The Crib

If I haven’t already mentioned and you didn’t already know, the cost of living in Raleigh is DRASTICALLY different than California. I live in a BRAND NEW, LUXURY 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment in an area of Raleigh called Brier Creek. We have a resort style pool, hot tub, gym, indoor basketball court, etc which are all to die for. To be honest with you, I cannot believe I live in such a nice place at this point in my life. I honestly do not think I could be doing much better 3 months removed from college. I walk into the lobby and I am greeted by a professional staff who address me as “Sir”. Then I look around as I am surrounded by computers and plasma screens in our lobby area. Everyone is super nice to boot!! And if I have to wait for anything, they are always there with fresh made lemonade and baked goods. It’s pretty ridiculous.

Here’s the crazy part. A place like this would easily cost $2500 - $3000 per month in California. Not in Raleigh!! Our apartment costs $866/month. Split that between my roommate and I, and I think you’ll understand what I mean when I say your money goes further out here. The part I am really having a tough time getting used to is we are the “rich kids” here. I am really not used to that. I am not used to going to get my truck washed and being escorted to the lobby where I wait, watch the plasma screens, use the free WiFi, and drink the free coffee and 5 people go to town on my truck. That is just an entirely new concept for me. Paying $400/month for rent in Raleigh is pretty ridiculous. Most people will pay somewhere around $200 or so. Our place is very expensive for Raleigh, yet it seems dirt cheap compared to California. For reference, I pay $500/year for auto insurance, that’s 40% of what I paid in California. It’s extremely eye opening as to what the rest of the US has to offer.

Brier Creek is awfully nice itself. The whole area is new, which is nice. Nothing in the area is more than 5 years old and it has just about everything I could possibly want or need. There are apartments, as well as a movie theater, and just about every restaurant or store you could possibly think of. If I want to shop, there are 3 upscale malls all within 20 minutes. If I want to party, Duke, UNC, NC State, and Wake Forest are all within 20 minutes too, so there are plenty of areas for that. And I cannot even begin to tell you how nice it is to have a 5 minute commute to work each day J A 5 minute, traffic-free commute will really make you happier person and make each day that much nicer. And if I want to go anywhere else, Raliegh-Durham International Airport is only 5 minutes away from my apartment.

The other really cool thing about Brier Creek is the people. Most of the people who live in Brier Creek are not from around here, so there is a very cool mix of people. It is a nice little comfort zone coming from California to have such a diverse blend of people around. If you walk through the parking lot of my apartment complex, you will see license plates from everywhere from California, to New York, to Indiana, to Ohio, to Quebec. It’s crazy! It’s really cool to be around people with such different backgrounds. Everyone is very open to new things and it is no trouble at all to find people you have things in common with