Don't Move to Atlanta (White, Lilly: condos, job market, university)

[anadyr21]

You know, I'm not an Atlanta native. I've lived in several different US cities, but I'm originally from New York. I'm sick to death of hearing people say "I'm so bored, there's nothing to do". Seriously, with a few exceptions (try Hunstville, Alabama), if you can't find anything to do, that's a YOU issue. There's plenty to do not only ITP but also OTP. Some of you clearly haven't looked very hard. Some of you also have unreasonable expectations. Guess what? Atlanta is not NYC. You may find something comparable in LA or Chicago, and hell, I had friends who thought DC was boring when we lived there. The other problem I sometimes see is that NYers move out to the burbs. Hello, many of you wouldn't even consider northeastern Queens, why the hell would you move to Gwinnett?

We are not living in the northeastern US. There are some cultural differences. While some northerners don't like "Southern Hospitality", some southerners don't like northern brashness. If you've been here for 15 years and you haven't gotten used to it, again, that's a YOU issue. You don't have to like it. It's called adaptation. That's what you do when you move to a new environment.

I'll admit, if I could afford to move back to NYC and live as comfortably as I do now, I'd go in a hearbeat. But until that day happens, I will find things to do and see and enjoy all that ATL has to offer, both OTP and ITP.

My advice for anyone who wants to move to ATL, don't move if you're expecting a replica of your hometown/city.

(I am not referring to all transplants; just the ones who b*tch and moan)

[RainyRainyDay]

I wouldn't put it as starkly as missingny! and natali26, but I know where they're coming from. A member of my family had a particularly rough encounter with southern culture in the workplace (a church, unfortunately) which has had a pretty lasting effect on us.

While it's important to be adaptable (and we've previously lived happily and successfully in several different communities, from large city to village) I think it's also important to recognize one's limits. We're not bleeding all over here, but it's definitely our long range plan to move back to the west coast. We're not southerners and we're not willing to adapt that much. I humbly suggest that others who are miserable here after many years might also consider a strategy of getting themselves relocated somewhere more congenial. For those of us who are not wealthy it's probably not quite as easy as "Delta is ready" (I believe LovinDecatur recommended this to malcontents in a past post) but it's better to work on a plan than just stay miserable.

[SAlexander]

I think the 'fakeness' has more to do with ignoring than backstabbing. Myself, I have fallen prey to this on several occasions, and it has given me information on how certain things can happen.

The human mind can block out things right under one's own nose. When we do this collectively, the most evil imaginable becomes brough before the world. In the South, I can tell you there is still a whole lotta blocking going on.

This is why I think all you NYer's and so forth moving down here are a good thing. Y'all eventually both complement each other.

[rswlguy]

Originally Posted by SAlexander

The human mind can block out things right under one's own nose. When we do this collectively, the most evil imaginable becomes brought before the world. In the South, I can tell you there is still a whole lotta blocking going on.

Well said in a prophetic sense. Amen.

[MDDCtoATL]

I’m someone who’s making serious considerations to move from the D.C. area to Atlanta. I’ve been in the D.C. area for most of my life (24+ years), after reading all these posts, the more I read the more I like.

To sum it up for those who don’t want to read what could become a very long post go to the bottom. It seems to me that living in the D.C. area is similar (and I emphasis similar) to living in Atlanta but I’m paying 10X as much to do so. Roughly speaking, during my research, I’ve calculated that living in Atlanta would be a savings of about 30% compared to living in D.C. if I had the same salary.

Now don’t get me wrong I love my area (some parts particularly the Maryland side, could care less for Virginia and only some aspects I like about D.C. proper) but I’ve surmised that the D.C. area is a very weird place, sort of stuck in an in-between. What do you offer me for what I’m giving you? What justifies the high cost of living is the question unanswered.

Although I would never live in LA/Cali area I can kind sort of see why it’s expensive, the beaches, the entertainment industry/places, clubs, the entrepreneurial business atmosphere like Silicon Valley, same for New York to a degree. They’re justified to an extent but why is D.C. so expensive?

