Villagio at La Scala

Villagio at La Scala is a 280-unit apartment community off Capital Boulevard in Wake Forest, sitting behind the Walmart, with Mediterranean styling and a clubhouse and pool at the middle of it. It was built in 2014, and rent runs about $1,400 to $2,200 a month. The detail worth knowing before you tour is that some units have attached garages and some do not. That difference matters more day to day than the floor plan does if you have two cars, and it is the first question to ask when you call about availability.

Where it is

Capital Boulevard is US-1, and Villagio sits just off it, behind the Walmart. That is the practical part of the address. A grocery run is a short errand, and you are on the highway toward Raleigh almost as soon as you leave the property, without crossing town first. The cost is the setting. This is the commercial strip rather than a quiet street inside a subdivision, and the road is audible from parts of the property. Downtown Wake Forest is a short drive and so is the Heritage side of town, but neither one is a walk.

What to know if you're moving here

These are rentals, so the monthly number is the whole cost, and the build year puts the buildings in a useful middle. The school assignment and the road are what deserve a second look.

• There is no HOA, and the $1,400 to $2,200 range covers the clubhouse, the pool and the grounds.
• A 2014 build year keeps the rent under what the newest complexes ask, and the kitchens and mechanical systems are not all due for replacement.
• The school assignment splits: Jones Dairy Elementary handles the younger children, then it is Heritage Middle and Heritage High.
• Assignments get redrawn, so check the current map before you commit to anything.
• The drawback is the one you can hear, because a property this close to Capital Boulevard trades quiet for convenience.
• The Mediterranean styling does not change what is on the other side of the parking lot.

What to do if you're visiting

Everything here is a parking lot to parking lot trip rather than a stroll, which is the honest description of this stretch of road. The upside is that you can knock out a couple of errands and a meal in one outing.

• For a first meal, Char-Grill – Wake Forest is the one to try.
• The sit-down version of the same evening is Amalia's Authentic Italian Restaurant.
• A rainy Saturday with kids has an obvious answer in Battle House Laser Tag – Wake Forest.
• The grown-up solution to the same weather is Brookfields Indoor Golf & Lounge.