Relocating from DC to ATL - searching for homes (Atlanta: for sale, month-to-month)

[DCtoATL]

Hello all,

This is my first post after reading the forums for the past several months. There is certainly a lot of useful information on here!

My wife and I are relocating to Atlanta from Arlington, VA this summer. We sold our home in Arlington much quicker than expected and have found a 1BR apt in Arlington on a month-to-month basis. We are just waiting for some job issues to get resolved before we make the move.

I am driving our household goods down this weekend to be placed into Storage. For the short-term, we plan on staying with the In-laws in Buckhead until we find the house we want to buy. This is where I need some help...

My wife and I are in our late 20's. We don't have kids, but expect to start in the next 2 years. She will be working from home for her job based in DC. I will be working in either Lenox or Midtown (new Atlantic Station office buildings). We are seeking the following:

-Single Family Home
-3BR/2BA
-in-town neighborhoods (my wife grew up in Atlanta and loves VA-HI, Inman Park, etc.)
-20-30 minute commute MAX! (current DC commute is 1-1.5 hrs eahc way)
-walkable streets (safe too!)
-restaurants, shops, and parks within walking distance
-move-in condition (we don't have the time or money at this time to redo kitchens, baths, etc.)

Our price range is $300-$400K, although we could possibly go up to the $420-440K range if we had to stretch it

Can anyone provide any recommendations on neighborhoods, specific streets we should look at? We've driven through Little Five Points (I didn't like it too much), Poncey-Highlands (areas along Highland Ave were nice), and Decatur (cute, but a little further from jobs). We also have found several homes online in the Old 4th Ward, Inman Park, and Morningside/Druid Hills areas that were in our price range, but we don't know much about the areas/amenities we're seeking.

Thanks in advance!

Please no burbs!

[itellyouthetruth]

East Village Park is an affordable option for quality in-town living.

Close to The Atlanta Zoo, Grant Park, downtown and midtown

I used an agent that will give 1.5% back at closing when I purchased my investment property in this area.

Very good idea to have an Agent so they can act in your best interest.

Good Luck

[George Chong]

I love Inman Park! But of course, I am partial since I live in the neighborhood!

You might want to check the listings that you have that state that they are Inman Park, they may not actually be Inman Park.

How about Candler Park? Candler Park Neighborhood Organization | Welcome to your in-town hometown

[nature's message]

I'd recommend the following:

Inman Park
Grant Park
Kirkwood
Ansley Park
Edgewood
Candler Park
Cabbagetown
Midtown

You'll be close to a good amount of attractions. These include Piedmont
Park, Atlanta Zoo, Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola, Museum of High Arts, etc.

There are a good amount of MARTA rail stations if you are interested in using public transportation.

If you want to shop at chain stores, then you will have to drive about 30 minutes to Lenox/Phipps area. Likewise, there is always MARTA. Not as good as METRO in DC, but it's pretty reliable.

Hope this helps.

[IntownHomes247]

There's actually a house in Virginia-Highland available right now that would be in your budget (which is rare for Va-Hi). It's huge and pretty fabulous. The catch is that it's on Ponce de Leon Avenue catty-corner to the little shopping center where Plaza Drugs used to be for many years (Ponce @ Highland -- your wife probably knows where that is). It's a 5/2.5 and its priced at $415k! It's got a fenced backyard plus outdoor living areas and gated off-street parking. So if you'd like to be in the middle of things it might work. I'ts vacant -- the owners have been transferred and they've already lowered the price $20k from the original list just about a month ago. If you'd like to see pictures of it, let me know and I'll forward you the listing (it's not my listing).

Since you don't have any children yet and probably won't have "running around kids" for several years, it might work. You'll almost certainly not find another house that's as fabulous as this one, as big as this one, and in as good a neighborhood as this one (basically at the intersection of the Virginia-Highland, Druid Hills, Candler Park, and Poncey-Highland neighborhoods) for this price. So if being on a busy street basically across from a little shopping center isn't a deal-breaker, you might want to give it a look. If you want more info (or want to see it while you're in town this weekend) just PM me.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Is that the tall brick building with the flattish terra cotta tile roof? I thought that place was a law office? I've always noticed it and found there was a definite appeal to it.

[LovinDecatur]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

Is that the tall brick building with the flattish terra cotta tile roof? I thought that place was a law office? I've always noticed it and found there was a definite appeal to it.

I think it's a couple of doors down from that. I noticed a 'for sale' sign the other day. Cute house, busy street.

[LovinDecatur]

Originally Posted by DCtoATL

Decatur (cute, but a little further from jobs).

A Decatur to Midtown commute is not as bad as you might anticipate. I do it taking back roads in about 20 minutes. (North Decatur/E Rock Springs Rd). I think Decatur is just what you're looking for.

[IntownHomes247]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

I think it's a couple of doors down from that. I noticed a 'for sale' sign the other day. Cute house, busy street.

Correct. (But REALLY cute house.)

[IntownHomes247]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

A Decatur to Midtown commute is not as bad as you might anticipate. I do it taking back roads in about 20 minutes. (North Decatur/E Rock Springs Rd). I think Decatur is just what you're looking for.

I agree about Decatur but under $400k for a nice detached 3/2 is not very easy to find in much of the City of Decatur (like Great Lakes/Westchester, etc.) Of course it's not impossible. I sold an adorable 3/2 on Willow Lane for $320k in March, so it's possible -- just increasingly rare. For a wider selection of homes, they'll probably need to look away from the center of the city towards the Oakhurst area or to consider a townhome if they want to get close to the square unless they come across one of those really good deals.

I think the commute to Atlantic Station would be slightly easier than the more cross-town commute to Lenox but most days I don't think either would take much more than 30 minutes during rush hour (no more than 20-25 minutes outside of rush hour). It gets a bit longer from Oakhurst, though.