It’s boring here, not as extensive in entertainment options/things to do. The bulk of everything fun is pretty much in D.C. proper, the surrounding inner beltway urban areas need to get with it. There are some clubs in Bethesda and Arlington but they cater to white people for 90% of it, no offense. Mostly all you can do is eat, see a movie, and shop, that’s the life of the D.C. area.

I found it funny how someone said Atlanta has an “inferiority complex” and I thought that was an interesting way of looking at it. But you haven’t seen anything yet. Try a place where it has a lower office vacancy(under 10%) than Atlanta (was around 25%) but no developer would dare build an office building here. Try a place that’s the wealthiest minority majority county in the country (yes a Black County wealthier than any in the Atlanta area) but has to beg for a Costco. Where even the federal government would rather place more jobs and take up more space in the smallest County in the country with a population of only 150,000 (Arlington County, Va) over a County that’s 10x the size geographically and has an educated workforce of almost 900,000 people. I’m talking about Prince George’s County (the read headed step child of the region) and the eastern side of the D.C. area.

Perhaps it’s not an “inferiority complex” as so much concealed racism, you won’t even get the southern hospitality, they just act like they don’t know you or want to get away from you. There is a definitive diving line in the D.C. area that starts around NW/NE and shoot up into Silver Spring. It’s called the West and East or the haves and have nots respectively. The East is shunned because” there are too many black people there” and that’s where most the Blacks are while the west get’s all the jobs, upscale retail, mixed-use development and praise. I will say at least Prince George's is looking up with National Harbor and Woodmore Towne Center but why did they have to fight so hard to make it happen.

The local news station have nothing bad to say about Northern Virginia and portions west but they will never let you get way from hearing something bad about Prince George’s and Eastern Montgomery County, which they use a broad brush and just say “In Maryland” or “a Maryland man/woman”. If it’s Virginia they’ll say in Vienna, Springfield or bumble**** like everyone knows where that is.

What really get’s on my nerves it that while D.C. has power, they give it away. Northern Virginia, lost AOL, Sprint/Nextel, MCI etc, instead of building a nice name for itself like Silicon Valley when they were here, that opportunity is long gone. So what now do they have in critical mass they can publicize themselves with?

In Montgomery County, Maryland they have a lot of biotechs, largest concentration in the country for a county to be exact. They lost MedImmune which was the eighth largest in the world. Maryland aslo has a fledgling biotech corridor in Baltimore with Johns Hopkins too. But what do I call Marylands Biotech corridor, how do I identify it? Is there a name to brand and market the place like Silicon Valley? No! Research Triangle like in North Carolina? No! These idiots take everything for granted, thinks it’s too stupid to do that or they are not good enough for it. That is one of the reasons I admire Atlanta, while they know how to take pride in and promote their region, the D.C. area, does not.

Prince George’s has upwardly Blacks but they are either not as ambitious as in Atlanta or hide it too well, it is definitely not that apparent here, loud and clear whatever.

The D.C. area also caters to illegal immigrant hispanics big time! How many day labor centers can you find in Atlanta (if you even know what that is)? Count 4 in Montgomery County alone played for with tax payers money. Everyone praises them for peeing and littering everywhere, parking 10 cars and families into a house and creating gangs like MS-13. They have really taken down the quality of life in the D.C. area I pray the local governments and media in Atlanta aren’t catering to them like they do here.

Everything takes forever to get built here, debate after debate, from a playground to an office building and they have a fear of height here too. They simply hate tall buildings for reasons they cannot explain. It may make sense in D.C. proper but not in places like Bethesda. So it amazes me why a 10 story structure will take five years for approval.

Someone also mentioned $100 million deficit in Atlanta. At least Atlanta didn't lose (not defict they lost it, unaccounted for) $40 million like D.C. proper or has a $400 million deficit like Montgomery County.

The crime in the D.C. area is worst than Atlanta; D.C. proper has like 180 homicides a year. That is just the City not the surrounding counties! But enough about D.C. I want to be somewhere progressive not regressive.

