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Old 08-03-2016, 01:28 PM
 
93 posts, read 82,350 times
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Good day Atlanta,

My wife and I are trying to fix our commutes and stop renting and buy a house while interest rates are so low (3.375% @ 30 yr conv). Workplace 1 is by the airport in Hapeville and workplace 2 is in Cobb General Hospital. The Mableton (Oakdale Road SE) to Smyrna (S Cobb) area seems like a good target area to us but I am also open to any other suggestions.

We are looking at 300k max and are torn between Smyrna townhomes or Mableton SFHs in the same price range and age (15 years old or newer). We have no kids or plans for kids but are worried about resale in 7-10 years since we are first-time homebuyers that will eventually sell. We have a small 20lb dog so a yard is appealing but we are worried that buying a SFH house will be too much for us with space and rooms we would never use. Houses in this area are around 2400+ sqft with 3-5 bedrooms.

Friends and coworkers are telling us that a townhome in Smyrna is better for resale than SFH in Mableton since schools suck in both areas and yuppie, DINK couples like us will like townhome living more. We currently rent in a "luxury" apartment and appreciate the convenience and amenities but they increase rent by 5% or more yearly and we have grown a little tired of apartment living with people living above us and having a dog to walk frequently.

I would love to hear everyone's opinions about this as the house-buying process is pretty overwhelming for us right now. We are also worried that we may not know of any other neighborhood that will offer a convenient commute for both of us that is also safe and will not depreciate in value.

Any advice, thoughts, or alternative neighborhoods to look at would be greatly appreciated!
-Thanks
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Old 08-03-2016, 02:55 PM
 
Location: 30080
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Without even being biased, Smyrna no question.
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Old 08-03-2016, 02:55 PM
 
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The schools don't "suck" as you say, in fact some of the Campbell feeder elementary schools are the top performing in the county. Anyways, there is no crystal ball, but if you find something you like in the "triangle" I call it, that is the area made up of the following boundary, you should see some decent appreciation (either SFH or townhome) and have easy commutes to both jobs.

West - EW Conn/Cooper Lake
North - Atlanta/Concord
East - Atlanta/Cumberland

edit: These aren't the only good areas of Smyrna, just a solid starting point to get you started, and as close as a "can't go wrong" as the area allows.
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Old 08-03-2016, 05:50 PM
 
93 posts, read 82,350 times
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Thanks for the inputs. As for the schools "sucking", this is coming from my friends with kids that live in Peachtree City or similar areas, so they consider most schools under 9/10 as "terrible".

That triangle you mentioned doesn't have anything newer I can afford though. We will keep looking though!
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Old 08-03-2016, 06:50 PM
 
Location: Seattle, WA
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Minus the awesome Silver Comet Trail area, Mableton just seems more like a traditional, boring suburb. You know, with the couple of sub-par chain restaurants, and miles of subdivisions. Minus the few mom&pop BBQ holes in the wall you might find.

However, if you can't afford the nice parts of Smyrna, I wouldn't necessarily call a place better just because it has a Smyrna address. And Mableton will be a shorter commute for you.
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Old 08-04-2016, 06:30 AM
 
93 posts, read 82,350 times
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We plan to look at townhomes in Smyrna this weekend that are closer to 285, so the difference in commute would be negligible.

Does anyone have any thoughts on Whiteoak Townhomes? They seem right on the edge on the highway but look great (at least in the listings).

How about the Westview Terraces (sp?) that are adjacent to the Silver Comet Trail and E-W Connector? Would potential resale or income be stable there due to their location?

Last edited by kagete; 08-04-2016 at 06:46 AM..
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Old 08-04-2016, 06:42 AM
 
148 posts, read 231,692 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kagete View Post
Thanks for the inputs. As for the schools "sucking", this is coming from my friends with kids that live in Peachtree City or similar areas, so they consider most schools under 9/10 as "terrible".

