Where to buy? East Point v Sylvan Hills vs Unincorporated Dekalb

[equinox63]

Originally Posted by tarheel84

I'm up for a few jobs in Atlanta and want to buy a house when I relocate. I appreciate any input on the neighborhoods I plan to view homes in. The jobs are all located in downtown/midtown so I want to live closer in. My budget is $200k. I'm 33, gay, white, have decent street smarts. Looking for a single family home in an area that's safe and walkable. I know i'm priced out of pretty much all of east Atlanta. So i'm looking in the following areas:

- East Point (Conley Hills / Frog Hollow / Jefferson Park)
- College Park (Historic District)
- Sylvan Hills / Capitol View / Capitol View Manor
- Unincorporated Dekalb County just south of East Lake Golf Club

I want somewhere that is safe and walkable but that will also appreciate in value over time. Any input on the pros and cons of these would be appreciated.

This is where you should buy... in this order

1. Capital View/Sylvan Hills
2. Capital View Manor (depending on the home, Historic College Park could possibly trump this one)
3. Historic College Park
4. East Point
5. (I would probably avoid) Unincorporated DeKalb

Take it from someone who knows, I would choose the neighborhoods you listed in the City of Atlanta first and foremost. You are FAR more likely to get a better return on your investment. Just take a look at the values now. The value of that area is escalating quickly and unless something major happens with the economy, there are not any signs of it slowing down. In about 5 years, I think you will be VERY happy with a purchase in that area. Plus, it's the quickest commute to downtown/midtown, etc. (For better or worse) Capitol View/Sylvan Hills is smack dap in the midst of gentrification moreso than all the neighborhoods/cities you listed.

Second would be Historic College Park. A good solid investment in a good, solid historic home, in a good solid neighborhood, close to most of what Atlanta has to offer. East Point is in the same boat as College Park for the most part. But if you find a nice home in both areas, I would probably go with College Park. Historic College Park has a distinct difference from the somewhat less desirable "non-historic" parts. Whereas the great areas of East Point sort of subtly blend into the "not-so-great" areas.

If you can choose the other places, I would take Unincorporated DeKalb off the list. It is not necessarily a "bad" area. But I would say it's a bit stagnant. You may find a nice home and be close to things you like. But unless you are actually in East Lake, East Atlanta, Decatur, or Kirkwood, etc., I think you are more likely to slightly regret your purchase down the line (unless the City of Atlanta annexes it at some point). Similar to the Katie Kerr area near the City of Decatur, it's "almost" what you want, but not quite. And there is a huge difference (in value, schools, desirability, and appreciation) between the Atlanta and the unincorporated side of things... even if you are right across the street.

I hope this helps.

[Silvers2]

Georgia Crime Index City Rank

College park #1
East Point #6

[bu2]

Originally Posted by Silvers2

Georgia Crime Index City Rank

College park #1
East Point #6

I suspect a good part of that is due to crimes reported at the airport. That distorts the ratio of crimes to population as a lot of people flow through the airport.

[equinox63]

Originally Posted by Silvers2

Georgia Crime Index City Rank

College park #1
East Point #6

What this chart doesn’t take into account is the OP said that he is specifically looking at the College Park Historic District, not the rest of College Park. Also, like most cities, East Point is broken up into specific individual neighborhoods.

Would you avoid moving to Inman Park, Candler Park, Morningside or Virginia Highland based on the aggregate crime stats of the entire City of Atlanta (which would include Bankhead, the Bluff, etc)? Just sayin’

[JPD]

I just moved to East Point (Conley Hills) and love it. Home vales are already creeping up just in the time since we were first considering moving here, and there is a ton of renovation going on in the area. So prices will continue to go up, assuming there isn't a major downturn in the economy. Easy walking distance to MARTA and other amenities was a requirement for us, and East Point offers all that at a much lower price than you'll find in most other areas near MARTA stations.

We also considered College Park, but we were turned off by the fact that right behind the main street is block after block of empty parking lots and unused space. Such a depressing waste. College Park could be absolutely incredible if they expanded their downtown commercial district into this area and surrounded it with a bunch of houses or condos.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by tarheel84

- Unincorporated Dekalb County just south of East Lake Golf Club

I want somewhere that is safe and walkable but that will also appreciate in value over time. Any input on the pros and cons of these would be appreciated.

I really like that area south of East Lake but houses go mighty fast over there. I've looked at several of them and they were gone by the time I got a bid in.

[Clayton white guy]

1. The Downtown College Park Historic District (North of the airport, near Woodward Academy)

2, Capital View Manor (Tudor Revival more like Morningside than Virginia Highland in my opinion)

3. Jefferson Park area of East Point is really nice, too.

4, Sylvan Hills has GREAT BONES!

[tarheel84]

College Park is looking more and more appealing. Is airport/fly over noise an issue at all there? If so, does anyone know what areas get it the worst?

[evannole]

Originally Posted by tarheel84

College Park is looking more and more appealing. Is airport/fly over noise an issue at all there? If so, does anyone know what areas get it the worst?

All five runways are parallel to one another, running basically due east/west, and both arrivals and departures are routed pretty much straight in and straight out. Departing aircraft don't usually make a right or left turn for several miles after taking off, and final approach is a pretty long and straight as well. So just look at a map and see where the runways are... It's unlikely that you'd be in any flight paths unless you're pretty close to an imaginary vector coming straight out from one of the runways.

The only times areas like Historic College Park - near Woodward Academy, situated north of the airport and well out of any usual flight path - experience major aircraft noise is when there's a go-around. Certainly those happen daily, but it's not likely to be a significant, constant nuisance.