Duke Fuqua 2012 - Admitted Applicants: Class of 2014

Hey SimonMC:

I'm pretty familiar with Durham and, if you'd like, am more than willing to help out with the apartment hunt.

Generally, single/younger Fuqua students live in Station Nine, which is in the upper price-range for Durham (maybe $950 for a 1BR and $1250 for a 2BR). It's located just off Ninth Street, where most of the bars are, and a lot of Fuqua parties are located there.

Older and/or married Fuqua students usually live at Alexan Farms, Addington Farms or Alexan-Garrett Farms. These places are slightly cheaper than Station Nine, but are still quite nice. They're also a little further from campus than Station Nine, though still only a 5 minute drive.

The cheapest place to live is probably Pinnacle ridge ($700-$800 for a 2BR). It's relatively safe, but I'd advise against it.

To more directly answer your question, I don't think that many Fuqua students live at either Trinity Commons or West Village. Both are incredibly nice - Trinity Commons is the newest and likely the best complex in the area, while West Village is also new and in the developing Brightleaf Sq. district.

Trinity Commons, however, is, in my opinion, simply too expensive for Durham. You can easily get a great 1BR for $850 or $900. Spending $1400-$1500 at TC or the Lofts is unnecessary. The only exception may be if your significant other is working at Duke Hospital, which is a few hundred yards away.

I can't speak to West Village, since I'm not familiar with its price-point and haven't been inside.

I hope this is helpful and, of course, feel free to send me a message if you'd like to discuss this further.