Athens (Madison, Carroll, Congress: to rent, how much, townhouse)

[AthensOhio]

Hi,
My husband and I will be moving to Athens, Ohio- where my husband will be going to grad school at UO. We are going to buy a house/townhouse and don't know what neighborhood to buy in. Could someone describe the areas for me (ex: northside, southside, eastside, westside)? We are in our early 30's, don't want to live with crazy undergrad students, would prefer newer construction, and are looking to spend around $150- $250. Any ideas?

[bobcat07]

Well I am currently a senior here at Ohio University so I'm not sure how much I will be but I can tell you what areas are student dominated at least. Avoid anywhere near Mill Street (where I live), Palmer, Court, High, West State (to an extent), Carpenter, and Congress streets. I would suggest somewhere off of East State Street if you want to be within walking or biking distance of campus or downtown. There are some very nice homes in these areas and I don't think there are a lot of students living in these areas as they are farther away from campus and don't have the...."nightlife" of your Palmer, Mill, and Court streets. Your price range should be fine as well. Hope I was able to help!

[AthensOhio]

Thanks for your suggestions where not to live. I was looking at the Southside- around Coventry Lane, Longview Heights area, or Westfield Place Townhomes. What do you think of this area? Also, do you think that students will want to rent our house or townhouse from us- if we buy in this area? or is it too far for most students?

[AthensOhio]

Also which elementary school is the best?

[bobcat07]

Not sure on the elementary schools, but I am a high school student teacher right now and Athens High School is very good. Also, I'm not too sure about areas outside of the city, the North East side of the city off of Madison have some amazing homes though.

[DouglssGreen]

If you purchase in the Westfield development, read the deed restrictions carefully. There is one restriction which requires that when you go to resell your property that you MUST list it with a particular broker.

That said, Westfield is a very nice area and it does not have a very high density of students.

Schools, I am biased. My daughter teaches at Morrison Elementary (Athens SD) but Alexander is a good system as well. What grade levels are you needing.

[AthensOhio]

Thank you for your responses- I really appreciate it. We have a 1st grader and a 3rd grader. People have told us that East Elementary is very good too. So, they have been advising us to purchase a home on the East side. But, we are currently looking around Carroll Rd. and at the Westfield Townhomes. We will only be living in Athens for 5 years and are thinking about renting out the place after that. Are there any downsides to the Westfield Townhomes? We are basically looking for a newer place with very little, if any, maintenance. Any other ideas? Is the University Commons for retirement folks only?

[emjbulls]

Have you found a house yet by chance? My family and I are moving away from Athens because my husband got a job offer in Texas. I have a 3 bedroom house on Coventry that is move in condition and we are willing to cut a deal so we can sell it before moving.

[Powro3]

Hello,
I currently live in Athens...I don't advise moving here..I have lived here for almost 2 years and HATE it, my children ages 13, 10, and 8, also hate it. My children go to Athens Middle School and Morrison Elem. My advise to you is IF you have to move to Athens county..move into Alexander school district...but if I were you I would look at a differnt school and location. And yes, I am a OU student and hate Athens. I only have 2 more quarters left and we are moving to NC. Me and my family can not wait. Make sure you really want to make this move and go to OU, there are so many other colleges out there.

[bobdolethefish]

We are also grad students and we have four kids and have loved it here. I don't know much about the other schools, but East Elementary has been fantastic--the principal there is unbelievable: so involved and knows _everybody_ (students, parents, even siblings) by name. Also, the university provides a lot of extra opportunities for the students.

Personally, I love the East side (we live Near East, just under a mile from campus and close to the bike path, the library, uptown, the Village bakery, the swimming pool and skate park in the summertime); everything's walkable from here.

The neighborhood you're looking at seems nice also, but I'm not sure you'll have as easy a time renting property there in the future. Also, you'll probably have to drive your kids to activities, the pool, etc.