Relocating (Atlanta, Decatur, Druid Hills: rental homes, high crime, homes)

[thoward30_3]

My family may be moving to the Decatur area. I have been doing serious internet searches on Dekalb County. Niche.com shows Decatur as the #1 suburbs place to live and schools are highly rated. We have girls that will be in elementary and one that will be in middle school for her last year, then high school. My daughter in middle school plays basketball, therefore, a school that has a impressive girls basketball program will be great as well. We will not be able to afford private schools at this time in our lives. So, great public schools are extremely important. And a safe area is also extremely important to us.

We interested in rental homes at the moment. Any suggestions on area and neighborhoods are greatly appreciated.

Am I completely "off" in my assessment here? It seems like many people on this forum are talking about the high crime in Decatur...and that the schools are awful .....

Can anyone help me figure Decatur out?? or suggestions on other surrounding suburbs of Atlanta .



Read more: //www.city-data.com/forum/atlanta/280202-where-live-decatur.html#ixzz5a5veK6TW

[ATLTJL]

The difference is there is a city of Decatur, which goes to Decatur city schools and is the good area you are hearing about. But the Decatur post office serves a large area, so many places with Decatur mailing addresses aren't in the city limits. They go to DeKalb county schools, which suck and the areas have higher crime. You have to make sure you are in the city limits. The easiest way to do that is to just find out if the properties you are looking at send kids to Decatur or DeKalb county schools. Of course, everybody advertises their Decatur address, so research carefully.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

The difference is there is a city of Decatur, which goes to Decatur city schools and is the good area you are hearing about. But the Decatur post office serves a large area, so many places with Decatur mailing addresses aren't in the city limits. They go to DeKalb county schools, which suck and the areas have higher crime. You have to make sure you are in the city limits. The easiest way to do that is to just find out if the properties you are looking at send kids to Decatur or DeKalb county schools. Of course, everybody advertises their Decatur address, so research carefully.

This.

Be sure to check the zip code.

30030 - good
30033 - OK to good
30032, 30034, 30035 - bad

Only 30030 is the actual City of Decatur.

[Citykid3785]

great answers so far that really get to the heart of your question, so I won't repeat what's already been said. Also, from a crime perspective, keep in mind that the heart of Decatur is somewhat of a tourist destination with several Marta stops. I say that because these types of things tend to bring petty crime that is otherwise invisible to residents in the area, but they show up in crime stats. In other words, there's more activity in the area (of all types) that the population would suggest. When I went, it came across as a family oriented destination with an occasional bum here or there, but not dangerous.

[stoxdiamond]

I live in City of Decatur and it's fantastic. If you wish to take advantage of the good schools there, you'll need to live within the city limits. You can see the boundaries here: https://www.redfin.com/school/117858...ur-High-School

If you find a place within those boundaries, you will be in a good spot.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by thoward30_3

My family may be moving to the Decatur area. I have been doing serious internet searches on Dekalb County. Niche.com shows Decatur as the #1 suburbs place to live and schools are highly rated. We have girls that will be in elementary and one that will be in middle school for her last year, then high school. My daughter in middle school plays basketball, therefore, a school that has a impressive girls basketball program will be great as well. We will not be able to afford private schools at this time in our lives. So, great public schools are extremely important. And a safe area is also extremely important to us.

We interested in rental homes at the moment. Any suggestions on area and neighborhoods are greatly appreciated.

Am I completely "off" in my assessment here? It seems like many people on this forum are talking about the high crime in Decatur...and that the schools are awful .....

Can anyone help me figure Decatur out?? or suggestions on other surrounding suburbs of Atlanta .



Read more: //www.city-data.com/forum/atlanta/280202-where-live-decatur.html#ixzz5a5veK6TW

I think that a good and important question is that if you cannot afford to send your children to private school, will you be able to afford entry into the rental market in the area in which you desire to live, in the Decatur 30030 zip code/City of Decatur proper?

The rental market in the Decatur 30030 zip code/City of Decatur proper/Decatur City Schools zone has been highly competitive over the last 2-3 years because of the extremely high quality of the schools there, because of the amenities in that particular area and because of the fairly good-to-decent access to major regional employment centers (Emory University, Downtown, Midtown, Airport, etc).

What is your monthly budget for a rental dwelling?

[samiwas1]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll

I think that a good and important question is that if you cannot afford to send your children to private school, will you be able to afford entry into the rental market in the area in which you desire to live, in the Decatur 30030 zip code/City of Decatur proper?

The rental market in the Decatur 30030 zip code/City of Decatur proper/Decatur City Schools zone has been highly competitive over the last 2-3 years because of the extremely high quality of the schools there, because of the amenities in that particular area and because of the fairly good-to-decent access to major regional employment centers (Emory University, Downtown, Midtown, Airport, etc).

What is your monthly budget for a rental dwelling?

Affording Private School and affording inflated rent are quite different. It sounds like they have three children. Private school could easily run $40k-$60k per year (or more). That would be a LOT of rent. According to Zillow, there are a decent number of rental homes in Decatur City Limits for under $2,000 per month. They're smaller and older, but they exist.

OP...really need to know your rental budget in order to suggest the best areas.

[AtlJan]

Some areas of unincorporated Dekalb have good schools. Look at Fernbank Elementary, Druid Hills Middle and High. That's a good area (of course, it isn't cheap either).

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by AtlJan

Some areas of unincorporated Dekalb have good schools. Look at Fernbank Elementary, Druid Hills Middle and High. That's a good area (of course, it isn't cheap either).

The Oak Grove/Lakeside area has excellent schools, but it ain't cheap out there.

[thoward30_3]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

The difference is there is a city of Decatur, which goes to Decatur city schools and is the good area you are hearing about. But the Decatur post office serves a large area, so many places with Decatur mailing addresses aren't in the city limits. They go to DeKalb county schools, which suck and the areas have higher crime. You have to make sure you are in the city limits. The easiest way to do that is to just find out if the properties you are looking at send kids to Decatur or DeKalb county schools. Of course, everybody advertises their Decatur address, so research carefully.

Good information, thanks for the input