The "other" Decatur... what's the difference? (Atlanta, Druid Hills: real estate, rent)

[fierce_flawless]

Okay, I've been reading and reading about Decatur and the general consensus seems to be that one should stay in the City Of, limited to 30030.

What's the difference in this Decatur vs. the "other"?

I mean, obviously house prices are a huge difference. LOL. Other than that, why would one not want the "other" Decatur? Is it lacking quite a bit?

As I've posted on another thread in the General US forum, we're a lesbian couple with kids and we are interested in Decatur (because of it's GLBT population and apparent family/charming qualities) but unless we both go to law school or med school then I don't see how in the heck we could ever afford a home in Decatur proper.

What's the other Decatur like? Diverse? Safe (reasonably)? Is it just the school thing that makes 30030 so desirable or is it a general vibe/culture/environment thing? Just wondering because there seem to be plenty of affordable homes in the 30032 and other Decatur zips.

Thx.

[plessthanpointohfive]

If you live in the other Decatur north of the city then that's a real fine area. The streets off Memorial Drive are becoming popular with young families because it's affordable.

[fierce_flawless]

Thanks. Let me squeeze in another question: where are all the old houses? Are there any in the affordable areas? I was looking on realtor.com and craigslist and everything affordable is newer than 1940-1950... we have a 1915 cottage right now and would prefer another turn of the century (or older) home, or something at least pre-1940. Are they in existence?

[George Chong]

There are plenty of older homes but not in the "other" Decatur. Those neighborhoods were not established in the early 1900's. Obviously what drives up real estate prices are location and/or school systems.

Older neighborhoods: Inman Park, Grant Park, Winnona Park, Candler Park are just a few of the older ones in the City of Atlanta. Inman Park was the first planned community in Atlanta and we have many Victorians. The neighborhood was created because of its proximity to downtown Atlanta.

[lastminutemom]

If you give us your price range and your housing minimums (ie number of bedrooms, etc), we can maybe be more help.

If you look outside the city of Decatur, anything that isn't Lakeside or Druid Hills High school should probably be avoided.

[MiriL]

I live outside Decatur (east, near Avondale) and we get the advantages of the family-friendly, diverse, progressive vibe without the good schools or the high Decatur city taxes. Depending on your priorities, there are neighborhoods outside the city limits that are great. That said, there aren't many older homes at all that I can think of. If you want a well-kept, old home intown, it's going to cost you a chunk.

[fierce_flawless]

Thanks all.

If there are good Charter schools we'd utilize that option. I was kind of intrigued by the International Community School. We have never had the kids in public school here in Texas.. it's always been private or charter. We could consider private also if our house was cheap enough, but then there is the driving issue, and I don't know how far these things are from each other and have heard all about the Atlanta traffic so I don't know if charter schools would be a realistic option.

Of course we'd rent for a while anyway to get a feel for things.

As for price range... I'm figuring up to 140k? This move wouldn't be for a few years though, and I don't know what that will mean in a few years and that's a conservative estimate based on what I assume I'll be making then, and it's also based on one income only. We bought our current house based on the same formula so that if either of us is out of work we can still survive, and it's worked out well, so we don't want to venture into 2-income mortgage territory.

We'd need a 3 bedroom, but that can also (in the case of older homes especially) be any 2 bedroom with extra room that could be used creatively (i.e. a finished basement, a converted attic, great room, formal dining)... it always depends on the floor plan but we have seen tons of houses (when we were shopping for this one) listed as a 3 bedroom that could easily be a 4, or a 2 that could be a 3, etc. For example, in our current home we use a separated parlor as a bedroom and use a different main entry and while it's not ideal it works to give us the space we need and otherwise this room would just be a "library" or something anyway.

We don't have to have an old house. We could always make do then look for an old house after the kids are grown or when we have more money.

Thanks, MiriL, that's one thing I wanted to know but didn't convey well.. about losing the "vibe".

[lastminutemom]

How old are your kids? It sounds like they aren't young... is that a good assumption?

[fierce_flawless]

They are 16, 10, and 5. By the time we moved the eldest will be out of school and the next would probably be between 13 and 15 with the youngest between 8 and 10.

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by fierce_flawless

Thanks all.

If there are good Charter schools we'd utilize that option. I was kind of intrigued by the International Community School. We have never had the kids in public school here in Texas.. it's always been private or charter. We could consider private also if our house was cheap enough, but then there is the driving issue, and I don't know how far these things are from each other and have heard all about the Atlanta traffic so I don't know if charter schools would be a realistic option.

Of course we'd rent for a while anyway to get a feel for things.

As for price range... I'm figuring up to 140k? This move wouldn't be for a few years though, and I don't know what that will mean in a few years and that's a conservative estimate based on what I assume I'll be making then, and it's also based on one income only. We bought our current house based on the same formula so that if either of us is out of work we can still survive, and it's worked out well, so we don't want to venture into 2-income mortgage territory.

We'd need a 3 bedroom, but that can also (in the case of older homes especially) be any 2 bedroom with extra room that could be used creatively (i.e. a finished basement, a converted attic, great room, formal dining)... it always depends on the floor plan but we have seen tons of houses (when we were shopping for this one) listed as a 3 bedroom that could easily be a 4, or a 2 that could be a 3, etc. For example, in our current home we use a separated parlor as a bedroom and use a different main entry and while it's not ideal it works to give us the space we need and otherwise this room would just be a "library" or something anyway.

We don't have to have an old house. We could always make do then look for an old house after the kids are grown or when we have more money.

Thanks, MiriL, that's one thing I wanted to know but didn't convey well.. about losing the "vibe".

Charter schools are public schools.