New Hope (Jackson, Columbus, Starkville: new home, transferring to, buyers)

[CCW]

I need housing and school info on New Hope? We are considering moving our family is the school system good? We hear MS doesnt offer a good eduacation? Any opinions on that? Are there any homes is the New Hope area with basements? They all look long and flat in the books Ive seen

[romeo kilo]

Most cities in the southern US do not have basements...columbus..new hope..is no exception. most are what I refer to as ranch style or ranchers.
there are many of the older antebellum homes ..some might fit your budget..but might need renovation. As for education, I received approx 8 yrs of schooling there..1 yr in Jackson,Ms and 3 in Delaware..and it is my conclusion that it is the student that plays the largest part in ones ability to learn and progress. the thirst for knowledge bypasses all educational systems. this is just my opinion, of course....but I would not trade my brain or my knowledge with most people that I know..and I got that missippi educashon

[new hope ms]

New Hope has a good school system. They are part of the Lowndes County School system and have much to offer students. We are the largest school campus in the county (3 schools total) and have great academic teachers who challenge the kids. There are many AP classes offered also.

http://www.lowndes.k12.ms.us/index2.htm

[jetjockey75]

Originally Posted by CCW

I need housing and school info on New Hope? We are considering moving our family is the school system good? We hear MS doesnt offer a good eduacation? Any opinions on that? Are there any homes is the New Hope area with basements? They all look long and flat in the books Ive seen

New Hope is a quiet, family-oriented community with a pretty decent school system; as far as I am concerned, it is the best school system for several counties around.

As far as housing, we are in the midst of a housing shortage, with an economic boom in progress. There is the occasional house with a basement, but they are scarce. I haven't checked realtor.com lately, but you might try there. Your best bet to get what you want would be to have a house built, if that is an option for you.

[ABR]

New Hope is a lovely community. Most all of the parents that I ahve been in contact with over the years are very pleased with the school system.

People transferring to Columbus from the Northern areas and the Mountain states do have quite an adjustment to make when coming to the area. VERY few homes in this area have basements. The builders seem to gravitate towards Ranch and Traditional style homes. Some of the builders, due to the transistion of the buyers in this market area, have branched out a bit and built some contemporary style homes. The area is experiencing a shortage of available homes on the market but only in certain price ranges and in certain areas. For example, the Caledonia School District - there doesn't seem seem to be enough homes in that area in certain price ranges. New Hope has several beautiful homes on the market right now. Very competitively priced and all of the homes in that area seem to have appreciated over time; very much like the Caledonia area. North Columbus offers some beautiful homes too. Have you already contacted a Realtor for a newcomer's packet?

[tmm777]

Central Mississippi is NOT a good place to relocate to unless it is an absolute necessity. The schools systems are poor everywhere. Lowndes county has the best public schools in the area, but that isn't saying much. Much of the affluent city school children go to private schools, leaving the poor and disadvantaged kids the main population in city public schools.

There is no population boom in this area, although there have been predictions for ages. ONE new company has located here recently but has not just started taking applications for employment. The housing boom/development is but a wishful dream and may never come to pass. Most likely, Starkville will get the lion's share of any boom. Also, while one new company has opened it's doors, several others have closed theirs, leaving the overall job growth in the negative.

New Hope is very quiet and rural, emphasis on rural. It is located almost 10 miles outside Columbus and accessible by a 2-lane rural road. The school is the center of the town. Not much else there besides a lake and a nice park.

If you come from a larger city with lots of attractions and activities, prepare to be bored. There's nothing to do here unless you want to drive 2+ hours to Birmingham or Memphis or Jackson. The Miss coast isn't far away, but that's been destroyed and won't be nice again for years to come. N.O. is also not too far away, but is still devastated. I can't imagine why anyone would move here.

[jetjockey75]

Originally Posted by tmm777

Central Mississippi is NOT a good place to relocate to unless it is an absolute necessity.... ONE new company has located here recently but has not just started taking applications for employment. The housing boom/development is but a wishful dream and may never come to pass. ....I can't imagine why anyone would move here.

[cut] I moved to E. Central Mississippi 7 years ago and have found it to be a really nice place to live. As far as job opportunities in Lowndes County, [cut] A new steel plant, SeverCorr, is being built. It should be finished in late 2007, employing 450, and contrary to what "tmm777" said, it has MOST INDEED been taking applications, 8000 so far. And at least 3 SeverCorr spin-offs have already purchased land here; the spin offs are expected to employ as many as 1000 additional people. On top of that, American Eurocopter has recently won a large Army contract and will hire about 250 more people. Talley Defense Systems recently opened, and Baldor Electric recently built a new, expanded plant at GTR airport and is hiring. Aurora Flight Sciences is also building at the airport, don't know how many they will employ.
Moderator cut: personal attacks there is indeed a housing boom/shortage going on both in Columbus and Starkville; prices keep going up and new homes are being built all over, particularly in Caledonia. I am contacted by at least one realtor a week, asking if I am willing to sell.

Columbus city schools are not necessarily all that great, but not bad either. In the county, both Caledonia and New Hope schools are excellent.

The people are nice, the weather is nice, sometimes local government officials leave something to be desired, but I think that many family-oriented people are extremely happy living here. I'd take this over LA, San Fran, Seattle, NYC, Chitown, ATL, just about any metro area you could name. Mississippi continues to get an undeserved bad rap from popular culture, but that's OK --- I'd rather it continue to be a well-kept secret.