Where to buy? Opinions welcome. (Atlanta, Roswell: houses, neighborhoods, new construction)

[MisterNY]

Here is the situation, I have my home business that I can take anywhere. I travel between GA and Florida (10 days in Florida, 4 days in Atlanta). My wife works at Piedmont Hospital. When I am in Atlanta, I stay in Castleberry Hill at my cousin's place. My wife also stays there. (My cousin works abroad, so we handle the utilities and maintenance of the loft).

At the end of the school year (June 2010), I will be spending most of my time in Atlanta, and will be looking to finally settle here and do what I am doing in reverse (10 days here, 4 days in Florida..maybe less in Florida). On weekends, after working and flying I'd rather relax than look at houses. Some weekends we look around, and that's where the confusion begins.

Here's a rundown of pros and cons:

Marietta: Although we like it, and the kids' future (private) school is there, we have issues with the flooding that occured there recently. But again, the school is there. The neighborhoods we've looked at were nice, and the proximity to town is a plus.

SW Atlanta: We like the Camp Creek area. There are very nice neighborhoods, the proximity to the airport works out well for me. My wife loves the area (but still reluctant). Her concerns are with the schools (in case the kids would ever have to go to public school, and home resale, safety, and we liked the fact that the area was not affected by flooding a few weeks ago.
How are the issues with water bills though? While the water bill in Castleberry Hill is small, looking at a Single Family Home, we're expecting it to be more. (While we're an interracial couple, we were welcomed there). The area has plenty of pros for me. However, we're also worried about safety issues we hear from posters in the past. No area is perfect. I also have a few cars (5 total), and am looking at 3 car garage homes. The area seems to fit the bill, but there seems to be some reluctance on the wife's part. Easy access to the city is also a plus for me on weekends.

Peachtree City/Fayetteville: I like the area, however less bang for your buck if you ask me. There are nice areas, and the idea of golf paths/golf karts to go to Publix and Target makes the wife happy. Home prices aren't the best, but deals are out there. Plus it's far from the wife's job and the kids' school. How well did PTC fare during the floods?

Newnan: Similar issues as PTC, but more for your money in terms of property and a bit far out of Atlanta. I dont want to be too far from Atlanta. My concerns are for the wife and kids. Are the Public schools in Newnan and PTC good enough for us to forget about private schooling?


On the North Side, we looked at

Alpharetta: Still a contender, but worried about the drive for the wife (if she has to take the GA 400). The houses cost more than SW Atlanta and Marrietta. Less house for the money, but overall nice area.

Roswell: Any areas you'd suggest? We have friends there, but the traffic on a friday afternoon (Roswell Rd) seems unbearable in the long run.


Kennessaw: While the visit was short, what's everyone's say about the area? The houses were nice, but we didn't get a feel for the entire as a whole. Still more to see.

Cherokee County? We have yet to check it out. Someone suggested Holly Springs and Canton. However, they do not live there, so that was taken with a grain of salt. We're still curious. How is Woodstock? Pics would help. I will check the Cherokee county website, but would love to hear from residents. Bob Kovacs maybe?

Anyone have suggestions?

* Max price of $300k
* Good schools. (just in case+resale if need be)
* Min 4Br/3ba+. (3 car garage a definite plus). If not, must be able to build a standalone garage on property
* Progressive area
* Decent amount of property for the money.
* Proximity to the Airport and intown amenities.
* Relatively new construction (Mid 1990s-to recent)

Anythings else that I may have left, fill in. Thanks guys.

Also, we're not interested in Gwinnett. Nice place, but too far from the city and we've dealt with traffic firsthand. Plus we barely have friends and family on that side.

[atlantagreg30127]

Marietta has some very nice areas, and note, not ALL areas of Marietta are in flood zones. Many are not. This would be on my list.

Kennesaw likewise, has some very nice areas. Note that if you have to get on Barrett Parkway during some hours the traffic can be hell, but there are workarounds.

Alpharetta if you can stand the GA400 commute is a very nice area, and gives you the option of heading very easily North on GA400 to the North Georgia area for recreation (Dahlonega, Helen, Outlet malls, etc), as well as hooking up to MARTA southward to go into the city if you don't want to go all the way in via car. In the future MARTA will eventually expand northward, but it's unlikely to ever go toward Marietta or Kennesaw as a transit option.

[lastminutemom]

If you are set on a school in Marietta (Walker?) then you need to live on that side of town. Most private schools in Atlanta don't have a very large area that they draw students from. There are exceptions -- Westminster, Pace, Woodward etc and some of the Catholics, but generally speaking you will find that most private schools have the majority of their students living within 10 or so miles from the school.

Living in many of the areas you listed will socially isolate your children.

How old are your kids? And are your certain that they can be admitted to the private school you have chosen?

[PKCorey]

I wouldn't go so far north with you traveling so much to the airport.

Since, you're a home business, the main issue would the be the school and your wife's commute to work. I would try and stay on the West side and South side to make it convenient for the both of you. If you want the 3 car garage, I would lean moreso to SW Atlanta and Peachtree City. PTC has way better schools. It depends on which part of SW Atlanta though with APS and FCPS. Seems to be alot of improvements going on in those 2 fronts.

