East Cobb, Georgia to St. Louis is anything comprable? (Chesterfield: to rent, homes)

[Badger96]

We are possibly moving from East Cobb (suburb of Atlanta) to St. Louis. Is anyone familiar with both areas that can help me find a similar feel?
Safe and Excellent public schools at all three levels is a must. Might have to rent for a bit depending on what our current home sells for, otherwise looking at around $500,000 for a home. Nice yard a must. Prefer newer homes. Access to parks, pools and USA swim team. DH work would be near Ladue.

[billiken]

I'd start with Chesterfield & surrounding suburbs. I am not at all familiar with East Cobb, but looked at wikipedia, and it sounds upper middle class with a lot of centralized retail (Merchant's Walk?). Chesterfield fulfills your excellent schools requirement (Parkway School District has a great reputation), and has a humongous strip mall right off the highway with everything you could ever need. Parkway Swim Club is part of USA Swimming. There's enough trees and all that there to make for a nice yard that won't feel like you live on recently developed farmland. I've discovered recently that my definition of newer homes is very different from what people talk about down south, though. On average, homes are probably about 20-30 years old out that way, some have recent updates while others not so much. There's some newer stuff, but generally the schools in those areas have a reputation of being "good" but not "excellent." There's newer stuff off hwy 44 that is part of the Rockwood district--great schools--but it's probably a less convenient commute to Ladue, and it's less commercialized.

[MUTGR]

I'd agree that you are probably talking about West County, anywhere in the Parkway School District. Particular municipalities to look at would be Chesterfield, Wildwood, Ellisville, Ballwin.

Also consider Town & Country, Frontenac, Des Peres, Ladue.

If you are interested in older homes in closer burbs, Kirkwood, Webster, Glendale, Clayton.

[glamatomic]

I'm on the same page as Mutgr in this one- I would start out by looking in all of those places as well!

I know what Billiken means too about having a different definition of 'newer stuff'. Even though I'm in my 20s, I think anything built from about 1980-onwards is 'newer'. Compared to a lot of the housing stock in the St. Louis region, I suppose it is

[Badger96]

Thanks everyone. I am not a fan of strip malls, but what I do like about our current area is that there is a community feel (taste of East Cobb fest, parade, a bit of small town in this massive sprawling city).
Newer, I would prefer new construction, but am open. I like open plans, high ceilings etc.
How do the schools in West County compare to say Ladue and Kirkwood?
Also, we might be visiting in a few weeks to get a feel of the area's.

[Badger96]

Also, how far of a commute is Chesterfield? We currently live around 12 miles from my husbands office, in the morning it takes him about 20 mins. The evenings, he leaves early to beat the heavy traffic, but it still takes him an hour to get home. He is really looking forward to a shorter commute.

[billiken]

Ladue's schools are probably considered slightly better, and I'm sure there's lots of debate over Kirkwood vs Parkway vs Rockwood, but they are all highly thought of in the area.

If small town feel is what you like, I'd look at something like Kirkwood or Webster Groves. Both more traditional downtowns, with all sorts of events going on (art fairs, outdoor concerts, etc). They are also close to Ladue. Thing is, new construction is rare in these areas and likely would be at the top or outside your price range (I think a couple weeks ago, someone posted a link to some new construction that was nice in Kirkwood....priced at $750k.). The range of homes is interesting in this area--everything from 2bdrm ranches in the 100s to huge places near $1M. The less expensive newer construction that does exist is usually in the less desirable (in many people's opinion) area of Meacham Park in Kirkwood.

The Chesterfield to Clayton or Downtown commute has probably the 2nd heaviest traffic in STL, but if you leave early-ish, it's no big deal, and does not compare at all to Atlanta.

[Dawn10am]

Originally Posted by billiken

The Chesterfield to Clayton or Downtown commute has probably the 2nd heaviest traffic in STL, but if you leave early-ish, it's no big deal, and does not compare at all to Atlanta.

Just curious, but what would be the first? I've always thought 64/40 was the busiest.

[billiken]

Originally Posted by Dawn10am

Just curious, but what would be the first? I've always thought 64/40 was the busiest.

My guess, especially currently with the construction, is the I-70 corridor.

[MUTGR]

Originally Posted by billiken

Ladue's schools are probably considered slightly better, and I'm sure there's lots of debate over Kirkwood vs Parkway vs Rockwood, but they are all highly thought of in the area.

If small town feel is what you like, I'd look at something like Kirkwood or Webster Groves. Both more traditional downtowns, with all sorts of events going on (art fairs, outdoor concerts, etc). They are also close to Ladue. Thing is, new construction is rare in these areas and likely would be at the top or outside your price range (I think a couple weeks ago, someone posted a link to some new construction that was nice in Kirkwood....priced at $750k.). The range of homes is interesting in this area--everything from 2bdrm ranches in the 100s to huge places near $1M. The less expensive newer construction that does exist is usually in the less desirable (in many people's opinion) area of Meacham Park in Kirkwood.

The Chesterfield to Clayton or Downtown commute has probably the 2nd heaviest traffic in STL, but if you leave early-ish, it's no big deal, and does not compare at all to Atlanta.

Agreed.

You can find new and newer construction in Kirkwood, just not as much as farther west.