where to live...husband's new job in northpoint mall area (Roswell: rental, house)

[shmoopy]

hello!

we currently live in wisconsin, but my husband is starting a new job in the atlanta area next week. his office will be located near northpoint mall in alpharetta. we will be moving in january and i am trying to figure out the best place to live. we have 4 children: ages 7, 5, 2 and newborn. we would like to live near his office, so the commute won't be too much. we like the suburbs. we are caucasian. we want to send our children to public school, so we want to be in an area that has excellent public schools. we won't have any friends or family in the area, so we would like a nice, welcoming community that has families with young children. we are looking to rent a house for the first year until we sell our house i wisconsin, but would ideally like to find a rental house in the area we would eventually buy a house. we would probably spend between 350-450k on a house when we buy. we have heard that johns creek, alpharetta, roswell and suwanee might be good areas for us, but we would love to know if that's correct or are there other areas we should be looking at? any help and opinions would be greatly appreciated!!!!

thank you so much!!!!
michelle

[TakeAhike]

You might get an overview of these areas from this thread>>>
Johns Creek for Families Vs Alpharetta & Suwanee

from the last post in the thread>>>
'Try looking in the 30005 zip code area, on the border between Alpharetta and JC. It is theoretically JC, but close enough to BOTH areas including Suwanee, literally minutes from your house. Also right off the 400.'


and
Would like some thoughts on Johns Creek and Alpharetta...

and
Suwanee , Alpharetta , Roswell On $ 400K - $ 450K Budget

Crabapple in Alpharetta might be worth consideration.
Centennial in Roswell and Vickery in Cumming.
http://www.hedgewoodhomes.com/neighborhoods/profile.aspx?cid=8 (broken link)

You could contact some local realtors for specific suggestions.

[johnatl]

You guys are lucky in that hubby's job is right where you need to be. The surrounding area is exactly what you are looking for.

[roxyrn]

Roswell.

[DunwoodyMomsince2008]

Dunwoody 30338
Schools in particular - Austin elem or Vanderlyn elem

I think you want to live south of the job especially since he will rely heavily on 400. He will have a reverse commute.

[lastminutemom]

I would live no further north than Winward Parkway. the schools up there are outstanding, most neighborhoods are full of young families, and there are a high level of services and community sponsored activities.

There is no reason not to live up there.

[K'ledgeBldr]

Originally Posted by DunwoodyMomsince2008

Dunwoody 30338
Schools in particular - Austin elem or Vanderlyn elem

I think you want to live south of the job especially since he will rely heavily on 400. He will have a reverse commute.

That stretch of 400- there's really no such thing as reverse commute!
There is almost as many north bound as there is south bound.

[rackensack]

Originally Posted by K'ledgeBldr

That stretch of 400- there's really no such thing as reverse commute!
There is almost as many north bound as there is south bound.

That's true. Although in many cases the volume doesn't really build up northbound until you're past the two exits for the North Point area (Mansell and Haynes Bridge).

There may be reasons to choose Dunwoody, but I wouldn't make "reverse commute" one of them, especially since just getting to or from 400 on the surface streets in the Dunwoody area can take a good bit of time also.

[rackensack]

It's hard to think of any compelling reason why you'd choose any area other than Alpharetta, Roswell, or the western part of Johns Creek. Schools are excellent throughout North Fulton. The Newtown area around the intersection of Old Alabama Road and Haynes Bridge Road would seem to be a good choice for centering your search -- you'd be just a few minutes away from the North Point Mall area, Newtown Park has excellent recreation programs for the kids, there's a Kroger, a Publix, Fresh Market, a drug store, and numerous restaurants clustered around that intersection. You have ready access down to Holcomb Bridge Road on Barnwell or Brumbelow/Nesbit Ferry, to GA 141 (Peachtree Parkway/Medlock Bridge) on Old Alabama, and to the northern part of Johns Creek on Jones Bridge Road. Newtown Recreation's programs are a great way to meet others in the area and get involved in things. Should be no problem to find a house to buy in the 350K-450K range in the nearby neighborhoods.

The East Roswell area (centered around Centennial High School just off Holcomb Bridge Road) offers much the same sort of benefits, and the Roswell Recreation and Parks Department's programs at East Roswell Park are a great complement to those at Newtown -- they have more in the way of dance, music, arts, and similar programs, with a wide range of day camp programs in the summer time, albeit with less emphasis on athletic programs for younger children than Newtown. We live across the street from ERP, and have used the programs there extensively, but our kids have also played t-ball and soccer at Newtown (only 10 minutes from our house).

It's pretty easy to get from either of these areas to the North Point Mall area without getting on the freeway -- it can be as little as 15 minutes from my house to the mall at light traffic times. From the Newtown Park area, it's only about 5 or 6 minutes.

[staywarm2]

Originally Posted by shmoopy

hello!

we currently live in wisconsin, but my husband is starting a new job in the atlanta area next week. his office will be located near northpoint mall in alpharetta. we will be moving in january and i am trying to figure out the best place to live. we have 4 children: ages 7, 5, 2 and newborn. we would like to live near his office, so the commute won't be too much. we like the suburbs. we are caucasian. we want to send our children to public school, so we want to be in an area that has excellent public schools. we won't have any friends or family in the area, so we would like a nice, welcoming community that has families with young children. we are looking to rent a house for the first year until we sell our house i wisconsin, but would ideally like to find a rental house in the area we would eventually buy a house. we would probably spend between 350-450k on a house when we buy. we have heard that johns creek, alpharetta, roswell and suwanee might be good areas for us, but we would love to know if that's correct or are there other areas we should be looking at? any help and opinions would be greatly appreciated!!!!

thank you so much!!!!
michelle

Suwanee might be a little far, considering traffic. Ditto parts of Roswell. Roswell can have some heavy traffic heading toward GA400 in the a.m. I suggest you move on the east side of GA400 in Alpharetta, which is the same side as the mall area. There are many subdivisions in your price range and you can get some real bargains on beautiful homes. We have a lovely, large house in our neighborhood--6BR 5BA 3 CG for $450,000--3-4 sides brick. Be sure to get a swim tennis community--good for kids and resale. The kids can join the swim team and meet other kids that way. You'll meet other moms, as well.