Considering a move to Nashville- please help! (Chattanooga, Franklin: transplants, for sale)

[tal1412]

My wife and I will be retiring within the next couple of years. We both work for the postal service. I am 54 and she is 53. We currently reside in a close in suburb of Chicago (Forest Park, IL). We like our current home and its location, which is only 10 miles from downtown Chicago. Our current home is brand new and on a small city lot, 25’ wide by 125’ deep. We do not like the Chicago winters, so we are considering a move to a warmer climate. We have done numerous on line searches and based upon things our likes and dislikes, four cities keep popping up as possible place for us to move to: Louisville KY; Lexington KY Nashville TN and Chattanooga TN.

Here’s what we’re looking for:
HOUSING: Need a single family house. We like Craftsman, Arts& Crafts and bungalow styles. Need around 2000 sq ft. We would prefer a newer house, a recently rehabbed house or one that is a wreck that we can demolish and built new. Must have large open, upscale kitchen. Energy efficient and low maintenance features are things we must have. Need 2 ½ car garage. A lot of approx 50’ x 125’ would be great. Would like to stay in the $300K to $350K price range. Would pay up to $400k for the right place in the right neighborhood.

NEIGHBORHOOD: We would prefer an established neighborhood with older homes, new homes and rehabbed homes with tree lined streets. Not interested in new subdivisions with no character. We like sitting on the front porch and saying hi to the neighbors as they walk by. Close to the central city would be nice, or even in the city in he right neighborhood. Having the big box stores like Home Depot, Target, etc nearby is also on the list. We like good quality healthy food and we eat at home most of the time. Whole Foods or equivalent is a must. We will be retired, so commute time is not a big issue. We have no kids, so schools are not important. Our current town’s motto is “Big city access, small town charm”. Hoping to duplicate that in our new home.

ABOUT US: We’re both liberal Democrats. Neither of us is religious. We like outdoor activities like hiking and biking. We also enjoy riding our HD motorcycle. Since we both workout almost every day, having a good quality health club (with a variety of classes) nearby is a must. We enjoy authentic ethnic food. Need a Mexican, Thai, and Italian restaurant nearby. Also enjoy great seafood. Love to eat at neighborhood “joints’ with good quality food. We would also like to be able to go to an upscale place to eat on special occasions. We like to travel, so being near a major airport is also important. Having a good quality medical facility within easy reach is also important.

We are planning a trip to Nashville in September to explore our options and to see if we “like” the city. We would really appreciate any feedback regarding neighborhoods/suburbs that we should explore. We will probably stay in a condo so that we can get more of a feel for the area. Any suggestions and/or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Tom

[Edgefield D]

I think you should check out East Nashville, Hillsboro Village, Germantown, Sylvan Park. I don't know if you would get EVERYTHING on your list...but overall, I think you would come close. I live in East Nashville. You'll find bungalows, victorians, etc...mostly old, some new, mostly small lots and neighbors who tend to get to know each other. Most of the stores you mentioned are a 15 minute drive away from East Nashville. You could go out to the burbs...but it's going to be more cookie cutter. The downtown area of Franklin is nice....but very expensive and not nearly as liberal. Reading your list though....Nashville pretty much has all the requirements you listed.

Good Luck with your trip!

[Pimpy]

East Nashville sounds perfect for you, and at your price range, you could afford something in one of its nicer areas.

I don't know much about Louisville or Lexington, but you would be miserable in Chattanooga.

[Music City USA - KimP]

I think you and your wife would love Franklin. I've lived here for 25 years. I've raised my 3 boys here. With the description of what you're looking for Franklin has very old neighborhoods in different areas. check out City of Franklin - Home Page. Take a look at the quaint downtown area laced with local shops, ice cream parlors and local restaurants. Pucketts Grocery (Welcome to Puckett's Grocery and Restaurant - Franklin - Nashville - Leiper's Fork) is one of my favorites. My son's rehearsal dinner was held there in July, 2009.

You might want to check out Westhaven. (Westhaven | Franklin | Brentwood | Nashville | New Homes) This community has only been building homes for the past 10 years, however it has a hometown feel with sidewalks and tree lined streets. It also sports 2 pools, 36 hole golf course, gym, supermarket, and local retail with so much more. The mature trees are stunning.

Just down the road is the Natchez Trace Parkway (scenictrace.com). Anyone who owns a Harley has explored this scenic parkway. There are picnic areas, with trails and waterfalls sporting all the nature Tennessee has to offer.

Just off Natchez Trace is the famous "Loveless Cafe". (Loveless Cafe) Every country music star has a signed photo hanging on the wall. It's an experience in itself.

On the east side of Franklin is Cool Springs Galleria http://www.coolspringsgalleria.com/s...ings.nsf/index
which includes all the ammenities of a big city. Home Depot, Lowes, Starbucks, and so many restaurants. Just google "Cool Springs Franklin TN" and check out all the restaurants. From Taco Bell to Sperrys (Upscale Local restaurant).

I love it here and I could go on more. Just let me know. LOL!

[yank283]

Originally Posted by Music City USA - KimP

I think you and your wife would love Franklin. I've lived here for 25 years. I've raised my 3 boys here. With the description of what you're looking for Franklin has very old neighborhoods in different areas. check out City of Franklin - Home Page. Take a look at the quaint downtown area laced with local shops, ice cream parlors and local restaurants. Pucketts Grocery (Welcome to Puckett's Grocery and Restaurant - Franklin - Nashville - Leiper's Fork) is one of my favorites. My son's rehearsal dinner was held there in July, 2009.

