NCCU Off Campus Neighborhoods: 6 Durham Areas Compared by Commute

The NCCU off campus neighborhoods with the shortest commute are Hayti and the blocks right around campus, where The Dayton sits 0.5 miles from class, and downtown Durham, 1.4 to 1.7 miles out, with a bus every 15 minutes straight down Fayetteville Street. East Durham and South Durham trade a longer ride for lower rent. The Duke side of town (Erwin Road, Hillandale) is the priciest and, for an NCCU student, the worst commute on this list.

Key Takeaways

• Hayti and Campus Hills: walkable. The Dayton on Dayton St is 0.5 miles from NCCU and lists at $1,350 for a two-bedroom townhome.
• Downtown is the best bus commute, because GoDurham Route 5 runs from Durham Station to the Fayetteville St / Lawson St (NCCU) stop every 15 minutes.
• Cheapest split we found: BLU Station in East Durham, where a $1,150 two-bedroom works out to $575 each.
• South Durham along University Drive starts at $948 for a one-bedroom (one transfer by bus, or about 9 to 12 minutes by car).
• Skip the Erwin Road corridor unless you have a car and a reason to be near Duke. One-bedrooms there start around $1,580, and you're 3.5 miles or more from campus.

How We Compared These NCCU Neighborhoods

Every property here comes from the nccu off campus housing page on Find My Place, pulled on November 4, 2026. Distances come from each listing's commute panel, which measures to North Carolina Central University specifically (not Duke). Prices are what each listing shows today.

The drive and walk times are FMP estimates, not stopwatch numbers. We used about 3 minutes per mile for driving in town and 20 minutes per mile for walking, then rounded. Bus details come from GoDurham's current route schedules. One more thing: most Durham apartments here price the whole unit (rent climbs as bedrooms go up), so we divided two-bedrooms by two to get the per-person figure.

1. Hayti and Campus Hills: Walk to Class

Hayti is the pick if you never want to think about a commute again. NCCU sits inside it, right off Fayetteville Street, and the streets south and east of campus are mostly older single-family houses and small rentals.

On Find My Place, the standout is The Dayton at 1107 Dayton St. It's 0.5 miles from campus, roughly a 10-minute walk by our estimate. The listing is a renovated two-story, two-bath townhome at $1,350 a month.

Hayti has very little big-complex inventory. Most of what's here is houses rented by groups, so line up roommates before you tour. Durham also caps how many unrelated people can share a single-family house. Ask the landlord the legal number before four of you sign.

Best for: students without a car who want to roll out of bed and walk.

2. Downtown Durham: The Easiest Bus Ride

Downtown wins on transit. GoDurham Route 5 (Fayetteville St – NCCU – Southpoint) leaves Durham Station and stops at Fayetteville St / Lawson St (NCCU), with trips every 15 minutes. That's one bus, no transfer, and in our estimate about 5 minutes if you drive.

Three downtown listings, very different price points:

• Private rooms on N Dillard St (218 N Dillard St, 1.4 mi) list from $815 to $923, utilities and WiFi included.
• One City Center, 110 Corcoran St (1.5 mi). One-bedrooms start at $2,642. Yes, really.
• The Novus Apartments at 115 Morris St, 1.7 miles out, with one-bedrooms from $2,199.

Dillard Street has its own bus, too. GoDurham Route 12 (E. Main St – NCCU – Falls Pointe) stops at E Main St / Dillard St and runs straight to Alston Ave / Cecil St (NCCU), every 30 minutes.

Our honest read: Dillard Street is the only downtown option most NCCU students should price out. The other two buildings are lovely. A One City Center one-bedroom also costs more than four roommates pay combined at BLU Station.

Best for: bus riders who want restaurants and the American Tobacco campus nearby.

3. East Durham: The Cheapest Split

East Durham is where the rent math gets friendly. BLU Station Apartments, 518 N Hardee St, is 2.6 miles from NCCU. One-bedrooms list at $975 to $999 and two-bedrooms at $1,150 to $1,199.

Split that $1,150 two-bedroom with one roommate and you're paying $575 each. Nothing else on the NCCU page clearly beats it for a shared apartment.

The tradeoff is the commute. By car it's about 8 minutes on our estimate. Without one, look at Route 12, which runs along East Main Street (stops at Angier Ave and Alston Ave) and then down Alston Ave to NCCU. How well that works depends on your walk from N Hardee St to those stops.

Walking the full 2.6 miles in an August Durham afternoon? Don't.

Best for: roommate pairs who have a car or don't mind a walk to the bus.

4. South Durham: University Drive and NC 54

South Durham gives you bigger complexes, easy parking and mid-range rent, at 3 to 5 miles out. Two listings stand out:

• University Ridge Apartments, 3611 University Dr (3.0 mi). One-bedrooms from $948, two-bedrooms from $1,295, which is about $648 each split two ways.
• The Pines Apartments on NC Hwy 54 (5.2 mi) lists one-bedrooms from $950 to $1,250 and holds a 3.8 FMP score across five reviews.

