Sandy Springs and Dunwoody with Atlanta Addresses??? (Roswell, East Point: house, school district)

[LovelySummer]

OK. I'm confused. I was looking into a few homes in Sandy Springs, inside the perimeter if that matters for purposes of this question, and the homes are coming up in the "Sandy Springs" search but they have Atlanta, Georgia addresses. Could these homes be in Sandy Springs? I would like to avoid City of Atlanta taxes so this is important. What gives? I see the same thing with some homes that come up with a Dunwoody search.

A few years ago we talked about the weirdness that is Atlanta where ppl refer to homes outside of City of Atlanta (that have Atlanta addresses) as "Fulton County"or "Dekalb County" but this seems to be a little different.

Also, is there such a thing as "City of Sandy Springs" taxes if you live inside of a particular area and no City of Sandy Springs if you live in "unincorporated" Sandy Springs - like with City of Atlanta. Or is all of Sandy Springs incorporated? If there are unincorporated portions ITP, please do share where those locations would be.

ETA: I am only interested in Sandy Springs ITP and just outside so not the area near Dunwoody (no on perimeter/Ashford Dunwoody type traffic) or in 30350 off/near Abernathy. I don't want to sit in traffic coming into Buckhead daily (although there are some well-priced homes in those areas).

[sedimenjerry]

There are probably better ways, but if I want to know if something is a city (or zip code, or county, etc) I just search it on Google maps and it shows an outline (until you zoom in too far). If it's not in that little red polygon, you're not in Atlanta city limits. A previous office of mine was 7.5 miles north of COA limits, 2 miles from Roswell limits, firmly in SS city limits, but still had an Atlanta address.

[arjay57]

I don't think there are any unincorporated areas that are actually parts of the city of Atlanta or the city of Sandy springs.

There may be areas colloquially referred to as Atlanta, Decatur, Stone Mountain, Roswell, etc., that are not within the city limits of those cities. And postal addresses may not correspond to municipal limits. To be sure I'd check the tax maps.

A big chunk of Sandy Springs is inside 285, by the way. And a fair amount of the city of Atlanta is outside the perimeter.

[PKCorey]

30342 is split between Atlanta and Sandy Springs.

Sandy Springs GIS map for you

Sandy Springs GIS Viewer

[CMMom]

I live in 30350, which is Sandy Springs. Before Sandy Springs was a city, we all listed Atlanta as our address. I guess some were skeptical that the mail might not be delivered if Sandy Springs was listed, so some still use Atlanta. We do not pay City of Atlanta taxes except (weirdly) for water/sewer.

I know you said no 30350, but the traffic is honestly not that bad to Buckhead provided you leave at 7:00 or earlier. 20-30 minutes tops.

[Gulch]

Originally Posted by CMMom

I live in 30350, which is Sandy Springs. Before Sandy Springs was a city, we all listed Atlanta as our address. I guess some were skeptical that the mail might not be delivered if Sandy Springs was listed, so some still use Atlanta. We do not pay City of Atlanta taxes except (weirdly) for water/sewer.

I know you said no 30350, but the traffic is honestly not that bad to Buckhead provided you leave at 7:00 or earlier. 20-30 minutes tops.

The Postal Service allows both, and as long as the zip code is correct, it will get delivered.

As for water/sewer, Sandy Springs contracts with Atlanta Watershed.

[ElleKaye]

It is not really a weirdness, but Sandy Springs and Dunwoody only recently (last 10 years or so) became cities and before were just locations in Atlanta similar to what you would consider Buckhead or Midtown.

If you want to be location specific before the 50 year lol it will take for everything to get updated, you're going to have to work with zip codes. Like if you want to live in Sandy Springs ITP, look for things with 30342 and whatever zips surround it.

You also have to consider that companies in the area with ads, letterhead, and what not would prefer to keep the location as Atlanta if no only for financial reasons of replacing thing but for name recognition. So in short, work with the zip.

[LovelySummer]

Ok. So I've read all the posts. Still confused. Zip codes are shared between Atlanta and Sandy Springs (30327, 30342, 30319) so searching by zip will not work. Heck, Sandy Springs even shares 30339 with Vinings. I can use the map but what about places outside of the Sandy Springs map. Is that all considered Atlanta but possibly not city of Atlanta? Why the h*ll is it so hard to figure this out in Atlanta. I've never seen a place where it is difficult to know where you live or you can just put down whatever city name you want. This is frustrating.

Ok, I've got it. Is the school really the taletell sign? For example, if districted for Heards Ferry or High Grove, it's really Sandy Springs and if districted to Smith, it's really Atlanta. And just search the address with the school district to determine where the hell the house really is. Is that right?

So, my other question. Are there any areas called (even colloquially) Sandy Springs that avoids city of Sandy Springs and city of Atlanta taxes? If so, where are they?

[isawooty]

All of Atlanta's closest suburbs bear Atlanta's name, even though they may be incorporated. East Point's zip code 30344 still comes up as Atlanta too when you search it. Decatur is the only notable exception. Weird, but true.

[LovelySummer]

Originally Posted by CMMom

I live in 30350, which is Sandy Springs. Before Sandy Springs was a city, we all listed Atlanta as our address. I guess some were skeptical that the mail might not be delivered if Sandy Springs was listed, so some still use Atlanta. We do not pay City of Atlanta taxes except (weirdly) for water/sewer.

I know you said no 30350, but the traffic is honestly not that bad to Buckhead provided you leave at 7:00 or earlier. 20-30 minutes tops.

Thanks for the info on the commute. I would like to try to avoid needing to leave before 7 everyday. Thanks anyway.