Is Marietta a good place to live? (Atlanta, Sandy Springs: house, neighborhoods)

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by MisterNY

I'd like to hear reasons why Dunwoody over Cobb (I'm also surprised you didn't do a city vs city comparison, you did city vs County ).

I'm asking because Marietta is one of my choices too (thinking of Kennesaw too ).

Where to avoid? I will be going with my realtor in a few days to look at houses. Where to avoid, since you seem to know. Thanks.

RCSteiner, Neil0331, and Mceis, I'd like to hear from you guys too.

All in all, Cobb is a well run county. Taxes are lower than just about anywhere else in the metro area, and you get responsible government and a great school system for your money. Dunwoody is now a city, but you still pay the Dekalb sales tax and the schools are still run by Dekalb County.

Having said all that, if you work in Dunwoody or need to be close to MARTA to commute, then Dunwoody is a good choice. It's a nice community, but since we had no need to be near either Dunwoody or MARTA, we chose Cobb.

Many of the people making statements about Cobb have some kind of politically based bias and perceive that everyone in Cobb is a fundamentalist racist and we all drive Hummers to/from our "McMansions." If you're lifestyle is more urban, then neither Dunwoody nor Marietta is probably the best choice. Dunwoody isn't much different from Marietta, except for the proximity to MARTA. Both are suburban with middle to upper middle class demographics.

[MisterNY]

Originally Posted by neil0311

All in all, Cobb is a well run county. Taxes are lower than just about anywhere else in the metro area, and you get responsible government and a great school system for your money. Dunwoody is now a city, but you still pay the Dekalb sales tax and the schools are still run by Dekalb County.

Having said all that, if you work in Dunwoody or need to be close to MARTA to commute, then Dunwoody is a good choice. It's a nice community, but since we had no need to be near either Dunwoody or MARTA, we chose Cobb.

Many of the people making statements about Cobb have some kind of politically based bias and perceive that everyone in Cobb is a fundamentalist racist and we all drive Hummers to/from our "McMansions." If you're lifestyle is more urban, then neither Dunwoody nor Marietta is probably the best choice. Dunwoody isn't much different from Marietta, except for the proximity to MARTA. Both are suburban with middle to upper middle class demographics.

Thank you. That's all I wanted; a well thought out and well written post.

Like every sensible family man, I'm looking for a great area to live in, near my kids' future school (and good schools period); an area not too far from my wife's workplace, middle to upper middle class demographics, (that's not too far from the airport), and has many amenities one could hope for.

Now, my question is: What areas in Cobb should one avoid altogether? (Zip codes (if applicable), commnunities, subdivisions to avoid, if any).

What areas come highly recommended? Anyone know of older established, well maintained neighborhoods, with plenty of space?

Another worry I had was flooding, and tornadoes. I remember a few months ago, plenty of areas in Cobb were flooded. Anyone care to help me find flood zone maps information?

[RainyRainyDay]

Originally Posted by MisterNY

Thank you. That's all I wanted; a well thought out and well written post.

Like every sensible family man, I'm looking for a great area to live in, near my kids' future school (and good schools period); an area not too far from my wife's workplace, middle to upper middle class demographics, (that's not too far from the airport), and has many amenities one could hope for.

Now, my question is: What areas in Cobb should one avoid altogether? (Zip codes (if applicable), commnunities, subdivisions to avoid, if any).

What areas come highly recommended? Anyone know of older established, well maintained neighborhoods, with plenty of space?

Another worry I had was flooding, and tornadoes. I remember a few months ago, plenty of areas in Cobb were flooded. Anyone care to help me find flood zone maps information?

MisterNY, since you're not the OP on this thread (but they're probably long gone), it's not clear whether or not the commute-to-Dunwoody aspect is relevant to you. You mention your wife's workplace, and the airport. In order to make some recommendations of areas in Cobb that might be suitable for you, I think we need to know:

1. Where is your wife's workplace?
2. If you also commute to a workplace, where is that?

You've asked for negative suggestions (areas in Cobb to avoid) but I think most people will be reluctant to offer any, or will at least find it easier to make positive suggestions, based on your stated preferences and needs. Can you name a budget? That makes a big difference. There are "older established, well maintained neighborhoods, with plenty of space" that are likely way above your price range, unless you have upwards of a million dollars to spend on housing. And of course, if you do have that kind of money, you probably won't be interested in neighborhoods in the $300K to $400K range that also fit that description.

I think the major flooding in Cobb was all in Austell and Powder Springs. (I hope someone will correct me if that's incorrect).

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by RainyRainyDay

I think the major flooding in Cobb was all in Austell and Powder Springs. (I hope someone will correct me if that's incorrect).

The flooding in Cobb was all over the place, but the "major" events were perhaps mostly in the far southcentral and southeast areas. Sweetwater Creek in Austell and by Six Flags (where I-20 flooded) and the Chattahoochee River around the Vinings and southeastern corner of Cobb (where I-285 flooded) may have been the two worst, but those are fairly low-level areas anyway.

