Has anybody moved to Atlanta from Chicago and have regretted their decision? (Sandy Springs: sales, real estate)

[mrpanda]

Anybody move down to the Johns Creek/Alpharetta/Suwanee area from Chicago? Any regrets? I am uprooting my family and moving to the area middle of next year and want to be pretty certain i am making the right decision. I am in my early 30s with a young family.

Here are couple of things i've noticed which influenced my decision to move to Atlanta next year.

1. Overall, I see a lower cost of living in Food cost and Taxes. Taxes seem much cheaper in Atlanta than Chicago in terms of sales tax, gas, and property taxes. My townhome has a 2.3% annual property tax compared to my new S. Forsyth home which is under 1%. I believe Gwinett sales taxes are 6% while it is 9.75% here.

2. Atlanta weather seems much better than Chicago.

3. Schools in S. Foryth: elementary, middle, high schools is a huge upgrade to where i am living now.

4. As an entrepeneur, I find more opportunities in real estate investments and potentially owning the office space for my business where Chicago taxes and cost of ownership is too high.

5. As a Korean American, I'm pretty impressed with Atlanta's Korean town vs. Chicago's Korea town (lawerence ave) which is pretty ghetto considering the population of Korean living here. Having a korean community nearby and living in a multicultural area is very important to me.

6. Couple of interesting facts I've found in forbes & wikipedia are the following: 1. S. Foryth is the 19th wealthiest county in the United States 2. Atlanta, Georiga is the home to the fastest growing millionaire and korean population in the nation per percentage basis.

7. I was able to find a pretty impressive church in Alpharetta called Northpoint Community Church similar to where we attend in the Chicago area.

8. Couple of negatives I see is that the city of Atlanta is not as developed as Chicago but i am more of suburban person so this wouldn't matter as much. The thing that does bother me is how far the airport is from Johns Creek. I currently live only 10 - 15 minutes from O'Hare so it is going to take some time to get used to. The big one is the free way and road system in Atlanta. My wife thinks that the roads are terrible in Atlanta compared to Chicago. I will be working in Johns Creek so the commute is not a major issue.

I am just wondering if other Chicagians who moved to the Johns Creek/Suwanee/Duluth area who have regretted their decision and have moved back to Chicago? Has your quality of life significantly improved from the life you had in Chicago? Are Atlanta people friendlier than midwest people in general? Is Atlanta, Georgia the new land of opportunity, what California and New York was in the 80-90s?

This move is considered to be a major move for us and I don't want to have any regrets with my decision.

Thanks

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by mrpanda

1. Overall, I see a lower cost of living in Food cost and Taxes. Taxes seem much cheaper in Atlanta than Chicago in terms of sales tax, gas, and property taxes. My townhome has a 2.3% annual property tax compared to my new S. Forsyth home which is under 1%. I believe Gwinett sales taxes are 6% while it is 9.75% here.

They make it up in income tax. 3% in Illinois vs. 6% in Georgia.

Originally Posted by mrpanda

8. Couple of negatives I see is that the city of Atlanta is not as developed as Chicago but i am more of suburban person so this wouldn't matter as much. The thing that does bother me is how far the airport is from Johns Creek. I currently live only 10 - 15 minutes from O'Hare so it is going to take some time to get used to.

A lot of people get a ride to Doraville or Chamblee and take Marta to the airport.

Originally Posted by mrpanda

The big one is the free way and road system in Atlanta. My wife thinks that the roads are terrible in Atlanta compared to Chicago.

Your wife is 100% correct on this one. The roads are terrible. Too narrow,not enough lanes,lack of street lights,no sidewalks,lack of center dividers etc. It greatly impacts your quality of life. Try going to a grocery store in that area at 5 pm for that missing ingredient and see how much fun it is to take 30 minutes to go a couple miles.

The only way around this is to live in Gwinnett which has slightly better developed roads like Sugarloaf Parkway or live within the perimeter where it is easier to get around.

[mrpanda]

Thanks Copeira.
I didn't know about the 3% vs 6% in Georgia. So that is where Illinois gets a tax break compared to Georgia. Thanks for that info.

What do know about Johns Creek? It seems that the leadership and commitment of making the city great is strong and they plans to improve and manicure the roads within the city. Are they improving and opening up the roads in Suwanee, Alpharetta, Duluth, and Johns Creek? These are the areas my family will most likely work, live, and play. I've noticed construction going on to widen McGinnis Ferry Road? Honestly, the roads in Atlanta is what bothers me the most of coming down from Chicago. I love how the roads and freeway system is so organized in Los Angeles and Orange County. What would be so awesome is if Atlanta developed new satellite Airport in Gwinnett County just like what John Wayne Airport is to LAX. I think in the future the new job centers will be in Alpharetta, Johns Creek, and Suwanee where residences living in the north are not forced to communte to the city. I just can't imagine someone commuting to the city from Johns Creek everyday.

You think in the next ten years Atlanta will catch up to be at the same level as Chicago as a world class city?

