Love it or hate it in ATL? (Atlanta, Covington: how much, college)

[KellyC76]

As we are preparing to making the final commitment to move to GA for my husbands work, I can't stop goggling anything and everything about GA and, in-particular, metro Atlanta. Recently came across a TON of YouTube videos of people basically saying they hate it, and can't wait to leave. Had another person recently tell me that on their family drive down to FL, the only people they found to be not friendly, were in GA.

So, basically, I have to put it out here, because I feel like I've gotten some honest, reliable answers here in the past.

Is there still southern hospitality in GA? Are there people who love it? I want to love it! We are from CT, where the weather is crap, taxes are high, and people are pretty much always in a rush and not that friendly. I don't feel like I want to be here anymore, but don't want to go somewhere that isn't at least a bit of an improvement. I completly get that where you live, and what you make of life is a huge part of it, but .... would love people to weigh in on this one.

[jsvh]

Love it! :-)

[Pemgin]

This is a great place to live. There are almost 6 million people in the metro, so some of them are bound to be unhappy about their lives here. But, there are 6 million people here because it's a desirable place to live.

[primaltech]

Originally Posted by KellyC76

As we are preparing to making the final commitment to move to GA for my husbands work, I can't stop goggling anything and everything about GA and, in-particular, metro Atlanta. Recently came across a TON of YouTube videos of people basically saying they hate it, and can't wait to leave. Had another person recently tell me that on their family drive down to FL, the only people they found to be not friendly, were in GA.

So, basically, I have to put it out here, because I feel like I've gotten some honest, reliable answers here in the past.

Is there still southern hospitality in GA? Are there people who love it? I want to love it! We are from CT, where the weather is crap, taxes are high, and people are pretty much always in a rush and not that friendly. I don't feel like I want to be here anymore, but don't want to go somewhere that isn't at least a bit of an improvement. I completly get that where you live, and what you make of life is a huge part of it, but .... would love people to weigh in on this one.

Well, it's hard to find a place that's perfect in every way, but I can tell you I spent hours this morning hiking some very beautiful and peaceful mixed-use trails in my area of town, along the Chattahoochee River, in NW Atlanta, inside the perimeter. It was around upper 50's to about 60 degrees, perfectly clear sky today, sunny. Absolutely gorgeous. Everyone smiling and saying hi, all kinds of ethnic diversity, straight couples, gay couples. Lots of doggies. A few people had their very well-trained golden retrievers playing in the river.

Personally my property taxes are very low, being just outside of city limits, in unincorporated Cobb County (Vinings/ unincorporated Atlanta). But most areas around the metro are at least pretty low. Especially vs what you might be used to in the NE.

Sales tax varies from area to area, in the 6%-8% range. GA has yearly income tax, but it's reasonable.

I ate a delicious Poke Bowl for lunch, near the main village of my area. There are some at least somewhat walkable areas, kind of scattered about, in a metro that's mostly oriented around driving. With areas in-town like Midtown in Atlanta being more walkable and more busy and urban.

The climate is pretty great in general. 1,000 ft elevation (highest major city in the eastern U.S.) keeps the summer heat moderated a bit. This winter we got about 2 snow events, oddly early (in early December) and the big one brought about 4-5 inches of pretty snow to my area (after last few years of getting just flurries). North of me got more than that. And when it happened and I was walking around taking pictures, I was thinking that I like that it occasionally snows here so we get to occasionally see it and experience it as a rare treat, but also glad that it doesn't snow regularly here, because that stuff is just annoying.

Job opportunities are really great. Cost of living is low, especially considered to the NE and to other large cities. People are indeed generally very friendly. It's the south but it's not too southern at all. But, if you want to, you can have southern if you go out a bit to it. Like, go out to Covington GA where they shot the Vampire Diaries. (My lady friend watches that show- she dragged me out there. But it was cool)

Atlanta is near enough to both the Atlantic ocean and to the Gulf, uniquely located in that respect. You can get out there in a few hours. Also you can easily get up to the very scenic Appalachian Mountains in N GA and into NC. You can get up to Asheville NC which is awesome. You can also get over to Athens GA which is the quintessential cool college town.

I work in technology, but there are a lot of different job sectors. If you have skills and experience, it's easy around here to get a job, that pays well enough to live a comfortable life.

The politics are generally improving. Getting more moderate, less deep south. Atlanta's liberal/progressive.

Transit is going to be getting better across the region. They're at the beginning stages of addressing that now. Traffic along major expressways can be really bad at rush hours, but generally is not horrendous as they say. Live close to work. Live close to work. Live close to work. Can't stress that one enough.

