College Park/East Point/Forest Park (Atlanta, Fayetteville: apartment complexes, houses, safe area)

[xxman777]

Personally I think you would be happier in Midtown but if you have decided that isn't the place for you try farther south in places like Stockbridge or McDonough.

[Figment 07]

Are there any areas in Atlanta where you can get a 2BR apt for around $600-$700 or is that out of the question? It seems as if the apts in nice areas are around $1000. I'll be just starting out, so I won't be able to afford those kinds of prices right now. Thanks

DownSouthDiva, here are six pages of apartments in the North Atlanta/Sandy Springs/Dunwoody area, some of which actually start at the high $500s:

http://tinyurl.com/38dxz6 (broken link)

(I recognized only a few of them, but you can always search reviews online, then narrow them down and ask for more opinions here.) Some I have seen:

Gables Metropolitan over by Perimeter Mall is new and looks great from the street. Starting at $785, that would be a great location if you work anywhere around Dunwoody or Perimeter Center just outside (and north) of I-285.

The Stratford on Glenridge is gated and in a good location near the Marta station (close by "Pill Hill" at Northside and Saint Josephs hospitals and medical professional buildings).

I was very surprised to see Post Riverside starting at $740. I’ve enjoyed dining at The River Room restaurant which is on the Post Riverside Town Square, a nice little mixed-use development. I remember walking around looking at the shop windows after dinner and I felt safe doing that. It is located up a hill off Northside Parkway not too far south of the Cumberland Mall/Cobb Galleria area.

[jjordan]

Originally Posted by BonitApplebum

Hi everyone.. I'm new to the Atlanta area and will be working in East Point and going to school in Morrow. I'm from the suburbs of the North East.

I'm noticing that the areas on the Southside of town seem to be unsafe and I'm a single female in her mid-twenties. I don't want a long commute to work and school. So, although mid-town sounds great, the traffic and commute would be rather burdensome.

I want a place that feels safe to be able to jog and walk my teacup pet. Can I find such a place on the southside to rent?

Where would you recommend?

Why not Morrow ? There are plenty of "garden-style" apartments all around the city.

And the comments regarding East Point/College Park are hilarious. Gentrification is "taking too long" ? Hardly. Rugby Ave wouldn't be out of place in Va-Hi and it's only going to get better with the cities starting to take advantage of their location adjacent to Hartsfield-Jackson. Anyone who thinks these areas won't be resurgent and vibrant are sorely mistaken. And whoever said Forest Park isn't diverse, what are you talking about ?

As of the census of 2000, there were 21,447 people, 6,845 households, and 4,839 families residing in the city. The population density was 882.8/km² (2,287.5/mi²). There were 7,233 housing units at an average density of 297.7/km² (771.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 45.11% White, 37.39% African American, 0.50% Native American, 5.98% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 8.56% from other races, and 2.45% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 20.15% of the population.

It's one of the most diverse areas in the entire metro area and it's adjacent to middle class Lake City and Riverdale where are a new semi-upscale Super H Mart just opened, only the second in the metro.

The uninformed should, uhh, inform themselves.

[sprtsluvr8]

The negative comments about E.P. and C.P. are insane, but it's a common occurence in this forum and a common misconception in North metro Atlanta. People have "heard" these crime stories, and they love to throw them out to possible future residents. My area in E.P. and Morningside had the same developer back in the 20's-40's, so you can imagine that it has a similar look and would fit perfectly there. Same with Rugby Ave, College Ave and several streets in C.P. As a resident it offends me to hear silly comments about the ghetto...that "ghetto" is where I live and if it were a ghetto it would be okay BUT IT'S NOT. I just wanted to support jjordan's comments.

[Loiyan]

Originally Posted by sprtsluvr8

The negative comments about E.P. and C.P. are insane, but it's a common occurence in this forum and a common misconception in North metro Atlanta. People have "heard" these crime stories, and they love to throw them out to possible future residents. My area in E.P. and Morningside had the same developer back in the 20's-40's, so you can imagine that it has a similar look and would fit perfectly there. Same with Rugby Ave, College Ave and several streets in C.P. As a resident it offends me to hear silly comments about the ghetto...that "ghetto" is where I live and if it were a ghetto it would be okay BUT IT'S NOT. I just wanted to support jjordan's comments.