That triangle you mentioned doesn't have anything newer I can afford though. We will keep looking though!
I grew up in Fayette, I understand the mindset. You are right, many of the homes in the area I mentioned are 1950s/60s but have been renovated. The area is very stable and established and these homes very may well appreciate more than newer homes in other areas that aren't as established, just a thought. Good luck!
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Old 08-05-2016, 06:44 AM
 
93 posts, read 82,350 times
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My wife and I spent most of yesterday evening after work looking at the townhome neighborhoods of WestHill, Whiteoak, and Westwood Terraces. Westwood Terraces is the oldest of the three but we get the feeling that it will retain its resale value long term by virtue of being adjacent to the Silver Comet Trail. We actually haven't toured any homes last night as we are waiting for the weekend to do it with our agent.

WestHill was closest to 285, cheapest ($250k), and the smallest neighborhood. The houses were modern looking but almost all earth-tone colored, around 4 years old, and all mailboxes were centralized. We did see maybe 4 or 5 A/C units covered in metal bars to deter theft here.

Whiteoak was a quarter mile away, $280k+, and was decently sized with several looping streets and dead-ends. The houses looked great here and were all built in 2014 or 2015. Mailboxes were in front of each house. I felt that this neighborhood had very high-income residents with much nicer cars parked visibly outside their garages (Porsches, Maseratis, etc.) compared to the other neighborhoods.

Westwood Terraces is on the E-W Connector but had two different traffic light stops you could exit out from which makes it convenient. It's only 2 miles away from 285 but there are probably 5 or 6 traffic lights you have to go through that may take 10 minutes on a bad day. There is some retail and a Publix that you can access via side roads in 2 minutes which is a plus. It's also adjacent to the Silver Comet Trail and had at least one path we saw where you could take a few steps down to be right on the trail. All the townhomes are older looking with brick on 3 faces and built around 2005 but the listing prices all start at $280k. Mailboxes were centralized by the pool area as well.

Last edited by kagete; 08-05-2016 at 07:00 AM..
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Old 08-05-2016, 07:18 AM
 
Location: Seattle, WA
9,830 posts, read 7,202,567 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kagete View Post
My wife and I spent most of yesterday evening after work looking at the townhome neighborhoods of WestHill, Whiteoak, and Westwood Terraces. Westwood Terraces is the oldest of the three but we get the feeling that it will retain its resale value long term by virtue of being adjacent to the Silver Comet Trail. We actually haven't toured any homes last night as we are waiting for the weekend to do it with our agent.

WestHill was closest to 285, cheapest ($250k), and the smallest neighborhood. The houses were modern looking but almost all earth-tone colored, around 4 years old, and all mailboxes were centralized. We did see maybe 4 or 5 A/C units covered in metal bars to deter theft here.

Whiteoak was a quarter mile away, $280k+, and was decently sized with several looping streets and dead-ends. The houses looked great here and were all built in 2014 or 2015. Mailboxes were in front of each house. I felt that this neighborhood had very high-income residents with much nicer cars parked visibly outside their garages (Porsches, Maseratis, etc.) compared to the other neighborhoods.

Westwood Terraces is on the E-W Connector but had two different traffic light stops you could exit out from which makes it convenient. It's only 2 miles away from 285 but there are probably 5 or 6 traffic lights you have to go through that may take 10 minutes on a bad day. There is some retail and a Publix that you can access via side roads in 2 minutes which is a plus. It's also adjacent to the Silver Comet Trail and had at least one path we saw where you could take a few steps down to be right on the trail. All the townhomes are older looking with brick on 3 faces and built around 2005 but the listing prices all start at $280k. Mailboxes were centralized by the pool area as well.
Super nice find. Good luck.

That trail is eventually planned to connect down all the way to the Beltline,
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Old 08-09-2016, 01:33 AM
 
93 posts, read 82,350 times
Reputation: 143
Reporting back just to say that every single townhome we looked at was really nice. HOA fees are all around the $160+ range monthly. We're still holding out to see if there is any detached SFH that we could find at our price range that isn't too old.

We went to 3 open homes over the weekend as well and saw the same Indian and Japanese couples in all houses. It made me feel good about the diversity in the area as I am Asian as well. The Publix is very nice, and so was the Sprouts grocery (but we couldn't afford to buy anything here without feeling like splurging).

Still looking for the one to call home.
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