Living in Rolesville NC Contents

Rolesville’s Personality

Rolesville reminds me of Holly Springs 25 years ago.

There was nothing there except a couple of really nice master planned communities. That’s kind of how Rolesville is right now.

If you’re thinking about moving to Rolesville, you’re not alone. The population is absolutely skyrocketing. In 2005, there were only 1000 people in Rolesville. Now there are 10,000.

But there isn’t much in Rolesville outside of the beautiful neighborhoods.

But that doesn’t matter too much because like Holly Springs, Rolesville is only 5 miles from another well established town, in this case, Wake Forest.

As Rolesville grows, its citizens will make use of the amenities in neighboring towns, while Rolesville catches up its infrastructure to its booming population. Did I mention that a lot of people are moving to Rolesville?

That’s not to say that there isn’t anything at all in Rolesville. Read on to see what Rolesville has to offer that is attracting so many people to live there. 

Moving to Rolesville, NC: Location

Rolesville is located northeast of Raleigh, about 30 minutes from downtown Raleigh. It’s about 7 miles to the Hwy 401/I-540 interchange.

Rolesville is about 27 miles to Research Triangle Park, and with traffic can take anywhere from 30-70 minutes to get there during rush hour.  It’s about the same to Raleigh Durham International Airport (RDU) 

Being on the east side of the Triangle, Rolesville is a little bit closer to the beach and a little bit further from the mountains. Wrightsville Beach is about 2 hours drive and you can get to New Bern, a beautiful historic city on the Potomac River, in 1 hour 50 minutes. Boone, the closest mountain town is 3 hours west. 

As part of the Triangle, you’re also not far from Charlotte NC (2.5 hours) Washington DC (4 hours if you hit the traffic just right!) Myrtle Beach SC (3 hours). You can even drive to New York City in 7 hours and 20 minutes. And with flying these days and all the wait times, it might even make sense to do that. This is just a small selection but there are a TON of day trips available from Rolesville. 

Moving to Rolesville, NC: Cost of Living

Check out Homes Currently For Sale in Rolesville here.

Rolesville is pretty pricey considering its outlying location.

The median home price is around $550,000. The reason prices are so high is because the homes are much newer and larger than other places. 

According to Bestplaces.net, overall cost of living in Rolesville is about 6% higher than the US average and 16% higher than North Carolina. Generally speaking, the Triangle is more expensive than most of North Carolina.

In Rolesville, the only thing that is cheaper here than in the rest of North Carolina is healthcare. And the even better news is that we have excellent healthcare in the Triangle. So, if you’re moving to Rolesville and medical care is a priority, you’re in good shape.

Rolesville is an easy drive to major nationally ranking hospitals. Wakemed, Rex, Duke Health and UNC Health are all excellent health systems available in Rolesville and in the greater Triangle.

Rolesville is only 6 square miles, so you will likely have to drive outside of the town limits into Wake Forest or Raleigh for many doctors offices. But they aren’t far, likely within 10 minutes or so. 

Living in Rolesville NC Jobs & Economy

In 2022, the median household income in Rolesville was $145,000, according to the US Census Bureau. (This is why they’re building bigger, more expensive homes!)

There really aren’t any jobs in the tiny town of Rolesville, the majority of people working in Rolesville are in tech or in upper level management.

Most people in Rolesville, or thinking about moving to Rolesville, probably telecommute or commute into RTP. 

Living in Rolesville NC: Culture and Community 

Unlike most other towns in the Triangle, Rolesville doesn’t have a downtown district.

A lot of Rolesville’s community revolves around the Granite Falls Swim and Athletic Club. The Club offers a resort style pool with a lazy river and tons of fitness classes, camps, parents night out and more. 

Rolesville Festivals

Even though Rolesville doesn’t have a downtown district (Although that is coming!! We’ll get to that at the end of the article!) the town does put on regular events and festivals. Arbor Day Celebration, Egg Rush, Fall Funfest, Music at Mill Bridge and Movies at the Middle are all events that residents look forward to every year. 

For a full list of festivals and events in Rolesville, Click Here.

Living in Rolesville NC: Parks & Activities

Main Street Park: Located in the heart of Rolesville, Main Street Park has four rentable shelters, a gazebo, open play field, two playgrounds, and over one mile of greenway trails. Without a paid reservation, the shelters are available on a first come, first served basis. 

Mill Bridge Nature Park: Located off Rogers Road, Mill Bridge Nature Park connects with the Wake Forest greenway system and will also have future connection to Main Street Park in downtown Rolesville.

Greenways

Rolesville maintains just a couple miles of greenway trails at the Main Street Park. However, that park connects to some other greenways making a fairly large area for walking for the size of the town.

