Too poor for a house, need a good apartment (Atlanta: for sale, apartment complexes)

[pdadda]

After my second trip down to Atlanta looking for a house to buy, I think I have given up. My wife and I have really fallen in love with the Oakhurst area. We have a kiddo that will be starting kindergarten and another on the way, so we are ideally looking for a 3 bedroom, or maybe a 2 bedroom with some extra we could make-shift as the nursery. The challenge is that for about a year, we will be relying solely on my income, which will only be ~$38,000. In a year, it may be double that or more. We want our child to go to either Oakhurst or Winnona Park Elementary, so it looks like we are down to looking at apartments for a year and then hopefully buying a place.

So.....are there any good apartment complexes you know of that are zoned for Oakhurst? Our budget is $1500/month or less. If not, what about Winnona Park? I have been looking online, but it is slow going. Any places we should avoid like the plague? Thanks in advance.

[jetgraphics]

You may be just "poor enough" to buy a home under the USDA Rural housing program.
See this map of eligible areas:
Eligibility Map for Housing Program (http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/ga/eligmap.htm - broken link)


They have several programs available. You can even get a mortgage to build a NEW home. Some are interest subsidized, so that you will pay far below market rate. Others are at market rate. And the requirements are adjusted for each county, so you might qualify in one but not in another county.

CAVEAT : You can only become eligible for a mortgage in ONE office / district at a time. So don't try applying in multiple areas.

[Iconographer]

I see For Rent signs in the city of Decatur, but they don't stay up for long, especially with Emory and Agnes Scott nearby.
My neighbor just moved in with her girlfriend and put her house up for rent...no marketing, just stuck a sign in the yard. By the next weekend, it was leased.
There are prewar apartment buildings scattered around downtown Decatur that look pretty charming; the management companies look to be pretty small-time, so they wouldn't likely be showing up in the regular search channels. I would take a walk and see what's what. Look on:
Ponce DeLeon Court off E. Ponce de Leon (So cool!)
Candler Av between Sycamore and Howard (across from the Rec Center)

I think this is the mgmt co that handles a lot of the rental properties in Decatur and other intown neighborhoods.

Braden Fellman

[genki]

I agree, the signs don't stay up long in Oakhurst. We jumped at one listed at $1800 2 years ago, by the time I saw the place after 3 days on the market, 7 other people had already seen it. As far as apartments in Oakhurst/Winnona Park, some of them seem a little sketchy to me so be careful. Clairemont elem. district might have some higher quality rentals.

I would go the normal channels, craigslist, etc. and keep checking the MLS via harrynorman.com or prudential. I have also seen some of the for sale properties in Oakhurst convert to rentals/lease options b/c of the market so that could be an option.

FYI, On the north end of the city of Decatur is an area called Medlock - I am hearing good things about the school (Medlock elementary) and rents are much cheaper there than inside the city limits. Mostly 1950s ranch homes, close to Emory/Decatur.

[genki]

PS - FYI I have heard there is a waitlist for kindergarten at Oakhurst this year but they are considering adding a class if they can justify it...so I would recommend registering as soon as you are able to.

[pdadda]

OK, we are now also OK with Mary Lin or Morningside elementary (Fernbank as well), and our budget has dropped to $1300/month or less (including utilities). Any more appartment suggestions (or house rentals) where I won't have to worry about my family during the day?

I am in North Carolina now, but I will be driving to Atlanta this weekend for another search.

[lastminutemom]

pdadda

Remind me, where will you be working?

Also, once you are able to buy a home, do you have a sense of what your budget will be for that?

[plessthanpointohfive]

Don't worry about wait-lists for kindergartens...they don't exist. If you're zoned for a school then your child will have a spot. It's pre-K that there may be a wait-list, etc.

You can get a 2/1 in the Mary Lin district for your price range...I rented one for 1200/month before I bought my house.

Craigslist is your best bet...

Use this map to make sure a house is actually in Mary Lin or Morningside:

Atlanta Public Schools

I don't know if Decatur or Dekalb have similar maps available...

[Iconographer]

pdadda,

I DM'd you about a rental in my neighborhood...thought you might want to get a jump on it, since the weekend will bring out a lot of lookers.

[pdadda]

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

pdadda

Remind me, where will you be working?

Also, once you are able to buy a home, do you have a sense of what your budget will be for that?

I will be working at Emory. If we buy a home in a year, I think we would look in the $250-300K.