Brentwood vs Franklin (Spring Hill: rent, crime, lawyers)

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by Steve_TN

I am not even touching this. LOL!

Oh, come on. Let's get a good Franklin vs. Brentwood battle going!





(Just kidding, of course.)

[rjoannette]

I think I will. Living in Miami is ...... What can I say. Its great, it's warm and sunny allday everyday, but.....We have been hit really really hard ! They say if another house wasn't built for the next 7 years we would still have too many properties. The cost of living is high and the salaries don't match. A family of 4, to have a decent life, need to be making about 200K a year. There are only a few good areas to live for families, and their median price is in the 400K and up range. Now don't get me wrong Miami is wonderful if you are young and care free, you live on South Beach , bartend 3 nights a week and make $1000, go to the beach for the rest of the week !! Well been there done that. I grew up, finished college, started a family and now with a Masters in Biology I make less that they do. I want a family town. Not binge drinking and partying, where clubs stay open till 4 in the evening from the night before !!!!! Madness. I think I will visit in the summer. I like everything I hear, besides I don't think I've ever heard anyone say anything negative about TN.

[alleycat]

You might want to consider one of the areas around Atlanta as well. That would kind of be a cross between Miami and Nashville.

If you still want to think about Tennessee, you could also put Maryville near Knoxville on your list.

[kpellatiro]

In case the commute might come into play, Brentwood is generally closer to Nashville (10-15 min). More expensive in general, but in the end that depends on your criteria. Franklin has something in every price range, Brentwood starts higher than the median, but - the good news - that's still below your $400 average.

Many people, especially from larger cities, like to keep an eye on the Cool Springs area for familiar conveniences too. What areas did you get to visit during your times here locally?

[kroger2005]

Wow...let me begin with this..thanks for your intrest in our part of the world....Tennessee ...any part ..has it's ups and downs.. but compared to Miami...I spent 6 years down there....respectively I say......prefer a better LONGER healthier life? ROAD TRIP... the race thing...I have 2 black brothers (white myself) and they have excelled in Brentwood and Franklin both.....let me ask....how close are you both to free land....the smell of Mother earth...I tell you if that sounds crazy, it won't for long after 40 or 50 hours of humanity.....but it's available...peace

What are your hobbies?

There is a tiny University near here called Vanderbilt.....Biology you say????

[kroger2005]

Have to ask.....Brentwood's cars are more flashey than Franklins? ... strange...passed two fender benders on Mack Hatcher and all four were suv's

[user123455]

This is an interesting question. From my research so far I have to agree with what was said in this thread, that Franklin overall has a lot of different price ranges. According to this website the three main zipcodes in Franklin are 37064 (south), 36067 (east) and 37069 (west). The median income is highest in the north-west side, and in fact it's quite close to Brentwood, although house prices are still a little lower than Brentwood on average.

[denawilliams]

From a housing perspective, Franklin has more homes and more variety in terms of price. It is also quite spread out.

In Franklin, conceivably, you can find homes less than $200,000 (30 active on the market under $200k right now), but your general price entry begins around $200,000. Last year, Franklin saw the most homes sell in the $300k-$400k range. Second most sold were in the $200k-$300k range. Third most sold were in the $400k-$500k range. Franklin's sold ranged from a handful between $100k - $200k...all the way up to just over $3 million, and everything else in between.

In Brentwood, right around $400,000 was your general entry, but as of recent, there are even a handful of homes less than $300,000 and actually quite a few in the $300,000 to $400,000 range. Last year, the range that sold the most homes was $400k-$500k, followed by the second most sold in the $600k-$700k. Third most sold was the $500k-$600k range. There were a handful in the $200k to $300k range and then it, too, went all the way up to $3 million in sales. Brentwood had more homes sell over $1 million than Franklin. Although, Franklin had the only ones sold over $3 million last year.

Both areas have active families and children. Both are beautiful in landscape. Both have traditional subdivisions as well as farms or properties with acreage. While the Cool Springs area is shared by Brentwood and Franklin, most of it is in Franklin. The southernmost point of Brentwood is where it begins. There is a smaller town center in Brentwood. It has a good number of conveniences within the city, but Franklin will have more from the standpoint of Cool Springs. Franklin's historic downtown area is charming and offers an alternative to Cool Springs. From an overall convenience standpoint to other areas, Brentwood is right between Nashville and Franklin. If you plan to go to both frequently, Brentwood is usually more convenient unless you live right at I 65 in the Cool Springs area.

I do think the parks and greenways in Brentwood are very nice. You also have easier access to other parks and natural areas like Radnor Lake and Percy Warner Park, "for the most part" in Brentwood. That's not to say Franklin does not have nice parks. They do.

[user123455]

Thanks Dena Williams.

Regarding the above, as far as convenience to shopping and commuting, I think that the eastern most part of Brentwood (close to Nollensville road) is actually so far from I-65 and Cool springs (I think it's almost 20 minutes from the Cool Springs) that it actually is less convenient than most of Franklin. The main criteria for convenience is access to Nashville (I-65 North) and to Cool Springs, so it really depends on what part of Franklin or Brentwood you are looking at.

Another difference is that in Franklin there are some walkable neighborhoods (sidewalks and you can actually walk to to places), but in Brentwood you are completely dependent on driving to get to anywhere (and there are almost no sidewalks). Personally, I'm not sure what is preferable - sidewalks or no sidewalks ?

[denawilliams]

Originally Posted by user123455

Thanks Dena Williams.

Regarding the above, as far as convenience to shopping and commuting, I think that the eastern most part of Brentwood (close to Nollensville road) is actually so far from I-65 and Cool springs (I think it's almost 20 minutes from the Cool Springs) that it actually is less convenient than most of Franklin. The main criteria for convenience is access to Nashville (I-65 North) and to Cool Springs, so it really depends on what part of Franklin or Brentwood you are looking at.

Another difference is that in Franklin there are some walkable neighborhoods (sidewalks and you can actually walk to to places), but in Brentwood you are completely dependent on driving to get to anywhere (and there are almost no sidewalks). Personally, I'm not sure what is preferable - sidewalks or no sidewalks ?

Just a little elaboration/clarification for others that might be reading. Franklin is very dependent upon cars, just like Brentwood and 95% or more of the greater Nashville area. I realize you might have seen online that there are a few walkable areas in Franklin. I've actually posted about it a few times too. You really have two. Westhaven is a community with several conveniences within the community. However, it's in one of the more remote areas of Franklin overall. So for some things, yes, you can walk within Westhaven to a handful of things. Other than that, you have the historic Downtown area of Franklin. While that area is one of the more walkable areas around, the housing stock makes up a very small portion of Franklin's overall housing. So in the grand scheme of things, Franklin is very car dependent.

In regards to convenience, parts of Brentwood and Franklin both can be located far from I65. Neither has more or less than the other, really. Well, Franklin actually has more at some distance from I65, but it also has more housing than Brentwood and is much more spread out in general. However, the East part of Brentwood is still quite convenient to Cool Springs. It's a short back road trip vs. driving to the Interstate (which actually then would possibly take you 20 minutes). But as I stated earlier, in terms of convenience to I65 or Nashville, if you're in one of the few neighborhoods right near I65 in the Cool Springs area of Franklin, it'll be faster than if you're in one of the 7 miles off the Interstate neighborhoods in Brentwood. Otherwise, the majority of the time, Brentwood is quicker to Nashville.