Of course the part about Atlanta that I find irresistible is cost of living. In this thread someone said a one bedroom is around $700-$800 in a good location, I started salivating and I’ve found cheaper than that too in the $600 range! Now hold on to your seats…You will not find anything in that range in the D.C. area, even in the worst parts, if you do, you don’t want to live there (aka Langley Park) or you are getting a great discount because of your income which means you’re not earning a lot.

Do not think that driving further out will get you that much cheaper. $950 for a one bedroom in Germantown for example but that’s if you meet the income based/subsidized housing requirements, at market it’s more like $1200 there. And people who know the D.C. area know that Germantown commute to D.C. proper is pretty much a death sentence.

Now to sum it up I will keep it to inside the beltway for comparison sake and at the market rate. So for a $700 one bedroom apartment in Atlanta, expect to pay $1400 inside the beltway (Bethesda, Arlington) without utilities included and extra for parking (typically $100). In D.C. proper, expect to pay like $1800 for one bedroom. I think I am being conservative for Bethesda and Arlington too, expect to pay more like $1700 a month cause even in Silver Spring a new apartment building is going up and starting at $1800 for a one bedroom and about $1500 for a studio.

It’s not like there is a shortage of apartments in the area (over 1,000 are going up in Silver Spring right now) , they just want to continue to rape us, the build quality isn’t very good either.

Cost of living would be my number one reason for me moving, saving money actually gets me wet (excuse my language) and I enjoy doing so as well as the thought of how much I’ve saved! It’s virtually impossible to save enough in the D.C. area and live comfortably. This means living close to your job, a nice fairly new place w/out roommates, w/out living with your parents, next to mass transit, in a nice neighborhood, inside the beltway where you wont get mugged or have your car broken into.

The problem with D.C. is that employers are so stingy with the pay and greedy developers are asking to o much to live with a decent roof over your head. You will need federal security clearance now for every little job. With $50,000 a year half your income will go towards rent/housing costs, that’s 50% instead of 33% max like it should be.
So to sum up my tirade,

D.C. has
-Double the cost of living,
-Nothing to do,
-Catering to Illegal Immigrants hispanics
-Concealed Racism
-Blacks are cast off to the side, becoming less of a place for black people
-Highest AIDs rate in the Country
- High crime
-Schools really suck in the city and I am not impressed by the ones in any of the Counties, overhyped imo.
- A College Park that's just as bad as in Atlanta maybe worst
-The different states/jurisdictions can't get along, some are treatd better than others by the federal governemnt and local media.

Atlanta has (from what I can tell so far),
-Lower cost of living
-Pays as much as D.C. +/- $3000
-Much more progressive
-More pride and aren’t afraid to let people know about their progress.
-Lower business taxes/costs
-About the same amount of jobs or good enough
-More private jobs
-Less crime
-About the same to do
-More of place for Black people to call home
-Racism but you don’t feel powerless
-Friendlier people in that they are more outgoing to greet you


If I have to suffer in Atlanta at least I wont be getting raped in my wallet for it.

[MDDCtoATL]

It seems to me that if you are from the deep south or around you will not like Atlanta but if you are from the Mid-Atlantic or North you will like it.

[guiltypleasure]

Originally Posted by missingny!

I moved here from NYC in 1985. I have never felt at home here and have tried desperatly to convince my husband to move anywhere near a beach. Unfortunately, he refuses. I am soooo bored here. I live in Gwinnett County (suburbs) and it was pretty safe and nice when I moved here but now... there is conjestion (I work 12 miles away and it takes me 40 minutes to get to work), there is crime etc.
On weekends, unless you enjoy these things... there is nothing exciting to do. All there is is shopping (the mall, the strip malls, Walmart).... movies and restraurants.
It's tooo hot in the summer to enjoy the parks which by the way are pretty empty. I guess coming from NY and enjoying a park like Central Park you except Piedmont Park to be like it.. but it's so empty and boring. At least in NY on a Saturday night you could drive to the city and just walk around and people watch. Didn't need a lot of money.. just went down to Little Italy or China Town and enjoyed the view and people. Unfortunately, Atlanta is pretty diserted on weekends.. even I, a New Yorker who rode the subways at 2am in the morning feels nervous in Atlanta. Not safe at all. The museums and aquarium are really expensive if you have a family and the museum doesn't even compare.
so every weekend I go thru this long discussion with my huband about what to do... a movie, go out to eat or shop...pretty boring after a while. I am going crazy here... don't know how much more I can take. If I had to do it all over again, I would have picked a place with sidewalks that actually lead somewhere... has anyone noticed that the sidewalks in the suburbs actually just stop in the middle of nowhere. really stange. Oh well, I'm stuck in Atlanta for now.