You might want to check out Westhaven. (Westhaven | Franklin | Brentwood | Nashville | New Homes) This community has only been building homes for the past 10 years, however it has a hometown feel with sidewalks and tree lined streets. It also sports 2 pools, 36 hole golf course, gym, supermarket, and local retail with so much more. The mature trees are stunning.

Just down the road is the Natchez Trace Parkway (scenictrace.com). Anyone who owns a Harley has explored this scenic parkway. There are picnic areas, with trails and waterfalls sporting all the nature Tennessee has to offer.

Just off Natchez Trace is the famous "Loveless Cafe". (Loveless Cafe) Every country music star has a signed photo hanging on the wall. It's an experience in itself.

On the east side of Franklin is Cool Springs Galleria http://www.coolspringsgalleria.com/s...ings.nsf/index
which includes all the ammenities of a big city. Home Depot, Lowes, Starbucks, and so many restaurants. Just google "Cool Springs Franklin TN" and check out all the restaurants. From Taco Bell to Sperrys (Upscale Local restaurant).

I love it here and I could go on more. Just let me know. LOL!

I wouldn't characterize Franklin as being "liberal". It's actually a really conservative county (Williamson). While there are some charming homes near old town Franklin I don't think this is what the posters are looking for. If you decide on Nashville I would look into East Nashville, Hillsboro Village, 12th South/Belmont area and possibly Germantown. As far as East Nashville, I would concentrate on Lockland Springs, East End, Edgefield and Eastwood Neighbors neighborhoods. Oh yeah, there's a lot of transplants from Chicago that live in East Nashville. Hillsboro Village is near Vanderbilt and would be a little pricier but you should find something in your range. I'll have to disagree with Pimpy on Chattanooga. They're doing some pretty incredible things down there. They have revitalized the riverbank (Nashville is using them for a model) and there are all kinds of cool little restaurants and shops you can walk to downtown. A lot of people are also moving closer to downtown and fixing up old houses near the core. Also, there's access to about any outdoor activity you can think of. I've heard Louisville had some pretty neat older neighborhoods but I have never been to them. I would mark Lexington off the list. If your not into horse racing or UK b-ball then it gets really boring up there (believe me I know). Also, my buddy summed it up pretty well when he said that per square foot Lexington has more $35,000 a year millionaires than anywhere else in the country. I'll let you figure that one out.

[yank283]

Oh yeah, if your not familiar with southern cities were a little behind the curve on the revitalization of the inner core neighborhoods. When this was happening in Chicago, Boston and other larger city neighborhoods in the 80's and early 90's, only a few were doing it down here (and again I would like to avoid any political meaning behind gentrification, I mean it as in investing in properties, living there and not being an out of town slum lord). So many areas in Nashville and Chattanoogas that have these great old houses are still in transitional neighborhoods (with the exception of Hillsboro Village). A lot of this has been spurred by northern/midwest transplants (and I'm a native Tennessean despite my username) and it's at a pretty breakneck pace even in this economy. In the late 90's Sylvan Park was considered a transitional neighborhood now it's considered very toney (whatever that means) and prices of homes reflect this. No less than nine houses on a street near me have been fixed up and sold (or are for sale) in the last couple of years. Anyway, food for thought but this also means you can find something much cheaper than what you would in Chicago or other citites. Good luck.

[soulful]

I would stay away from Franklin as the conservative nature of the population might drive you nuts However, it is a beautiful and walkable town.

You would love Hillsboro Village (21st Ave South and the many adjacent side streets) as it is adjacent to Vanderbilt University and full of adorable houses. The challenge may be finding something you like for under 400K. I think it can be done. You will be able to walk to Harris Teeter( grocery), and shops, restaurants, and a small independent film theatre. It is the one area of Nashville that I consider livable without a car.

You are also only about 10 minutes by car from Green Hills where there is a great mall, a large movie theatre that actually shows independent films (hard to find in TN, trust me), a Whole Foods and Trader Joe's are on Hillsboro Pike within blocks of the Mall at Green Hills.

Green Hills does have a suburban feel, however, Hillsboro Village does not (to find Hillsboro Village on google maps or mapquest check out 2201 21st Ave South, 37212 as that's the Harris Teeter store address and near the epicenter). You also might want to realtor.com 37212 and take a look at houses/prices.

http://www.hillsborovillage.com/aboutHV.htm (broken link)

Good luck to you.

[akm4]

We're liberals in Franklin and we love it. Still, previous posters are right about it leaning right. I just don't get into it with my friends, so it works for us.

As for your price range, you couldn't get into Westhaven on that, but you could buy in plenty of other Franklin neighborhoods.

Good luck, wherever you choose.

[Mrsnotes]

Originally Posted by akm4

We're liberals in Franklin and we love it. Still, previous posters are right about it leaning right. I just don't get into it with my friends, so it works for us.

As for your price range, you couldn't get into Westhaven on that, but you could buy in plenty of other Franklin neighborhoods.

Good luck, wherever you choose.

I'm another lib in Franklin and new to the area. So far, so good. I've sought out and found many like-minded people and find everyone who leans further to the right to be warm and welcoming and comfortable staying away from political talk. We looked in many other areas but found too much to LOVE about Franklin that we couldn't quite replicate in any other area. Of course, we do have young children and the public schools were a factor.

I'd love to see more liberals "come out of the closet" in Franklin... I think there are more of us than the demographic profiles suggest.

ETA: I LOVE the Hillsboro Village/Green Hills/12 South area and if we didn't have small children and could afford the price of housing there, we probably would have bought something there. Mr Notes and I both work at Belmont and love the academic/artsy/young atmosphere in those neighborhoods.

[Music City USA - KimP]

I still think Franklin is your best bet. You get closer to the city, and crime rate goes up a bit.

And, just to be clear, we also don't wear our politics on our sleeves here. Great place to retire.

Kim