Why Do People Move to South Cobb - Mableton, Austell, Etc? (Atlanta: rent, mortgage)

[lorilove]

For the record, Mableton does not have defined city limits. There are many areas with a Mableton address that highjack the Vinings (or sometimes Smyrna) name - Vinings Estates is a perfect example.

It is very possible that when you drove in some of the better areas you were in an area that for all practical purposes was Mableton but it was just not obvious.

[LovelySummer]

$300K? LOL.

Do you have any idea how many people in this country can afford a home that is $300K? Not as many as you think. $300K is actually a fairly expensive home. The average home price is something like 150K and the median home price is something like 190K in the U.S.

Originally Posted by hautemomma

By the way, there are many homes well under $300K in East Cobb and Kennesaw.

[hautemomma]

Originally Posted by LovelySummer

$300K? LOL.

Do you have any idea how many people in this country can afford a home that is $300K? Not as many as you think. $300K is actually a fairly expensive home. The average home price is something like 150K and the median home price is something like 190K in the U.S.

Someone in this thread mentioned $300K homes. I was simply responding that there are many, many homes in East Cobb and Kennesaw WELL under that price point, just as there are many that are well above it.

[DaBurgh]

Originally Posted by hautemomma

I've met a number of people who reside in South Cobb, primarily Austell and Mableton. They have toddlers or children who are approaching school age, and now they are praying they get accepted into schools in the East Cobb and Kennesaw areas. Before we moved here, we predicated our search on school quality/reputation as a primary consideration, and tried to make the decision accordingly (as best as we knew and could afford). In my travels through Mableton and Austell, the neighborhoods look depressed, industrial and under-developed. Has it always been this way, or was there a time when Mableton and Austell were faring better? I ask this not to be judgmental, but because I really don't know and don't understand why so many people I've encountered have decided these are their "choice" neighborhoods.

I haven't even been to these areas but it could be the older housing stock that people prefer, or the pace, or the people, or the extra land you get for your $.....some people don't want to live the "keep up with the Jones'es" lifestyle, even though they could, and these areas make that a possibility.

[smb90]

Not everyone in South Cobb is broke, Mableton Estates is pretty wealthy, not to mention the commute into downtown from most of south Cobb is MUCHHHH better than trekking down 75 from North Cobb and parts of East Cobb. Plus, not everyone wants to live in East Cobb honestly. I'm willing to bet there are plenty of people down there who could EASILY afford to live in East Cobb, but don't want to deal with the traffic or commute into the city.

[cwkimbro]

Well a big thing that hasn't been discussed is proximity to jobs and residential areas.

That area is a bit more industrious with some major truck routes, like Thorton Road, but I want to key-in on how close it is to the Fulton Industrial Blvd corridor, but has Cobb County schools. It also maintains somewhat access to Atlanta's Core, the airport, Cumberland, and a long commute to Perimeter. For some people with dual incomes and a family it might be a good location.

It should be noted that industrial parks do need a good bit of manual labor, but they do also bring in many small to medium size business owners, engineers, logistics planners. There are some high paying jobs in the mix.

I see the character of South Cobb as the type of people who might need to leverage its position being between the northside and Fulton Industrial.


Also keep in mind if you drive further away from those truck routes, the area is is very single-family home oriented on large treed lots. Some people like that it can maintain small elements of being semi-rural, despite the fact it is very suburban.

[hilltop2010]

I have lived in Mableton for 5 years. I really wanted to be close to ITP and Vinings where I work. I really wanted to be in Smyrna but all the houses I looked at were in bad need of repair or complete shoeboxes. I found a nice, renovated, 2br house in Mableton for good price. I was single at the time and now just live here with my wife. I can tell you I heard about much more crime when I lived off Log Cabin Road in Smyrna and constantly had to deal with people pan handling; none of which I deal with in Mableton. I live in an older neighborhood and it's really quite and, knock on wood, have not had any crime issues. I've heard about a few people having their sheds or garages broken into, but nothing more serious. It's close to downtown it's very quite. I have friends that live off Bolton Road and that's what I really cannot understand - the crime down in that area is terrible; yet I know yuppie friends that have bought homes there an every single one of them has told me of a crime story or some other bizzare stories of the homeless people that roam around their neighborhood. Some of the other people I talk to in this area are frustrated by the schools, but I don't know what it would take to change it. Still, it's been a good home, it's very close to where I work, traffic is not really bad, it's really accessible to downtown, and there are a lot of tax and civic advantages to living in Cobb County.

