Thoughts on Chamblee? (Atlanta, Sandy Springs, Alpharetta: apartments, for rent, condo)

[yr1986]

So, per my previous post, we are an interracial family looking for a place w/ good schools and good people. We are being relocated and my spouse will be working in Sandy Springs but doesn't have a particular "clock in" time so rush hour isn't a huge issue. We initially were going to buy in the 550-600k range but then thought perhaps we would rent in the $3500 range while we get a lay of the land, so to speak. We have been looking as far north as Alpharetta and Johns Creek but came across a nice house in Chamblee. I noticed the schools aren't ranked nearly as high, which is a concern. Our daughter will be off to college in a year but our son is going into 3rd grade. It looks like the elementary school is okay but go downhill from 7th on. We are currently in Ohio and a good private school will run you around 10k/yr, is it about the same down there? We would really prefer to avoid paying a hefty tuition, if possible. So my question, is it better, from a family and school standpoint, to keep looking for something in the Alpharetta/JC area or roll the dice on Chamblee? The mall looks impressive:-)

[cwkimbro]

Chamblee HS has a really good magnet program, but it is common for people to heavily consider private school beyond elementary school in that area.

Dekalb County schools haven't been managed all that well in the past, but there are good pockets of schools....especially elementary schools. Years back they got into a spat with the school accreditation organization and there was a good bit of in-fighting on the school board that led to that.

Chamblee is an older working class community from when the General Motors plant use to be in production.

It is soon to be an up and coming neighborhood. Brookhaven just to the west is one of the hottest new cities in town. It is anchored by an older, ritzier established neghborhood and has had some high end development at Town Brookhaven and many of the surrounding neighborhoods are doing well. Chamblee is sort of the value area next door.

It has a quiet residential area to the north, an emerging condo district at the MARTA station, and further south it is low-rent apartments with an a very interesting international mix of hispanics, vietmaneses, chinese, and more... There are strip mall dedicated to different cultures. This is mostly along Buford Highway.

My read on Chamblee is it is a nice area if you buy in north of Peachtree Industrial. It has a good chance to appreciate in value and is in between some high-demand neighborhoods, but also next to an aging industrial district on the other side. That industrial district has high-development potential in the future (search for articles on the old GM site redevelopment in neighboring Doraville). Schools will be an issue unless you find a niche in the later years (ie. magnet school).

Alpharetta/JC is most definitely the safe bet and is very wealthy, safe, new, and has great schools if you're not concerned about rush hour. Do be realistic about rush hour though. It is lengthy. Many people start work an hour or two early and an hour or two late. Traffic is horrendous getting in and out of the Perimeter Center area.

Given your budget I would also look in the southern part of East Cobb County. Look right across the river along Johnson Ferry Rd. Well established, well to-do suburban area with great solid schools.

[cwkimbro]

Lastly, I definitely think renting first is the way to go, so you can see these areas. The look and feel of them are a bit different.

[ColdAilment]

I have a possibility of relocating to Chamblee later this year. I've never been to Atlanta and never been to Georgia either, but I've heard great things about Atlanta and its suburbs. I hope Chamblee is a nice town if I end up relocating there.

[Craziaskowboi]

Wasn't Chamblee the name of Tennessee Tuxedo's walrus friend?

[skbl17]

Chamblee's a nice city. Great schools (by DeKalb standards), an up-and-coming mixed-use district fronting the Chamblee MARTA station, decent retail, and quiet wooded neighborhoods north of Peachtree Blvd.. I don't live in Chamblee, but I am a product of the middle and high schools there, and it's fantastic.

Except for Chamblee-Dunwoody Rd. traffic, which is terrible during rush hour and school start and end times.

Chamblee's going to be a very exciting place in the next few years!

- skbl17

[ElleKaye]

I don't really like Chamblee for living, but I cannot say I dislike it either. I can say that the people I have met who live there seem to like it.

Most of my boyfriend's family still lives there, and when he was married, he and his ex-wife's daughter went to school there. They are Peruvian, and the area in general seems pretty diverse. Some of the older ladies at the Y I normally go to on Ashford-Dunwoody live there as well. They love it too, and they are 50-ish to 60-ish white women.

The area is a bit older than say Alpharetta, but it seems to have some interesting things for those in the know. By this I mean an interesting variety of restaurants, shopping centers, and what not. It's not all chains. On the surfaxce, it does not appear that safe to me, but I think it may actually be pretty safe. It seems like they may have a sense of community which is something missing from a lot of places in the Atlanta.

I think for what you're planning to spend for rent, you should look at Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, or Buckhead.

[yr1986]

Thank you so much for you input! This forum is so helpful for those of us facing the unknown in relocating! Thanks again:-)

[vince217]

parts of Chamblee (Sexton Woods, Keswick Park) are zoned for Montgomery Elementary, which imho is better than Huntley Hills elementary.... something to think about when thinking of the elementary school for your 3rd grader.

[ATLTJL]

The biggest thing Chamblee has going for it is proximity.

It's convenient to both the northern suburbs and Atlanta. It's also growing with some interesting restaurants and shopping. But make no mistake: its working class roots are apparent in the way commercial buildings have been designed and the look and style of the housing stock.

If I had $600k to spend on a house, there's no way I'd drop it in Chamblee. I'd look just south to Brookhaven, and if commuting wasn't an issue, the northern suburbs. Nobody says, "Chamblee is so beautiful, I really want to live there." It's more like, "I can't afford to live in the city, and Chamblee is close enough and also it's cute and affordable."

It's not bad, but with your budget you can certainly do better. Unless you want to save money, Chamblee probably will grow and appreciate. It really does have a ton of potential and the benefit of already being relatively safe and convenient.