Relocating from London, England (Atlanta, Roswell: gated, employment, homes)

[ARSENAL]

Hi I am new to this site and am trying to research Atlanta,Georgia as much as possible with the view to relocate.

We are currently living in London, England and have had enough of the rat race. My husband originally visited in 2001 and we returned again last month to explore different areas and options. We are hoping to relocate next year with our three children, who are aged 8,7 and one on the way. We would welcome any advise, knowledge of Atlanta that any of you can give us.

We are looking for an area with good schools, not to far from the city centre,a culturally diverse community,shopping malls etc; The areas we have been looking at have been Lawrenceville,Grayson,Duluth, Norcross,Stone mountain and Roswell.

Can anyone out there give us any advise on locations?

[Cattknap]

I'm sorry no one has responded to your request. I am not that familiar with Atlanta, having only been there a few times. Atlanta proper has very high crime as most large cities do. There are a number of nice outlying areas but that woud mean commuting to the city for work, if that is where your place of employment is. Take a look on www.yahoo.com/neighborhoods (broken link) for statistics on individual cities and towns in Georgia. Things like crime rates, air quality, median price of homes, level of education among residents, cultural opportunities, etc., are listed - all compared to a national average. My reply will bump your question to the top and perhaps someone with more knowledge about Atlanta will post an answer.

If you are moving from London to Atlanta and want to get out of the rat race, you should probably not move too close to the actual city of Atlanta - it is a wonderful city but is definitely a crowded, traffic-ridden and crime-ridden place.

[Prichard]

Atlanta is a crime-free paridise compared to London. You could live in Virginia Highlands and feel like you live in some quaint little English town, compared to what its like in London. Don't let the chicken littles scare you. If you were moving from Pulaski Tennessee, where you and your family have lived for 6 generations, you might be concerned a little about "big city" Atlanta. Otherwise, I think you will find that Atlanta is a great town.

But, if you want to get more helpfull responses, you need to provide us with more information about what you are looking for. Don't be shy or too reserved, or you will just get generic responses. Lay out what you like, and disslike in detail.

[CharlotteAgent]

Well I have to respond because of the orig. posters screen name. Are you stuck on Georgia or anywhere on the South East?

[Cattknap]

Atlanta has an overall crime rate of 10 - one of the highest in the nation (the national average is around 3.4)....don't let anyone fool you into thinking it is a safe place to live....statistics prove that it isn't. Much of the crime is crime against persons - murders, muggings, rapes, car jackings, etc.

[jxu66]

I think that you mean the city of Atlanta has crime rate of 10. However, the city of Atlanta limit only covered 475,000 population as Atlanta MSA around 5 millions. Just an example, according to FBI, city of atlanta is ranking No. 13 worst in crime where city of Roswell (a suburb) is 11th safest.
I can think many place in Atlanta MSA safer than the city of Roswell.

As for OP, if the school is top concern, pick city of John's Creek. NorthView and Chattohoochee high are arguable best in the atlanta.

If the diversity is concern, I would pick Duluth or Suwanee in Duluth high and Peachtree Ridge district close to Sugarloaf country club area.

[ARSENAL]

WOW......Thank you all for your responses.

Violence in English cities are second nature. The UK seems to top the charts in every negative criteria in Europe. Drugs, Teen-pregnancies, muggings etc

You tend to find this behavior in most built up cities, so we would expect certain levels of an anti-social culture wherever we relocate.

Location, in its basic form, is segregated into lines of Race and Financial statue. Race or racial indifference is an ongoing issue in every multicultural society. As we see it, the world is filled with a variety of peoples and cultures. We hope to equip our children with a diverse and well-rounded knowledge of people that are different.

But…..we are fully aware that this is the ‘South’ and Old habits die hard. We are not wet Liberals or Ultra Conservatives…Just hard working ‘Limeys’, looking for a better life, who just happens to adore the State of Georgia.

Some of your replies would suggest that we should be more specific, falling short of geographically mapping Georgia on Racial, Political and economical lines…..Ok

1) What counties in North-West/North/North-East/East of Atlanta could be classified as White, Black or Mixed areas?
2) What are most affluent counties in the above areas?
3) Where would you find the best schools in the above mentioned?
4) What Political party has Georgia tended to vote for over the years?

Can anyone help?

[Prichard]

Forsyth County is basically white. Good schools, and expensive, nice areas around Lake Lanier. Actually most counties in north of Forsyth would also be racially white. Atlanta proper is basically black. Marietta is mixed. The suburbs south of Atlanta are black or racially mixed. Stone Mountain area was white; blacks moved in and it is mixed as "white flight" has taken place.

Georgia is a red state. Politics in Georgia can be summed up this way. Blacks vote mostly for Democrats. Whites vote mostly for Republicans. But, Georgia is funny, in that whites used to be "Southern Democrats", which are very similar to today's Republicans - wiki "Zell Miller". I believe that there are slightly more blacks than whites in Georgia, most blacks being concentrated south of Atlanta, and most whites being concentrated north of Atlanta. Obviously this is a very broad generalization, and some may dissagree with me, but I recon not to many people will take exception to this generalization. Many of the people who live in the Georgia Montain region are of Scot-Irish decent, and are Southern Baptist. In fact, most Georgians are Southern Baptist, and a mix of other Protestant religions.

[brian_2]

"We are currently living in London, England and have had enough of the rat race."

..and who wants to carry around a Geiger Counter?

Sorry, couldn't resist.

"I can think many place in Atlanta MSA safer than the city of Roswell."

You're right.

Frankly I'm tired of all the 'Best of' lists. Is anyone else?

Seems like there are more of these lists every week.

Most people know better, and take statistical fodder & 'Best of' lists as interesting, but not as a basis for where to build their lives. Then again..?

"..most blacks being concentrated south of Atlanta, and most whites being concentrated north of Atlanta."

There are many ethnic enclaves north of Atlanta. Food is the great equalizer in life. I was in the Buford Highway area recently eating Vietnamese food and it could have been any of ten + other ethnic foods there. Many large areas of diverse ethnicity throughout Georgia. I like the diversity myself, but it's comforting to return home to places where I'm used to the customs I grew up with - love the 'escapes' though.

[leefamilyrelocation]

Hi
we are Brits also, As my husband will work at the airport we have chosen Peachtree City - White, Fayette County has best schools south of Atlanta.