It's hard to generalize the impact, tho. I live in southeastern Cobb in Mableton not far from Nickajack Creek, for example, and there were no impacts at all that I could see along that creek or anywhere in our area except for a lot of water moving along the road into the drain pipes as designed. However, what were arguably the worse areas in the whole county were roughly 3-5 miles to the west (Austell), east (Vinings), southeast (I-285), and south (Six Flags) of us. All of the areas I saw were directly adjacent to a river or stream which flooded.

FWIW, some meteorologists have called what happened in Douglas County (just west of and upstream from Cobb County) to cause the Sweetwater flood a 10,000 year event ... over 20 inches of rain fell in less than 48 hours (16.7 in 24 hours). There is no prior history of anything close to that happening in north Georgia. If I can find the quote, I'll post a link.

davis|cognizance | Bradley Davis' Blog: 10,000 Year Event (http://www.bradleysdavis.com/2009/11/10000-year-event.html - broken link)

I also know I've seen FEMA maps and road closure maps for the area. If I can find links, I'll post them, but if you use a home inspector and a house that you're interested in wasn't flooded in 2009, chances are good it will never flood.

FEMA Map Service Center - FEMA Issued Flood Maps
Major flood events in metro Atlanta | Map | ajc.com
Road closings due to flooding in metro Atlanta | Map | ajc.com

[MisterNY]

Originally Posted by RainyRainyDay

MisterNY, since you're not the OP on this thread (but they're probably long gone), it's not clear whether or not the commute-to-Dunwoody aspect is relevant to you. You mention your wife's workplace, and the airport. In order to make some recommendations of areas in Cobb that might be suitable for you, I think we need to know:

1. Where is your wife's workplace?
2. If you also commute to a workplace, where is that?

You've asked for negative suggestions (areas in Cobb to avoid) but I think most people will be reluctant to offer any, or will at least find it easier to make positive suggestions, based on your stated preferences and needs. Can you name a budget? That makes a big difference. There are "older established, well maintained neighborhoods, with plenty of space" that are likely way above your price range, unless you have upwards of a million dollars to spend on housing. And of course, if you do have that kind of money, you probably won't be interested in neighborhoods in the $300K to $400K range that also fit that description.

I think the major flooding in Cobb was all in Austell and Powder Springs. (I hope someone will correct me if that's incorrect).

Sorry for taking away the OP's thread.

But to answer the questions,

My wife's job is near Buckhead. (Piedmont Hospital).
I have my business, and I travel quite a bit (now between FL & GA) (hence proximity to the airport being important, once I'm settled here)

We're looking at a max of $350k (house), but if we can find better deals, why not? We're not looking for mansions or anything of that sort (Our price range clearly indicates that ). I need to elaborate that older to us means something built in the 80s, and in good condition, not run down areas. Houses sold around that time had more yard space than most new subdivisions. We don't want to be too close to neighbors, and as hard as it may seem, we're leaning toward subdivisions with HOAs vs non HOAs.

(Double edge-sword for many, but a must have. We've seen the difference between non-HOA vs HOA, and usually the HOA subdivisions from our experience, have always been in better condition).

If there's an area people would like to "not" recommend, I'm still all ears. I just want to hear truths, P-C or not. But, as you stated, recommendations make just as much, if not more sense. Does anyone have pictures of the areas, if possible? That would be a bonus.

[RainyRainyDay]

If your wife works at Piedmont Hospital and you need to fly a lot, I think you should take Kennesaw right off your list. The Smyrna/Vinings area in Cobb County might be OK - it has pretty good access to the airport. Dunwoody might be better for your wife's commute, and allow you to take MARTA to the airport. I don't know these areas personally, so I hope someone else will have some more specific ideas for you.

[rcsteiner]

Google Maps can provide some fairly good visuals. Just use the street View and look around.

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by RainyRainyDay

If your wife works at Piedmont Hospital and you need to fly a lot, I think you should take Kennesaw right off your list. The Smyrna/Vinings area in Cobb County might be OK - it has pretty good access to the airport. Dunwoody might be better for your wife's commute, and allow you to take MARTA to the airport. I don't know these areas personally, so I hope someone else will have some more specific ideas for you.

Agree that Smyrna and Vinings have good access to the airport, but I live in West Cobb (Marietta near Kennesaw) and access to the airport is fine as well. You actually have multiple routes to use, unlike some other areas like Dunwoody or Alpharetta.

Off hours, I can take I-75 through town and it takes about 30 to 40 minutes. If there's traffic on I-75, then I can take Barrett Pkwy (E-W Conn), South Cobb Dr, or Atlanta Rd and take I-285 to the airport. Worst case in rush hour has been 60 minutes to the airport. Best case has been about 25 min in the late evening.

[RainyRainyDay]

That's good info about airport access from the west side of Marietta. However, I'd be concerned that MisterNY's wife would have too long a commute to Piedmont Hospital from your area, no? In my opinion, they have options that would give her a significantly shorter commute.

[brownhornet]

Originally Posted by neil0311

Please cite a source to support this assertion. The police in Cobb don't put up with crime or criminals, no matter what race. So is your definition of racism is the fact that cops arrest criminals who happen to be minorities?

Well I can cite THREE incidents MYSELF living in Cobb from how big of jackasses the police out here can be. I'm not going to derail the thread but I definitely wont disagree with his statement either.