Southern couple (soon to be parents) relocating back down south (Atlanta: house, neighborhoods)

[Tarzanman]

Originally Posted by Dkeating

Yeah, I though this argument sounded familiar. I don't know that anything in that thread is particularly convincing in showing that NYC is less segregated that Atlanta, as far as black-white disimilarity goes. Maybe the right studies haven't been done, but the ones that have been done all show NYC is more segregated.

In the other thread you wrote:

"You would have to look pretty hard in NYC or LA to find a public school that did not exhibit a fair degree of diversification. This is certainly NOT the case here in Atlanta, which is abnormal as it is #9 among the largest metropolitan areas in the USA."

If we're talking about the city of Atlanta versus NYC, this is just demonstrably false. There's really no argument. The Real Reasons New York has the Country

New York State



The Real Reasons New York has the Country#

Let's leave arguments in the other thread in the other thread.

As far as black-white disimilarity, there is a difference between lack of diversification and prevalence of segregation.... but in terms of NYC, the population density is so high that it simply isn't possible to segregate yourself from other groups of people. You can ask absolutely anyone who has lived there.

[helena101]

Originally Posted by BamaGirl4761

1. Budget up to $1600 for 2 bedroom or more.
2. House/Condo/Townhome? Condo/Townhome
3. Employment Status(commute/work from home) Work in Midtown
4. Children(public school vs. private) Depends
5. Suburban or Urban lifestyle preference or a mix of the two Suburban without being sprawly or bland...perhaps even "exurban" of semi-rural.
6. Easy access to public transit, important or not? Not interested in any area with MARTA access
7. Preferable demographics of desired neighborhood. Since we are Southerners moving back down from the NYC area because we missed the South, we would prefer to be in an area that has more Georgians/Atlantans than transplants from across the United States as well as people from other countries. A more "down home" traditional feel vs. cosmopolitan. We are White if that makes a difference.


Ok, now that's settled. We are both 29, I'm from the suburbs of Birmingham and he is from Fredericksburg, Texas. We both met in NYC, are married and expecting. We were extremely unhappy in NYC and the cosmopolitan, fast paced, "yankee" way of life. We would've personally preferred a more rural place but this is the only place down south that my husband could get an acceptable offer. He will be working in Midtown but will not be commuting in rush hour traffic. He will be working irregular hours. We are Christians and conservative and we would like somewhere with people who are agreeable to that. We are willing to sacrifice a short or convenient commute to live in an area that isn't so inundated with transplant, cosmopolitan or urban kind of culture. We moved back down south to live in the south, not in Long Island with better weather. Just need two bedrooms, a town home or some kind of bungalow would be lovely. Somewhere far away enough that it will not be ruined by urban sprawl. A nice landscape such as mountains would be just great. We looked at Dawsonville or Dahlonega online and it looks beautiful. Our only concerns are that apparently Atlanta is growing northwards and will spoil these communities. We know nothing of communities to the east, west, and south of the city proper. Low crime and southern culture and values are what we seek. A quiet GA community that is accessible within 60 minutes driving with no congestion to Midtown.


Thank You and may God bless you,

Joy Ann

As someone who already has children, I must strongly encourage you to rent and not tie yourself down until you've experienced life with babies/small children. The locations you are proposing mean such long commute times for your husband that while your children are small and going to bed very early, they will barely, if at all, see their father five days a week. Even with an "off hours" commute there will be plenty of traffic and car accidents unless you mean his workday starts at 3 AM. Your perspective on many things completely changes when you become a parent, and you may realize that it is far more valuable for your children to spend more quality time with their father than to have a neighborhood that has zero "foreigners". Based on your preferences and your stated willingness to make sacrifices for the good of your children, I'd suggest considering these options:

1. Live somewhere else. Maybe it means a much lower level or lower paying job for your husband, but you'll have the small conservative community you want and your husband will see his children a lot more by not having to commute 3+ hours per day (15+ hours per week).

2. Find an area closer in, perhaps a neighborhood situated right next to a conservative church, that has some neighbors you'd like. Sure there may be some "foreigners" and other "unsavory" types in closer proximity, but your husband will see his children a lot more and also keep this high level job in Midtown that seems to be so important.

[helena101]

P.S. You also may want to strongly consider how you and your family will be accepted in a community that shuns outsiders. Moving from NYC, and with a high level professional job in midtown Atlanta, and neither of you even from Georgia, YOU will be the outsiders in a small town of native Georgians who mainly have blue collar jobs.

[Clayton white guy]

Since when do friendly, charming, and diverse southern towns shun folks?

[helena101]

Originally Posted by Clayton white guy

Since when do friendly, charming, and diverse southern towns shun folks?

