For your reference, I've created a Google Map of the areas mentioned below, at
Google Maps -- click on a shaded area to see the name/info.
Rivermont is a planned development dating back to the 1970s in the far southeastern corner of Alpharetta -- it's actually now part of the city of John's Creek, but has and will have an Alpharetta address/zip code until the USPS recognizes John's Creek. If you asked most people about it, they'd probably tell you it's in Roswell, and it is right up against the boundary. It's actually a complex of subdivisions and condominium developments that occupies pretty much the whole area between Holcomb Bridge Road on the south, Nesbit Ferry Road on the west, Brumbelow Road on the north, and Barnwell Road on the east. It includes Rivermont Golf and Country Club, and is also located just across Barnwell Road from the Country Club of the South (home to many pro athletes, entertainers, etc.) and the Jones Bridge unit of the Chattahoochee National Recreation Area. Rivermont also maintains a club property along the river for use by members/residents. The downside is probably that most of the homes (though not all) are contemporary-style, instead of the more popular traditional styles. This has kept the neighborhood more affordable that most of those that surround it.
A mile or two away is Country Club of Roswell . I doubt you'd find much in the Willow Springs neighborhood that surrounds it, but there's a neighborhood without direct access to it in between the golf course and the Newtown area at Haynes Bridge and Old Alabama called Ivey Oaks that might have something sub-$300K. There's more options in the sub-$300K range in the neighborhoods along Old Alabama Road between Nesbit Ferry and Holcomb Bridge, and you'd have reasonable access to Country Club of Roswell (
Country Club of Roswell) and would be quite convenient to Alpharetta, and to GA 400 for access to the rest of the Atlanta area. One is Spring Ridge -- there are a couple of others.
There's also the Horseshoe Bend development, including the Horseshoe Bend Country Club. This is between Holcomb Bridge Road and the Chattahoochee River on the east edge of Roswell (within Roswell city limits). The houses are more expensive -- nothing under about $325, with most considerably more -- and the Club has been in difficult financial straights (last I heard they were narrowly avoiding foreclosure). It's a huge development, with over 1200 homes.
A little bit west of Horseshoe Bend, southwest of Country Club of Roswell, is Martin's Landing (
About Martin's Landing), an even bigger development than Horseshoe Bend, with nearly 2000 homes (including a mix of townhomes and apartments), two pools, a lake, parks, and its own elementary school. The neighborhood also maintains a River Club across Riverside Drive adjacent to the Chattahoochee River. What it doesn't have is a golf course.
In between Martin's Landing and Horseshoe Bend are a few smaller neighborhoods that may have something in your price range -- River Terrace usually does.
These are mostly mature, stable neighborhoods -- you're not going to see the appreciation in value you might in a newer neighborhood farther out. If your primary concern is appreciation, you might want to look elsewhere. But your "not out in the boonies" criteria makes me wonder how much you'd like Cumming -- it's developing rapidly, but it was the boonies not so long ago. East Roswell also has the advantage of being midway (roughly) between Alpharetta and the concentration of hospitals along Johnson Ferry/Glenridge/Peachtree-Dunwoody just inside I-285 commonly known as "Pill Hill".
If your price range stretched a bit higher, I might suggest looking at
Windward -- another huge development, this one on the eastern side of Alpharetta. Golf course, tons of other amenities, somewhat newer houses than the neighborhoods mentioned above, private lake, etc. You're probably looking at a floor for prices of about $350K, however.
Oh, and about Grayson -- Google Maps says it's 48 minutes from Grayson to Alpharetta. Google Maps doesn't have to sit in traffic on any of the roads involved. You could probably drive it in that amount of time at 2 am. Any normal commuting time, however, I'm betting it's well over an hour, probably closer to an hour and a half. And you'd definitely be sitting there watching the grass grow for a lot of that.
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