Young family moving to Huntsville in a couple of months, I have lots of questions!. Have (Madison: apartment, how much)

[ericacamp]

Oh- Another question. We like to use credit unions for our banking. Any recommendations?

[LCTMadison]

Redstone Federal Credit Union. They are excellent (and as far as credit unions go pretty much dominate the area).

Just don't ever do a mortgage thru them unless you LIKE beating your head against a brick wall daily!

[RocketCityMama]

You have gotten lots of great advice, there are tons of great things to do with kids here but it's not as lovely as Chattanooga, which I love and we visit often.

There is Sci-Quest too, I don't think I saw it mentioned, it's a hands on science museum, but its nothing compared to CDM, but I do believe they are moving and redoing the whole thing, so hopefully we'll get a nice one.

You can also drive down to Birmingham and go to the McWane center, it's similar to CDM, but has differences plus B'ham has a nice zoo. Florence has a kids museum as well, about 1.5-2 hour drive there as well.

Rocket City Mom does post a lot of great things (find her on Facebook) or her website. You can also find a list of local moms groups, if you're inclined to join one. There are lots of them on meetup.com as well (most listed on her site).

There is a great park off Drake (Everybody Can Play) it's accessible for all kids, they are building a GREAT splash pad there should open this summer. Plus you can drive out to Decatur and go to Point Mallard (water park like place), it's about 30 mins. There is also Spring Valley Beach not far from here.

[CoreLysium]

Based on what I considered a funny map someone made of Spokane, WA, I made this one of Huntsville.

If anyone thinks I should modify it, let me know:

[clamoore]

I live in the heart of the NO zone! Sorry you are scared of our neighborhood. To the OP, I would recommend taking a look at some areas in this zone. We have Brahan Springs Park nearby. There is a great "Everyone Can Play" playground, sand volleyball courts, a super complex with multiple soccer fields, a soon-to-be-completed water fountain that kids can play in, fishing ponds,etc. The muni golf course is just minutes away. We are within 5 minutes of Bridge Street and Parkway Place Mall. The County jogging path and the City cross-country running course is very close. Merrimack Hall is in the neighborhood and it offers a wide-array of cultural opportunities. Our houses are over 100 years old and present a tremendous opportunity for people interested in restoring and customing big, old houses. I hope you take a look.

[CoreLysium]

Originally Posted by clamoore

I live in the heart of the NO zone!

Where at? Tell me where I should change this...that is, if you house is not depreciating and you have good schools. I'm guessing you live in one of the better parts of the Lakewood area. I like the area, but the schools are quite bad and the area is getting too many renters.

I know if I was moving here, I'd get in one of the new apartments off Slaughter Rd. Though I'm actually not so sure about Providence/Providence/Colombia. We actually sold our house in that area in 2008 when the Providence Elementary school hype was at it's peak. The house appreciated 50% in one year. Had to sell.

I was thinking I'd need to stretch the No area a little more to get the Chapman Middle school area. I think Riverton is OK, but I keep hearing people complain about it. There's also a pocket at the very southern tip of Chichamauga, where it meets...Uh, Hobbes?...but it's a very small pocket. With the width of brush I used it would only be a dot. Though it has great schools.

Did the apartments just south of Grissom get made into public housing? I'd think that would be a great location for a rental, but obviously not if you're heavily invested in keeping up with the Joneses.

And the area around Huntsville High is so back and forth. Good street, bad street. It's all about how well your neighbor maintained stuff, as it seems to have a cascade effect. I'm also not sure about the Robin Hood Lane area near Research Park. Seems ghetto from Madison Pike, but once you get into it, the houses seem nice.

Just get with a Realtor. Tell them what you want. Though, as a general rule, the more expensive houses (or more expensive for what you get) are in the good areas.

[JackF]

Originally Posted by LCTMadison

Redstone Federal Credit Union. They are excellent (and as far as credit unions go pretty much dominate the area).

Just don't ever do a mortgage thru them unless you LIKE beating your head against a brick wall daily!

Last fall I refi'd a 4.875% 28-year loan into a 15-year one at 3.25%.

Everything went smoothly, lowered the interest rate considerably and chopped 13 years of the life of the loan.

[TC2coolmom]

Well I live in Madison City and it is a great place to live and the school system is ranked in the top of the state. We are also raked by lots of magazines as a great place to raise a family. My children have blossomed in there school system. I know have to Bob Jones Kids and It is a great school . The community is very nice. If your going to go to a Apartment Complex You might want to look at Charleston Oaks or something of that nature. We lived in Huntsville for a year after being transferred here for work and we hated it. The traffic, the Noise , the crime.The schools were terrible. My two sons asked for us to move away from it. there are plenty of things to keep you busy. Good Luck and Have a Great Move where ever you Choose.

[LCTMadison]

Jack F....a refi and a purchase mortgage are TWO different animals. My dislike of their lending is based on years of very unhappy purchasers, not one transaction. I love RFCU, don't get me wrong, but NOT for mortgages. When I have had a client use RFCU for a purchase, it has never closed on time and it has been issues from beginning to end, which just adds more stress on the purchaser. Most of their "lenders" don't have a tremendous amount of experience, and they are also on salary, not commission, so they get paid whether the transaction closes or not. You can tell a BIG difference in lenders who are commission paid and those who are salary.

Their rates are pretty much the same as all the local lenders in the area, and a lot of times are just a bit (1/8-1/4 percent) higher.

[JackF]

Originally Posted by LCTMadison

Jack F....a refi and a purchase mortgage are TWO different animals.

Gotcha...point taken.