Northern Ga or South TN (Chattanooga, Dunlap: sales, motorhome, employment)

[Looking4Chg]

Hello everyone, We are going to be visiting North Ga and South TN in mid July. Can anyone give me there opinion on what areas would be the best for a possible move. My DH and I are looking to move around those areas. We have a middle school age child, so schools are important. I homeschool now and will possibly to entering him in school when we make the move. Jobs are not so important at this time. We will both have taken early retirement and not in need for employment as of yet.

We are looking for pros and cons of both areas. i.e. taxes, state tax, personal taxes.

In GA, we were going to make a trip around Dallas, Acworth, Cartersville.
In TN, possible around Chattanooga, Soddy Daisy, Dunlap.

Any info would be greatly appreciated. We are in Florida now. I have no complaints. We would just like to enjoy the 4 seasons and possible snow. We have both lived here for about 40 years and would like a nice change.

Thank you for any input that you can give us. Both good and bad.

[dasmarian]

The towns you listed are all remarkably different. Acworth is close to Atlanta and will offer you a quick trip to a big city and lots of services and also lots of traffic. Cartersville is more of a highway town and while it is getting suburban sprawl it is still a fairly long trip from Atlanta with few restaurants and stores other than some chains. Chattanooga is a mid sized city with decent amenities and a lot to offer for its size (especially if you are outdoorsy), but it isn't Atlanta in regard to services, shopping etc. Soddy Daisy is very small, about 20 mins N or Chattanooga, and is fine if you are looking for a rural community. So each fits a niche.

TN doesn't have income tax. GA does, but TN's sales tax is 3% higher than GA.

Public schools in Chattanooga aren't too good, but offers excellent private schooling.

[GeorgiaPeach08]

Make sure to check out Ringgold,GA (N.Georgia). We live in a neighborhood called Windstone. It's the number one golf course in the area plus it's a beautiful gated community. Lots of families and 1/2 neighborhood is TN and the other is GA. I love that Ringgold is a small town with great schools, only 20 minutes to downtown Chattanooga. Another plus is that we are only 10-15 minutes from Hamilton Place Mall. We relocated from the mid-west and looked all over N.GA and TN. Windstone was above and beyond. Most homes are in the $300+ range but with the economy there are two or three homes priced from $199-$269? Good Luck!

[JamesO3572]

Originally Posted by Looking4Chg

Any info would be greatly appreciated. We are in Florida now. I have no complaints. We would just like to enjoy the 4 seasons and possible snow. We have both lived here for about 40 years and would like a nice change.

Thank you for any input that you can give us. Both good and bad.

oh wow, you're from my old stomping grounds. St. Pete. is one of my two hometowns from a few years back.

Do you have investment money or just looking to live in a nice area? If just a retiree I would give Chattanooga, Dunlap or maybe Hixson/Soddy Daisy your first choice. Those three cities are low in crime, green, and friendly places to live.

Georgia has income tax; their sales tax though is 6.5 percent although Atlanta (8%) & other cities is higher.
Georgia state taxes
Georgia is notorious for nabbing speeders (not something you should worry about) & out-of-towners. Until you get settled in, the local police might hit you up for some revenue. LOL I wouldn't put Ringgold on my short list of where to live, but Rome I heard has some very nice subdivisions & the city is a bit less hectic than Chat.

No matter what you do, you'll end up better off in any of those cities than Pinellas County. As you know, the situation with taxes is growing worse and worse. Living on the beach is no longer an option but for a millionaire.

[Looking4Chg]

Thank you all for the info. We are looking forward to our trip in July and will look in on the areas that you all have suggested. We have to take into consideration the state tax in GA. I know that they will tax DH's retirement. That would be hard to swallow. Also have to look at higher tax in Tn compared to state tax in GA. It's a lot to take in and hopefully we will be able to live in the motorhome for a while until we decide exactly where we would like to set down our roots.

[Drv4Pepsi]

Contact me on AIM PM and I will get back to you. I live in Dallas, Georgia, Thanks.

[MountainAire]

I cannot say enough good things about the Dunlap school system. Its a small town, little crime, and your child gets a lot of one on one. If I had ten more kids that is where they would go.

[MtnTrlGurl]

You probably want to stay in TN. No state taxes. Dunlap is good and I know the schools are great. Read up on all the statistics on this site, go to the school web sites and read every review you can...then visit in person. More than once. Talk to all the locals and they will give you so much more info than a realtor will. I used to llive in the area and can tell you it is great there.Very small and not much to do though. Ringgold is nice too, Ft. Oglethorpe has more to do.But then you have the taxes.I think in Chickamauga they have to pay to go to public school...$500 per child per yr?If your outside the city, which is pretty much everyone.like I said Just take a drive and talk to every single person you can =]

[Looking4Chg]

Thank you all so much for the great info!

[u4icmusic]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach08

Make sure to check out Ringgold,GA (N.Georgia). We live in a neighborhood called Windstone. It's the number one golf course in the area plus it's a beautiful gated community. Lots of families and 1/2 neighborhood is TN and the other is GA. I love that Ringgold is a small town with great schools, only 20 minutes to downtown Chattanooga. Another plus is that we are only 10-15 minutes from Hamilton Place Mall. We relocated from the mid-west and looked all over N.GA and TN. Windstone was above and beyond. Most homes are in the $300+ range but with the economy there are two or three homes priced from $199-$269? Good Luck!

Other than Windstone, there is nothing good about Ringgold. It's depressed and run down, sorry to say.