Huntsville and surrounding areas (Dothan, Madison: real estate, low crime, new home)

[military spouse]

Hi everyone!! My husband just retired from the military and we are considering relocating to the Huntsville area. We have lived in Dothan, AL in the past and really miss that lower COL. We plan on taking a motorcycle trip down there this summer and were hoping for some suggestions for a nice overview of the area with relocation in mind. I am a registered nurse and I was curious if anyone could recommend any hospitals or have an idea of wages (13 years' experience). We have a 9 year-old and are looking for inexpensive housing (low $100,000s) with decent schools (public or private). Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We currently live in PA.
Thank you!!!!!!!!!

[sugarmillclan]

SE Huntsville has some of the best public schools(Challenger, Whitesburg, Mountain Gap). It is possible to find a home in the lower 100,000 range but it will be hard for that area. Madison has a lot of affordable housing and some of the schools there are pretty decent. I know that Challenger is great, I have a 6 and 12 year old and I wouldn't leave this area for nothing.

[dbkeel1]

A home in the low $100's might be do-able, but with the trickle of BRAC activity that will soon be a flood, prices per square foot are drifting upward steadily.

For existing homes in that price range (brick, built in the 1970's), a nice neighborhood where I'd start my search would be Chapman Elementary district; homes are in the $120's-160's typically, very good school, park and community pool biking distance and it's close to downtown. I'd also look in NE Madison County in the Riverton Elementary and Mt. Carmel Elementary districts. There are some new/newer homes out there in nice neighborhoods and in the same price range.

It's just getting tough to find low $100's anymore.

[military spouse]

Thanks for the responses. I was hoping to find a house in the $120,000-130,000 so neither of us would HAVE to work. Oh well!! I must say, Huntsville still seems much less expensive than where we currently live

[nalabama]

You can certainly find homes in that price range in SE Huntsville. They will be smaller and more likely to have siding rather than brick, but they can be found...fairly easily, too.

[Keeper]

Check out Arab AL. Close to Huntsville (20 miles north), small town, great schools with small class size and low crime. N.Marshall county hospital is located near by if you want to work. You can find a very nice house with a big yard for your price range is you aren't looking for a new home. There are some nice houses listed for less than 100K with at least a 1/2 acre lot, some are larger.
Hope this helps.

[military spouse]

Thanks everyone for the replies!! Ideally, we would love to have the small, tidy home we owned while living in Dothan--but in Huntsville. I would probably work a couple of shifts each week (preferably 12 hours). We would like apprx. 1600 square feet, 3/4 brick, garden tub, and WIC in a clean, tidy neighborhood. I'm so tired of paying PA taxes!! We pay state, local, property and school taxes all of which amount to close to $10,000/year. Of course, if hubby didn't work that amount would go down substantially, but would probably still be about $6,000/yr. I just remember our simple, inexpensive life in AL and miss it.

[Twostep]

Have you tried the for-sale-by-owner sites?

[SSgtTEX]

SE side of town is nice. For the most part. Can be expensive like Madison if you don't take your time researching it. I personally am a fan of the North county. (i.e. Harvest, Toney, Hazel Green, and Meridianville)

County schools are some of the best schools you can go to. I did my last couple years of High School at Sparkman. They have recently done a lot of adding on to it. A whole new building for the 9th graders. I like Sparkman over Grissom also. My wife went to Grissom, along with one of my brother-in-laws, and sister-in-laws, who are currently attending. The environment in overall just seems a lot better.

House pricing is fairly decent to. With the exception of Harvest typically being in competition with the SE side of town due to it being the "in" place to live as of the past couple years. But again if you take your time you can find a house for low 100s. Other outlying areas you can find a nice large house for a fair price.

Other nice thing is Huntsville's newer areas (i.e. Providence) are going to the higher price, reach out your window and touch your neighbor's house, and no yard, style housing. Out in the county you can get a nice lawn/land, not live on top of each other, considerably lower noise, and lose all the light pollution the blocks the nice stary skies at night.

This is just my opinion, but as long as I live in the area, I will live in the county where it is more of the "simple" life. Huntsville has gotten very busy with many people. I suppose that is why I am ready to get back to my small home town in Oklahoma.

[military spouse]

Thanks for the reply. Actually, I have seen several houses listed in Hazel Green that seem fairly inexpensive. Is that a nice area? I'm not too concerned with lot size. We are on a bit over 10,000 sq. ft now and it seems fine. Hubby needs a decent sized garage for his addiction to Harley Davidsons and I would like a garden tub and walk-in-closet. Most other things are very negotiable. I saw a few houses listed in a real estate magazine that were new and very low-priced, advertised as being 10 minutes from the Toyota plant. Is the plant in Huntsville or a suburb? Thanks for your help!