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We lived in Buckhead, Marietta, McDonough & Fayetteville 25 years ago. Atlanta has changed! We live in Houston, TX but our newly married daughter relocated to Alpharetta because of husband’s job. Both will work remotely- but husband will travel 2-5x a month. They like being near nature trails-parks- but want to stay under 400k…what are areas you would recommend? They just don’t like the traffic on the north side. Thanks!!
We lived in Buckhead, Marietta, McDonough & Fayetteville 25 years ago. Atlanta has changed! We live in Houston, TX but our newly married daughter relocated to Alpharetta because of husband’s job. Both will work remotely- but husband will travel 2-5x a month. They like being near nature trails-parks- but want to stay under 400k…what are areas you would recommend? They just don’t like the traffic on the north side. Thanks!!
Most (though definitely not all) of the nature trails and parks are located on metro Atlanta’s Northside where finding a higher-quality detached single-family home (particularly with 3 or more bedrooms and 2 or more bathrooms) for less than $400k could be a challenge because of the numerous amenities in the area.
In the current housing market which is cooling off somewhat from its recent insane highs of the last 2 years, Southside/greater Southern Crescent suburban areas likely may give your daughter and your son-in-law their best chance of finding a higher-quality detached single-family home for under $400k.
They probably should start their search for housing in Fayette County (Tyrone, Fayetteville, Peachtree City, Brooks), which is higher-quality Southside suburb that provides great access to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in a part of the Atlanta metropolitan area (south/southwest metro Atlanta) where traffic generally is relatively much less congested when compared to other parts of the metro area.
Coweta County may also be a really good area to search for housing along the relatively less congested I-85 corridor southwest of the Atlanta Airport.
I-20 West corridor areas like Douglasville and Villa Rica may also be good areas to search in for higher-quality affordable housing that is convenient to the Atlanta Airport.
Henry County (McDonough) is a South metro Atlanta outer-suburban area that may include some higher-quality affordable housing options, particularly in the Union Grove and Ola school clusters. But traffic congestion often can be severe on the main route (Interstate 75) that connects Henry County with the Atlanta Airport.
If your daughter and son-in-law can contend with the heavier traffic on the Northside, they potentially may be able to find some more mature and/or relatively smaller housing options in an area like Cobb County that will be relatively convenient to the ATL Airport (by both distance and time) but also relatively very close to numerous amenities, including parks and nature trails (like the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Lake Allatoona, Paulding County wilderness area, etc.) and tons of retail and neighborhood entertainment options (including historic Downtown Marietta, historic Downtown Roswell, The Battery, Downtown Woodstock, etc.).
Don't sleep on SW Atlanta. Beecher Hills, Westview, Cascade, Adair Park, etc. You have the Beltline, Lionel Beecher Hills nature preserve, Oudoor Adventure center, Cascade nature preserve, and the area is relatively close to places like Sweetwater Creek, Panola Mountain, and Arabia Mountain. Also not too far south to get to the trails on the north side in a reasonable amount of time.
The airport is accessible via Lee St. without even getting on the highway and Marta is an option as well. 400K can still get a nice house, but of course it depends on what they're looking for. Lack of nicer amenities you would have on the north side and closer proximity to crime are the negatives of course, but its an option that could be worth looking into for them.
Coweta County is probably the best bet, near Serenbe/Cochran Mill Park and not far from Sweetwater Creek. And there are great/underrated outdoors things within striking distance south and west of Atlanta, like Pine Mountain, Providence Canyon, Cheaha Mountain in Alabama, etc.
Don't sleep on SW Atlanta. Beecher Hills, Westview, Cascade, Adair Park, etc. You have the Beltline, Lionel Beecher Hills nature preserve, Oudoor Adventure center, Cascade nature preserve, and the area is relatively close to places like Sweetwater Creek, Panola Mountain, and Arabia Mountain. Also not too far south to get to the trails on the north side in a reasonable amount of time.
The airport is accessible via Lee St. without even getting on the highway and Marta is an option as well. 400K can still get a nice house, but of course it depends on what they're looking for. Lack of nicer amenities you would have on the north side and closer proximity to crime are the negatives of course, but its an option that could be worth looking into for them.
Ditto ^^^
And let's not forget about the new Westside Reservoir Park that is not too far as well.
If they are first-time homebuyers, I imagine there would be a larger ROI from buying ITP on the SW and Westside near the Beltline...