[cwkimbro]

Typically when I hear people complaining about moving here from Chicago (or NYC) it is the urban-suburban issue.

The fact you have acknowledged this and laid everything else out systematically seems like you have a good grip of your choices...

The road system is very different. It isn't always so bad though... But you need to pay close attention and observe what the traffic is like around a potential neighborhood and thing about your routes to the store, shopping areas, restaurants, etc...

I live in Gwinnett Co. and we have an excellent system of secondary roads compared to North Fulton, Dekalb, or Forsyth which makes local travel easier.

Some roads go underused, since most people can't use them to commute. For some neighborhoods they work great helping people get around locally.... so its a weird issue... Just take your time picking out a neighborhood and watch/observe local traffic patterns before choosing a place to live.

[afonega1]

Originally Posted by mrpanda

Thanks Copeira.
I didn't know about the 3% vs 6% in Georgia. So that is where Illinois gets a tax break compared to Georgia. Thanks for that info.

What do know about Johns Creek? It seems that the leadership and commitment of making the city great is strong and they plans to improve and manicure the roads within the city. Are they improving and opening up the roads in Suwanee, Alpharetta, Duluth, and Johns Creek? These are the areas my family will most likely work, live, and play. I've noticed construction going on to widen McGinnis Ferry Road? Honestly, the roads in Atlanta is what bothers me the most of coming down from Chicago. I love how the roads and freeway system is so organized in Los Angeles and Orange County. What would be so awesome is if Atlanta developed new satellite Airport in Gwinnett County just like what John Wayne Airport is to LAX. I think in the future the new job centers will be in Alpharetta, Johns Creek, and Suwanee where residences living in the north are not forced to communte to the city. I just can't imagine someone commuting to the city from Johns Creek everyday.

You think in the next ten years Atlanta will catch up to be at the same level as Chicago as a world class city?

Actually Alpharetta is a major employment area.There are several "edge cities" like Perimenter,Sandy Springs,Dunwoody,and Cumberland,All thse are major employment centers,Atlanta is a lot smaller than Chicago so i suppose a new Airport within the city would depend on the growth and the need.One thing that is good is that Marta rides completely into the the Airport

[ATLSuperfriend]

Originally Posted by mrpanda

You think in the next ten years Atlanta will catch up to be at the same level as Chicago as a world class city?

Atlanta is already considered a global city. It won't ever "catch up" to Chicago.

[liamnwk]

The satellite cities in ATL are better than in Chicago for example:
Bought in 2006 for 525k with 20g in improvements
Now selling: 359k
Taxes 10k

430 S Western Ave, Park Ridge, IL 60068 MLS# 07648739 - Zillow

Meanwhile in Dunwoody:

Value in 2006: 436k
Selling now:388k
Taxes 4k
4438 Village Springs Run, Dunwoody, GA 30338 MLS# 4113947 - Zillow



Dunwoody is a gorgeous area: I'm got a big Dunwoody - SkyscraperPage Forum

[mrpanda]

I received a PM from an anonymous person saying that it would be a mistake for me to move to Atlanta from Chicago. Let me provide a little more information of my motivation for the move.

I acknowledge that i am down grading in the terms of the city, but i currently live in a townhome in a middle class city called Park Ridge, IL where the schools are not that great and wouldn't be an ideal place to raise a family. If i was single in my 20s.. I will not be considering Atlanta as i would probably head for NYC, LA or stay put in Chicago, but as a young father, three of my top prorities are the following: excellent public school system for my children, business friendly and entreprenuerial soil for my technology business, and an area where i can profitablly invest in SFR & Commericial real estate in my backyard. The State of IL is literally broke so they continually raise the property and state taxes, punishing the IL residents to make up for their deficit. Is the state of Georgia in a much healthier state than IL in terms of budget surplus/deficiit?

I am very aware that as a city i am downgrading, but as a neighborhood & subdivision I will be making an upgrade from a middle class townhome in Park Ridge, IL to a gated golf course community in Duluth/Johns Creek where my property taxes are less than 1% and the schools are in the top 2-3% in the state. I couldn't touch an equivalent home like this without paying atleast $800,000 - $900,000 in the suburbs of Chicago.

I would really like to hear from others who came from the east coast, west coast, or the midwest who moved to Altanta seeking the similar things that i am seeking. Were you happy with your decision without any regrets or was it a big disappointment for you and your family where you ended up moving back?

Thank you.

[OhioNative]

I personally do not consider Atlanta a "downgrade" from Chicago!

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by mrpanda

I received a PM from an anonymous person saying that it would be a mistake for me to move to Atlanta from Chicago. Let me provide a little more information of my motivation for the move.

There appear to be one or more lurkers on this board who regularly send PMs "warning" people about Atlanta. I'm an Atlantan, and I get them occasionally, too. As you've probably noted, the discussions here are usually quite robust, and there's little hesitancy to talk about the negatives as well as the positives.

So you have to wonder why anyone would consider it necessary to send negative comments privately. I'd take them with a big grain of salt -- the ones I've gotten don't reflect my experience at all.