Shouldn't a realtor be familiar with neighborhoods all around Atlanta? (Dunwoody: house, schools)

[TwoFuzzyPony]

Originally Posted by George Chong

Nothing against the OP since you are just moving to Atlanta, but I don't consider the areas you mentioned "Atlanta". They are not in the city limits.

Like others have stated, most real estate agents specialize in areas or neighborhoods. If someone tells you that they sell everywhere, I would reconsider. If you contacted me, I would refer you to someone else who knows the area like the back of their hand.

Good luck to you!

I don't consider the areas I mentioned as Atlanta either. In my original post, I asked about a realtor's knowledge of neighborhoods "throughout the Atlanta outlaying areas" in the first sentence. Am I in the right forum? If not, can anyone direct me to a forum that would be appropriate to my inquiry? Thanks.

[bdawk]

You may need more than one realtor to get what you want accomplished. Ask each of them pros and cons about what they know of different areas even outside of where they may specialize. As you've already said, you can do some narrowing down on your own on the internet.

I would not sign anything to tie me to just one realtor as that person might not be the one who is ultimately able to help you.

[JPD]

Originally Posted by TwoFuzzyPony

I don't consider the areas I mentioned as Atlanta either. In my original post, I asked about a realtor's knowledge of neighborhoods "throughout the Atlanta outlaying areas" in the first sentence. Am I in the right forum? If not, can anyone direct me to a forum that would be appropriate to my inquiry? Thanks.

You're in the right place. George's comment about your areas of focus not being in the "City of Atlanta" was kind of bizarre, since the city limits are a relaitvely tiny portion of what people mean when they say "Atlanta."

You probably won't be able to find a realtor with expertise in all the areas you mentioned. There are not enough hours in the day to accommodate all the driving that would be required in order to be well versed in such a vast area.

[cwkimbro]

Originally Posted by JPD

You're in the right place. George's comment about your areas of focus not being in the "City of Atlanta" was kind of bizarre, since the city limits are a relaitvely tiny portion of what people mean when they say "Atlanta."

You probably won't be able to find a realtor with expertise in all the areas you mentioned. There are not enough hours in the day to accommodate all the driving that would be required in order to be well versed in such a vast area.

not to pick on George... but one thing I find interesting about his comment....

Alot of the "we are Atlanta, but all these other areas are not" arguments often seem to come from the area between Inman Park and Kirkwood. I don't hear them near as much from people elsewhere in the city proper.

[George Chong]

My comment about the City of Atlanta is that I did not want the OP to think that some of the areas that she listed were in the city limits. As others have noted, she is looking at a range of areas and that no real estate agent would be an expert in all the areas noted.

I am still surprised at how many people do not have the distinction between the City of Decatur and "the other" Decatur.

It's hard to get a lay of the land when you are new to the area.

[JPD]

Originally Posted by George Chong

I am still surprised at how many people do not have the distinction between the City of Decatur and "the other" Decatur.

If all the far-flung places people call Decatur were in the Decatur city limits, it'd probably be the biggest city on earth.

[George Chong]

Originally Posted by JPD

If all the far-flung places people call Decatur were in the Decatur city limits, it'd probably be the biggest city on earth.

I know right

[roxyrn]

I think when you are first starting out, you do your basic research, mainly online (although I quickly subscribed to Atlanta magazine to get more of a feel of the city). Hours spent on the computer gathering information on schools, cities,neighborhoods, cities. Then came to Atlanta and spent hours in the car cruising the area from Midtown to Kennesaw, Decatur to Dunwoody, to Chandler Park to Milton. Throw in Marrietta and East Cobb. Lots and lots of notes and pictures. Then able to narrow it down to an area and then to 4-5 high schools and finally 2. Having a fantastic real estate agent who lived and new that area very well was essential.

[RainyRainyDay]

If you have the time and other resources to take roxyrn's approach, that's clearly best. If you have to make a quicker choice, I recommend asking advice from colleagues at the new workplace. My office is in Sandy Springs, and I'm forever grateful to the wife of the senior executive there. We went for a dinner outing with spouses on our quick-look trip to Atlanta, and when my spouse and I expressed that our main concern was school quality (subject to housing affordability and tolerable commute time) she advised us to find a house "anywhere in East Cobb." It was excellent advice.

[roxyrn]

I was lucky- our house in NY didn't sell for 18 months and my husband was already working here for 6 months before that so I did have a lot of time to research and take trips to Atlanta. Also, I would give him assignments to go to look at neighborhoods that had houses I liked online.
But, it is best to hear from someone you trust who lives here. I also felt our real estate agent was very open about the various neighborhoods and gave us excellent advice.