Alpharetta vs Cumming vs Suwanee vs Johns Creek (Atlanta, Forsyth: cul-de-sac, to rent)

[needspractice]

Hello,

Could someone give me a detailed difference of these four cities please? I am really considering moving here and buying a home. I really want to make the best decision.

Example:

Alpharetta = Close to everything, loads to do and a ton of places to eat
Cumming = Little more affordable and growing fast
Suwanee = Not sure about here
Johns Creek = One of the safest cities in Georgia but very expensive like Alpharetta

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

[AtlantaMove]

It would help if we knew a little more about your preferred lifestyle. Are there school-aged kids? All of these areas offer strong schools. But there are other areas to consider if kids are not a consideration at this time.

Where will you work? Your significant other? You'll need to consider commuting time and resources if you plan to work away from these areas.

You also expressed a concern for safety, places to eat and things to do. Of course, any one of these areas are easily accessible by vehicle, so all of these cities can be accessed with a short drive.

So again, a little more information can help us help you. Maybe start with what you like about your current location.

Welcome.

[Go Blue 99]

If you have a high budget, I’d go with Alpharetta. It’s close to major job centers, retail, and restaurants. We considered it during our house search, but the type of house we wanted would have been too expensive. We ended up buying in the Johns Creek/Suwanee area. We are still close enough to Alpharetta to enjoy its benefits.

[flamadiddle]

The one closest to your work place.

[vtecluder617]

You can't really go wrong with either area. If you have school aged kids, I'd personally go with Suwanee. Alpharetta is great, but then again you will deal with congestion, due to the amount of offices in that area.

[ATLTJL]

These are my opinions only:

Alpharetta - The most urban of the areas you mentioned, Alpharetta has a ton of commercial shopping areas and multi-family developments, which also make it quite diverse. You have nice, expensive homes, but also a lot of people who can only afford to rent live there (when I say diversity, I'm talking about income diversity, but it also has racial diversity). The biggest plus for Alpharetta is much of it is close to a direct artery into town on GA 400, which is also an artery to North Georgia, which is great on weekends. Alpharetta has been a good area for a long time with little signs of slowing down. Also home to a lot of tech companies.

Cumming - As little as 10 years ago, and definitely 20, Cumming was quite rural. It's growing fast. I would say that even though it has some big houses and plenty of wealth, it's still lacking some of the sophistication of Alpharetta. There are no REALLY great places to eat, but some more than decent neighborhood places. I feel like Cumming is just a LITTLE TOO FAR out if you ever do go to Atlanta, and really far if you commute. I kind of consider Alpharetta the end of the suburbs and Cumming the beginning of the exurbs. It also feels a bit more whitewashed than Alpharetta with not as much diversity and more conservative people.

Suwanee - You know how sugar is good, but things that are too sugary hurt your teeth and give you a stomach ache? I like Suwanee, but I feel that it is SO family friendly that is just sickening. The entire place looks like it was conceived, designed, and built only for people who have families. Being single in Suwanee would be a special kind of torture, but it's also a paradise for people who want everything to be family-centric. Lots of good outdoor amenities, Suwanee Greenway, good Chattahoochee River access, and all the skyzones and laser tag joints you'd ever want. The most "small southern town" feeling of all the places you mentioned. Large and growing Asian population.

Johns Creek - I'd call this Alpharetta's younger residential brother. There's plenty of grocery and strip malls around, but it doesn't have the massive retail of Alpharetta. Planned, cul-de-sac subdivisions lined up one after the other, but most things in Johns Creek were built with quality and class, so these homes are holding onto their values well. This is also home to the best public schools in the state, Northview and Johns Creek high schools. Johns Creek is also filled with some of the most famous golf courses around. It's a sophisticated area with good restaurants and quality retail without mega shopping malls. It's not as far away from the city as Cumming as the crow flies, but it lacks a major artery into town. 141 is ok off hours, but if you try to use it during commuter hours, you'll definitely get hung up around 285.

The other thing to consider is which side of the river you want to be on. Everything you mentioned except Suwanee is on the west side. The reason this is important is because there are only a handful of bridges that go over the river and during commuter hours they are all very crowded. You really don't want to be trying to cross it during these times (especially not going west to east in the morning and the other way in the afternoon!)

Those are the differences in my opinion. But I also think you happened to ask about four of the best areas in the entire metro, so they are all pretty great! And even though they are each unique, they are more similar to each other than they are different.

If I had to buy a home in any of them, I would select Johns Creek. You might see more appreciation in Cumming, but Johns Creek is the place I feel is most rock solid in terms of being most resistant to losing value. That's mostly because its schools will likely always be in very high demand. It's also building out quickly and soon there simply won't be any more land capable of being developed in Johns Creek. Also, there just aren't many multi-family developments there, so you don't have to worry about the population shifting suddenly. But that's only all other things being equal...if one of the other areas speaks to you more, buy in it.

[ca2dfw]

Property tax is like 30% lower in Forsyth county.

[Turnerbro]

I'd go with Suwanee

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by needspractice

Where should I buy a home to live in?

Where do you want to buy a home to live in?

[needspractice]

Update...

After looking at many, I mean many different homes I have decided on the NE side of town. There is just way more jobs on this side and the quality of life we are looking for seems to fit best here.

We are looking particularly in Alpharetta & South Cumming areas. If any of you have some great neighborhood suggestions I am all ears. However, I am prepared to lose my wallet on this deal.

The market has slowed a lot though since I started this thread, maybe I will have some luck making a good deal...

Thank you everyone for your help.