In the hopscotch square connecting Raleigh and Durham, many families in “The Triangle” elect to call Cary home, and for good reason. Cary is home to an education hub, and not just because Duke, NC State, and UNC are right next door. Cary public and private schools are highly rated, and Cary is consistently ranked one of the safest places to live in the country. With Raleigh and Durham both within driving distance, it’ll take you a while to run out of things to do with the kids as well.

People without kids might be thinking about the driving distance from Raleigh and Durham more than others. There is next to nothing in town in terms of nightlife and entertainment, although most residents in Cary are just fine with that. While a beautiful residential area and arguably one of the best in the state, it’s important to know that it is little more than a residential area before making the move. Young professionals and SINKs and DINKs will likely prefer just living in Raleigh or Durham in the first place.

Family Fun

LookyLOO Review of Cary

Cary residents tend to be upper middle class and have a reputation for being transplants from the northeast… whether that’s a good or bad reputation is up for your interpretation. It’s a family town, with friendly people that are often as well-manicured as the area around them. In addition to the family amenities mentioned previously, another major social hub in Cary revolves around the Country Clubs, with some of the best in the nation, and a golf scene that is the stuff of legend. The restaurants and breweries in Cary are also lauded as some of the best in the state.

Check out the [**calendar of events**](https://www.townofcary.org/recreation-enjoyment/events) if you want to see what's happening in Cary.

We highly recommend visiting Cary and staying in the community in a [VRBO](https://vrbo.com/affiliate/p4JS4ZC) rather than a hotel to get a feel for what it's like to live among the locals. You can receive discounted fares on travel via our [partnership with Expedia](expedia.com/affiliate/9NZ8LBQ) as well.


Lifestyle 

If you’re a family looking for a place to move in the Raleigh/Durham area, Cary should almost certainly be one of your top options. The combination of great safety scores, great public schools, and access to larger cities make Cary a poster child for the stereotypical American Dream.


It's the Schools, Stupid!

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**RedditLurker24601**
2y ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉

Bought a home in Cary 10-years ago, and have NEVER regretted it. Literally 5 minutes from everything you need. Loads of trails. you can ride a bicycle from Cary to Durham Bulls Athletic Park, and to Raleigh. Awesome parks. Easy access to lakes. Close to my work, so no long commutes. Plus Downtown Cary is fun and vibrant without being super-crowded. The schools are great, and if you have kids who have any interest in Music, they high school bands here are national contenders, their music is practically professional quality. Are you a musician? Check out the local orchestras! Cary Arts Center has great classes and shops. I could go on, but the point is, it is very hard to find a downside of living in Cary.

For more reviews of what living in Cary is like from locals, check out [The Reviews](https://lookyloomove.com/locations/cary/reviews).

Reviews of Cary from Locals

Cary has historically been known as a suburb of Raleigh but that reputation is changing as the Downtown neighborhood grows and brings some commercial energy to the city. It’s a wonderful combination of historic homes and theaters and contemporary developments in the new Downtown Park and Cultural Arts Center. The area is filling up with restaurants, pubs and cafes and while it isn’t a large district like Raleigh, or collegiate like Chapel Hill, a young person can find plenty to do when they fell like staying close to home. 
- Downtown


Young Professionals

Downtown

Cary is one of the premier suburbs a family could choose with public schools that are among the best in the country. It’s hard to pick among the many neighborhoods to spotlight but let’s start with Preston. It was built around the Prestonwood Country Club with beautiful estate homes lining the fairways and blocks that surround the club. There are a variety of home styles and price points and all are served by great public schools. Cary Park is another great option. It has a neighborhood pool that serves as a community center of sorts during the warm months of the year. It also has homes on the lake, and its own commercial area with walkable restaurants and boutique shopping for the locals. 
- Preston
- Cary Park
- Highcroft
- Copperleaf
- The Reserve


Families

Preston

North Carolina in general and Cary in particular is hugely popular with retirees. The weather is wonderful and the costs are much lower than other areas of the country. Lots of people from Virginia and throughout the eastern seaboard moving here. Carolina Preserve at Amberly is a wonderful and typical 55+ planned community and beloved for its 35,000 square foot clubhouse, state-of-the-art fitness center, tennis and of course pickleball courts, indoor and outdoor pools and a dozen other activity spaces. Mixed with wonderful homes for independent living-style it’s a great place to start your search. 
- Carolina Preserve at Amberly
- Corbinton at Kildaire Farm


Retirees

Carolina Preserve

Cary

**llamallamanj**
2y ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

Cary is incredible. It’s expensive comparatively to other suburbs but has so many parks, trails and good schools that to us it makes up for the cost. This is not the place to live if you want land though. Anything over an acre will easily cost 1 million or more. And this definitely does not have country living vibes. It’s a busy suburbia. But it’s close to Durham and Raleigh both about 15-25 minutes depending where in Cary you live. It’s been ranked safest large suburb in America for many years. Crime is generally petty theft like stealing things from unlocked cars. Can’t comment on Asian community since I’m not Asian but there’s an h mart that’s super great and my neighborhood personally is VERY diverse which we love.

**Icankeepthebeat**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

I’m not sure how walkable I’d call Cary. I guess downtown is getting that way in recent years. I was born here and grew up in Lochmere. It was an idyllic childhood. I currently live near downtown, we’re not in a neighborhood as we chose to buy outside of an HOA (it was our only “must have”) and I honestly can’t recommend that enough. I hear about my parents HOA drama constantly and it seems like such a headache. Your budget is tight for Cary but you can find a nice older house for sure in that range. The market is still pretty hot here so if it were me I’d keep my mind open to all neighborhoods. I personally don't venture much to West Cary but i know people love it there too. I recommend and love the area around Cary High. There’s lots of good older homes, it’s super quick to downtown and there’s new stuff like Fenton close by. I don’t know anything about which schools are the best as we don’t have kids yet.

**RedditLurker24601**
2y ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉🦉

Bought a home in Cary 10-years ago, and have NEVER regretted it. Literally 5 minutes from everything you need. Loads of trails. you can ride a bicycle from Cary to Durham Bulls Athletic Park, and to Raleigh. Awesome parks. Easy access to lakes. Close to my work, so no long commutes. Plus Downtown Cary is fun and vibrant without being super-crowded. The schools are great, and if you have kids who have any interest in Music, they high school bands here are national contenders, their music is practically professional quality. Are you a musician? Check out the local orchestras! Cary Arts Center has great classes and shops. I could go on, but the point is, it is very hard to find a downside of living in Cary.

**monkstrout**
8mo ago
🦉🦉🦉

I recently moved to Wake County (previously in Orange County, NC) and have been really impressed with the parks and greenways throughout Cary and the surrounding area. It is the most "walkable" area that I have lived in in North Carolina. If you like walking with your dogs and you ruled out any houses based on the yard being just a little too small then I would recommend going back and taking a second look at the listing and determining how close it is to a greenway. I love a lot of towns in NC but in Cary I love that I can step outside my door and walk miles and miles and miles and miles on sidewalk and greenway paved paths without having to drive to another location first.

Cary, North Carolina

The Concentrated Area of Relocated Yankees

Looklyloo Score: 94