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Old 11-10-2016, 10:44 AM
 
12 posts, read 28,427 times
Reputation: 14

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Hi all,

I'm recently relocated from New Jersey to Atlanta. For a number of reasons, my wife and I chose to relocate on different timelines, so I am here in Atlanta now while she and my stepdaughter will follow in June of next year. We are in the preliminary stages of house hunting and will likely be buying well in advance of her move in June.

I lived in Atlanta prior to moving to New Jersey in 2009, so I am trying to get my bearings back as to where to look to find a safe location within our price range.

First, per the sticky, the following apparently required information:

1. Budget? $250k. We can stretch, but would prefer to keep it to $250k.
2. House/Condo/Townhome? House.
3. Employment Status(commute/work from home). Midtown.
4. Children(public school vs. private). None in public school.
5. Suburban or Urban lifestyle preference or a mix of the two. Mix leaning toward urban.
6. Easy access to public transit, important or not? Not necessary.
7. Preferable demographics of desired neighborhood. Middle to upper middle class. Race irrelevant. Safe neighborhood above anything else.

We need at least a 3 bd. 2 ba. house. A huge bonus would be a basement or detached two-car garage. Aesthetically we very much like East Atlanta, Kirkwood, and Ormewood Park, but most of the houses in those areas that meet our qualifications are out of our price range.

A few specific areas I'm seeing houses I like within our price range pop up are Gresham Park and Belvedere Park. I'm finding it difficult to figure out exactly which are the bad areas of Decatur. I've seen a lot of "this zipcode is bad, that zipcode is good" type information, but I know from experience that there are safe areas within some of the "bad" zipcodes, so I don't want to paint with so broad a brush and miss out on some areas that would work.

We benefit from the fact that we don't need to be concerned about the quality of the public schools, but as we all know, there is often a high correlation between the safety of the neighborhood and the quality of the schools.

In the interest of talking specifics, what is the verdict on safety of the neighborhoods surrounding the below houses?

If anyone has any thoughts as to what area is the next in line to see broad gentrification (I guess I could say "redevelopment," but let's be honest about what it is), we'd obviously be glad for the new place to double as a good investment opportunity.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts.

3409 Springside Dr, Decatur, GA 30032 | MLS #8093871 | Zillow
3270 Weslock Cir, Decatur, GA 30034 | MLS #8091081 | Zillow
1617 Peachcrest Rd, Decatur, GA 30032 | MLS #5764422 | Zillow
3381 Tulip Dr, Decatur, GA 30032 | MLS #8085251 | Zillow
1138 Bouldercrest Dr SE, Atlanta, GA 30316 | Zillow
2280 Belvedere Ave SW, Atlanta, GA 30311 | Zillow
1551 Boulevard Lorraine SW, Atlanta, GA 30311 | MLS #5759038 | Zillow

EDIT: Sorry the URLs come up so messily above. First time using this forum and some of the buttons I'm accustomed to seeing (i.e., Insert Link) are't here, so I just pasted the URLs directly into the post.
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Old 11-10-2016, 10:53 AM
 
290 posts, read 309,695 times
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When people say they have a housing budget of $250,000 are they saying that they have that amount of money available or are they saying they have calculated what the monthly payment,taxes ,hoa fees and insurance will be without even knowing anything about the area.
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Old 11-10-2016, 10:59 AM
 
12 posts, read 28,427 times
Reputation: 14
Quote:
Originally Posted by ekman243 View Post
When people say they have a housing budget of $250,000 are they saying that they have that amount of money available or are they saying they have calculated what the monthly payment,taxes ,hoa fees and insurance will be without even knowing anything about the area.
Can't say what other people are saying, but in my case that's the amount I'd like to spend on the property itself.

I expect that some properties will include additional HOA fees and naturally the taxes and insurance will vary based on the property, but when I say we have budgeted $250k, it means $250k on the property and not those additional expenses, which we expect to pay in addition to the $250k.
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Old 11-10-2016, 11:17 AM
 
Location: St Simons Island, GA
23,305 posts, read 43,756,586 times
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All of the listings you posted are in areas I would respectfully deem 'transitional' (zips 30032 & 30034). There are some areas within those zips that are shaking off the cobwebs, but on the whole I'd say no. And forget the schools there.
Prices within the city of Decatur (30030) and North Decatur (30033) have risen dramatically since 2012. For what you want, it's simply out of your reach.
I would consider the city of Tucker if I were you (zips 30084 & 30340). It's relatively safe and on the whole is considerably less expensive than the neighborhoods to its' west. It's still convenient to Midtown.