Generally I really do love it here, and I'm planning to stay long term. I visited Seattle this year and loved what I saw of it out there, but the areas I liked were very to extremely expensive. Whereas Atlanta's a place where you can live in nice and desirable areas without being rich. Like my community which is near the river and near the city.

All things considered, it's really a great place to be. Let me know if you have any specific questions, I've lived around here all my life.

[JMatl]

Absolutely love it. One of my best friends moved here from Branford last year. She wishes she had done so years ago, and has no desire to go back at all. The only thing she misses is New Haven pizza.

[lorilove]

Back away from the computer - I think the more you look for bad feedback the more likely you are to find it - about any subject.

I typically find those that are not happy in Atlanta or any new city is because they really did not want to leave where they were from and anything that is different is wrong or makes them miserable.

Embrace the newness and differences and get out and explore what the city has to offer and all will be good.

I travel throughout the US for work and personal, and find there are nice people everywhere and a bad experience does not define an entire city.

[ATLTJL]

I think it really depends on where you are coming from and what you are looking for.

Keep in mind, when you look on the general internet, you are filtering for bad reviews. Most people don't say anything unless they have a complaint.

On the same note...this board filters for boosters that will rationalize anything about Atlanta just to make it seem great, including putting their heads in the sand and claiming traffic is not that bad. Yes, in a city famous around the country for it's awful traffic, there are actually people that try to discount this massive issue.

I have no idea what Connecticut is like. But what I can tell you is Atlanta is probably the LEAST southern of any city in this region. So that means you get a break from the Bible thumping antics of ultra-Christians, it also means people aren't as friendly as you might be expecting in the South.

I think much of how much you enjoy Atlanta depends greatly on two things:

1) How much money you have. This is a city that has enormous divisions between rich and poor. If you just look out of the window on MARTA on the way from the airport, all the way up to 5 Points I always think "I really can't believe THIS is Atlanta...what a s***hole!" But then when you get to certain parts of the city, life is really good! So it totally depends on where exactly you live and where you have to go for business.

2) How much you can avoid traffic. The absolute worst thing about Atlanta is how awful the traffic is. Don't let people who claim LA is worse or all cities have traffic fool you...Atlanta's traffic is WAY WORSE than a city this size should have, in my opinion. Often, there is simply NO WAY around it (believe me, I've tried). This again, boils down to money. Where your office is and how close to it you can afford to live are huge factors in how much you will enjoy the city.

I happen to work in a fantastic office with wonderful people who are smart, friendly, and normal. I left it for a few years and couldn't believe how many companies here are the opposite...full of awful people. I went back to my great company and never looked back. Choose wisely!!!

I've lived here for more than 20 years and have had all sorts of experiences from hating it to loving it, depending on my personal circumstances. This is a long topic for a totally different time, but I happen to feel like Atlanta is not developing in the way I hoped it would and I'm losing faith it's ever going to be the city it can and should be (that's just my opinion, plenty of people have an opposite feeling).

If I was looking to move to the South, I'd look to cities like Tampa, Nashville and Birmingham. BUT....if it was a decision just between Atlanta and Connecticut, I'd definitely pick Atlanta! So I think coming from where you are, you're going to have a positive experience. These are solely my opinions.

P.S. - nearby road trips are great, if you like mountains and nature. All the comments about the Appalachians are correct, lots of great waterfalls, trails, etc. nearby that are totally doable for a weekend or day trip. But don't be fooled about the Gulf coast. It is GORGEOUS, one of the best beaches in the world, quite literally. But it's 5.5 hours away. So that means you aren't just heading there for a random weekend. At the very least, you have to make it a 3-day weekend, though most people tend to go for more time than that.

You can also get anywhere from the airport. But the caveat is getting there and dealing with it takes so much time, I've often wondered if it's actually any faster than connecting from a nearby airport that is quick and easy to get through.

[Iconographer]

Yes, I love it. Well-adjusted people usually do.

[ATLTJL]

Incidentally, when deciding where to live, I certainly wouldn't argue with the mantra of live close to work. But there's a lot more to it than that.

For example, I drive 25 miles to work. Often, I make the first 23 miles in 20 minutes, but the last two miles takes 30 minutes or more. So I could move 23 miles closer to work, but all I'd really be cutting is 40 minutes of frustration free travel. Exactly WHERE you live is at least equally important to how far away it is when considering traffic and frustration factor.

[ATLTJL]

Well-adjusted people usually do.

Yes, all the people who don't simply love it are just poorly adjusted people.

Are you even for real?