Every April, thousands of Chapel Hill and Carrboro residents make plans to leave town. Some are doing it under happy circumstances. They’re graduating, moving on to bigger and better things. But there are an increasing number of people who are leaving because their rent is going up—$100, $200, or more, and they can no longer justifying paying the high costs of living in our community. Last week, the Washington Post ran a feature on the dramatic increases in rent, which has gone up 11 percent nationally in the last year alone. The average rent in Orange County is $1643/month, almost $200 higher than Durham or Wake County, and $400 higher than Chatham.

 

Are you leaving Chapel Hill or Carrboro because your rent is just too high? We’d love to hear your stories, and share them on the blog. (Anonymously, of course). Please tell us why you’re leaving Chapel Hill or Carrboro.

In the last municipal election cycle, we helped increase turnout by over 20 percent. We're all volunteers who care deeply about Chapel Hill and Carrboro, and we're working to make Chapel Hill and Carrboro more vibrant, accessible, fun, and sustainable.  Please consider a small donation to help us keep our digital lights on, host events, and hire students to do data deep-dives.

Martin Johnson lives in Chapel Hill. He teaches film studies courses at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also a member of NEXT Chapel Hill-Carrboro and the Bicycle Alliance of Chapel...