By car, University Ridge is roughly 9 to 12 minutes from campus and The Pines about 15 to 18. The bus is slower. GoDurham Route 10 runs along University Drive every 30 minutes, but it heads to Durham Station rather than NCCU, so you'd transfer to Route 5 there. Both routes use the Pettigrew North platform at Durham Station, which makes that switch quicker than most.

Best for: drivers who want a one-bedroom under $1,000.

5. Southeast Durham Toward RTP

Southeast Durham (ZIP 27703) is for students who also work near Research Triangle Park, or who just want a quiet complex. It's 2.8 to 5.3 miles from NCCU.

• Retreat at RTP, 1533 Ellis Rd (2.8 mi), shows one two-bedroom plan at $1,539 and a 4.2 FMP score from five reviews. One reviewer wrote that the leasing agent "was so helpful with move in."
• Ellis Station, 2015 Watchorn St (3.2 mi), runs from $1,400 for a one-bedroom up to $2,475 for a three-bedroom, with a perfect 5.0 FMP score.
• A six-bedroom house at 5804 Hadrian Dr (5.3 mi) lists at $900. The listing doesn't say whether that's per room or the whole house, so ask first.

Driving takes about 8 to 16 minutes depending on the address. Route 12 does run down NC 55 toward RTP, but none of its stops sits on Ellis Rd, Watchorn St or Hadrian Dr. Check the walk before you count on it. We'd only pick this area if you drive.

Best for: commuters with a car and a job near RTP.

6. West Durham and the Duke Corridor

This is Duke's neighborhood, not yours. Erwin Road, Hillsborough Road and Hillandale sit 2.1 to 4.4 miles from NCCU, and the rents are set for the Duke crowd.

• Icon Downtown Durham at 1500 Duke University Rd (2.1 mi) is the exception on price. Studios list at $875 and two-bedrooms run $1,275 to $1,350.
• Over on Hillsborough Road, Station Nine (2.9 mi) starts one-bedrooms at $1,725.
• Chandler at University Tower, 20 Morcroft Ln (3.2 mi): $1,401 one-bedrooms, $1,651 two-bedrooms ($826 each).
• Erwin Road has Trinity Commons at Erwin (3.5 mi, from $1,745) and The Flats Exchange on Erwin (3.6 mi, from $1,582).
• The Belmont on McQueen Dr (3.7 mi) lists from $1,499, and Clairmont at Hillandale on Bertland Ave (4.4 mi) lists from $1,400.

Driving is about 6 to 13 minutes. By bus, the Duke University Road and Erwin Road addresses sit on Route 6, which runs every 30 minutes into Durham Station, and you transfer there. Two buses each way, every day, is a lot to sign up for.

Best for: NCCU students with a partner, a job or a lab at Duke.

Commute at a Glance

• Hayti / Campus Hills: 0.5 mi, about 10 minutes on foot.
• Downtown: 1.4 to 1.7 mi. Route 5 every 15 minutes (or Route 12 from Dillard St), no transfer.
• East Durham, 2.6 mi: about 8 minutes driving, or Route 12 from East Main Street.
• South Durham (3.0 to 5.2 mi) runs 9 to 18 minutes by car; Route 10 plus Route 5 by bus.
• Southeast toward RTP: 2.8 to 5.3 mi. Car recommended.
• West Durham / Duke corridor, 2.1 to 4.4 mi, 6 to 13 minutes driving (Route 6 plus a transfer).

Check live times on GoDurham's maps and schedules page before you sign, since GoDurham adjusts routes a few times a year.

Frequently Asked Questions About NCCU Off Campus Neighborhoods

What's the closest off-campus neighborhood to NCCU?

Hayti. NCCU sits in it, and The Dayton on Dayton St is 0.5 miles from campus, the shortest distance of any listing on Find My Place's NCCU page.

Which bus goes to NCCU?

Three GoDurham routes serve campus. Route 5 runs down Fayetteville Street every 15 minutes, while Route 8 (via Lawson St) and Route 12 (via Alston Ave) come every 30. All three connect to Durham Station downtown.

Can you live near Duke and go to NCCU?

You can, but we wouldn't unless you drive. The Erwin Road complexes are 3.5 to 3.6 miles from NCCU and start around $1,580 for a one-bedroom. By bus, it's two rides each way.

Where's the cheapest neighborhood for NCCU students?

$575 a person. That's a split two-bedroom at BLU Station in East Durham, the lowest shared price we could confirm on the NCCU page. For a full breakdown, read our guide to NCCU off-campus housing costs, or see what students say on the NCCU housing reviews page.