I love reading your posts, you definitely give me something to think about. That said...can you tell me of some specific areas to take a look at in South Fulton, especially College Park, East Point, the areas closer to the city. Fairburn is still a little to underdeveloped for me right now, although I am sure it will grow quickly. I know you have mentioned before that a lot of the crime is actually in the unincorporated areas of these cities. What are the streets, neighborhoods in EP and CP that I would give me a good since of the area? Also, what schools (elementary and middle) would be good to take a look at and apply to, I have already applied to Fulton, Dekalb, Cobb, Decatur City Schools and Gwinnett, but I have only sent resumes to 4 schools in Dekalb, several in Cobb and a few in Gwinnett because of all the things I have heard, read about the South end of Atlanta. But I want to take another look. Its been over 10 years since I have visited College Park, unless you count Camp Creek parkway, the new Pulte subdivision, the HUGE one next to the Publix and Target mall. Is that the main area? Are there any nice older homes, closer to downtown College Park? Where is your community located, or ones like it? Older homes are good, prefer under 250k, for a 4/3, willing to take 3/2 though if it gets me closer to the city. I also have a small child, so parks and daycares are necessary, and I would love to be within 30 minutes of the Aquarium, Zoo on a Sunday afternoon. Any info would be appreciated and thanks for the "other side" of info.

[sprtsluvr8]

The schools in East Point are Fulton County, so it sounds like you have it covered already. There are some City of Atlanta schools very near my house also because the two boundaries run together and are all jagged...you never know whether you're in E.P. or Atlanta...

The only areas I'm very familiar with in E.P. are the two historic districts I mentioned, Conley Hills and Jefferson Park. Both neighborhoods are nice and I'm pretty sure there are some houses for sale, at least around Conley Hills where I live. Some of the streets in my area are Kimmeridge, Neely, Thompson, Montrose, Semmes, Linwood, Dorsey, and couple of others. In J. Park there is Jefferson Ave, Jefferson Terr, Bayard, Constance, Winburn, Spencer, Batavia, etc. and Tri-Cities High School is just on the edge of J. Park.

In College Park some of the nice streets to look for are Rugby, Cambridge, Victoria, College, Park, and Mercer...in that area. Then also in C.P. is the area around Woodward Academy, which just on the other side of Main Street from the Rugby St. area....and several of the streets I just listed cross Main St. and are in the Woodward area too. It's really nice and, along with the older restored homes, there is a good bit of new construction that is designed to fit the neighborhood (so, it looks old).

Some websites that might be helpful for you:

http://www.eastpointneighbors.com/ - includes links to a few neighborhoods in E.P. including Conley Hills and Jefferson Park, and also churches, schools, government info, and other community stuff. **This one has a lot of good info and links**

http://www.campcreekmktplace.com/ - Camp Creek Marketplace is 5-10 minute drive from either city, and it's address is East Point. There are about 100 stores there and the center is less than 2 years old. It's very convenient.

http://www.geocities.com/eastpointhistory/web.html - E.P. Historical Society

http://www.eastpointcity.org/ - official City of East Point website

If you do a search on Yahoo.com for College Park you'll get realtors, property for rent, etc. in addition to the City of College Park website. Let me know if I can help in some other way. I don't mind.

[sprtsluvr8]

The zoo is 10 minutes from my house, and so is the aquarium...maybe 10-15 minutes depending on traffic and time of day. There is the East Point Marta station and the College Park station, which is how I would travel to the aquarium or anywhere else downtown, midtown, lenox/buckhead, perimeter, airport...about anywhere convenient to a station. I'm too lazy to walk more than a few blocks unless I'm forced to, but most everywhere downtown is easily walkable from a station.

[backfist]

Nice looking homes in the Jefferson Park neighborhood. Thanks for posting the link, sprtsluvr8.

[sprtsluvr8]

No problem. I know I sound like a huge advocate for the area but I'm really not...I just feel a need to help people see a different side of the issue sometimes, especially one like E.P. and the nice, liveable areas located here. I can't sit back and read posts where people trash the area without at least attempting to educate them with honest answers...

[backfist]

Having lived much of my adult life in and around Denver, I should know better than to judge an area by somebody else's perception. Opinion was always that the east side of Denver was the high crime/low rent part of town, when in reality there were parts of east Denver that I would've given anything to live in.