Would you relocate to Greenville or Atlanta? (Anderson, Easley: house, neighborhoods)

[Skyliner]

Originally Posted by Greenville

Unless you are in the very small minority of people regularly shopping at Gucci and Versace, and dining at five-star restaurants several times per week, Greenville has 99% of what you will need on a regular basis. For the rare occasions you want more, Atlanta is an easy weekend trip.

Deciding between the two cities comes down to quality of life, and I think Greenville is the logical choice in that regard. More affordable housing, minimal traffic delays, access to a lot of activities and events, etc.

Another gigantic benefit is the fact that Greenville residents enjoy very easy access to the gorgeous Western North Carolina mountains, including the numerous vibrant cities, quaint villages, and breathtaking waterfalls scattered throughout the region. Atlanta residents must add at least 2 hours (each way) to their WNC trip.

[lovingville]

I have lived in Atlanta and currently reside in Greenville.

I lived in Atlanta for my high school years and we lived in Peachtree City. They have great schools and it was a smaller town. PTC is outside of Atlanta so the commute to Atlanta would be very bad in the mornings and afternoons. I did like growing up there. I am not sure about large lots. We did not have one that was an acre. It is a very snobbish town though. If you parent did not work for the airlines you seemed like a 2nd class person. In college I lived near Clayton State College (I think it has a new name now). Not the best area.

I have lived in Greenville for 14 years. I can get from Mauldin, Simpsonville, Greer or even Fountain Inn in a relatively decent amount of time. Traffic here is nothing compared to Atlanta. It is so family friendly here. There are always things for kids to do at events that are considered geared toward adults. During the late spring and summer there is the Friday evening Jazz (I think they have renamed it) and there is a section for kids as well.

I do think we have a pretty good amount of events. We have the Bi-Lo center that puts on the bigger concerts. I think Rush was recently here. They also have the Disney shows on ice and hockey games. We have the Peace Center for the arts like the Broadway series. This year we are getting Peter Pan, Les Mes, Memphis and The Lion King. We also have the SC Childrens Theater that I buy seaons tickets to. They are an amazing bunch of local talent. Anyone that has not seen any of the shows really should. Even if you do not have children. Simpsonville has Heritage Park and they do free movies during the summer months. They also have a fireworks on the 4th.

I would choose Greenville. You are in the middle between Charlotte, Atlanta, Columbia and Asheville. It is not a horrible drive to any of those cities and gives you the capability to live in a nice, laid back community but still have the bigger cities close by.

[GSP101]

Originally Posted by Greenville

Unless you are in the very small minority of people regularly shopping at Gucci and Versace, and dining at five-star restaurants several times per week, Greenville has 99% of what you will need on a regular basis. For the rare occasions you want more, Atlanta is an easy weekend trip.

Deciding between the two cities comes down to quality of life, and I think Greenville is the logical choice in that regard. More affordable housing, minimal traffic delays, access to a lot of activities and events, etc.

Although I think your math is a little high, I do agree that for the majority of people, Greenville would be sufficient. But, there are many more things that Atlanta has to offer instead of just true high end shopping or restaurants. For those that like professional or college sports, you don't have to drive anywhere. For those that travel, you can get anywhere from Hartsfield. For those that like a diverse economy with the ability to move between many types of jobs or industries, Atlanta is one of the best in the country.

However, most people are looking for a good quality which is defined by each person individually. If you value a true diverse economy with many options, shopping, restaurants, many many many arts venues, parks, etc....Atlanta is the clear winner. With that, you are also joining 6m+ people which can make things tight and affect your daily life. Since it appears that the OP is moving from a small town, this may be a little shock so, in the end, Greenville may be a better fit.

[ss20ts]

Originally Posted by preparing2move

Thanks for all of your opinions. We will not take them lightly. I think the most important things for our family is

#1 - School district
#2 - Beautiful neighborhood
#3 - Close to convenient shopping/entertainment for families
#4 - Low crime
#5 - Around 1 acre close to everything.

You will NOT find an acre in Atlanta or even within a reasonable commute for $400. You will get much more house in Greenville for that kind of money. The commute for the burbs of Greenville are NOTHING like the commute in Atlanta.

I was recently doing some warranty work on my house and the guy used to work in Atlanta. He always had to plan on an hour and 20 minutes for his commute. Some days he'd get lucky and it'd only be 30 minutes. But most of the time it was at least an hour and a half each way every day.