Don't sleep on SW Atlanta. Beecher Hills, Westview, Cascade, Adair Park, etc. You have the Beltline, Lionel Beecher Hills nature preserve, Oudoor Adventure center, Cascade nature preserve, and the area is relatively close to places like Sweetwater Creek, Panola Mountain, and Arabia Mountain. Also not too far south to get to the trails on the north side in a reasonable amount of time.
The airport is accessible via Lee St. without even getting on the highway and Marta is an option as well. 400K can still get a nice house, but of course it depends on what they're looking for. Lack of nicer amenities you would have on the north side and closer proximity to crime are the negatives of course, but its an option that could be worth looking into for them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by equinox63
Ditto ^^^
And let's not forget about the new Westside Reservoir Park that is not too far as well.
If they are first-time homebuyers, I imagine there would be a larger ROI from buying ITP on the SW and Westside near the Beltline...
I agree that SW Atlanta could be an underrated option for OP's daughter and son-in-law for the reasons stated by Datdudebrah and equinox63. OP mentioned that they hate traffic, and SW Atlanta, in my experience, has surprisingly little traffic -- even during rush hour. However, to get anywhere outside of SW Atlanta -- many of the amenities they're probably used to require trips to Midtown/Westside/Atlantic Station or the Camp Creek area -- they will most likely run into traffic on a regular basis. As far as crime goes, parts of SW Atlanta are -- contrary to popular belief -- among the safest neighborhoods in the city. Specifically, the Cascade Rd/Ave corridor and neighborhoods surrounding it tend to be fairly safe (much of the violent crime in SW Atlanta occurs along Campbellton Rd or MLK Jr Dr). Specific neighborhoods I would look into are Westview, Westwood Terrace, Beecher Hills and maybe Capitol View, Adair Park, West End, Oakland City, Adams Park.
However, I'm under the impression that OP's daughter and son-in-law are seeking out a suburban/exurban neighborhood and not an urban neighborhood. Also, if they're accustomed to Alpharetta and if OP is accustomed to Buckhead, Marietta, McDonough, and Fayetteville circa 2000 -- SW Atlanta would be a bit of a culture shock for all, I think.
For this reason, I agree with Born 2 Roll...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll
Most (though definitely not all) of the nature trails and parks are located on metro Atlanta’s Northside where finding a higher-quality detached single-family home (particularly with 3 or more bedrooms and 2 or more bathrooms) for less than $400k could be a challenge because of the numerous amenities in the area.
In the current housing market which is cooling off somewhat from its recent insane highs of the last 2 years, Southside/greater Southern Crescent suburban areas likely may give your daughter and your son-in-law their best chance of finding a higher-quality detached single-family home for under $400k.
They probably should start their search for housing in Fayette County (Tyrone, Fayetteville, Peachtree City, Brooks), which is higher-quality Southside suburb that provides great access to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in a part of the Atlanta metropolitan area (south/southwest metro Atlanta) where traffic generally is relatively much less congested when compared to other parts of the metro area.
Coweta County may also be a really good area to search for housing along the relatively less congested I-85 corridor southwest of the Atlanta Airport.
I-20 West corridor areas like Douglasville and Villa Rica may also be good areas to search in for higher-quality affordable housing that is convenient to the Atlanta Airport.
Henry County (McDonough) is a South metro Atlanta outer-suburban area that may include some higher-quality affordable housing options, particularly in the Union Grove and Ola school clusters. But traffic congestion often can be severe on the main route (Interstate 75) that connects Henry County with the Atlanta Airport.
If your daughter and son-in-law can contend with the heavier traffic on the Northside, they potentially may be able to find some more mature and/or relatively smaller housing options in an area like Cobb County that will be relatively convenient to the ATL Airport (by both distance and time) but also relatively very close to numerous amenities, including parks and nature trails (like the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Lake Allatoona, Paulding County wilderness area, etc.) and tons of retail and neighborhood entertainment options (including historic Downtown Marietta, historic Downtown Roswell, The Battery, Downtown Woodstock, etc.).
...and testa50...
Quote:
Originally Posted by testa50
Coweta County is probably the best bet, near Serenbe/Cochran Mill Park and not far from Sweetwater Creek. And there are great/underrated outdoors things within striking distance south and west of Atlanta, like Pine Mountain, Providence Canyon, Cheaha Mountain in Alabama, etc.
that Coweta County would be ideal for them. I concur that the other suburbs mentioned by Born 2 Roll would be decent choices as well. However, I will say that traffic can occasionally be an issue in these places as well. To avoid traffic entirely, one would need to move out of Metro Atlanta entirely... it can be an issue to some extent no matter where one lives in the Metro Atlanta region.
