Anyone from SE Michigan (Atlanta, Smyrna: apartment, condo, townhome)

[ATLorBUST]

My husband and I are relocating from Chicago, but we're SE Michigan natives.

Wondering if anyone out here is from SE Michigan and can help us draw comparisons to neighborhoods we know.

For example, he just found out that he's going to be working up near the Perimeter Mall area and we are GUESSING that this is likely like Troy or Southfield...are we hot, warm, ice cold?

What would Decatur be compared to?

Thanks!

[Jomaark]

The Perimeter area is like the high end of Troy, Bloomfield or Farmington Hills. Parts of Decatur are kind of like Birmingham in that you can walk around,there are stores and restaurants but parts of Decatur are like downtown Detroit. The part that's like Birmingham has houses with charm and character on nice lots.

[ATLorBUST]

Ha! Thanks Jomaark. I actually said Farmington Hills to my husband, so that's cool that I was close. Do you know Royal Oak? There were some sketchy parts for awhile, but it has really come up. Birmingham is actually losing some of its charm, since they are tearing down the old homes and building behemoth house in the same lot. I think some are almost zero lots now. It's crazy.

Anyway, I grew up in Troy and he in Bloomfield Hills. I've worked downtown and he went to Wayne State and I've had some friends that lived in some cool old house down there but in some pretty blighted neighborhoods. I'm not quiet that adventureous. We've both lived in Royal Oak before and we would be happy if we could find a similiar neighborhood or one like Ferndale.

How do you know SE Michigan?

[YAZ]

I'm from SE MI and my wife & I are researching a move to Atlanta. We have lots of family there and we like the climate. We're currently in Phoenix and visit GA quite often.

My sister & brother-in-law live in Chamblee and I would compare that to a cross between Bloomfield Hills and Brighton.

[YAZ]

Originally Posted by ATLorBUST

Ha! Thanks Jomaark. I actually said Farmington Hills to my husband, so that's cool that I was close. Do you know Royal Oak? There were some sketchy parts for awhile, but it has really come up. Birmingham is actually losing some of its charm, since they are tearing down the old homes and building behemoth house in the same lot. I think some are almost zero lots now. It's crazy.

They're doing that in Chamblee too, except the lots are bigger. The thing I found funny though was that many of these homes that are being torn down are quite nice. You're gonna love the winters down there.

And hey, the Cubs & Tigers play there on occasion....

[ATLorBUST]

Thanks YAZ!

You're moving from oven heat to humid heat.

This last winter in Chicago was killer and we decided to get outta dodge. My dad moved down to Conyers from Michigan about 15 years ago and has never looked back!

My husband is a die-hard Detroit sports fan so he'll be happy about the Tigers. He's trying to get over the fact that they traded Pudge.

[Jomaark]

I grew up in Detroit and then moved to Farmington which became Farmington Hills. Too bad about Birmingham but what I remember Ferndale was a funkier area. It's been several years since I've been back. You might like Virginia Highlands. It's got a cool vibe and you can walk around.
I like it better than Decatur. The thing about Atlanta is most areas that have walking areas as far as stores and restaurants are only 2-4 blocks long. It also depends
if you are looking for a house, condo, apartment or townhome and budget as to what area I would recommend. I've also lived in Boston, NYC, CA and spent time in Chicago the last place being NYC so when we moved here we didn't want to buy an old bungalow in a cool area and have to immediately add a bathroom or enlarge it. We kinda felt like we'd already lived in a city and we wanted something new and about a 20-30 minute ride to Atlanta and found that in Alpharetta.

[netdragon]

It's like Troy and Southfield, just with curvier streets and a bit more of a skyline. Not from Michigan myself, but girlfriend is from Farmington Hills and I've been there visiting her family about 5 times and driven through both Southfield and Troy multiple times.

Smyrna, Vinings, and Cumberland are also like a combination of Bloomfield Hills, Farmington Hills, Troy, Southfield and Farmington. These areas will also be relatively close to where he's going to be working, though a bit farther away in Cobb County. Buckhead is like nothing in the Detroit area, it's more like Greenwich, CT and Stamford, CT put together.

[YAZ]

Originally Posted by ATLorBUST

Thanks YAZ!

You're moving from oven heat to humid heat.

This last winter in Chicago was killer and we decided to get outta dodge. My dad moved down to Conyers from Michigan about 15 years ago and has never looked back!

My husband is a die-hard Detroit sports fan so he'll be happy about the Tigers. He's trying to get over the fact that they traded Pudge.

Summers in Atlanta are just longer than those in Chicago or Motown. Two months of "sticky" vs. two weeks per year.

Even though Farnsworth is a decent pitcher (2nd time in a Tigers uniform), the Tigers got ripped off with that trade. I realize that Pudge will become a FA after the season, but that was a bad trade.

[LazyT]

Originally Posted by ATLorBUST

My husband and I are relocating from Chicago, but we're SE Michigan natives.

Are you blue or green?