North Fulton Schools and Commute (Roswell, Alpharetta: house, transfer, neighborhoods)

[valATL]

We are considering a move to Alpharetta and are seeking information on schools and commute from those with knowledge of both. We work in the perimeter area (near 400 and 285). We have a rising kindergartener and rising 4th grader (who will be leaving a good, well regarded private school). The reason for the move is better housing costs and good public schools. We are considering the following school feeder pattern: Crabapple Crossing ES, Northwestern MS, and Milton HS.
(1) Commute: What is it really like during the typical hours of M-F 7-8 am and 4:30-6:30pm? We have heard that the commute is bad, but really would like to hear from those who actually do it.
(2) Schools: We would appreciate hearing any experiences with the noted schools (good and bad). If anyone has moved their child from private to public in north Fulton, we would also appreciate hearing about that experience.
(3) Neighborhoods: We are looking to spend no more than $475k on a house (4 bedrooms) in an active swim tennis community with newer homes. Any suggestions for neighborhoods?
Thanks.

[Mattie]

We moved here during the middle school years, so have no experience with Crabapple Crossing, but were pleased with both Northwestern and Milton HS.

My husband made that commute for several years. He left before 7, and the mornings weren't terrible most of the time. He'd arrive at the Perimeter area in anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. Coming home is always slow, no matter what time you leave. Figure on an hour, maybe a bit more.

You price range for newer construction is not going to be easy. I was going to suggest the Waterside development, off Green Rd, but I'm not sure if they have swim/tennis. Edenwilde does and is zoned to Milton HS, but not the middle/elementary schools you want. Under $500,000 homes in swim tennis tend to be older.

[aries4118]

Mattie has given you great feedback, advice, and suggestions.

All of the high school clusters in North Fulton are good. If you want more options for housing at your price range with newer homes and swim+tennis, you may to expand your search to include the following clusters:

Roswell
Alpharetta
Centennial
Cambridge
Other parts of Milton

Some helpful links--
http://www.fultonschools.org/en/divi...SS_HS_1314.pdf
http://www.fultonschools.org/en/divi...feeder1314.pdf
Schools

[deacongirl]

There are also parts of East Cobb that might be worth considering, i.e. Timber Ridge Elementary zone.

[MattCW]

Definitely look for an area along GA-400 where you can ride MARTA. From North of North Springs station, it's a two-seat ride either from the street or a park and ride to your work area. The GA-400 routes run express from the train station along the highway until they reach a certain park and ride (there are 2 or 3 I believe) then make local stops (and do the reverse to the stations). It's a free transfer from the bus to the train and pretty painless.