Price Point: What does $530,000 get you in this week’s Triangle’s housing market?

Buying a home in the Triangle isn’t getting any easier. Enter “Price Point,” a new News & Observer column that offers a quick snapshot of the market, and what buyers can get depending on their location and budget.

Every week, we will write about three houses on the market that are roughly the same price but located in different parts of the Triangle.

The goal is to give buyers a rough barometer of where the market is after two-plus years of plummeting inventory and sky-high home prices. It will also highlight how prices — and what you get for the money — can vary greatly across the region’s submarkets.

This week, the number is $525,000, and the homes are in Cary, North Raleigh and Garner. The options may look similar on the surface until it gets down to property taxes. There’s quite a difference.

302 Fairwinds Drive, Cary, 27518

Sold: $525,000 on Jan. 11

A single-family home in a planned neighborhood with three bedrooms and three bathrooms on a .2-acre lot

The house is located in Lochmere, a golf community with over 2,000 homes divided into 24 subdivisions. Amenities include a neighborhood pool, tennis courts, two lakes, fishing docks, walking trails, playground, and a semi-private golf course. It’s about 4 miles to Interstate 440 and a 21-minute drive west of downtown Raleigh.

The house includes a two-story foyer that opens to a sitting room; a family room that overlooks a kitchen with breakfast nook; and a first-floor owner’s suite. The listing also boasts a “massive deck with golf course views” and patio area overlooking the course.

Size: 2,665 square feet

Year built: 1990

Price per square foot: $197

HOA fees: $711 annual

Taxes: $4,333 (estimated)

Listed by: Ann-Cabell Baum, Glenwood Agency

7409 Peddler Place, Raleigh 27615

Sold: $530,000 on Jan. 12

A single-family home with four bedrooms and three bathrooms on a .2-acre lot

This house is located in The Point at Lemuel subdivision in North Raleigh. It’s less than 3 miles from I-540. It’s also about a 20-minute drive to downtown Raleigh and a 20-minute drive to Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

The house includes four bedrooms upstairs, plus a bonus room. It features hardwood flooring in the entryway, kitchen, dining room and all bedrooms. It also comes with an in-ground 36-foot-long pool and outdoor shed. There’s a two-car garage, but one side has been converted into a home office with heat and air.

Size: 2,625 square feet

Year built: 1997

Price per square foot: $202

HOA fees: $132 annually

Taxes: $3,546 (estimated)

Listed by: Katherine Peterson, Howard Perry & Walston Realtor

388 Cliffview Drive, Garner 27529

Sold: $526,000 on Jan. 10

Brand-new single-family home with five bedrooms and three bathrooms on a .2-acre lot

This house is located in Eastwood Homes at River Oaks, a new subdivision in Garner. It’s less than 2 miles from I-40 and about a 20-minute drive to downtown Raleigh.

The house includes a main floor guest suite, office, formal dining, open concept kitchen/family room, loft on second floor, Jack-and-Jill bath, a laundry room, mudroom and backyard.