Family relocating from California to Atlanta area (Sandy Springs, Roswell: real estate market, rent)

[cali2ga]

Hi! My family and I will be relocating mid March from the SF Bay Area. We have a few towns we can consider for work. I'd love any info we can get. Areas with good schools, low crime, etc.
Here some stats for us.

Family of 4
Looking to purchase home under $200k and not in a neighborhood that has HOA/ dues
Would prefer large lot (2+ acres) but not too remote of a town (ie close to grocery and semi close to basic shopping such as Target).
My husband will be commuting but most day at off hours (retail). Starting mid day or as early as 4, 5, or 6 am. Prefer no more than 45 min. on a bad day though if possible.
Children are not in school yet but will be in public when it comes time. Will be hunting for preschools in the mean time.

Towns he'd be choosing to work in:
Norcross
Roswell
Marietta
Sandy springs

Thanks!!

[dblackga]

Your budget of $200k isn't going to go very far in the Sandy Springs or Roswell area, especially with the amount of land you are hoping to find. There are some parts of Norcross where you may be able to get close to that, but not in the desirable school districts. Same with Marietta - the parts where you could find homes in that price range are going to be in the less desirable areas in terms of schools.

FYI, don't necessarily negate any home with an HOA. Many of the HOAs are pretty benign, and just collect some money to take care of common areas and a newsletter or website for the neighborhood. Others are HOAs that simply take care of desirable amenities such as a neighborhood pool and tennis courts. There are few that are the oppressive " our way or else" parody of a HOA, so keep an open mind.

Areas that might fit your criteria are Mableton, Austell, Smyrna and Woodstick, as well as some parts of Kennesaw.

[lorilove]

Originally Posted by cali2ga

My husband will be commuting but most day at off hours (retail). Starting mid day or as early as 4, 5, or 6 am. Prefer no more than 45 min. on a bad day though if possible.



Thanks!!

Norcross
Roswell
Marietta
Sandy springs

You can likely find what you are looking for if you are willing to go 30+ minutes out from the above towns. For example, you might look at Acworth with a commute to Marietta. Forsyth County for a commute to Roswell and Snellville for a commute to Norcross. Sandy Springs will likely not work for you.

I would look at your specific locations and then head out (away from Atlanta) 15-20 miles.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by cali2ga

Hi! My family and I will be relocating mid March from the SF Bay Area. We have a few towns we can consider for work. I'd love any info we can get. Areas with good schools, low crime, etc.
Here some stats for us.

Family of 4
Looking to purchase home under $200k and not in a neighborhood that has HOA/ dues
Would prefer large lot (2+ acres) but not too remote of a town (ie close to grocery and semi close to basic shopping such as Target).
My husband will be commuting but most day at off hours (retail). Starting mid day or as early as 4, 5, or 6 am. Prefer no more than 45 min. on a bad day though if possible.
Children are not in school yet but will be in public when it comes time. Will be hunting for preschools in the mean time.

Towns he'd be choosing to work in:
Norcross
Roswell
Marietta
Sandy springs

Thanks!!

$200k for 2+ acres is just simply not happening unless your husband is willing to have a long-distance commute to (and from) work from a remote and very-rural part of the state.

The cost-of-living in Georgia is substantially cheaper than it is in comparison to the Bay Area and Northern California, but it isn't THAT cheap.

Heck, with the recent rise in the real estate market, it is getting increasingly-challenging to find 1/2-acre homes for under $300K in and near the North Metro Atlanta suburban towns that you named unless you are willing to live in an East Coast-style attached row house townhome (...like the row houses that are found in the high-density population centers of the Northeastern U.S. like D.C., Baltimore, Philly, NYC, Boston, etc).

Heck, just finding a quality detached 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom single-family home on 1/2 an acre or less at $200k or less within 30 miles of the towns that you named could potentially be a challenge unless you are willing to settle for something older (20 years or older).

With that said, for the price range that you are looking for, if you want a newer home (built within the last 15-20 years or so) for $200k and under, according to which town your husband will be working in, you should look in the following areas with good schools and low crime:

>If your husband decides to work in Norcross, you should look in...

...In Gwinnett County in the area with Sugar Hill and Buford mailing addresses in the feeder zone for Lanier High School in the 30518 zip code;

...In Gwinnett County in the area with Dacula and Auburn mailing addresses in the 30019 and 30011 zip codes;

...In Gwinnett County in the Snellville 30078 zip code in the feeder zone for the highly-rated Brookwood High School, and in the area with Grayson and Loganville mailing addresses in the feeder zone for the highly-rated Grayson High School;

...In Walton County in the feeder zones for Loganville, Walnut Grove and Monroe Area high schools;


>If your husband decides to work in Roswell or Sandy Springs, you look in...

...In Cobb County in the areas with Acworth and Kennesaw mailing addresses;

...In Cherokee County in the areas with Acworth, Woodstock and Canton (and Holly Springs) mailing addresses;


>If your husband decides to work in Marietta, you should look in...

...In Cobb County in the areas with Acworth and Kennesaw mailing addresses;

...In Cherokee County in the areas with Acworth, Woodstock and Canton (and Holly Springs) mailing addresses (...all of Cherokee County has a GREAT school system for its level of affordability);

...In Paulding County in the feeder zones for North Paulding, East Paulding, Hiram, Paulding County and South Paulding high schools (...start your search in the feeder zone for the highly-rated North Paulding HS and go from there);

[WmMeeker]

Originally Posted by cali2ga

Hi! My family and I will be relocating mid March from the SF Bay Area. We have a few towns we can consider for work. I'd love any info we can get. Areas with good schools, low crime, etc.
Here some stats for us.

