Young(ish) professional family with kids moving to ATL - Would love some guidance :) (Atlanta: real estate market, to rent)

[Nena2007]

Hey all!!

My husband is job hunting and we are looking for a change and to be a little closer to family (spread from MI to VA). We live in Houston and don't hate it, but are looking for something new. My husband is an accountant in the oil and gas industry with an MBA in finance. In addition, I am a high end photographer who will be rebuilding my business. From what I have seen thus far, Atlanta seems to pay pretty well and while the housing is a bit more than the Houston area, it isn't insane.

A few things that we are looking for and details about us

I'm 29, hes 34, we have four children ranging from 18 months-8 years old. Schools are EXTREMELY important to us. If its a beautiful, safe, less expensive area we are open to private schools but a good public school is our preference.

Our home budget is currently 300k, but that could increase depending on his job offer, but we don't want to be house poor either. Needs 4 bedrooms, at least 2800 sq feet (a little less is ok if there is basement living space).

My guess is that he will be working somewhere downtown or near there. We are ok with a commute of about 45 minutes-1 hour though less is desirable.

We like the conveniences of the city, but the safety of the suburbs. We are (compared to our conservative Houstonian neighbors) more free thinking, open minded and non religious. We don't mind being surrounded by church goers as long as they leave us be My daughter came home being harassed a bit about not going to church... I am NOT looking for that type of environment.

Some sort of park and ride/bus transportation would be nice for hubby to get downtown if they have a system like that there. It isn't mandatory, but certainly helpful.

I hope this is a good start to gather some info about ATL and the surrounding areas. Thanks for your help

[noah]

Others will have more details on neighborhoods but its likely your husband will end up finding an accounting job in one of the north Atlanta job centers instead of downtown (Alpharetta, Perimeter etc). There are a lot of accounting positions in these locations.

[Nena2007]

Ahh ok - good to know! Most of the big companies are located downtown in Houston and I assumed it was the same. My mistake. Thanks for your help!

[AnsleyPark]

If your husband accepts a job in one of the nationally known accounting firms, he likely will work downtown or in midtown. And, there are plenty of companies downtown and midtown as well. Guess it just depends on where he gets his job. You might want to consider renting until he lands something.

[Nena2007]

Oh yeah, we won't move until he has a job. We are also planning to rent for 6 mo to a year to make sure we picked the right area

[AtlantaIsHot]

Reading through Nena's past posts, a few days ago they were moving to NC too... Not to mention Nashville, TN...

[Nena2007]

A few days ago? No...

Yes, we have been looking at multiple areas around the country. NC seemed like a good fit but when my husband started to talk to the companies in the area, we realized it wasn't the best match.

Nashville is still on the list and my husband is coordinating phone interviews there and talking with a recruiter in Atl. We are actually still considering staying in Houston.

Thats the best part - with the way our life is now, we can move to the place that seems the best for us. But I guess it would be better to pick one place and not consider that there may be better opportunities elsewhere??

[cwkimbro]

The same thing Noah said popped up in my mind.

We have multiple 'downtowns.' Depending where your job is will alter where you want to live, but depending on the location it can help you live in nice areas that might not be reachable to downtown.


There is a fairly large commuter bus system here since you mentioned it. It uses HOV/HOT lanes. It has a moderate ridership. For most people it is still quicker to drive themselves, given the time it takes to drive there, park, wait on the bus, etc... I know there are some areas where the benefits increase though. I know ridership is pretty high in some areas, like near Sugarloaf in Gwinnett and low in other areas where there isn't much savings benefits. Intown you have MARTA.

Xpress...commuting made easy. Operated by the GA Regional Transportation Authority

[Nena2007]

Thank you so much That is good to know. I know Atlanta traffic is just as bad as Houston (if not worse), so that is helpful. Here, the bus is generally quicker, especially if you factor in trying to find parking downtown.

Sent resumes to a bunch of places today so we shall see

[Born 2 Roll]

cwkimbro makes an excellent point that (like where you currently live in Houston) the Atlanta area has multiple downtown-like business districts.

The Atlanta currently has about five of what could be considered downtown-like business districts in Downtown Atlanta, Midtown Atlanta, Buckhead (Atlanta's version of an Uptown business district), the Perimeter Center area, and the Cumberland/Galleria.

The Atlanta area also has a sixth area that is starting to emerge as a major business district in the Alpharetta area of North Fulton County, and has other significant commercial and industrial business districts spread throughout the Northside in areas like Kennesaw, Johns Creek, Norcross, Duluth, etc.

With you and your husband not yet knowing the geographical area where you will both be employed, it might be best for you both to wait until you know where you will both be working in metro Atlanta so that you will have a much-better idea of where you should look for housing.

Another observation is that your budget of about $300k for a 4-bedroom, 2800 square foot home in an area of good schools likely puts you out into some farther-flung areas...

...Farther-flung areas like far-West Cobb, East Paulding, North Paulding, Cherokee, Forsyth, far-North Gwinnett, far-East Gwinnett, Walton counties on the Northside, and Fayette and Coweta counties and selected parts of Henry County on the Southside...

...That's if a $300k 4-bedroom, 2800 square foot home can even be found in the metro Atlanta real estate market. You likely may need to increase your budget up to the $350-400k range if you want to have a better chance of finding a NEWER 4-bedroom, 2800 square foot home.

Otherwise, you will likely have to settle for an older home if you want a 4-bedroom, 2800 sq ft home in an area of good schools with a budget of $300k in this Atlanta area real estate market.