Population jumps within city of Atlanta (Decatur, Washington: middle-class, sale, real estate)

[chip1980]

Urban revival: 'People want out of their cars'

By MARY LOU PICKEL
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/10/08
The city of Atlanta is booming. Moderator cut: No cutting and pasting of whole articles allowed, due to copyright infringements. Please post a link to referred article instead. Please also refer to CD ToS (Terms of Service), rules and guidelines. Thank you.

[ramblinwreck17]

Good article. Thanks for posting. I dunno how a lot of families are surviving these gas prices especially with long commutes.

[atlantagreg30127]

There is only one problem that faces Atlanta as suburbanites try to move into town - affordability.

The mega-building of all new condos throughout the city probably has an average starting price point of $275,000 for the smaller units, and the mid $300ks for starters for a 2BR/2BA. Any new decent sized homes are going to hit around half a million, easy. Anything that IS attempted to be built as "affordable" (rare) usually becomes a low income housing area with higher crime.

So while the city population is increasing, it's going to cause the divide between the haves and have nots more visible. Suburbanites who fall into the "upper middle income" and higher dollar ranges will be able to afford to move into the city. Those who are selling homes in places like NYC, L.A., San Fran, and DC who move here will have the extra home sale monies to buy into the city as well. Working class people in the suburbs who make $50,000 a year (or less) however, won't be able to afford to live intown, and will have to remain in the suburbs.

And we used to make fun of the British for their obvious class system.

[Atlantasfinest]

The English Avenue area of off Northside Drive would be a great place for a TRUE working class neighborhood.

I really wish there was a way for the housing auth/city/major developer could find a way to acquire all of that land/homes that are abandoned and forclosed and work with the current churches/land/home owners in English Avenue area alongside Northside Drive and re-develop it. Most of the houses in that neighborhood are abandoned and borded up and it's a bit of a war zone now with drug dealers holeing up in the abandoned homes.

I'm sure there are TONS of people who would want to live because there if safety wasn't an issue because it's so close to the city with great access to Buckhead/Downtown/Aquarium/Midtown/GTech/AUC (Via Street/Marta/Biking/Walking) but no one would want to deal with the crap they would DEFINATELY have to put up with living there in it's current status because the area is overun with all types of un-savory characters

A few years ago I saw new builders building houses there and now thouse same houses are boarded up...It's really sad. The English Avenue area is in-between the West Midtown development, Vine City & The Westside Village and would be a perfect working class bedroom community that Atlanta needs. Currently there is a new apartment building and Herndon Homes is scheduled to get torn down so hopefully that spurs some development!

Check out these links

EANA - English Avenue History (http://4eana.org/about/ea_history.htm - broken link)

http://www.atlantaga.gov/client_resources/government/planning/english%20ave/section%201.pdf (broken link)


YouTube - English Avenue Neighborhood in Danger

english avenue yards // creative office studios

[plessthanpointohfive]

There are vast areas of Atlanta just waiting for those 50K a year earners to come and make it home. It's just not being promoted. I wish the city would offer incentives for buying homes in these areas.

As for class system, I suppose I don't have a problem with that and I don't know how it can be avoided. I just don't like it when people disdain other classes (both the rich and the poor).

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

As for class system, I suppose I don't have a problem with that and I don't know how it can be avoided. I just don't like it when people disdain other classes (both the rich and the poor).

I don't think most people truly "disdain" the rich and poor income segments of the population - it's just that many are getting frustrated at seeing middle income people disappear, and that there never seems to be any programs that help them out.

I mean, look at all of the $450,000 - $750,000+ homes that are going up even today in the metro area. Some act as though that is now "middle class housing". On what planet?

I mean, the poor have various services and voucher programs to allow them to move to many areas they'd never be able to afford otherwise. The wealthy have tons of tax loopholes and "investment" opportunities that allow them to hoard money away and live in gated and isolated communities. But if someone who falls into what we used to consider the "middle income" category needs something to help them get into even a standard area, there just doesn't seem to be any help out there for them to do it. The attitude seems to be that you need to be poor to get a voucher, or be a millionaire so you don't have to worry about it.

[Atlantasfinest]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

There are vast areas of Atlanta just waiting for those 50K a year earners to come and make it home. It's just not being promoted. I wish the city would offer incentives for buying homes in these areas.

As for class system, I suppose I don't have a problem with that and I don't know how it can be avoided. I just don't like it when people disdain other classes (both the rich and the poor).

The Atlanta Development Authority has plenty of programs under their jurisdiction!

ADA - Atlanta Development Authority - Home Ownership and Mortgage Programs

ADA - Atlanta Development Authority - Homebuyers & Renters

Many of these programs offer from 15K-60K in downpayment assistance and you can get a low interest rate (Under 6%) on a 30 year-fixed mortgage. Alot of times it's the real estate agents who are not doing their due dilligence and not telling buyers about these programs available because they have this crazy belief that it will slow up the process which is totally untrue.

Some other areas that come to mind that are ripe for 50K earners to move into are Oakland City, West End, West View, Vine City, Washington Park. All those areas offer direct access to the Marta Train Station and great access to the city via street arteries and 20/75/85. Northside Drive acts as a de-facto freeway for many residents from the Westside as you can access the shopping at Atlantic Station, Howell Mill and Buckhead/Midtown/Buckhead right along that street What is it going to take for people to start a pioneering movement to move into some of these Westside communities?

They offer the a very similiar housing stock as many homes in Kirkwood, Decatur, Grant Park, Old 4th Ward but at half the price and even lower as we speak! Yes, the development is not as far along as the eastside neighborhoods right now but you have to have Vision and forsight to see it thru!

[jnth118]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

And we used to make fun of the British for their obvious class system.

Funny you say those words. If you look at the numbers, the wealth disparity among the very top and bottom of our society has surpassed that victorian era.

And you're right the working class and the working poor will be priced out the city.

[onemanarmy]

I suspect the number will be higher when the census for 2008 comes out next year. 2008 will symbolize the year Atlanta's love affair with their cars ended, I think it's a turning point for most of us who own vehicles.

[plessthanpointohfive]

I thought they were probably programs in existence but I didn't know anything about them. They need to do a better job advertising them so that true middle-classers can move into the city. I think their spending dollar would increase because they wouldn't be paying so much for gas, etc.

Greg, you're completely right. The true middle class, not people like me who are middle class but at the top, really do need a break. The disdain issue - well, I do hear a lot of people around me who seem to think poor people are that way because they are lazy and stoopid. And I meet a lot of people who think all the well-off are ivory-tower crooks. Of course I meet a lot of people who have a more kind outlook, too, but I guess they just don't make as much noise.