someone else wrote a helpful recommendations to me
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The typical apartments near Duke's campus (Partners Place, Erwin Square, the Belmont) are going to be heavily populated by undergraduate students...so that's something you'd probably want to steer clear of. I lived in Partners as an undergraduate, and spent a lot of time at the Belmont...both entirely undergraduates and can get very loud. Here are a few other, less-mentioned places.
Bradford Ridge: Right across the street from the Belmont, at the intersection of Erwin Rd. and LaSalle. It's pretty much as close as you can get to campus, on the LaSalle route bus stop, and within walking distance of the Medical Center campus. I was on the waitlist for this place last year, and rent was around $615 plus utilities, but you can't beat the location, or the noise factor (mostly internationals and people who live alone/couples so it's very quiet). It's a little older on the exterior, but the interiors were reasonably nice, and most apartments have an alarm system. It's kind of tucked away, and while there are reports of lots of burglaries in the Belmont across the street, my guess it's it's not so at Bradford.
https://www.ticonproperties.com/residential.php?a=1 (This is the company that manages them, and they have a few other nice properties which are affordable, but a bit further from Duke)
The Forest Apartments (not to be confused with Duke Forest Retirement Community) and Colonial Village at Deerfield, both off Constitution Avenue: Rent around the 700s, 800s for a 1BR, and they also have 2BRs, etc. Can also get furnished apartments but prices are steep. The nice thing about these apartments is they're close to campus (a 5 minute drive), but really tucked away in the Duke Forest area so no one knows they're there. The area is mostly single family, residential homes...kids playing on the streets, and the residents are largely professional students/professionals so it's a great, safe area to live in. I'd highly recommend these apartments if you're looking for a suburban, residential, quiet, low-key place to live.
Lofts at Lakeview, Erwin Terrace: Mostly professionals and rich undergraduates. Erwin Terrace has more undergraduates than the Lofts...so it has its loud moments, but the apartments are new, HUGE, and right below you are tons of restaurants and a grest coffee shop! Same with the Lofts, although you have more amenities such as a pool, etc. If I had to pick between the two I'd definitely choose the Lofts. Although the price you'll pay is pretty steep. Easily two of the nicest, swankiest places in town. AND of course, close to campus. Right across Erwin Rd, where Bradford Ridge is. It's worth mentioning that both these places have garages so your car will be indoors, if that's a concern, and security is tight so safety is a nonissue.
Station 9: Closer to East Campus, but another really nice, secure apartment complex full of professionals. Never been in one of these, but I have a lot of friends who graduated and moved here upon finding jobs in the Durham/RTP area. Safe, quiet, new, but pricy if you don't have a roommate. Mildly affordable if you do. The area around is a little sketchier, as you're more on the Hillsborough Street end of things, but everything here is gated.
Further from campus, very suburban, relatively safe: Alexan Place, Alexan Farms, Evergreens...not too familiar with these, and a 10-15 minute drive to campus (no transportation so you'd need a car)
Off East: Inarguably the cheapest option. The Duke Community Housing website posts a lot of houses looking for roommates, so this might be something to check out. DEFINITELY want to visit because some blocks will feel safe while others may not. (Especially areas like Old North Durham, because while its undergoing gentrification, some places still are very unsafe). Naturally, houses are older, but if you want somewhere with character/a house see what you can find. Most of my friends pay in the $300-$500 range, plus utilities which are cheap bc they usually have 3-4 roommates. Most people will choose to live a block of two off campus, so you can easily walk to east and take the bus to West Campus, although it is a bit more of a haul if you're a Law/Med/Business School student (in that case I'd drive). There have been some incidents of crime with people walking late at night, but if you use common sense you'll be fine, bc most of the residents on these streets are families who've been around for ages and students.
https://www.trinitypropertiesapartments.com/ (This company has a few apartment style complexes off east)
Hope this gives you some idea of what's out there for the grad student population! I'm dealing with the stress of finding somewhere at my grad school and it's tough because you usually get pointed in the direction of complexes loaded with undergrads!)
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Updated on: 04 Mar 2010, 08:53
I was curious how random admissions process really is. Didn't work out, either case, I wasn't planning on accepting any other offer.
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