Thinking of relocating to Chattanooga, TN (East Ridge, Signal Mountain: for sale, crime rate, how much)

[CA to TN??]

I am presently living in Southern California, but am considering moving to Chattanooga, or a close surrounding community. My fiancee wants to move after we are married, he has a business partner there and want to move there permanently.

Having lived all my life in California (visiting Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Florida in the summer, on occasion), I would like to know what to expect in moving to the Chattanooga area of Tennessee. Can anyone tell me about the city? What is the best area to purchase a home? What is the price range on the homes in the lower crime rate area? I am an educator...What is the name of the nearest school district? And what are the natural disasters in that area that I need to know about and prepare for? What can I expect???

[Milo Bloom]

Chattanooga is a renaissance town. Lots of art and culture, and lots of old money there to back up the changes.

I know that a lot of former Californians have moved to Chatt, and love it. I have also heard it referred to as the San Francisco of the South. Some relatives of mine have lived there for decades and love it, but they are artsy-types.

Crime is about on par with any city of its size, and your home purchase will be guided by what you like as far as surroundings. There are beautiful places up on Signal Mountain, there are historic neighborhoods near the University, funky neighborhoods in East Ridge, and there are generic suburban developments out towards Ooltewah. Then there is the whole other issue of living in Ft Oglethorpe, GA and commuting across. But then you get to pay Georgia income taxes.

Every county (and some cities) around has a school system. The counties in TN/GA are a lot smaller than the counties in CA, so commuting two counties over to teach would only be a 30-40 minute drive in some cases. It's not the end of the world.

Natural disasters? In Chattanooga? The occasional ice storm, I guess. Also a really hot day might be considered a disaster.

[jkmewright]

I think Milo has just about got you covered but I am gonna toss in a bit myself. For our county schools check out www.HCDE.org this will have school info if you have children/teens and also employment info. Alot of our teachers work in GA for higher salaries and live in TN because we have no state income tax. GA schools that are close are Walker and Catoosa County. Good neighborhood and decent crime rates will cost you 80k+ depends on what you consider "nice" lol. What do you like? Urban, suburban? We have a great riverfront area w/a cool hip location to live in, we also have the mountains. I am sure we can steer you in the right direction.

[SPLIT]

C-T: Hello new neighbor. Maybe add better times ahead.. City is still growing for the better. Another year or two and the secret will be discovered by everyone. Housing can go between $100K and $2 million only a few miles apart, depending on VIEW or Deep waterfront. WWW.TRGT.org" view, and CLICK on white CITY-DATA logo upper left of this main page for more pictures.
Hamilton co is the large school district, and will also add the fast growing PRIVATE route here as many professional familys from North ALA and north of Atlanta,Ga enroll children here. Baylor Academy for example is one and you may search. Assume pay would be higher. Also trend for these high schools have 50% of students live On Campus or BOARD there. I had older post many pages down by now, but a much higher trend over the state avg to review , since you mentioned the EDUCATOR career. Mtns and water on all 3 sides of the city, so just pick your view. Also 9 days city festival early June "RiverBendFestival.com ... example of smart city leadership. Lots of churches here. Newspaper just added a DAILY Boomer article so region is marketed as a retiree/relocation hot spot.[IMG][/IMG]

[CA to TN??]

Thank you for your reply. This is very informative to me and I appreciate you for taking the time to give me such details about the city/town and the school systems there...Are the income taxes less in Georgia? And by how much? However, I do enjoy creating jewelry and other crafts as a hobby, so maybe I am an "artsy" person as well.

Originally Posted by Milo Bloom

Chattanooga is a renaissance town. Lots of art and culture, and lots of old money there to back up the changes.

I know that a lot of former Californians have moved to Chatt, and love it. I have also heard it referred to as the San Francisco of the South. Some relatives of mine have lived there for decades and love it, but they are artsy-types.

Crime is about on par with any city of its size, and your home purchase will be guided by what you like as far as surroundings. There are beautiful places up on Signal Mountain, there are historic neighborhoods near the University, funky neighborhoods in East Ridge, and there are generic suburban developments out towards Ooltewah. Then there is the whole other issue of living in Ft Oglethorpe, GA and commuting across. But then you get to pay Georgia income taxes.

Every county (and some cities) around has a school system. The counties in TN/GA are a lot smaller than the counties in CA, so commuting two counties over to teach would only be a 30-40 minute drive in some cases. It's not the end of the world.

Natural disasters? In Chattanooga? The occasional ice storm, I guess. Also a really hot day might be considered a disaster.

[jkmewright]

Originally Posted by CA to TN??

Are the income taxes less in Georgia? And by how much? However, I do enjoy creating jewelry and other crafts as a hobby, so maybe I am an "artsy" person as well.

We have a market on the weekends that you might consider being a vendor for if you want to sell your creations. It's called Chattanooga Market located downtown in the Cricket Pavillion. Each weekend we offer different music and artists. Alot of organic farmers bring in their foods as well as local artists. You may want to check it out for fun even if you do not care to be a vendor.

We have NO income tax here in TN. I am not sure what the GA tax rate is however I do know it's more than ours

[CA to TN??]

I did need this additional information. I did not know that TN has no state income tax, I interpreted Milo's message to mean that Georgia had a lower income tax to pay than Tennessee, but you have corrected my thinking and I appreciate the website information this will be extreemely helpful in obtaining a position. The house values I am looking toward are anywhere from the high $80's to the mid $100's, I have never lived in the mountains (I think it is a nice place to visit), I have always lived closer to the beach areas here in Calif. Thank you soo much!

Originally Posted by jkmewright

I think Milo has just about got you covered but I am gonna toss in a bit myself. For our county schools check out www.HCDE.org this will have school info if you have children/teens and also employment info. Alot of our teachers work in GA for higher salaries and live in TN because we have no state income tax. GA schools that are close are Walker and Catoosa County. Good neighborhood and decent crime rates will cost you 80k+ depends on what you consider "nice" lol. What do you like? Urban, suburban? We have a great riverfront area w/a cool hip location to live in, we also have the mountains. I am sure we can steer you in the right direction.

[CA to TN??]

Split, Thanks for all the website addresses, I will be checking them out and the price range on the houses is much appreciated. And of course the more the house costs the "better" the neighborhood?? The home you sent is beautiful, what is it's value...is it yours?

[CA to TN??]

jkmewright, The city sounds like it would be a good place to settle down. Having entertainment, a weekend marketplace, and beautiful surroundings. Thank you again for all your help and concern. I turly appreciate everyone for contacting me with such useful information.

[tampa-chrissie]

It sounds like you got most of your answers. We moved from Tampa to Chattanooga last year (and then back to Tampa but that's another story). In looking for school for our son we found that private schools are very popular and affordable. You might want to look into some of them.

We have a house for sale in East Ridge/Belvoir area. PM me if you would like info on it.

Good luck to you.