Im Clueless !!! Where In Atlanta Should We Live ?? (Sandy Springs, Roswell: sale, real estate) - Georgia (GA) - City-Data Forum

goergiabound · 09-15-2006, 11:25 AM

My husband and I are moving to the Atlanta area in January. We are going there this Sunday to purchase a home.
I am a full time ebayer who needs to be near thrift shops to support my business. My husband works in the it field and will be looking for a job in Atlanta area. We have 3 small children who are homeschooled but would still like the option of a decent school system. We had a house under contract in Riverdale which we got out of after I did some research on Clayton County.
After reading this forum, thats the only thinkg Im sure of. Does anyone have suggestions on where we can live to be no more than 20 minutes away from downtown Atlanta and yet still be in a safe , growing area. At this point, I dont even know where to begin.

Any help would be sincerely appreciated. We are leaving Sunday and plan to get a house nder contract during the week we are there.

Thanks!

Annie

atlantagreg30127 · 09-15-2006, 11:41 AM

Um.... kinda waitin' till the last minute, aren't we?

Ok - get a good real estate agent. Tell him or her in a friendly but blunt way, "We want no B.S. or political correctness, here is what we WANT and here is what we want to AVOID. Tell us like it is", and hopefully they will be upfront and honest and steer you into the right area. What's good for one person isn't good for another - once the agent is in front of you if they're GOOD, they can get a feel for who you are and what you really want and go from there.

You'll hear a lot about the school system here - if you move inside of Atlanta (city proper), plan on using a private school or continue to home school. Public schools stink big time. If in the burbs such as Gwinnett or Cobb County, do some research as some of the schools are good and others only so-so (you're not going to get all of this done by next week, you need to take some time for research).

You'll find more in the way of antique and trinket shops than a ton of "thrift" shops, but they're around, just spread out all over the place. Acworth, GA. (Cobb County), has a larger flea market, as well as the "Pendergrass" area north of Gwinnett.

Sylph2 · 09-15-2006, 11:52 AM

Hi there -

I think it really all depends on where your husband is looking for a job. I have three children, too and I know from experience that you don't want your husband to have an hour long commute in the evening....

Alpharetta offers lots of jobs in the IT field, has lots of nice facilities for kids, i.e. playgrounds, baseball, gymnastics, etc through the parks and recreations and is close to shopping and restaurants. We love it here. My husband is actually a realtor and he has a reputation for being very frank - he could give you the low-down on Alpharetta vs, other areas and he used to work in software so he can tell you about those companies, too...E-mail me back if you want his contact info....

Sylph2 · 09-15-2006, 11:55 AM

Oh and another thing - I just went to a consignment sale and thrift store this morning in Alparetta - Roswell and Alpharetta are known for having the best thrift store deals - case in point: I found a brand new with Tags Gymboree coat for my daughter for $4 - there are a lot of wealthy people here who discard their things at the goodwill and thrift stores - my friends and I are constantly amazed at the things we find!!!

goergiabound · 09-16-2006, 10:38 PM

Thanks for all the input. I actually have a realtor and we will be meeting with her on Wednesday. I just didnt know what to tell her as to where we want her to live. I gave her a price range and shes been giving me such a wide range of locations that it has left me confused. I have heard postive things about Alpahretta and I think hubby and I will take a ride out there.

marvettecritney · 09-17-2006, 12:27 PM

Hi Annie, It really depends on what you desire and what price range you are looking for. Believe it or not, there are some areas of clayton county that are nice, since your children are home-schooled, don't factor the bad schools in. Ellenwood is a nice and upcoming area, it's in dekalb, clayton and henry county. I personally like stone mountain, snellville area, which puts you close to stone mountain park.. I live in Lithonia near stonecrest mall. The area is diverse... Lot's of green space. and I'm still only 15 minutes from downtown. All of atlanta has traffic, but I can still get to where I need to be in under 30 minutes. Price wise, you can find some incredible deals for under 150k. Conyers is doing a ton of building and you can get a great house and space... I also like Sandy Springs and the Dunwoody area. There really aren't any bad areas of metro atlanta (minus riverdale LOL!) but keep in mind, that all of metro atlanta is in a building frenzy and bad areas are being rehabbed. Henry country is good, I just hate the drive.... another factor is going to be where your husband finds a job. You will want to be in proximity to his job location. Moderator cut: advertising

marvettecritney · 09-17-2006, 12:36 PM

You will like Alpharetta, great shops, very involved community...but price wise, you can get more bang for your buck by coming a little closer in..Alpharetta was the place to be a few years back, but a lot of folks are trading in that commute for intown living. removed has great in town living ..Have your realtor take you to the seven hills community out past barrett parkway. I absolutely love the design and community atmosphere. prices are running around 300k.... there are a ton of thrift shops in the alpharetta, roswell, marrietta area.... Good Luck!

john1963 · 09-26-2006, 12:26 AM

roswell, alpharetta, spaulding corners, possibly norcross, swaunee

alpharetta thrift stores are packed with nice stuff

beachgal47 · 09-30-2006, 01:25 PM

Do not put a house under contract yet...you don't know enough about Atlanta! I moved here from NY about 18 yrs. ago and fortunately for me, my parachute landed me in Dunwoody. I have also lived in Roswell and am now in the new city of Sandy Springs located between Dunwoody and Roswell. I drive 4.5 miles to work and don't even go on a major highway which is wonderful!

To me, Alpharetta is highly over-rated and is not much more than a long commute to nowhere; if you live and work there, that is fine, but you will still sit in SERIOUS traffic. Just don't get stuck in an area where there is only one route to work - make sure there is an alternate route - even if you go north of Alpharetta (if that is where spouse will be working), there will still be traffic but not as bad as around I-285 or I-75 where you encounter national truck traffic.

You would be wise to rent something for 6 mos. to a year until your spouse gets settled in a position; his commute should be your primary concern - people are moving in toward the city to escape the awful traffic here (as there is not enough public train transportation here).

What do you do for entertainment? If you attend alot of sport or music events, you will want a reasonable drive (or train ride) to downtown.

Schools and taxes - the counties can vary quite a bit - good luck!

nrgpill · 10-01-2006, 11:07 AM

I would much recommend people to choose convenience over a bigger house and get upto 2 1/2 hours of personal time back per day on commute unless you are coming from an area just as choked in traffic. Currently my commute is considered "reversed" and I drive 10-15 minutes each way w/ no traffic. My wife works a mile down the street from the house. It also helps to live near the job center in which you are seeking employment so that your husband can spend more time with the family.