Do you recommend Atlanta?? (Savannah, Forsyth: condos, crime, home)

[peanut33]

So I've heard the good, bad, and the ugly about Atlanta. In your opinion, do the good outweigh the bad or the other way around? Would you recommend this as a good place to live or would you say to look elsewhere?

[Northman]

Moved to Atlanta in '87. For me, the first 15 years were full of good, but after that the bad caught up and passed it. I left for good last June.

Depends what kind of life you're looking for as to wether I'd recommend Atlanta.

Snowbirds obviously love it for the weather, and so it's no suprise they make up a huge percentage of the population. Incredible springs, with majestic blooms everywhere. Autumns are also vey nice, although they take too long to arrive for my taste. Winters are mild, summers are pretty brutal - but not as bad as other southern states like Florida and Texas.

The roads are confusing, but well maintained compared to other parts of the country. Traffic is beyond your worst nightmare just about everywhere in the metro area now. This was one of the main reasons I left.

Mass transit sucks unless you are in the city itself, and even then it's second rate at best.

There's only one commercial airport, which is insane for a city of that size, and it's so big it could be considered a city itself - I personally hate going there.

The sports facilities are good. Turner Field and Philips Arena are two of the best in the nation. I hate the Georgia Dome's look, but it hosts a lot of big events. Out in Athens, Sanford Stadium is one of the premier college football settings in the country. Atlanta Motor Speedway is very popular also.

The music industry is huge there. A major hub for the hip hop scene - lots of variety besides that. Even Bruce Springsteen recorded his last couple CD's there if I'm not mistaken.

Atlanta's Fox Theater is my favorite place in the world to see a concert or show. A real gem.

Job market is always better than just about everywhere else. A very popular destination for business.

Very little in terms of water recreation. Two big reservoirs on the north side of town are polluted and full of red mud, which makes the water a poop brown color. Ocean is at least 4-5 hours away.

Crime is rampant in the city and has spread into the suburbs at an alarming rate the past 10 years. Another major reason I left.

Housing is cheaper than many other metro areas, but prices have risen dramatically - again, mostly within the past 5-10 years. The uncontrolled sprawl has led to developers sacrificing quality for quantity.

The sprawl itself........if you buy a home in the country anywhere near the metro area, don't expect it to be the country for long. Developers have already plowed over once beautiful areas like Cherokee, Cobb, Gwinnett, and Forsyth counties and have already started blowing up hillsides and knocking down trees in places like Pickens, Hall, Paulding, and Bartow counties. THE major reason I left.

Great city for nightlife. Lived in Buckhead for 3 years and loved it. Tons of skyscraping condos going up in town because of people like me that got sick of the suburban sprawl, but who want to stay in Atlanta.

Hope this helped you some.....

[plessthanpointohfive]

I live here and love it. It all depends on living in the right part of town to fit your lifestyle. Some people will never like Atlanta because it's not near a large body of water. Others, like me, don't care about that so much...

So, what do you like?

[LovinDecatur]

I'm probably not the most objective person to respond to this (I'm a native), but I've lived in:
Orlando
Miami
NY
and I always ended up wanting to move back to Atlanta...I like it here.

[staywarm2]

I think a lot of whether or not you'll like Atlanta depends upon your age. It seems young singles and younger families (early 40's & under) really like it here. We live in the suburbs and are surrounded by young families. We are in our 60's and dislike it here. We are only in Atlanta because our grandkids live here. Hardly anyone our age... Too many New Yorkers--unfriendly and rude.

It's very pretty here, though, especially in the North Georgia Mountains. The beauty of spring and fall in the Atlanta area is outstanding. Housing is very reasonable compared to most of the rest of the country. Try to live close to your job, if at all possible, to cut down on your commute. Otherwise, you'll spend a lot of your time caught in traffic.

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by peanut33

So I've heard the good, bad, and the ugly about Atlanta. In your opinion, do the good outweigh the bad or the other way around? Would you recommend this as a good place to live or would you say to look elsewhere?

I moved here in 1984 when Atlanta was a vastly different city than it is now. Back then I recommended to a lot of people that this was a nice place to move to - not realizing that I was contributing to what would evolve into Atlanta's growth/sprawl problem that we have today.

Today - no, I rarely recommend it. There are cases here and there where Atlanta seems to be a decent fit for a particular person, but overall I don't recommend it as a "nice place to live". That is, when comparing it to the nation and choices as a whole. Is it better than Savannah? Baton Rouge? Detroit? Sure. But there's a growing list of places that make Atlanta look rather sick, too. What other places fit you depends on who you are, though.

[EyesToTheSkies]

All cities have good and bad to contend with. I moved to Atlanta in 1988 and thought I would always move to a larger city once I'd seen and done everything Atlanta had to offer. 20 years later, I'm still here and loving every minute of it. Atlanta's grown with me and frankly I've had a hard time keeping up! Great opportunities for anyone who wants to make the most of a large city with some Southern charm still around to rubb off the rough edges. Great weather although very temperate... you actually have a change of seasons. Cheap flights to anywhere in the world. (Atlanta has the busiest airport in the world.) A great economy with a diverse industry base. Traffic can be a challenge, which is why it's important to choose your home and your work carefully to avoid traffic as much as possible. Great diversity and cultural opportunities to experience! Give it a try! You can always move somewhere else if it doesn't meet your expectations.