Help! Moving to ATL and unsure about home & job market (Atlanta: to rent, condos)

[kentish06]

I am moving to Atlanta from New England, CT to be exact and having getting worried. My husband's job is transferring him to Downtown Atlanta location in early October and unsure about where to look for homes.

Just a little info.... We are looking for homes in the 100k or less though it may need some work, based on the listings on GA MLS being plentiful. However though plentiful not sure if they are low based on over development or just a lower priced market. We've gone out to look @ a few while visiting last week and were shown some in Stone Mtn, Decatur( off of N.Hairston Rd), and Fairburn. We absolutely loved the home in Decatur but were a little concerned about the area of Memorial Drive.

What would be a good location to raise three boys and not be concerned with safety? Also looking for good schools.

Also how is the job market overall? I have posted for numerous positions and went on one interview and registered with 3 temp firms while there and am a little concerned about my finding employment. I have always been able to find great positions in my area and hope to maintain my salary amount or close to it.

[lastminutemom]

Were you with a realtor who showed you those homes? Did you tell them you wanted good schools? (Actually, I know nothing about Fairburn, but those areas of DeKalb County generally have poor schools.

How old are your children?

You totally need to rent first-- you need to understand the very complicated dynamics of the areas with homes in that price range.

[kentish06]

Yes, I was with a realtor. We had thought about renting first but were trying to take advantage of lower home prices we found. If renting what area would you recommend? We can afford up to $1200-1300 comfortably until I find gainful employment based on savings,etc.

[martarider]

Thats a really low purchase price to find safety & good schools. Everything at that price point is going to have severe problems. You should rent.

[DAWGS1]

Stay away from Memorial Drive/Covington Highway area. Very bad areas. Overall Dekalb County school system is bad-a ton of schools did not make AYP-all people in my neighborhood send their kids to private-there are alot of good private school options-unfortunately not good public school options. Oak Grove and Briarlake Elementary schools are good-but you will not find a home for $100,000 in those areas, but maybe you could rent in those areas. Also City of Dectur is good-but again, homes are pricey. Dekalb in on the news every night with some sort of murder, home invasion, etc, etc. Crime is pretty much the norm is this area. I have lived here for 9 years and can't wait to find a way to leave-good luck!!!

[kentish06]

We can afford more house we were just intrigued by the lower priced homes,we are approved for 250k loan. It may be better to rent for the first year or so to feel out the area. Is there a lot of traffic going into downtown from Gwinnett County?

[lastminutemom]

Yes there is a fair amount of traffic but lots of people do it.

Please know that in metro Atlanta at that 100,000 price point, you won't get good schools and probably not the safest area.

[mmenomen]

I would definitely rent first and figure out what area you like best coming from a very different area of the country.

Basically in metro Atlanta, single detached homes priced at 100K or below are mostly in high crime areas. If you go this route, you might want private schooling or home schooling.

Some homes priced in the upper 100s are in OK neighborhoods with OK schools (Tucker, parts of Gwinnett). Gwinnett to downtown commute can be brutal. There is a bus one can take from some park and rides scattered in Gwinnett.

Schools that have the best reputations in the area according to test scores, homes tend be priced well over 200K, North Fulton and East Cobb cases in point.

You might want to check out some the areas schools (test scores, racial make-up, and other stats) on greatschools.net or the school thread that is posted at top of the Atlanta forum.

[martarider]

You can be intrigued by the lower priced homes, but why would you want to live in one?

[johnatl]

At the price point you are interested in, you really need to check out townhouses/rowhomes/condos - but like everyone else has mentioned, you really need to up your price to find what you are looking for. I agree that you should rent for a while.