best area for me? (mid 20s, single, medical assistant, moving closer to family) (Atlanta: apartments)

[calamityroad]

i'm going to be graduating (finally!) within the year as a medical assistant. i'm 25, single, & want to move closer to my dad's family (which are annoyingly spread all over, but mostly in AL/GA/SC).

i live in roanoke, va currently & grew up in hattiesburg, ms. so obviously, big town/small city is my comfort zone. the main areas i'd like to be within a decent driving range of (a few hours is fine) is fort payne al, trussville al, louisville ga, greenville sc, & charlotte nc (where my parents are likely moving).

at first i thought an atlanta suburb (roswell, sandy springs, i forget the others) but now i don't know. i've read alot of good things about athens. reminds me alot of roanoke. another concern is having enough housing options (i'd like to rent a house between $550-$600 ideally) bc i have a dog & two cats & that always narrows down my options :/ are there any other nice, safe areas that would fit my specifics?

thanks for your time, guys!

[berkeleylake]

If I were you, and depending on your job offers you get, I would start out in a smaller town or regional city like Columbus, GA or Birmingham, AL.

Your post is sort of broad, and with that in mind, read the first post penned up at top first in the Atlanta forum about what you prefer. That will help you get more responses, I think. You will need to probably rent from a private owner in some areas.

The rent range you mention for pretty much all of Atlanta is too low and doesn't give you much room and having pets limits your options as you already know. I think you can find work in smaller towns probably more easily than you can in Atlanta with more competition, however, I don't know much about the medical field. Perhaps, others can provide more insight into that job sector.

[cittic10]

The nice thing about where you're currently living is that you have easy and close access to a regional airport. So you can visit your family in less time even though you're farther away distance-wise than you could if live in atlanta and drove to some of those places.

If you've got a job that you're happy with and currently getting the bills paid and are otherwise happy (your post said nothing to make me think otherwise) then I'd stay put. Small cities in the south aren't booming with opportunities and people your age usually migrate out of them in search of a better life.

I'm not sure how sleepy Roswell or Sandy Springs comes into all of this but you need a lot of money to live in either of those places ($600 ain't gonna cut it) and they're part of a huge metropolitan area, something you don't seem to want to live in. (for reasons I can probably understand)

[calamityroad]

thanks for the input, guys! i really appreciate it.

[Cdarocks]

For what you describe, Athens would be a good place for you to look at. I cannot tell you there are an abundance of jobs, but there are two decent sized hospitals and all the services that go along with them. I assume you are wise enough not to make a move without employment arranged first

Your housing budget seems a little low, even for Athens. A house for $600 that allows multiple pets is probably going to be a trick to find. I am not saying it isn't out there, but you may need to consider finding a roommate or expanding your budget.

[cwkimbro]

I think I and many others on this forum can help you out, but the problem is it all comes down to where you can find a job in the Atlanta area.

Atlanta can feel much smaller -if- you get a job at one of the many suburban/exurban hospitals and don't commute far, but you also won't see the benefits of being in a large city -or- being in an old town/city.

Atlanta, economically, is clearly the place to be between South/North Carolinas and Alabama without a doubt. Athens can work well, but there are some drawbacks too. Athens will have that small town character!

Athens is very much a college driven economy. There aren't too many jobs for post-graduates (outside the medical field!). This gives you some opportunities, but the older you get the fewer singles in your age group there are. I went to graduate school there and was there until I was 25... still plenty of people in my dating range, but each year I felt older and older, etc... Still wasn't a problem at the time, but I'm not sure I'd like it as much now (I'm 29).

Atlanta has alot of options that could work for you.... Buuut...

The good thing is you can probably make more money and after a few years increase your housing budget!

But at $600/month... for a house... you're looking the suburban/urban fringe, but the good thing is alot of new hospitals are built in these areas as well and there are alot of families and alot of physicians offices. (not quite sure exactly what work your looking for).

The bad thing... is as we are discussing on another forum right now... most college educated singles are moving intown to apartments where rents are closer to $1000/month... for an apartment. There are singles on the exurban fringe, but they don't have as many places to congregate, they are more dispersed, and less likely to be college educated.

The problem you'll have with Roswell and Sandy Springs is those are actually some expensive addresses, especially Sandy Springs.

One of the problems a newtime comer to Atlanta has is they see the interstate map and the perimeter and think.... most businesses are in the traditional downtown center. Atlanta has actually grown north at a rapid rate... almost due north with a little bit going northwest and a little bit going northeast. It is where most of the wealth has move too. Sandy Springs and Dunwoody have the "Perimeter Center" area just north of I-285 where it intersects with GA400. That area has 29 million square feet of office space, which is actually more than Downtown Atlanta with 26 million square feet (*This does not include Midtown, which is separate and close to Downtown with 22 million square feet).

You'll find slightly cheaper prices in Roswell, but I'd imagine you really need to look further away for a house.


The good thing is there is alot of money and opportunity here, but I think you need put your resume out there and see where you will find a job. If you get a job Henry Country Medical Center southeast of Atlanta, you will probably want to live down there and can find something at that price. However, if you get a job at or near Dekalb Medical you would be better off living in a fringe, slightly rougher area, around Decatur. (FYI, central Decatur is pricey, but is a great little downtown and a great place for laid back singles).

In short... I feel like you need to put your resume out there... see if you can get some bites and come back and tell us where you might be working.

[calamityroad]

wow, you guys gave me a ton of info & alot to think about! now a friend of mine has suggested knoxville as an option. it's about the same distance from fort payne, which is one of the main areas i want to be close to. i think i'm going to take a trip down there, see what's there, then revisit my atlanta options. i really won't be able to pinpoint any possible job offers until probably six more months, but at least i'll know where to start. you guys gave me alot to mull over & i really appreciate your time!