mean Chapel Hill-Carrboro SAT scores: 1,175