Best place on the coast in Georgia? (Atlanta, Savannah: appointed, real estate market)

[coldasice_79]

My fiancee and I will be moving to Georgia at some point within the next year or so and we would very much like to be located next to the coast line as she has a love of the beach and I love to live near large expanses of water. We have been looking at the Islands and other parts of the coastline but we are finding it hard to come to any sort of decision about where we should focus our efforts.

[bgnzsavnh]

There are 3 islands on the Georgia coast that have bridges
jekyll island Jekyll Island, Georgia - A beautiful barrier island with rich history, unspoiled natural beaches and marshes and an impressive array of sports and recreational activities from golf to biking in a small package at this Georgia State Park. The island was officially purchased by the State of Georgia on October 7, 1947. In 1950 the State of Georgia organized the Jekyll Island Authority, a management governing board. This board consists of nine gubernatorial appointed members. This board was charged with the operating and care of the island. This management structure continues today.

St. Simons Island is a resort community and has many seasonal residents, as well as a steady base of year-round residents. Consequently, many of the residents are retired individuals from other parts of the state or the U.S.
Smaller upscale comunity Hilton Head without the traffic

Brunswick, Georgia

Tybee is Savannah's beach. There were very few year around residents before the 1870's but by the 1890's there were over 400 beach cottages and other buildings built for the "summer" residents. Tybee is a bit more ecentric-folksy-

City of Tybee Island - HOME

All other Islands are only accessible by boat. and are mostly state owned: preserved and beautiful. This is what sets the Georgia coast apart from the overdeveloped Fl and SC coasts.
Cumberland Island National Seashore
Cumberland Island - St. Marys, Georgia
Cumberland Island National Seashore (U.S. National Park Service)

Georgia State Parks - Sapelo Island Reserve and Reynolds Mansion
Sapelo Island can see virtually every facet of a barrier island's natural community, from the forested uplands, to the vast salt marsh, and the complex beach and dunes systems.
Also a big plus is that most of Georgias barrier islands have not been developed. there are no bridges. The Dunes have not been leveled and built upon. They are quite a marvel to see what the 3 dunes should be like on the developed islands. Visit Cumberland Island and hike through the dunes to the beach, awesome....................bring plenty of water!

Between the barrier Islands and the mainland is a wide Salt Water marsh with tidal creeks and many developments along the water front. Depends on what community fits you

[equestrian_mom]

I think it would depend on what stage you and your finace are in life. While I absolutely LOVE St. Simon's Island, I would not necessarily suggest it for a young couple looking to settle down somewhere. I would suggest somewhere like Savannah with a lot of history, culture & young families. But, if you are looking for a nice, quiet place with lots of outdoor activities near water, then the golden isles may be a good fit. Hope that helps.

[bleighorr]

haha you'll have to live near Atlanta to get good jobs. Here's my take on Southeast GA. I relocated here last August and I'm dying here. Moved from Raleigh, NC, to GA. I have 6 children....lost my job in Raleigh (over $50K) and came down here to 'start over.' BIG mistake.

Nicer areas are Jekyl Island if you're retired and have $500K to spend on a 3-4 bdroom ranch house. Sea Island is an overcrowded mess and traffic is a nightmare unless you work on the Sea Island resort, which is supposedly one of the best places to work.

I'm living in Camden County near FL border, where a 'great job' here pays $12.00 an hour but the cost of living is crazy high here (like average rentals for 1300 sq ft. 3 bedroom hardiplank homes are close to $900!). Yes, it was cheap to live here....ten years ago. And the best daycare around besides the base daycare which is military families only, is King of Peace, and it's $115 per week and there's a year waiting list....they don't take children under 18 months. So imagine making $12.00 an hour and having a $115 per week daycare bill....believe it, it's true.

Bigger places like Atlanta, the commute to great jobs is a total nightmare from what i've heard but at least you can probably do decently as far as careerwise.

It is truly a life's quest to find a great job, a nice area, and affordable daycare as you age. What is acceptable at 25 is not acceptable at 35, so be careful where you plant roots....(ie. buy a house, have kids). It's hard to sell homes now, start over again, and find great daycares. I would not buy a home in this area at all. There's a lot of swampland, and the real estate market here has stagnated. Osprey Cove, one of the premier gated community developments, is inhabited by some nosey older snobs; and Laurel Island has nice homes with a younger community, but they're pricey too.