Family of 4
Looking to purchase home under $200k and not in a neighborhood that has HOA/ dues
Would prefer large lot (2+ acres) but not too remote of a town (ie close to grocery and semi close to basic shopping such as Target).
My husband will be commuting but most day at off hours (retail). Starting mid day or as early as 4, 5, or 6 am. Prefer no more than 45 min. on a bad day though if possible.
Children are not in school yet but will be in public when it comes time. Will be hunting for preschools in the mean time.

Towns he'd be choosing to work in:
Norcross
Roswell
Marietta
Sandy springs

Thanks!!

Honestly, I would really rethink not having an HOA. You may be very sorry for that decision. HOAs can be pains in the ass but some of them are fairly liberal with what you can and cannot do. I applied for 2 exemptions on a ham radio antenna and a storage shed and they approved both of the request with conditions (the antenna not visible from the street and the shed painted to match the house). Not having one will mean no maintenance of common areas and absentee landlord and trashy tenants. Your home value will fall too.

[hatgirl007]

Don't move unless you have a plan. If you are just trying to find a cheap place to live for the kids then maybe it's a good move. I recommend before you buy property you should rent (even if you rent a house/condo for 6 months) and determine if this place is really for you while getting a lay of the land. Things you take for granted in CA will be different in the south.

Look before you leap.

[Pacifico]

May be difficult to find 2+ acres for under 200k in the towns you have listed.

[cali2ga]

Thanks for all the responses! We are looking for something on the cheaper (and smaller lot) size for now. The choices have dropped dramatically (there were tons of houses for around $200k on a couple acres when we started looking). My husband got transferred to Sandy Springs. Like I said, he is fine with a somewhat small commute so I'm not looking in Sandy Springs specifically because obviously it's not in our budget. Maybe it's a regional thing, but HOAs out here are a nightmare. Currently my neighborhood (about 11 years old) are all being forced to paint the outside is the house. Most of these places still look brand new (stucco). Cannot use garage for storage, warning if garbage cans are not brought inside within a day after garbage day, etc. I am all for lax communities that you have low fees for maintenance of common areas.
I'm currently looking in the Dallas, Hiram, Kennesaw, Acworth, Woodstock areas. We'll be out there in about 6 weeks or so. This will primarily be an investment property for us as we plan to upgrade or build in a few years when we determine where we want to live permanently. Looking for family friendly areas that are in good-great school districts. I'm seeing Cobb, Cherokee and Gwinett are highly rated and Paulding mediocre but possibly on the rise (hearsay).


Woodstock commute to Sandy Springs?

Thanks everyone!

[cali2ga]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll

$200k for 2+ acres is just simply not happening unless your husband is willing to have a long-distance commute to (and from) work from a remote and very-rural part of the state.

The cost-of-living in Georgia is substantially cheaper than it is in comparison to the Bay Area and Northern California, but it isn't THAT cheap.

Heck, with the recent rise in the real estate market, it is getting increasingly-challenging to find 1/2-acre homes for under $300K in and near the North Metro Atlanta suburban towns that you named unless you are willing to live in an East Coast-style attached row house townhome (...like the row houses that are found in the high-density population centers of the Northeastern U.S. like D.C., Baltimore, Philly, NYC, Boston, etc).

Heck, just finding a quality detached 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom single-family home on 1/2 an acre or less at $200k or less within 30 miles of the towns that you named could potentially be a challenge unless you are willing to settle for something older (20 years or older).

With that said, for the price range that you are looking for, if you want a newer home (built within the last 15-20 years or so) for $200k and under, according to which town your husband will be working in, you should look in the following areas with good schools and low crime:

>If your husband decides to work in Norcross, you should look in...

...In Gwinnett County in the area with Sugar Hill and Buford mailing addresses in the feeder zone for Lanier High School in the 30518 zip code;

...In Gwinnett County in the area with Dacula and Auburn mailing addresses in the 30019 and 30011 zip codes;

...In Gwinnett County in the Snellville 30078 zip code in the feeder zone for the highly-rated Brookwood High School, and in the area with Grayson and Loganville mailing addresses in the feeder zone for the highly-rated Grayson High School;

...In Walton County in the feeder zones for Loganville, Walnut Grove and Monroe Area high schools;


>If your husband decides to work in Roswell or Sandy Springs, you look in...

...In Cobb County in the areas with Acworth and Kennesaw mailing addresses;

...In Cherokee County in the areas with Acworth, Woodstock and Canton (and Holly Springs) mailing addresses;


>If your husband decides to work in Marietta, you should look in...

...In Cobb County in the areas with Acworth and Kennesaw mailing addresses;

...In Cherokee County in the areas with Acworth, Woodstock and Canton (and Holly Springs) mailing addresses (...all of Cherokee County has a GREAT school system for its level of affordability);

...In Paulding County in the feeder zones for North Paulding, East Paulding, Hiram, Paulding County and South Paulding high schools (...start your search in the feeder zone for the highly-rated North Paulding HS and go from there);

Thanks for the detailed info!!!! We have seen a few places we love in a lot of those towns.

[cali2ga]

On the topic of commuting...30-45 minutes is like a vacation. We both are currently commuting 1.5-2 hours one way.