One thing about Greenville, you can be in Atlanta fo the aquarium or Coca Cola or Ikea or whatever in about 2 hours. You're close enough where you can make a day out of it without having to live in the rat race every day.

Georgia is more costly than SC. The price of gas alone is a sticker shock. Their sales tax is also higher. Oh and something about purchasing a car if you're a SC resident. You're capped at $300 on the sales tax of the vehicle. We bought a brand new car last year and at 7% our sales tax would have bee $1960. That's a HUGE savings especially if you purchase a new car every few years.

Also, when house hunting don't get too hung up on the name of the city/town on the address. Unlike the North where a city, town, or village has claimed every square inch of land for tax purposes, SC is NOT like that. There are many areas that are unincorporated which basically means a city or town hasn't laid claim to them. And it's not that easy for them to take over with annexation in SC. You don't have to go out into the middle of the boonies for this either. If you live in an unincorporated area, then you only have county taxes on your home and personal property (your cars, boats, things like that not your furniture). If you live in an incorporated area, then you have county and city/town tax on your home and personal property.

Greenville also has a lot of festivals. Many of them are family oriented. They have a lot of things at the Falls Park on the Reedy. Falls Park, in Greenville, SC

Something else to consider may be the weather. Atlanta is further south so they tend to be warmer. They get some wacky weather there. Over the last few years, they've had some small tornadoes hit right in the middle of downtown. They also get some of the worst ice storms I've ever seen. Last year, schools were closed for over a week because of the ice. Don't let that scare you. The South does not have the snow/ice/salt clean up crew and trucks the North has. We simply don't get that kind of weather frequently. Yes, things close when snow/ice hits and they stay closed for a couple of days. Frequently, things will melt in a day or two and life goes on.

Greenville also has something HUGE going for it that Atlanta doesn't. Like mountains? Like lakes? Yeah you can be at one of 3 decent lakes in upstate SC in no time from Greenville. There are several gorgeous mountains with state parks also. You can go for a day or a vacation. You're also super close to the NC mountains if you're looking for a getaway a little further away.

Greenville's downtown is quaint and has numerous shops and restaurants. The majority of them are locally owned businesses. It is a very safe place to walk around even at night. There are many parts of Atlanta where I want a police escort during the day! And those areas I wouldn't go near with an armored car once dark sets in. This includes the downtown. Even during the day, it can be unnerving.

Don't think you have to go to Atlanta to go to the zoo with the kids either. Greenville has one. And it costs much less. The only thing Zoo Atlanta has over the Greenville zoo are Pandas. And unless you go at the right time of year, you can't see them. They were on tv when I went because it was too hot for them outside. We spent $22 a person to watch tv! LOL

Oh and when house hunting ask the realtor if there's an HOA. Some people love them and others hate them. They're not super common up North. The majority of newer developments have them. Make sure you ask for the Covenants and READ them! Some are VERY strict and others aren't. If you don't want an HOA, let your realtor know up front.

We relocated from Upstate NY last year to Aiken, SC. We have been to Atlanta numerous times on vacation, work things, and day trips. I do the driving and come home soooooo freaking stressed. I swear you can watch my hair turn grey from the traffic and idiots who can't drive. We've also been to Greenville numerous times. I was just there over the weekend. Went to Haywood Mall and Copper River Grill for dinner and Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream afterwards. I had to chuckle at the traffic when I thought about how people complain about it on here. No I wasn't the only car on the road, but it sure wasn't the white knuckle, grey hair experience Atlanta is.

Visit both, but don't visit like it's a vacation. Drive around the area and do things like you would if you lived there. Go to the grocery store and see what's there and how much it costs. Some items available up North don't exist here like New England style hot dog rolls, but you'll find other things like Cheerwine (it's a cherry flavored soda). Find the Target/Walmart and see what they're like and what's around them. Check out the schools, playgrounds and parks. Do a lot of research online so you'll know what areas you want to check out when you're visiting. Also drive in rush hour traffic!!! Do this to see what a real commute time would be like for Development A to the office, Walmart, Ingles (grocery store), etc. You may not want to live in a certain part of town because of the commute. You may find the commute is doable, but the development is NOT what it looks like online. Remember, every website a town, city, builder, etc puts up there is only going to have the best photos they can find or create. It doesn't really mean much. I've stayed at hotels where the photos were from 30 years ago and you'd never know it because they have the same plastic flowers! You can't tell that from a photo or how old the photo is.

