Any affordable homes walking distance to Whole Foods? (Atlanta, Decatur: renting, neighborhoods)

[Atlantasfinest]

I think you can find what your looking for in West End If you look closely under 150K range...you might have to put some TLC into the house but it would be well worth it in the long run.

[emilybh]

When I lived in Boston I was actually living in Chestnut Hill and Wellesley Hills which were suburbs outside of Boston but connected via the T. So the "big" city was easily accessible without having to drive yet the towns themselves covered all the daily shopping needs with a Whole Foods right in Wellesley and plenty of all kinds of shopping in Chestnut Hill. The subway ride into Boston was about 5 or 10 minutes from Chestnut Hill, farther, maybe 15 or 20 mins from Wellesley. Is there anything like THAT in Atlanta?

[TakeAhike]

Originally Posted by emilybh

When I lived in Boston I was actually living in Chestnut Hill and Wellesley Hills which were suburbs outside of Boston but connected via the T. So the "big" city was easily accessible without having to drive yet the towns themselves covered all the daily shopping needs with a Whole Foods right in Wellesley and plenty of all kinds of shopping in Chestnut Hill. The subway ride into Boston was about 5 or 10 minutes from Chestnut Hill, farther, maybe 15 or 20 mins from Wellesley. Is there anything like THAT in Atlanta?

I'm not familiar with West End but from the previous posts it sounds like it would be a good match.

The City of Decatur would be similar to what you described. There might be condos or townhomes in your price range.

$100,000 homes would be more plentiful 30/40 miles from the heart of the city--in general. At least a 45 minute to an hour drive or more complex commute involving public transportation.

I would say Atlanta is 'more suburban' than the metro Boston area. We have a lot of strip malls and more than our share of Walmarts.

[DeaconJ]

Originally Posted by emilybh

When I lived in Boston I was actually living in Chestnut Hill and Wellesley Hills which were suburbs outside of Boston but connected via the T. So the "big" city was easily accessible without having to drive yet the towns themselves covered all the daily shopping needs with a Whole Foods right in Wellesley and plenty of all kinds of shopping in Chestnut Hill. The subway ride into Boston was about 5 or 10 minutes from Chestnut Hill, farther, maybe 15 or 20 mins from Wellesley. Is there anything like THAT in Atlanta?

Not in your price range there isn't anything like that...those places exist, but they are much more expensive than what you're looking for. Could you buy a house for $100,000 in those Boston suburbs?

The West End area is not a suburb...it's very near Downtown Atlanta and well connected by the West End MARTA station. But it's practically and inner-city neighborhood - not exactly where Whole Foods chooses to locate.

[floyd242]

Roswell might be a place to look, though you'll have to take a bus to get to the train. Holcomb Bridge Rd. is pretty well serviced and there's a park and ride at Mansell and 400... It's a beautiful area really... most of it anyway :P

[emilybh]

Well maybe I won't find walking distance to Whole Foods but how about under 5 miles driving? I found the West End thread which all sounds very positive with posts by people who moved there and some of the pictures of the homes look gorgeous. It reminds me of Kay St in Newport, RI architecture-wise. I guess I'll read that thread because from the sounds of it, it seems to meet most of my needs.

According to Walkscore.com, the eastern sections of it look like they are very walkable. Check out their map. Note the Green areas are the most walkable with yellow also being very walkable.
Atlanta's Most Walkable Neighborhoods - Walk Score Neighborhood Rankings

[TakeAhike]

Originally Posted by emilybh

Well maybe I won't find walking distance to Whole Foods but how about under 5 miles driving? I found the West End thread which all sounds very positive with posts by people who moved there and some of the pictures of the homes look gorgeous. It reminds me of Kay St in Newport, RI architecture-wise. I guess I'll read that thread because from the sounds of it, it seems to meet most of my needs.

According to Walkscore.com, the eastern sections of it look like they are very walkable. Check out their map. Note the Green areas are the most walkable with yellow also being very walkable.
Atlanta's Most Walkable Neighborhoods - Walk Score Neighborhood Rankings

I don't think you will have much luck finding homes in your price range/5miles from Whole Foods. The walkable areas are primarily ITP/Inside the Perimeter/285--at times Atlanta's highway system is compared to LA, DC and other major cities known for high volume traffic.

From time to time the Walkscore site has been discussed. Few of us found it to be reliable. I live near Emory University and there is a Whole Foods about 2 miles from my house. It would be ill advised to try and walk because the area includes North Druid Hills Rd which is a main route for those going east and west and north and south. That is not a great explanation but may give you some idea of what it's like.
I personally wouldn't live here without a car. FWIW.

ETA: Scroll down this thread to post #49 and read 'bizchik's' response--good FYI on ITP/intown areas.
Moving to ATL

I don't know if this bit of FYI will be helpful--
The Atlanta area was once farmland --acres of farms. Railroads were needed to transport food and other necessities to the outlying areas such as Marietta, Roswell, Norcross--northern sector. LOL--we have some posters who can do an excellent job of giving you an overview of the city's growth. There is much that I don't know or can't recall at the moment.

[TakeAhike]

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[Harmony642]

Originally Posted by Atlantasfinest

The area your referring too is West End...It's a nice neighborhood...tons of info on it here in this forum just use the search tool and walla!

In West End their are plenty of good local and organic restaurants and fast food if you desire. West End has it's own post office, pharmacy, mall, several grocery stores and is super conveinent to Interstate 20/75/85 and good street access into the city as well.

You can find some really nice houses at affordable prices as well from Bungalows to Victorian/Queen Anne Style houses.

It's not really close to Downtown Roswell but it has it's own Marta Rail Station (West End Station) which runs on the North/South Line and is GREAT!.

The neighborhood is mostly Black but their are a good amount of White Homeowners moving in and renovating houses and staying at the current time.

This comment is just uncomfortable to read. There are Black families moving into the neighborhood, buying and renovating as well as White families. If you are looking for a diverse community, with a growing population of White people, the West End does in fact offer this opportunity. But to simply state that it is "most black" with a growing number of white people/homeowners moving in renovating gives the impression that most of the blacks in the neigghborhood do not own their home, and have not maintain the upkeep on their property. The neighborhood is in close proximity to the Atlanta University Center, which draws from an international pool of well established black families. Many students gradaute a settle down in the neighborhoods surrounding the campus. In essence recognize that the are black professionals, with money and means to be good homeowners and are proud members of the West End neighborhood.

[gtcorndog]

Originally Posted by Harmony642

This comment is just uncomfortable to read. There are Black families moving into the neighborhood, buying and renovating as well as White families. If you are looking for a diverse community, with a growing population of White people, the West End does in fact offer this opportunity. But to simply state that it is "most black" with a growing number of white people/homeowners moving in renovating gives the impression that most of the blacks in the neigghborhood do not own their home, and have not maintain the upkeep on their property. The neighborhood is in close proximity to the Atlanta University Center, which draws from an international pool of well established black families. Many students gradaute a settle down in the neighborhoods surrounding the campus. In essence recognize that the are black professionals, with money and means to be good homeowners and are proud members of the West End neighborhood.

I work down at the AUC and I wouldn't consider living anywhere near there. But then again, some people like living amongst the stray animals, crack whores, and the guy who goes through your garbage when he isn't begging for money.

Oh yeah... and 4 of the most dangerous zip codes in the country are either in the west end, or border it. Yeah... great place to live

25 most dangerous neighborhoods 2010 - DailyFinance