These are wonderful suggestions!! They said they are looking at Dawsonville this weekend, that seems far north- urban areas are out- just because they are looking forward to yard work and planting some trees if possible. I’ll share these with her and do a search for Coweta County.
These are wonderful suggestions!! They said they are looking at Dawsonville this weekend, that seems far north- urban areas are out- just because they are looking forward to yard work and planting some trees if possible. I’ll share these with her and do a search for Coweta County.
If they like (LOVE) parks and nature trails, Dawsonville is an EXCELLENT location to consider because of the presence of such beloved Appalachian mountain and foothills outdoor recreational amenities as:
> Lake Lanier (a large foothills reservoir that is the largest source of water supply for much of the greater Atlanta metropolitan region that is very popular with and beloved by metro Atlantans)...
> Dawson Forest City of Atlanta Tract nature preserve in Dawsonville...
> Amicalola Falls State Park (site of one of the 3 tallest waterfalls on the North American continent located east of the Rockies)...
> The Southern Terminus of the famous Appalachian Trail hiking trail that stretches roughly 2,200 miles along the backbone of the Eastern Seaboard between Ellijay, Georgia and Millinocket, Maine...
> Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest in the North Georgia portion of the Blue Ridge Mountains region, a much beloved mountain wilderness area that includes such popular scenic natural landmark features as the 4,784-foot high Brasstown Bald (the highest point in the state of Georgia) and Tallulah Gorge State Park.
A little further afield, the Dawsonville area also provides good access to the Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee parts of Blue Ridge Mountains region, an area that includes the Nanathala National Forest and Pigsah National Forest mountain wilderness areas in Western North Carolina and the exceedingly popular Great Smoky Mountains National Park that straddles the state line between North Carolina and Tennessee.
(Most of the highest mountains in the entire Appalachian Mountains region and in the entire Eastern U.S. are located in the Western North Carolina portion of the Blue Ridge Mountains.)
Limited winter skiing opportunities are located in the Western North Carolina portion of the Blue Ridge/Southern Appalachian Mountains. While extremely robust winter skiing opportunities are located in the Blue Ridge/Appalachian Mountains of eastern West Virginia (about an 8-10 hour one-way drive or about a 4-5 hour one-way trip by plane and automobile from metro Atlanta.)
The Dawsonville area itself is also home to numerous retail and service amenities (including Kroger Marketplace, Publix, Ingles and Walmart Supercenter grocery stores, a Home Depot, banks, restaurants, motels, a movie theater, etc.) that are located along about a 2-mile stretch of the Georgia 400/US-19 corridor in the area of the large and very popular North Georgia Premium Outlets mall.
And even more amenities are located fewer than 15 miles to the east along Georgia 53 over in Gainesville, about less than 15 miles to the south along Georgia 400 in Cumming, and about 20-30 miles south along GA-400 in Alpharetta.
In addition to providing excellent access to the excellent outdoor recreational amenities of the Blue Ridge Mountains region of North Georgia, Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee, the Dawsonville area also provides really good to great access to the upscale retail and service amenities of the notably affluent North metro Atlanta suburbs... That includes the amenity-filled GA-400 North corridor that runs through affluent high-profile North metro Atlanta communities like Buckhead, Perimeter Center, Alpharetta/Roswell, Cumming and Dawsonville.
The only potential drawback to the Dawsonville area is that it is located even further away from the Atlanta Airport than where your daughter and son-in-law may currently live in Alpharetta. Alpharetta is located roughly about between 35 to 45 miles from the ATL Airport each way, while Dawsonville is located roughly about between 60 to 80 miles from the ATL Airport each way.
Though for apparent outdoor lovers like your daughter and son-in-law, the benefits of living in the Dawsonville area very likely may greatly outweigh any potential drawbacks, particularly if your son-in-law will only be commuting to and from the ATL Airport no more than 5 times a month.
Though, your son-in-law’s commutes between Dawsonville and the ATL Airport will have its challenges on many days, particularly on the days those commutes have to be executed between the hours of 6:30AM in the morning and about 7PM in the evening.
Your son-in-law should experience significantly fewer challenges on the days that his ATL Airport commutes can be executed outside of that 6:30AM-7PM peak hour traffic window.
Oh my goodness! Wrote this long response and all that posted was Okay
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