The Registry at Bennett Park

The Registry at Bennett Park is a small townhome neighborhood, about 130 units, built between 2018 and 2021 behind the Gateway Commons shopping center. That location is the whole pitch. Target, the movie theater and a dozen restaurants are close enough to walk to, which is rare around here, where almost everything assumes a car. Prices run roughly $350k to $450k and the HOA is $180 a month. The people who buy tend to be the people who do not want a yard, whether this is a first house or a downsize after one too many weekends spent on a mower.

Where it is

Gateway Commons is the landmark, and The Registry sits behind it. Downtown Wake Forest is about a five-minute drive, close enough that Main Street becomes a habit instead of an outing. The walking is the unusual part of this address. You can get to a store, a movie and dinner without moving the car, though the walk crosses a shopping center parking lot and nobody should sell it as a stroll. Everything that is not in Gateway Commons is a short drive, and the same roads that handle the errands handle the trip south when you need it.

What to know if you're moving here

Built from 2018 to 2021, these are still young buildings, so nothing major is due and the finishes are current rather than something to renovate around. The caveats are the dues, the schools and the size of the association.

• At $180 a month the dues are higher than the single-family neighborhoods nearby, which is what it costs to not own a lawn mower.
• The assignment is Wakefield Elementary, Wakefield Middle and Wakefield High, which is not what some buyers assume from an address this close to town.
• Confirm the schools against your own list before anyone gets attached.
• A 130-home association is a small one, with a small budget and not much cushion if something expensive comes due.
• The neighborhood has no amenity package to speak of, so the shopping center is the amenity, along with the headlights and delivery trucks.

What to do if you're visiting

Coming here usually means coming to the shopping center, and that is a reasonable way to spend an evening. There is a movie and a long list of restaurants without getting back in the car.

• For a night when nobody wants to cook, Canastas Chicken – Wake Forest is the chicken stop.
• Kabobs are the draw at Charlie's Kabob Grill, which is the kind of place people work into a normal week.
• On the way to someone else's house, Boozie Bakes is what you pick up.
• The appeal for a visitor is the density, since a lot of small decisions sit inside one walk.