Moving from DC suburbs to Atlanta (Marietta, Alpharetta: relocating, job, houses)

[mochamomnva]

Hello All! This is my first post. My family and I are relocating from Northern VA to the Atlanta area hopefully within a month or so. We are so confused on the best areas to live in. We are coming from an area 15 miles from DC, where the average home price is 500K and up for a SFH. This is one of the top 5 diversed areas in the US, and we have also have one of the best school systems as well. We are looking to move due to my husband's promotion, plus the cost of living in GA is way more reasonable than the DC Metro area. We are looking at Gwinnett county, but we have received conflicting information about the area. We are looking to buy a home in Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Buford, or Alpharetta. We are alo looking in Peachtree City. We are a black family looking for diversity within a professional community where the schools are great!! Please help!!

[mg83]

Which part of town is your husband's job?

That's a major factor in where you should look to buy...

[Merin]

Originally Posted by mochamomnva

Hello All! This is my first post. My family and I are relocating from Northern VA to the Atlanta area hopefully within a month or so. We are so confused on the best areas to live in. We are coming from an area 15 miles from DC, where the average home price is 500K and up for a SFH. This is one of the top 5 diversed areas in the US, and we have also have one of the best school systems as well. We are looking to move due to my husband's promotion, plus the cost of living in GA is way more reasonable than the DC Metro area. We are looking at Gwinnett county, but we have received conflicting information about the area. We are looking to buy a home in Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Buford, or Alpharetta. We are alo looking in Peachtree City. We are a black family looking for diversity within a professional community where the schools are great!! Please help!!

I am from DC. Where in Northern Va do you live now? What neighborhood in the DC area would you like the neighborhood to me like? Oh and the traffic here is TERRIBLE.

[atlantagreg30127]

Ditto to all of the above. Atlanta's traffic is almost as bad as DC's (and in a few spots worse). Wherever his job is located, you want to move as close to that location as possible.

[mochamomnva]

Thanks to all who responded. I am currently located in Ashburn, VA in Loudoun County. Two miles from the Dulles airport. He will be working in downtown ATL. We have started looking in Peachtree City, and have fallen in love with the homes and the concept of the family-oriented communities. This is south of ATL, and from my understanding the traffic is bad, but not as bad as north of ATL. Any responses?

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by mochamomnva

Thanks to all who responded. I am currently located in Ashburn, VA in Loudoun County. Two miles from the Dulles airport. He will be working in downtown ATL. We have started looking in Peachtree City, and have fallen in love with the homes and the concept of the family-oriented communities. This is south of ATL, and from my understanding the traffic is bad, but not as bad as north of ATL. Any responses?

Correct. Traffic is bad, but not as bad as places like Gwinnett County or coming down GA400 from Alpharetta in comparison. There aren't any transit options down there though, so, driving is pretty much it. There is a series of trails down there that are reserved for golf carts that are pretty neat, though. Pick a community connected to that, and you can drive a cart around to the stores, etc.

[mochamomnva]

Thanks for the response. This is what one of the reasons that drove our decision to look in Peachtree City. You can drive anywhere on the 90 miles of golf cart paths. They even have parking spaces at the malls, shopping centers, and grocery stores for the golf carts. I think it is a neat concept. Thanks for your response, and take care.

[eightcount]

I don't know if you have moved yet - but definitely stay away from the I85 corridor north of the city. Absolute worst traffic I have ever seen - and I lived in the DC for nearly 20 years. I have a co-worker in Peachtree City and he is very happy there. But if you are driving into the city (Atlanta) it will be a horrible drive. I own a home in Marietta (West Cobb) and the commute to downtown is similar to what you would experience driving from Ashburn to downtown DC. I highly recommend Marietta - we live in a very diverse neighborhood, walking distance to a very good elementary school and in a district for a brand-new middle school and high school, which draw some of the best teachers. My husband and I are moving back to Marietta in two weeks after being back in the DC area for nearly 2 years. We're glad we didn't sell our home!

[goozer]

If you liked Ashburn, Peachtree City might be a good choice for you. It has a fairly suburban feel, nice houses, and it's a lot cheaper than Ashburn. PTC is also closer to Atlanta (31 miles) than the 37 miles between Ashburn and DC (not sure where you got 15 miles from ).

[Mrs. Garrison]

Peachtree City is just as close or maybe closer to Downtown than Marietta...and not quite as heavy traffic. At off-peak times there usually isn't a lot of traffic, but if either of you will be working regular office hours your commute from PTC will be +-1 hour or so.