Love Decatur, But Need Bigger House. Suggestions? (Alpharetta, Dunwoody: houses, neighborhoods)

[PeachyInGeorgia]

My husband and I are in our late 20's and have 2 small children. We have lived in the city of Decatur in the Chelsea Heights neighborhood for 4 years now and absolutely love it. However, we are quickly outgrowing our small house and want something bigger. I would love to stay in our same neighborhood, but 4 bedroom houses here are hard to come by and are can get expensive. So, I am looking for suggestions for alternative areas to look at. Budget is around 350k.

Considerations:
1) Decent sized yard for kids and dogs to play in
2) Walkability. It is great being able to walk to the grocery store, post office, park, downtown decatur, etc.
3) Don't care too much about schools as we are more likely to send kids to private.
4) I work in Forest Park and husband works in Alpharetta, so location central to both is ideal.
5) Safe/Quiet. I don't want to have to live right on the railroad tracks or a busy road.


What other Decatur neighborhoods do you think we should consider? What do people think about Medlock Park, Tucker, or Druid Hills?

[JPD]

Originally Posted by PeachyInGeorgia

What do people think about Medlock Park, Tucker, or Druid Hills?

I live in Tucker. If you want walkability, you'll probably want to look in the part of Tucker between the High School and the library, or maybe the area between the high school and Livsey elementary. These are the parts of Tucker that are the closest to restaurants, parks, grocery store & other shops, library, post office, etc.

[argecash]

I'm thinking Druid Hills is going to be just as expensive if not more than Decatur. Medlock Park is nice, but if you want to walk to all the places you mentioned it isn't going to be what you're looking for. The area of Tucker the previous post mentioned might work for you. Tucker is in the process of totally redoing the Main St. area, and everything would be within walking distance if you lived near the high school.

What about Kirkwood or Oakhurst? Both areas are smaller than downtown Decatur, but they are walkable little villages. You might also look at the Oak Grove area or Toco Hills.

[BringBackCobain]

If you're considering Tucker, then you may as well consider Dunwoody too, specifically the Georgetown area. It's pretty walkable. This house meets your specs and its less than a 10 minute walk to Kroger, restaurants, and a new park:

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1635-Old-Spring-House-Ln-Dunwoody-GA-30338/14580089_zpid/#{scid=hdp-site-map-bubble-address}

[ATL Golfer]

Again, I am biased, but Murphy Chandler Park. I am a resident.

You can walk to two grocery stores. Great sidewalks everywhere. Two parks within walking distance.

Great elementary school (you should care for resell value).

[PeachyInGeorgia]

Thanks for the advice! I like Oakhurst a lot, I just hadn't seen a lot available there that was 4 bedroom. I haven't looked at Kirkwood yet, but that is a great idea. It seems like there are a few possibilities around Toco Hills, but not sure that it is priced too much better than Decatur.

Dunwoody just seems like a pretty long way to go to Forest Park every day. Not sure about that commute.