Here are a couple of listings that fit your parameters:


https://www.redfin.com/GA/Doraville/.../home/23782926


https://www.redfin.com/GA/Tucker/477.../home/23867104

Last edited by Iconographer; 11-10-2016 at 11:37 AM..
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Old 11-10-2016, 11:54 AM
 
12 posts, read 28,427 times
Reputation: 14
Quote:
Originally Posted by LovinDecatur View Post
All of the listings you posted are in areas I would respectfully deem 'transitional' (zips 30032 & 30034). There are some areas within those zips that are shaking off the cobwebs, but on the whole I'd say no. And forget the schools there.
Prices within the city of Decatur (30030) and North Decatur (30033) have risen dramatically since 2012. For what you want, it's simply out of your reach.
I would consider the city of Tucker if I were you (zips 30084 & 30340). It's relatively safe and on the whole is considerably less expensive than the neighborhoods to its' west. It's still convenient to Midtown.


Here are a couple of listings that fit your parameters:


https://www.redfin.com/GA/Doraville/.../home/23782926


https://www.redfin.com/GA/Tucker/477.../home/23867104
Thanks for the thoughtful response. Do you think those places listed in Decatur are prone to property crime, home invasion, or what?

I would likely rather expand the budget to stay ITP. Any thoughts as to where I might look?

I assume from your username that you're primarily aware of Decatur, but if you or anyone else has any thoughts on the area around the two houses from the OP (the last two, I believe) that are located on the westside, I'd be interested.
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Old 11-10-2016, 12:24 PM
 
Location: St Simons Island, GA
23,305 posts, read 43,756,586 times
Reputation: 16418
Quote:
Originally Posted by keeeeeeef View Post
Thanks for the thoughtful response. Do you think those places listed in Decatur are prone to property crime, home invasion, or what?

I would likely rather expand the budget to stay ITP. Any thoughts as to where I might look?

I assume from your username that you're primarily aware of Decatur, but if you or anyone else has any thoughts on the area around the two houses from the OP (the last two, I believe) that are located on the westside, I'd be interested.
Your links are broken, but judging from the addresses, I'd define them as 'transitional' as well. If you want to roll those dice, more power to you; I might do same if I were younger! They have potential, albeit long-term potential IMO.
Since you bring up the Westside, I have a former colleague that moved into the Howell Station neighborhood years ago. She has loved living there; the location is excellent (she works at GSU) and the fact that it is literally across the street from the proposed Bellwood Quarry Park and the Beltline gives the neighborhood mad potential. She's never had a crime problem while living there and she loves her neighbors, who are a very diverse crowd.

I pulled up a listing at your price point. It's 1 BR less than you desire, but at least it gives you an idea. A comp in one of the Eastside neighborhoods would likely be a third again more expensive.

http://atlantahomeviewer.com/search_...operty=5759320

Last edited by Iconographer; 11-10-2016 at 12:35 PM..
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Old 11-30-2016, 02:42 PM
 
33 posts, read 20,987 times
Reputation: 41
Quote:
Originally Posted by LovinDecatur View Post
Your links are broken, but judging from the addresses, I'd define them as 'transitional' as well. If you want to roll those dice, more power to you; I might do same if I were younger! They have potential, albeit long-term potential IMO.
Since you bring up the Westside, I have a former colleague that moved into the Howell Station neighborhood years ago. She has loved living there; the location is excellent (she works at GSU) and the fact that it is literally across the street from the proposed Bellwood Quarry Park and the Beltline gives the neighborhood mad potential. She's never had a crime problem while living there and she loves her neighbors, who are a very diverse crowd.

I pulled up a listing at your price point. It's 1 BR less than you desire, but at least it gives you an idea. A comp in one of the Eastside neighborhoods would likely be a third again more expensive.

Longley • Citihomes Web ID: 27116859
What do you think of the White Oak Hills community?
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