[JoeP]

I've met a number of people who reside in South Cobb, primarily Austell and Mableton. They have toddlers or children who are approaching school age, and now they are praying they get accepted into schools in the East Cobb and Kennesaw areas. Before we moved here, we predicated our search on school quality/reputation as a primary consideration, and tried to make the decision accordingly (as best as we knew and could afford). In my travels through Mableton and Austell, the neighborhoods look depressed, industrial and under-developed. Has it always been this way, or was there a time when Mableton and Austell were faring better? I ask this not to be judgmental, but because I really don't know and don't understand why so many people I've encountered have decided these are their "choice" neighborhoods.

So based on your limited knowledge you assume that people living in those areas are nuts, or simply made a big mistake?

Many parts of Mableton are very nice and very expensive. There are many reasons one decides where to live.

[JoeP]

I might add that many people think it's insane to live that (Kennesaw/North and East Cobb) far from work and only adds to congestion issues. One could also add that if people sent their kids to South Cobb public schools, those schools in need of improving, would improve...

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by hautemomma

I've met a number of people who reside in South Cobb, primarily Austell and Mableton. They have toddlers or children who are approaching school age, and now they are praying they get accepted into schools in the East Cobb and Kennesaw areas. Before we moved here, we predicated our search on school quality/reputation as a primary consideration, and tried to make the decision accordingly (as best as we knew and could afford). In my travels through Mableton and Austell, the neighborhoods look depressed, industrial and under-developed. Has it always been this way, or was there a time when Mableton and Austell were faring better? I ask this not to be judgmental, but because I really don't know and don't understand why so many people I've encountered have decided these are their "choice" neighborhoods.

Let me provide some input as a 10-year resident of Mableton.

First of all, as others have stated, not all areas of Mableton are created equal.

I live in the hilly subdivision-laden stretch along Cooper Lake Road just south of the Smyrna border, and the area around my subdivision (Stoneybrook, an older John Wieland community build in the late 80's) is actually very nice. The higher priced subdivisions just to the north of us (Vinings Estates and friends) are technically in the City of Smyrna these days, but they didn't used to be, and we have the same convenience to Vinings/Cumberland and the shopping areas in Austell that southern Smyrna does without having to pay Smyrna City real estate tax. The commute to the airport is also not too bad, with alternative routes if 285 south decides to be moody.

My subdivision is still zoned for south Smyrna schools, so that would be Nickajack Elementary, Griffin Middle, and Campbell HS. Campell isn't as good as some in East Cobb, but it's the same school as the kids living in the money homes in Smyrna and Vinings attend (assuming they go to public school ), and from what I understand it's not a bad school in the grand scheme of things.

Austell is an incorporated city. Mableton is not, but it used to be a little over 100 years ago. It still has a bit of a city center structure, and the Mableton Improvement Coalition has a nice program to improve that area along Floyd Road over the next several years, so the residents are not totally disorganized. I've enjoyed living in the area, and I admit I'm curious where you drove? Some neighborhoods are older and follow more urban patterns, sure, but along Cooper Lake, Nickajack, and Buckner Roads you'll find a fair number of subdivisions which are decent by almost any measure. Fairly low crime, too, as long as you stay more than a few hundred yards away from Veterans Memorial Highway. That seems to be a crime magnet, as many high-access business districts seem to be.

Just my two cents. I like Mableton.

P.S. I should add the following: I work in the Cumberland district, which is just a 7 mile hop down the E/W Connector from home. I couldn't afford Vinings, I didn't like the areas in southern/eastern Smyrna as much, and Fulton County across the river is an entity I will not deal with if I can help it. So Mableton was a logical choice for me within a reasonable radius. My house was 229k in 2005, which was something I could afford, and sits on .42 acres in a nice safe neighborhood nestled in a tree-covered valley with no traffic. It's a nice place to hide from the hustle and bustle of the metro.