Franklin/Hendersonville/Mt. Juliet??? (Smyrna, Goodlettsville: appointed, apartments, rentals)

[expressthejess]

My family (daughter & husband) and I are planning to move to the Nashville area in December and have been doing A LOT of internet research about the best place to raise a family with good schools and within a reasonable commute (20 mile or less) to BMW of Nashville. We keep seeing Franklin, Mt. Juliet and Hendersonville ... my husband likes the location of Mt. Juliet because it will be a reasonable commute to work and near the lake. My concerns are the schools for my daughter who will be in kindergarten when we move. I keep reading that Williamson County has the best schools then Sumner County, Wilson County, and Davidson County ... is this accurate? Also, how bad are the Wilson County schools?? We plan to visit soon to see the areas, see how the commute is, and try to find a place to live ... I have a hard time finding rentals in the areas referenced above. We are looking in the $1000-$1200 range. No apartments. We don't want to buy right now until we really get to know the area. Please give me some pros/cons to MJ and the other areas. Thank you in advance.

[vivelafrance]

Mt Juliet schools are great. There may be some individual schools in Hendersonville and Franklin that are better but as a whole all 3 cities offer great schools. The Sumner co. side of Goodlettsville is also a good option as homes on the Sumner side zone to Hendersonville schools and it's a bit shorter commute.

I would add, however, that Franklin should really offer the definite shortest commute because you would be going against the flow of rush hour traffic.

[expressthejess]

Thank you for your input. I greatly appreciate some feedback. I tried to tell my husband that Franklin would be a great option but he said that he feels that it would be too far from the lake ... we have our different opinions on that. LoL. I will definitely keep all this in mind. Thanks again.

[El Passeaux]

Mt Juliet gets very good ratings on great schools
Mount Juliet Schools - Mount Juliet, TN | GreatSchools

[BirdieBelle]

Everybody drives to the lake from all parts of Middle TN. It's just part of it, but lake access can't be the driver in your decision.

[S4F]

Welcome to the area! You will not be disappointed in Wilson County schools. Ratings are good and this is a growing area so a number of the schools are relatively new, not that new buildings make great schools, but I think you'll find them on par and in many cases much better.

The lake is close and you have your pick either Percy Priest or Old Hickory. Both offer great boating and there's a really nice water park just across the Davidson County line that people seem to like. It's on Percy Priest.

Mt. Juliet is sort of in the same tough rental market right now. You could find an apartment, but you don't want that, unfortunately the rental house market is very tight. You should be able to find one in your price range, but it make take some searching. This is a great area and I'm sure you'll enjoy it and settle in nicely. Everything you might want will be close to home.

[DonCorleone]

I agree that you really can't go wrong with any of the three...just depending what you are looking for. I'm partial to Hendersonville, obviously, but have lived in Mt Juliet and think either would be great for someone wanting to be near the lake(s). I think Hendersonville tends to have more rental properties (especially near the lake)...condos, homes, and apartments. There also seem to be more lakeside homes in Hendersonville and I would put the schools overall a little higher than Wilson County but not significantly.

Really, the best way to decide is to just drive around in each area extensively and try (as much as you can) to get a feel for the atmosphere of each area. I think you are very wise to rent first, that way if you find you don't like the area you settle on, it is easy to try somewhere else.

Best of luck in the move and let us know if you have more questions.

[seanf12]

Have you considered Rutherford\Smyrna? We are in the same decision process and from everything I have read, there are very good schools there as well (in particular Stewarts Creek)

[CantWait2Leave]

My husband and I moved to Hendersonville from Los Angeles in January 2011. We visited Franklin, Mt. Juliet and Hendersonville. Franklin was more than we wanted to spend so we nixed it although we really liked it there. We were underwhelmed with Mt. Juliet compared to Hendersonville so it was an easy decision for us.

[expressthejess]

Originally Posted by CantWait2Leave

My husband and I moved to Hendersonville from Los Angeles in January 2011. We visited Franklin, Mt. Juliet and Hendersonville. Franklin was more than we wanted to spend so we nixed it although we really liked it there. We were underwhelmed with Mt. Juliet compared to Hendersonville so it was an easy decision for us.

What do you mean you were overwhelmed with Mt. Juliet?? We haven't been to TN to visit these areas, just A LOT of internet research at this point, but we have realized that Franklin does sound really nice and have great schools but it is a little on the pricey side. So, its down to MJ and Hendersonville. We do plan on visiting all 3 places during our visit before out move in a few months.