Main Street Park connects to the Granite Falls neighborhood, which connects you to the Granite Falls neighborhood greenway, which connects you with the Sanford Creek Greenway in Wake Forest. This connection to the Wake Forest Greenway system extends the amount of greenway available considerably. 

Religion in Rolesville

Like everything else in Rolesville, religion is limited. After all, it’s only 6 square miles. There are 5 churches in Rolesville. There are 5 synagogues within 15-20 minutes in North Raleigh. The Van-Hanh Pagoda Buddhist Temple is 9 minutes away in Raleigh. The Chanh Giac Buddhist Temple is 20 minutes away in Franklinton. The Muslim Community Center is 12 minutes away in Raleigh. There are several Hindu Temples 30 minutes away in Cary.

Living in Rolesville, NC: Weather 

Rolesville has a moderate climate with mild winters and warm, humid summers. The town gets 46 inches of rain each year, more than the national average of 38 inches. And averages 4 inches of snow per year. The national average is 28 inches of snow. And Rolesville also has 217 sunshine days per year, much higher than the national average of 205 days.  

Moving to Rolesville, NC Education

Public Schools

Rolesville is part of the Wake County Public School System. Here is more information about how the school system works in Wake County. Public schools that serve Rolesville:

• Rolesville Elementary 
• Sanford Creek Elementary School
• Rolesville Middle School 
• Rolesville High School

Private & Charter Schools:

(Charter schools are publicly funded schools, run similar to the way a private school is run.) 

Rolesville Charter Academy: Rolesville Charter provides a moral focused education combined with a rigorous college preparatory program. They also offer an accelerated program for students who are ready to advance beyond their grade level. Rolesville Charter serves students in Kindergarten through 8th grade. RCA is a National Heritage Academy School. NHA is a network of charter schools throughout the country with a focus on moral education. 

Thales Academy Rolesville: Thales Academy in Knightdale is popular local network of schools known for its classical education approach. The Rolesville campus offers classes for middle and high schoolers. Their curriculum emphasizes foundational knowledge, character development, and critical thinking skills.

Crime in Rolesville NC

Is Rolesville a safe place to live? Will moving to Rolesville put you at risk? Let’s find out. 

Rolesville, North Carolina’s crime rate for violent crime is 56% less than the US average (10.0 to 22.7 on a 100-point scale). 

Property crime in Rolesville NC, is 20% lower than the national average, rated as 28 compared to the national average of 35.4.

Comparing the numbers to Raleigh proper, we see that Rolesville’s crime is less than what is seen in Raleigh. 

  Yes, Rolesville is a safe place to live! 

Living in Rolesville NC: Sports & Recreation

The town of Rolesville offers the following sports and recreation opportunities: 

Additionally, Rolesville offers multiple non-sports classes: 

• Art classes (painting, stained glass)
• Zumba
• Krav Maga
• Dance (ballet, hip hop, tumbling)
• Quilting
• Senior fitness
• Senior social activities 
• Senior Bingo 

Living in Rolesville NC: Food & Shopping

Again, Rolesville is a tiny town, only 6 square miles. So there isn’t much in the way of shopping inside the town. But everything you need is next door in Wake Forest. Big box stores (Michaels, Kohls, TJ Maxx, Target) are all about 15 minutes. If you need a mall, Triangle Town Center is 15 minutes away in Raleigh.  However, as more and more people move into Rolesville, you can expect the shopping situation to improve.

Boutique Shopping

For more unique options, Rolesville does have some cute places. Local Charm is a woman’s boutique and gift shop. Suzannas Antiques is a very cool shop with multiple vendors. You can find a lot of furniture and home accessories here. 

Grocery Stores

The only grocery store in Rolesville is Food Lion. There is also a great general store. The Wake Forest Harris Teeter (a little more upscale than Food Lion) is about 7 minutes away. Lidl and Wegmans, are both 10 minutes away in Wake Forest. SuperTarget is 15 minutes away in Raleigh. 

Costco and Trader Joes are 20 minutes away in North Raleigh and Whole Foods is about 20 minutes away.

Popular Restaurants 

• Rolesville Diner: This is your basic breakfast spot. Eggs, pancakes, biscuits. If you want a small diner diner with friendly people, this is your spot.  
• Granchio Seafood and Pasta: A delicious menu of Italian pasta favorites along with fresh Cajun Crustacean seafood dishes.
• Pie-Zanos: New Jersey style pizza. They also serve pasta, stromboli and othe italian dishes. 
• SIP Noshery: high quality delicious fresh food that is made to order. We are a small family business that prides itself on our delicious flavor combinations. Try our Gourmet Salad Bowls, Hot and Cold Sandwiches, Wraps, Smoothies and delicious House made Soups.

