Gas prices have subsided from their $4.05-a-gallon peak in July, providing enough relief for many drivers to demote the phrase "pain at the pump" from top-of-mind status.

But the drop hasn't been enough to change the way apartment investors are thinking.

The cost of a gallon of regular gasoline is still up about 35 percent from a year ago, which has kept investors focused on apartments closer to employment centers and public transportation.

Complexes that are farther from big job centers, brokers say, could have trouble keeping their tenants, which could deter investors.

"Being far away and having increased gas prices speeds the desire to stay away from some locations," says Blake Okland, a principal at Apartment Realty Advisors in Charlotte. "As more and more property management groups hear renters complain about gas costs and their need to move closer, that will move up on the list of things to be concerned about as an investor."

Gas prices haven't been the deal breaker yet, he says, "but I hear that more. A year ago, no one said anything about gas. Now that's a normal part of the conversation."

Investors are particularly focusing on close-in properties that are due for renovations and subsequent rental increases. The thinking is that some renters are willing to make a trade-off: higher rent for lower commuting costs.

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Apartment sales continue in the Triangle as transactions in many other property sectors dry up.

Almost $900 million in Triangle apartment transactions have closed this year -- surpassing last year's total by 12 percent and en route to matching the record $1.05 billion set in 2006, CB Richard Ellis data show.

This year's total was led by a sell-off of two big national portfolios. Among the latest deals:

* PRG Real Estate of Philadelphia paid $9.3 million for the 162-unit Windsor at South Square in Durham, says Jeff Glenn, the CB Richard Ellis broker who represented seller AIMCO of Denver.

* Horizon Realty Group paid $21 million for the 156-unit Village Green student apartments in West Raleigh. The seller, Canadian developer Jaymor Group, built the complex in 2003. It contains 468 individually leased bedrooms serving N.C. State University and other nearby colleges.

Horizon of Seattle is expanding its East Coast portfolio, says Harrison Ellinwood of Ellinwood Investment Properties, who represented the seller. Last year, Horizon bought Centennial Ridge in Raleigh and the nearby Centennial Village apartments.

Another deal is on the way:

* NTS Realty Holdings of Louisville, Ky., has a contract to buy Courtney Estates for $39 million. That's 12 percent more than the seller, a group led by J.P Morgan Investment Management of New York, paid in 2006 for the 300-unit complex near Brier Creek in northwest Raleigh. NTS has until Oct. 26 to close the deal.

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There's no doubt banks are struggling.

But don't take it the wrong way if you see somebody jumping from RBC Bank's new 33-story headquarters at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

Skydiver Charles Bryan is scheduled to jump from RBC Plaza, drawing attention to the Triangle's newest -- and tallest -- tower. Weather permitting, of course.

It's part of the Raleigh Wide Open celebration.

RBC Bank has spent the week moving into 130,000 square feet in the building at Fayetteville and Martin streets that was developed by Highwoods Properties.

Relative to other banks, RBC Bank has had more to celebrate than its new digs.

It posted a profit of $16.4 million in the second quarter. That's a decline of 39 percent compared with a year ago, but it came after two straight quarters of losses.

That no doubt made RBC honchos feel more comfortable with their latest deal. The bank decided to keep more than one-third of the space it was expected to vacate at Highwoods Tower Two in northeast Raleigh. RBC agreed to lease 28,000 square feet at the building.

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