small town life with commute to atlanta (Newnan, Woodstock: low crime, house)

[pinkchick0518]

I know this may be impossible, but i am looking for the small town life (ie. very little crime, low population, country setting). The only catch is that my husband is getting a job in atlanta. I am def. not a city girl and he is willing to have a fairly long commute (he already has a 1 hr drive here in vt and i think he will go to about 1:30 or 1:45 one way). I am a dog trainer and groomer so i can pretty much work anywhere there is a petsmart nearby. Our budget is about $150,000 for a home. Any suggetions would help narrow this daunting task. Thanks

Christine

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by pinkchick0518

I know this may be impossible, but i am looking for the small town life (ie. very little crime, low population, country setting). The only catch is that my husband is getting a job in atlanta.

The Atlanta metro covers a fairly large area geographically. Is his job going to be located downtown, or is it in a specific suburb?

That will have a large impact on the recommendations you receive here. In the Atlanta metro, traffic issues are such that proximity to work is generally considered to be very important.

[casualobserver]

And living in Georgia compared to living in Vermont should be on your list of challenges as well.........but, best wishes regardless.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by casualobserver

And living in Georgia compared to living in Vermont should be on your list of challenges as well.........but, best wishes regardless.

Aw... Pine sap is almost the same as maple syrup, isn't it?

[applejuice]

I consider the following areas "country" but I am a city girl so take the suggestions for what they are worth:

Canton-certain areas
Waleska
Ball Ground
Elijay (may be too far?)

The best thing would be to visit and you can decide if that is what you are looking for. The traffic will be insane from these areas. They may also be more then 1.5-2hrs so pls check that out.

[Steven2149]

Originally Posted by applejuice

I consider the following areas "country" but I am a city girl so take the suggestions for what they are worth:

Canton-certain areas
Waleska
Ball Ground
Elijay (may be too far?)

The best thing would be to visit and you can decide if that is what you are looking for. The traffic will be insane from these areas. They may also be more then 1.5-2hrs so pls check that out.

Aside from Canton, I couldn't imagine any of those places being within 2 hours. Canton's not all that country in my opinion. Ellijay is really nice, but forget 2 hours there.. probably 3 in rush hour. If you are looking for the country feel, you may want to check out .... hmmm.... wow.... you could find something going in the direction of Lagrange on the southside or maybe even spalding county. Forget anything on the northside, re: traffic.

[clsmith15]

I live in a small town in northeast Bartow County and work near GA Tech in ATL. My commute is 1 - 1 1/2 hours each way. Usually if I leave by 6:00 a.m. I'm at my desk by 7:00 a.m. I leave at 4:00 p.m. and going home is a bit slower. If there is a bad wreck with lane closures it will take longer. If you're not looking for acreage, you can definitely get a house for $150k or less in that area. It's not far from the Waleska area that another poster mentioned but you can take 75 rather than 575 and I find it to be a much more pleasant area to live than Waleska.

[AtlantaCruiser]

Also look in Woodstock, in the older neighborhoods that is. Drive is 1 hour +/-.

He is willing to do an almost 4 hour commute a day, that is ridiculous IMO. Best of luck.

[south-to-west]

The Chattahoochee Hill Country, as well as Newnan to the south, are both communities with a small-town atmosphere. Chattahoochee Hill Country in South Fulton may be one of the most scenic areas in Metro Atlanta and is dotted with horse farms. To the north at the brand new Camp Creek Marketplace, you should be able to find a Petco, Petsmart, or any other pet shop. Good luck.

[otoatlanta]

Moved to the Woodstock area and my husband works near Vinings-not Downtown. His commute is about an hour each way, which he says is not bad at all-generally speaking. We moved from an area with a commute like this, so we are used to that length of a drive. Atlanta drivers are more aggressive(not as thoughtful) as what we are used to though, so that does have the potential to induce stress.

As a caveat, we spent tons of time looking for "low crime" areas and within days of moving here our car was broken into by the children of some of the residence in our beautiful masterplanned community! You can't win for losing really, but good luck!