Since you have been stuck here awhile. You might not know that NYC is really expensive...the met, moma, american history museums are way more expensive to get into than the high ....I just moved back from nyc to atl last week so I should know. Also while I was in central park 2 weeks ago I was harassed by a bunch of bums so...id def. rather the park be empty...Just letting know.

[guiltypleasure]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

Bad traffic is an understatement. Even in the suburbs(in northern Cobb County) rush hour can last into 8 or 9 pm now. Alot of people don't care about driving politely or safely. Part of it is the "I don't have time to be polite today because I have to get to work." What I also notice is that many drivers are hostile towards pedestrians and cyclists. The mentality is as follows: "yes, you have the right of way, but I also have a deadly weapon weighing in at 8 tons and no patience, so get out of my way" and in addition "bicycles might technically be vehicles and belong in the street, but I have places to go and you're holding me up, so GET ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD!" Sometimes motorists have tried to scare me while I was on my bicycle.

Low paying jobs? Well there are alot of low paying jobs everywhere, but what I notice in metro Atlanta is that everyone seems to be competing for them too, so sometimes you're lucky to get a low paying job.

I don't know much about rent other than I know I would not be able to afford rent in ATL.

Discrimination against anyone that isn't African-American, well I wouldn't be surprised about that happening inside the city of Atlanta. There has been alot of "this is our city and we don't want intruders coming in" mentality. In the suburbs it is often the other way around too. This city isn't the racially harmony that alot of people want the world to believe. The difference is that most people down here are afraid to talk about it because it would "ruin" Atlanta's image. This takes me into the next discussion about phoniness. I see alot of phoniness in metro Atlanta as a whole. There is alot of "smile in your face stab you in the back" attitudes around here. I have run into it. OF course that could be anywhere in the USA too.

Smog is common and I think few people care. Atlanta is not environmentally friendly and neither are the suburbs. I have walked along some of the roads and actually picked up trash that other people have dumped on the ground. Alot of people here don't seem to care. Atlanta is one of the most violent major cities in the USA. Violence is common in the suburbs too.

I want to leave this city just as bad as you. The only reason I am staying is because I am in college and tuition for in-state students in very cheap in GA(at least for the university I am in). If I leave then the cost of college for me will go up sky high, because I would be out of state.

You guys ***** about everything....hane you not lived anywhere else...ive lived in l.a.,san fran, nyc, the deep south and atlanta and everything you said about atl is everywhere else....you arent going to be running from it if you go to another city you best go to Connecticut.......idiot

[guiltypleasure]

Originally Posted by simulacra

Both.

Georgians as a rule very much dislike Atlanta. However, Georgians as a rule are also very intolerant people that do not value education.

This is a complex place filled with dead ideologies that were allowed to live due to the isolation of the deep south. Perhaps that is changing though.

You are an idiot. "Georgia as a rule are also very tolerant people that do not value education" are you serious...that is why we have 5 out of the top 10 colleges in the country...really....go get an education yourself.

[guiltypleasure]

Originally Posted by DBeachBoy

I live off Cheshire Bridge Rd and I work downtown by Marietta and Spring St.
It's 4.8mi commute. If there's ever an event going on downtown (which there usually is) or rain, or someone sneezing into the wind it can be a nightmare trying to get out of downtown.

Usually however it's a 15-20min commute, but as I stated it has taken up to almost an hour on occasion.

That is b/c you are getting on the connector...dingbat!!!! Learn other ways like sidney marcus to peidmont....lord.