Movng to atlanta in 2016 (Sandy Springs, Marietta: for sale, real estate, apartments)

[Amoebaatlanta]

Hello,

My wife and I along with our two little kids are moving to Atlanta in 2016. I will be working in the Smyrna area while my wife would be working close to Georgia tech. We are interested in buying a house and would welcome suggestions of areas that would be somewhat convenient for both my wife and I. Of course, good school district is a must.

Thanks

[Ant131531]

East Cobb would probably be fine. Great schools and access to I-75 which would get both of you to your destinations.

[lorilove]

Smyrna/Vinings is a great location.

Easy access to Georgia Tech via highway or surface roads

[brown_dog_us]

What is your budget?

[dblackga]

Details, please:

Budget
Number of Bedrooms
How long either of you are willing to commute
Age of children/school grades
Swim/tennis neighborhood? Don't care?

Right now, there are 1,868 homes for sale just in Cobb County, alone, ranging from $40K to $9.1 million. Help us out a little, please? :-)

[Amoebaatlanta]

My budget would be less than $400k. I m looking for advice on potential locations based on <30 minute commute and good schools, not necessarily specific real estate advice at this point.

[dblackga]

Originally Posted by Amoebaatlanta

My budget would be less than $400k. I m looking for advice on potential locations based on <30 minute commute and good schools, not necessarily specific real estate advice at this point.

Umm . . . how is advice on potential locations NOT specific real estate advice? You know what they say, "location, location, location"

But to answer your question, the biggest issue you are going to have is with schools. Within a 30 minute drive of the area between Smyrna and Georgia Tech, the public schools can be a little spotty. Check GreatSchools.org to get a feel for the location of the highest-rated schools -- most of them are in the northern end of Cobb County, which will be difficult to meet the 30-minute commute criteria. In Smyrna, check Sherwood Park and Edgemore Woods -- those are in your criteria of under $400K. There's currently 56 homes for sale between $300-400K in East Cobb (Cobb County, east of I-75), which has generally excellent schools, but depending on your location, commute to Ga Tech could be 30 or more, depending on how flexible her schedule is. Check out East Park, Gant Quarters, Chimney Springs, Indian Hills, Lake Colony, Mountain Creek, Newcastle, and Weatherstone, for an idea of homes under $400K.

There really isn't anything inside the Perimeter that meets your criteria, unless you are looking in 30327 in Sandy Springs -- Heards Ferry Elementary, Riverwood HS. Only a couple of homes come up on a search. Same with Atlanta. $300-400K inside the Perimeter in an excellent school district isn't realistic for a single family home.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Amoebaatlanta

My budget would be less than $400k. I m looking for advice on potential locations based on <30 minute commute and good schools, not necessarily specific real estate advice at this point.

With your budget of $400k and less and with your desire for a commute of 30 minutes or less from an area of good schools, your best options might be in Smyrna and Marietta (both in the City of Marietta and in the Wheeler High School feeder zone/cluster of East Cobb).

The areas with Smyrna and Marietta addresses might be the furthest away that you can get from Georgia Tech and have a chance of keeping you and/or your wife's daily one-way commutes to and from work at about 30 minutes or so during peak traffic hours.

If you are open to living in a more urban environment, you could look for housing in closer-in areas like Midtown (in the feeder zone/cluster for the highly-respected Grady High School), Decatur (in the excellent independent small Decatur City Schools system) or in Buckhead (in the feeder zone/cluster for the respectable North Atlanta High School)....Though the thing with looking in these areas is that you might have to settle for living in high-density housing like a condo, townhome or apartment because finding something under $400k in these high-demand Intown areas might potentially be a challenge.

You could also look in closer-in areas at, just inside and/or just outside the I-285 Perimeter like Sandy Springs, Dunwoody and Chamblee if your wife is willing to use MARTA Heavy Rail Transit (subway) for her commutes to and from work at Georgia Tech while you commute by way of the I-285 Top End Perimeter to and from Smyrna....Though you may likely face the same issues in these areas where you may likely have to settle for high-density housing because of the potential challenge of finding something under $400k in these heavily-populated closer-in areas.

I still maintain that the Smyrna and Marietta areas will most likely be your best options because of the potential to live close to where you will be working in Smyrna while keeping your wife's commutes to and from Georgia Tech as close as possible to 30 minutes each way.

If you are willing to live in higher-density housing, Vinings might also be a good place to look, though you may be hard-pressed to find anything in your price range in this area but condos, townhomes and apartments.