Decatur vs. Lawrenceville? (Lilburn, Temple: real estate market, rentals, house)

[knicksin8]

I currently live in central NJ and I'm weighing two opportunities: one is in Decatur, GA and the other is in Larenceville, GA. I am unfamiliar with an areas outside of the northeast, but I'm looking forward to a change.

I will be moving with my wife and three children, under the age of 6. We are of Indian descent. It would be nice to live in an area with other people of Indian descent, but this is not a requirement. The most important priority is finding a safe suburb that is reasonably commutable to work. An area with good public schools would be nice, but we're willing to send our children to Catholic or private schools, if needed. We are seeking to find a rental house with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, and can afford a monthly rent of $1,500 per month.

I have not decided yet which opportunity I will pursue, but any recommendations on some safe areas/towns/suburbs in both Decatur and Lawrenceville? Any feedback would be greatly welcome. Thank you in advance!

[red92s]

"City of Decatur" has excellent public schools, but it is a desirable and more expensive area. It's a very family friendly community. There are some parts of unincorporated Dekalb county that also have Decatur mailing addresses, but are not inside the city limits, and consequently don't have access to the school system. $1,500 won't go far in the City of Decatur, unfortunately. You might be able to find a rental in that range, but the Decatur real estate market has been so hot for the last 12+ months that there is not a large selection of rentals to being with.

There was some recent discussion about areas with Indian populations, including Decatur, here:
//www.city-data.com/forum/atlan...hbourhood.html

[jeoff]

$1,500 per month will probably go further in Lawrenceville/Gwinnett County. There are neighborhoods with good schools that have higher concentration of Indians that are a reasonable commute to Lawrenceville, if not in Lawrenceville itself. There is a beautiful Hindu Temple in Lilburn, which is not that far from Lawrenceville (really not all that far from Decatur either).

The city of Decatur has good schools, but is more expensive. I think there are areas just outside the city of Decatur that have higher concentration of Indians; there are a lot of Indian stores, restaurants in the area around Church Street and DeKalb Industrial. In the short term, you can probably find elementary schools close to Decatur that are good that are outside of the more expensive City of Decatur. After elementary school, the Decatur-but-not-City-of-Decatur schools are not as good.

Originally Posted by knicksin8

I currently live in central NJ and I'm weighing two opportunities: one is in Decatur, GA and the other is in Larenceville, GA. I am unfamiliar with an areas outside of the northeast, but I'm looking forward to a change.

I will be moving with my wife and three children, under the age of 6. We are of Indian descent. It would be nice to live in an area with other people of Indian descent, but this is not a requirement. The most important priority is finding a safe suburb that is reasonably commutable to work. An area with good public schools would be nice, but we're willing to send our children to Catholic or private schools, if needed. We are seeking to find a rental house with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, and can afford a monthly rent of $1,500 per month.

I have not decided yet which opportunity I will pursue, but any recommendations on some safe areas/towns/suburbs in both Decatur and Lawrenceville? Any feedback would be greatly welcome. Thank you in advance!