She says she doesn't want to live around Yankees, foreigners, the type of people who would be around a MARTA station, etc., etc. So it's safe to assume that if a bunch of Korean families moved into her neighborhood she wouldn't be rushing over with an apple pie to welcome them to the area. She wants to live in an area where people feel that same way.

Also ironic that she wants to be a transplant in an area "without transplants"

[Clayton white guy]

Sure they would, except here it would be a peach pie! I have heard prejudice expressed here, but mostly it seems to be aimed at small town values and the southern lifestyle. I say we all take a deep breath and learn to expect that there will never be agreement on every issue. I have an aunt that I dearly love; she is brilliant with numerous degrees in many different fields. She is generous, would give the shirt off her back. She also has never been married. Now this same aunt is exceedingly liberal and cannot accept any deviation to her worldview. Not agreeing with her every thought makes her extremely angry immediately; she has walked out on a number of family gatherings in a huff. When she comes other we all walk on egg-shells trying to find "safe" topics of conversation that won't "set her off". I have noticed some of my forum fellows have tendencies just like my Aunt's: "North Fulton or nothing", "Intown or nothing", "Socialism or nothing"; "Secular humanism or nothing" all building up to shrill diatribes. An observation of mine is that some here only want tolerance for their own paradigms and want everyone else's squashed or disrespected. None of this is necessary, especially on an open forum designed to be a marketplace of ideas. While you may not want to "buy" every idea in the marketplace, it is not necessary to get rid of everything that does not suit your liking. When you go to Kroger, you leave the items that don't suit you in the store; you do not have a hissy-fit in the middle of the store and try to destroy all the that don't fit your needs. Consider this forum your virtual Kroger. Get what you want, respect what you leave behind. Now all of y'all play nice! ;0)

[helena101]

Originally Posted by Clayton white guy

Sure they would, except here it would be a peach pie! I have heard prejudice expressed here, but mostly it seems to be aimed at small town values and the southern lifestyle. I say we all take a deep breath and learn to expect that there will never be agreement on every issue. I have an aunt that I dearly love; she is brilliant with numerous degrees in many different fields. She is generous, would give the shirt off her back. She also has never been married. Now this same aunt is exceedingly liberal and cannot accept any deviation to her worldview. Not agreeing with her every thought makes her extremely angry immediately; she has walked out on a number of family gatherings in a huff. When she comes other we all walk on egg-shells trying to find "safe" topics of conversation that won't "set her off". I have noticed some of my forum fellows have tendencies just like my Aunt's: "North Fulton or nothing", "Intown or nothing", "Socialism or nothing"; "Secular humanism or nothing" all building up to shrill diatribes. An observation of mine is that some here only want tolerance for their own paradigms and want everyone else's squashed or disrespected. None of this is necessary, especially on an open forum designed to be a marketplace of ideas. While you may not want to "buy" every idea in the marketplace, it is not necessary to get rid of everything that does not suit your liking. When you go to Kroger, you leave the items that don't suit you in the store; you do not have a hissy-fit in the middle of the store and try to destroy all the that don't fit your needs. Consider this forum your virtual Kroger. Get what you want, respect what you leave behind. Now all of y'all play nice! ;0)

I am truly not intending to insult small towns or small town values, I understand many southerners and many people in small cities/towns can be wonderful and accepting of outsiders, transplants, foreigners, etc. My point is that the OP specifically requests an area that shuns foreigners, transplants, and people who aren't from the south, as it is a very high priority to her to not live around foreigners, transplants, and people who aren't from the south. If she succeeds in finding such a town, they also won't like her family.

[Mattie]

Originally Posted by helena101

I am truly not intending to insult small towns or small town values, I understand many southerners and many people in small cities/towns can be wonderful and accepting of outsiders, transplants, foreigners, etc. My point is that the OP specifically requests an area that shuns foreigners, transplants, and people who aren't from the south, as it is a very high priority to her to not live around foreigners, transplants, and people who aren't from the south. If she succeeds in finding such a town, they also won't like her family.

And in the GA metro area, the schools are not going to be well-regarded. I just find it so odd that anybody would look down on transplants and immigrants, when both groups are far more accepting of others than the OP has demonstrated herself to be.

North Fulton has many transplants. Gwinnett also, and a higher percentage of Asians. Both groups value strong schools. Strong schools in turn bring higher housing prices.

The folly of moving too far from a midtown job can be illustrated by this morning's traffic nightmare.

[Newsboy]

I'm just coming back into this thread ... didn't have time to read 7 pages ... has the OP found a place to live yet?

[Clayton white guy]

Newsboy,
I fear that some people were ugly to her and now I fear she won't come to our fair metro for fear there will be other inhospitable people here. I swear, most people in metro Atlanta are extremely kind: native and transplants alike. Please ignore the rudeness of some of our posters. They do not represent even a fraction of the wonderful people that call our metro home.