Your water bill will be high as long as it is from the city due to the bonds for the sewers lines. So, for a rough cost, I would go 2,3 or 4x what you are paying now for the loft...

Have you looked at Smyrna?

[aries4118]

Coweta County Schools (Newnan) are good...would be a great option.

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

Living in many of the areas you listed will socially isolate your children.

I am dying to understand what you mean by this comment. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, so can you elaborate?

[lastminutemom]

Originally Posted by neil0311

I am dying to understand what you mean by this comment. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, so can you elaborate?

Sorry if that was confusing. I guess I knew what I meant. If your child lives 30 plus minutes from where most/all of their friends do, it is very difficult. Unless your child attends a school where kids really do come from all over (ie Woodward, Westminster, Pace etc) parents look for convenience when it comes to after school playdates etc. Even at those schools, while a bit of inconvenience is to be expected, it is still hard. We have a friend whose child is about to graduate from one of the schools I listed and she has found geography to be a huge challenge.

I have been there and done that -- had a child in a private school that was quite a distance from our house. Socially, after school stuff and weekends were very difficult. "out of sight, out of mind" kind of stuff. Plus there weren't the commonalities of community sports, etc.

At school, she had lots of friends and lots of invites to playdates at their houses -- but afterschool (because of traffic) was nearly impossible. There were a few parents who were willing to meet halfway for drop offs. It was nearly impossible to get her friends to our house.

If they are of driving age, it raises a whole other set of issues.

I think I should have said socially isolating after school.

[BobKovacs]

Cherokee County will get you everything you're looking for, but your commutes won't be optimal. The drive to Piedmont will be +/- an hour in the best conditions, and could be double that in rush hour/rain/bad weather. The trip to/from the airport is about the same.

If you can deal with the commutes, I'd say it's definitely worth checking out- if the commutes will bother you, don't waste your time.

[billl]

We just moved to Woodstock (from Johns Creek) and we love it here. It seems to be a good balance between suburbia and rural (about what the Johns Creek area was like 12 years ago). It has a nice home-town feel to it (which we never had in Johns Creek). There's always something going on in downtown Woodstock (what they call "Olde Towne") and so far the local restaurants have been enough to keep us interested. The only thing we feel far away from is decent shopping. The closest mall is Town Center, which is okay but not great. The Avenues are far enough away to be rather inconvenient. But as BobKovacs says, the commute from here to Atlanta is no picnic. My wife drives it every day and it usually takes her over an hour.

If you're interested in new construction, Toll Brothers is in the early stages of building out a subdivision. Google for "Woodstock Knoll".

I'd post pictures of Olde Towne but I don't have any.

Bill

[MisterNY]

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

If you are set on a school in Marietta (Walker?) then you need to live on that side of town. Most private schools in Atlanta don't have a very large area that they draw students from. There are exceptions -- Westminster, Pace, Woodward etc and some of the Catholics, but generally speaking you will find that most private schools have the majority of their students living within 10 or so miles from the school.

Living in many of the areas you listed will socially isolate your children.

How old are your kids? And are your certain that they can be admitted to the private school you have chosen?

I totally understood what you meant. We fear that as well. Being too far from school and friends. The school is St Joseph's (Catholic). Our twins boys are 7 yrs old, and our daughter is 5.

Originally Posted by PKCorey

I wouldn't go so far north with you traveling so much to the airport.

Since, you're a home business, the main issue would the be the school and your wife's commute to work. I would try and stay on the West side and South side to make it convenient for the both of you. If you want the 3 car garage, I would lean moreso to SW Atlanta and Peachtree City. PTC has way better schools. It depends on which part of SW Atlanta though with APS and FCPS. Seems to be alot of improvements going on in those 2 fronts.

Your water bill will be high as long as it is from the city due to the bonds for the sewers lines. So, for a rough cost, I would go 2,3 or 4x what you are paying now for the loft...

Have you looked at Smyrna?

Good points, but the wife's commute may end up being a bit much in PTC, and the kids going to school in Marietta..... Now that I'm thinking about their commutes, I may have to end up being closer to Marietta.

What areas of Smyrna would you recommend? I know it's in Cobb, but if you have suggestions, please share them. I also notice the exit while on 285 coming from SW Atlanta. It's not too far from Atlanta from what I see. I need to venture out more when I get there next weekend.

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

Marietta has some very nice areas, and note, not ALL areas of Marietta are in flood zones. Many are not. This would be on my list.

Kennesaw likewise, has some very nice areas. Note that if you have to get on Barrett Parkway during some hours the traffic can be hell, but there are workarounds.

Alpharetta if you can stand the GA400 commute is a very nice area, and gives you the option of heading very easily North on GA400 to the North Georgia area for recreation (Dahlonega, Helen, Outlet malls, etc), as well as hooking up to MARTA southward to go into the city if you don't want to go all the way in via car. In the future MARTA will eventually expand northward, but it's unlikely to ever go toward Marietta or Kennesaw as a transit option.

Marietta,
It looks like a contender, since the kids' school is there. What communities and zip codes would you suggest? I will pay close attention to flood zone information. Does anyone know where I can get acurate information about flood zones? I know there's a government site, but can't recall.