Living in Rolesville NC: Popular Neighborhoods

Knightdale offers a variety of neighborhoods, each with its own charm. Two of the most popular neighborhoods in Knightdale are: 

Granite Falls $370k – $700k: Granite falls has an incredible central location, and a greenway system that connects the neighborhood to multiple parks, the Granite Falls Athletic Center and to the Wake Forest greenway system. Homes are single family and range from 2000 square feet up to 4000 square feet in the Estates section. Lots sizes are generous and average about one third acre. 

The Village at Rolesville: mid $300k-$600k : Village at Rolesville is right across from all the shops in Rolesville. There are sidewalks in the neighborhood as well as a greenway. Walkable to restaurants, cafes, Thales private school and Redford Place Park. Homes range from 1500 square feet up to 3000 square feet. Lot sizes average about .2 acres. 

Rolesville’s Future 

Most of Rolesville is made up of strip malls. Main street currently looks like this:

But there are two significant developments underway that will change the tone and feeling of Rolesville. The town currently has a very small suburban town feel. But pretty soon, it’s going to feel like a walkable little village. 

Rolesville Main Street Project

The Rolesville Main Street Project is a development by the town of Rolesville to make this ugly, unsafe stretch of road into a walkable, bike-able shopping district brimming with people and opportunities for community engagement. Current renderings look like this:

Cobblestone Village

Cobblestone Village is a development on Main Street in Rolesville by KDM Development, the same people who developed Lafayette Village in Raleigh. The goal for Cobblestone Village is to create mixed use lifestyle center with 178 apartments and 50,000 square feet of retail space. 

Cons of Living in Rolesville

Rolesville is one of the fastest growing communities in the US. But there are a couple downsides that you should consider if moving to Rolesville is a possibility for you.

1. With growth comes construction. Lots of it. All the time. Construction always bring inconvenience and nails in your tires. Yuck. But it’ll be beautiful when it’s done! 
2. Traffic. In my opinion, the northeast corridor (Wake Forest, Rolesville, NE Raleigh) is some of the most congested in the Triangle. I hate sitting on 401 or Capital blvd and everything just seems to take longer to get around here. 

FAQ’s

What is the cost of living in Rolesville, North Carolina?

• Rolesville is considered pretty pricey, with a median home price around $550,000. The overall cost of living is about 6% higher than the U.S. average and 16% higher than North Carolina’s average. However, healthcare is a bit cheaper than the rest of North Carolina.

What are the housing options available in Rolesville?

• The area features really nice master-planned communities with newer, larger homes. 91% of homes sold in Rolesville in the last year were single family homes. The average home has 2700 square feet and was built in 2014. Lot sizes are larger with the majority of homes (69%) having at least a quarter acre. 

How is the job market in Rolesville and the surrounding area?

• Rolesville is only 6 square miles. There aren’t many jobs in Rolesville itself, with most residents working in tech or upper-level management and likely commuting to RTP or telecommuting. The median household income in 2022 was $145,000.

What is the educational system like in Rolesville?

• Rolesville is part of the Wake County Public School System, serving several schools including Rolesville Elementary, Middle, and High School, as well as Sanford Creek Elementary. Rolesville Charter Academy and Thales Academy Rolesville are well regarded private and charter school options.

What amenities and recreational activities does Rolesville offer?

• The town has amenities like the Granite Falls Swim and Athletic Club, Main Street Park with various facilities, Mill Bridge Nature Park, and a couple of miles of greenway trails. Regular events and festivals are also held, such as the Arbor Day Celebration and Fall Funfest.

How is the community and culture in Rolesville?

• The community revolves around places like the Granite Falls Swim and Athletic Club and doesn’t have a traditional downtown district. However a brand new walkable and bikeable downtown district is being built. 

What are the healthcare facilities like in the area?

• Rolesville is close to major nationally ranking hospitals like Wakemed, Rex, Duke Health, and UNC Health. Most healthcare facilities are within a 10-minute drive, though likely outside the town limits.

What is the climate like in Rolesville, North Carolina?

• Rolesville has a moderate climate with mild winters and warm, humid summers. It gets more rain and very little snow than the national average, with a higher number of sunshine days per year.

How do residents typically get around in Rolesville?

• Currently Rolesville residents mostly drive to get where they need to go. But the town is redesigning the main street corridor so it will be much more walkable and bikeable. Also, there are several good greenway systems and some neighborhoods that have good walkability. Some of the greenways connect to the Wake Forest greenway system and make walking to multiple parks and shops possible. 

What are the safety and crime rates in Rolesville?

• Rolesville is safer than the U.S. average, with violent and property crime rates significantly lower than the national averages and also lower than nearby Raleigh.

What are some popular local businesses and restaurants in Rolesville?

• Eateries like Rolesville Diner, Granchio Seafood and Pasta, Pie-Zanos, and SIP Noshery are all popular. Suzanna’s Antiques and Local Charm are fun boutique places to visit.