And one last thing....take what NYB says with a grain of salt. Look around on here and you'll see what I am talking about. Some people love Greenville and some hate it. What Greenville ever did to them? Who knows! Greenville is a great place. The Atlanta job market is NOT thriving at the moment. Nor has it been in a few years. They got pummeled with this economy. Yes, 400 of the Fortune 500 had offices there a few years ago. Some have left and some have gone bankrupt. Their housing market has also been very beaten up. My aunt and uncle almost moved their. They had a house being built when they were told they weren't going to Atlanta and they were going to Aiken, SC instead. The builder sold their home the next day back in 2001. That house is now worth less than half of what it would have cost them. Sad!

[preparing2move]

Great feedback! Its nice that ikea is only 2 hrs. I dont think I could live w/o an ikea... jk. (No really!). The really confusing part for me is looking on realtor.com and trying to figure out what areas are "nice" neighborhoods. Nice to me means upper middle class, good schools, well maintained neighborhoods. Its hard to see from realtor website. Guess I will have to wait until we get a realtor to help us. Im just so impatient and want to see what there is now in the buyers market.

[FitMom77]

Originally Posted by preparing2move

Great feedback! Its nice that ikea is only 2 hrs. I dont think I could live w/o an ikea... jk. (No really!). The really confusing part for me is looking on realtor.com and trying to figure out what areas are "nice" neighborhoods. Nice to me means upper middle class, good schools, well maintained neighborhoods. Its hard to see from realtor website. Guess I will have to wait until we get a realtor to help us. Im just so impatient and want to see what there is now in the buyers market.

IKEA actually opened in Charlotte, too, and that one is only about 1.5 to 1 hour 45 minutes away (depending on where you live in Greenville). And you don't have to deal with the Atlanta traffic to get to it.

[ss20ts]

I should also add - yeah I babble a lot LOL - we're looking at moving up to the Greenville area in a few years.

Charlotte also has an Ikea. Charlotte is about 1 hour 45 minutes away and Atlanta is about 2 1/2 hours away. It really depends on where you are in Greenville and where you're going to Charlotte and Atlanta and that doesn't take traffic into account. Those times are from Google Maps. The traffic in both can be a crazy, but they're nice to visit.

Oh and don't forget to look on here for info about the different cities/towns here on City Data. Each state has 2 lists. One list is small towns and the other one is larger towns. They give you Census data in plain English. Many places also have photos. You'll also see some things to do like parks.

Carowinds in Charlotte is probably the closest amusement park. Atlanta has a Six Flags. There's also a Medieval Times in Atlanta.

[Shooting Stars]

Originally Posted by Skyliner

Another gigantic benefit is the fact that Greenville residents enjoy very easy access to the gorgeous Western North Carolina mountains, including the numerous vibrant cities, quaint villages, and breathtaking waterfalls scattered throughout the region. Atlanta residents must add at least 2 hours (each way) to their WNC trip.

LOL. You do know that there are lots of mountains in Georgia too? Right?

[ss20ts]

Originally Posted by Shooting Stars

LOL. You do know that there are lots of mountains in Georgia too? Right?

Not nearly as many. Blue Ridge Parkway and the Foothills Parkway aren't in GA.

[Shooting Stars]

Originally Posted by ss20ts

Greenville also has something HUGE going for it that Atlanta doesn't. Like mountains? Like lakes? Yeah you can be at one of 3 decent lakes in upstate SC in no time from Greenville. There are several gorgeous mountains with state parks also. You can go for a day or a vacation. You're also super close to the NC mountains if you're looking for a getaway a little further away.

It's great that you are so enthusiastic about Greenville, but ... let's be accurate.

Georgia has tons of mountains that begin about an hour outside of Atlanta (less if you're further north) and go all the way up to the border of North Carolina.

Atlanta also has Lake Lanier immediately to the north, which is huge. Plus the Georgia mountains have Lake Blue Ridge, Lake Nottley, Lake Chatuge, Lake Burton, Lake Rabun, and a host of smaller lakes. Lake Hartwell is a huge lake northeast of Atlanta. And there are lakes outside the mountains also.

Just saying.