If you are a teacher w/ a master's degree, the pay is about $45K here. Not so bad compared to where I came from (Raleigh area).

But i will say THIS about where I am now (35 miles outside of Jacksonville, FL): The commute to a real job in Jacksonville is HELL (2 lanes on I 95 into Jacksonville, road construction won't be complete for another 10 years....), the crime rate is shocking in Jacksonville, at least one murder every day, sometimes four or five, which pushes people out to Camden County, GA.

Great school systems here in SE Georgia, homes in $200K+ range are about 1,600-1,700 sq ft. 1/4 acre. IF you can take the commute to Jacksonville to make the money to pay for one of these homes, or IF you are retired military, get a decent pension, and work another job....then you can make it in Southeast GA. This is NOT a place for singles and is an absolute NIGHTMARE for single parents and people without support systems. the daycare situation here is the worst i've ever seen. I don't even think anyone regulates anything down here.

I work for a shelter in the area and work closely with single parents every day. I also work with the social services system here, and they are an absolute nightmare. Kingsland/St Marys is a totally political town, small town USA, who you know, not what you know. If you know the right person, you get a job, if you don't....too bad. It took me four months to get this 12 buck an hour job and i have an impeccable work history and references. I have several friends with master's degrees who are making $12.00 an hour here.

There is also nOthing in the budget here for subsidized homes, subsidized daycare is a joke. The healthcare seriously lacking here (everyone is sent down to Jacksonville for healthcare if it's more than an ear infection). I would never have a baby in a hospital here, nor would i ever have any type of surgery here. I would also never live in Jacksonville unless I was filthy rich and could afford one of the $600K homes that would place you in a "better" neighborhood.

Downtown Jacksonville is very pretty, but that's where it ends. Orange Park, FL, a suburb of Jacksonville, is an overcrowded mess, and it can take you an hour to travel 9 stoplights on the main drag on a Saturday. The yards are about .152 of an acre, and the school systems suck. That's why little places like Camden County are growing, b/c people want out of the metro Jacksonville area with the overpriced real estate, high property taxes, and expensive cost of living.

Racial climate is ok b/c this is a military town (nuclear sub base here and people who are stationed in Mayport, Jax, FL live here), so there are no racial tensions. My kids are multiracial and they have not had any problems....although there are rednecks who live here, they keep it pretty much to themselves because without the military, this town would go to hell.

The high school is big 5AAAAA, close to 4,000 students here, and the main focus is football, although academically and behaviorally, it is decent. They allow a lot of Christian activities (Athletes in Action, etc.), which is something I believe benefits the kids. There have been 2 bomb threats (someone calling into the school and saying: ihave a bomb) and a few fights, but nothing like you'd see in a school in Jacksonville, where SWAT teams are regulars on high school campuses.

In order to really shop, you have to go to Brunswick (Glynn County) or Jacksonville. The hot spot hangout is the Super WalMart here. Brunswick is another smaller town about 45 minutes down from Savannah and before you hit where i'm at, but i hear the school systems there totally suck. I would never live there....lots of drugs, etc., and it's building up and looking very "strippy" with all the businesses sprouting up on every square inch of lot off exits 36 and 38.

Just to give you a preview of life in Southeast Ga: The only thing i'll miss when i leave here (and i'm trying to get a job back in Raleigh or Charleston, SC) is the school system. That's IT.

and unless you are filthy rich, stay away from Sea Island, where they have not regulated their growth very well. Traffic nightmares, stuff sprouting up everywhere. Jekyl Island (where there are mostly retirees and few children, and the children get bussed off the island to school every day) is where my parents live. My father invested in some real estate years ago, and it was a smart move on his part. But they have to drive miles to go into Brunswick to grocery shop, etc. Jekyl is nice to vacation to, though....have beautiful beach (sometimes dirty water). But the residents are very nice, it has a beautiful historic district with old restored homes, and a wonderful concrete bike trail pretty much around the whole island.

Hope this helps you as far as information in the Southeast GA area. Good luck!