Best suburbs of Nashville (Franklin, Hendersonville: sales, crime, new home)

[Xtreme]

What are the nice areas of Nashville?

...in terms of: crime, schools, proximity to happenings, cleanliness/beauty, larger homes, etc...

And what are the not-so-nice areas?

Thanks!

[septimus]

Williamson County is one of the wealthiest counties in the country. Franklin and Brentwood in particular.
Green Hills, Forest Hills, Belle Meade are very high end suburbs too but they are in Metro Nashville Schools.

[Edgefield D]

Well...I suppose I can give you my opinion of what you might be looking for. Decent schools and big homes within Davidson County...I would say: Green Hills, Belle Meade, Brentwood, Bellevue. Usually, some of the county schools surrounding Davidson tend to have a better reputation. If I was going to live outside Davidson County and still be within commuting distance, I would say: Franklin, Hendersonville and maybe Mt Juliet. I like Franklin and Hendersonville alot...but it depends on what you're looking for. Franklin is bigger and has an historic downtown....and Hendersonville is newer and has Old Hickory Lake (which you can own a home on). Both have lots of new development and good school systems.

[vivelafrance]

I live in Hendersonville.

Crime is very low and the city feels very safe. In the major shopping areas, you will see many police officers on bikes and horses.

Schools are great. Beech, Hendersonville, and Station Camp High Schools serve the city and receive high marks. The city also has a great private school: Pope John Paul II.

The city is 15-20 minutes from downtown Nashville without traffic for "happenings." Hendersonville also hosts a lot of festivals throughout the year. Last weekend was Daniel Smith Days, which celebrate the founder of the city. This weekend is the Festival by the Lake and next weekend is the Hank Thompson "Trek or Treat Halloween Fest."

The city is located on two peninsulas of Old Hickory Lake so you are never far from its recreational opportunities. The city has a wonderful park system and has opened the first leg of a new greenway system to connect all the parks. The city also has 3 golf courses.

You can definitely find large homes here. If you like new homes, there are some great areas off Long Hollow Pk and Drakes Creek Rd in the Beech Area and a lot of new construction off Gallatin Rd in the Hunt Club and Savannah development. The Nashville Tour of Homes has been held at these communities in years past.

The majority of the city is very beautiful. The oldest part near the border with Nashville is typical 1970s/1980s sprawl but the city has really tried a to create a different image since that time. The most beautiful areas are down in the peninsulas...especially off Indian Lake Blvd. There are some great brick and stone homes mostly built in the late 80s and 90s with awesome tree cover and great lake views. Another good thing about Hendersonville is that they kept commercial and retail growth out of the peninsulas so there is little traffic and just a great neighborhood feel. Most of the retail development is north of main street. The two major shopping districts are Glenbrook for "big box" stores and Indian Lake Village for more speciality/mall shops.


In addition to Hendersonville, I would recommend checking out Gallatin, Mt. Juliet, Brentwood, Franklin, and Goodlettsville.

[soulful]

Xtreme. If cash is not a barrier, I would look at Belle Meade. Fabulous large older homes that have true grace and beauty. Drive down Belle Meade Blvd. and check it out. Belle Meade even has its own police dept to provide extra safety to the residents (even though it is part of Nashville/Davidson County and receives their police/fire/ambulance services). Belle Meade is minutes from the Mall at Green Hills and all that Green Hills has to offer. Lots of excellent private schools in the area for elementary through high school.

You will also find nice areas surrounding Belle Meade which include Green Hills, Forest Hills, etc.

Might want to expand your search down into Williamson County which has much to offer in Franklin and the many residential developments throughout the county.

The areas I've outlined have a lot of character and may be what you seek.

Good luck with your search and let us know if you have more questions

[bmrisko]

Originally Posted by Edgefield D

Well...I suppose I can give you my opinion of what you might be looking for. Decent schools and big homes within Davidson County...I would say: Green Hills, Belle Meade, Brentwood, Bellevue. Usually, some of the county schools surrounding Davidson tend to have a better reputation. If I was going to live outside Davidson County and still be within commuting distance, I would say: Franklin, Hendersonville and maybe Mt Juliet. I like Franklin and Hendersonville alot...but it depends on what you're looking for. Franklin is bigger and has an historic downtown....and Hendersonville is newer and has Old Hickory Lake (which you can own a home on). Both have lots of new development and good school systems.

The Brentwood that you want to be in is in Williamson County. Brentioch is in Davidson...

[DonCorleone]

I echo vivelafrance's sentiments towards Hendersonville. We love it there. But he's said it all.

As far as the not-so-nice areas, you'll hear different things from different people, but I think you can pretty well rule out North Nashville/Bordeaux. As for the rest of the area, you probably should just search the board for more information. You'll find discussion about the decent neighborhoods and sketchy neighborhoods in the following areas: Inglewood, Antioch (loads of threads/posts about the pros and cons of Antioch), East Nashville, Edgewood, and Madison. Bottom line, some people really love those neighborhoods...other people think the charm is hard to find. My take is that it all depends on what part of the neighborhoods you're looking at. For "safe bets" you're probably better off looking in Williamson County (Brentwood/Franklin), Green Hills/Belle Meade (if budget isn't a concern), Hendersonville, or Mt. Juliet.

[Xtreme]

Thanks all for the replies. You've given me/us SO much information, I could be researching this for days and days.

I was intentionally vague in my original post, as to not eliminate any options, but cash is always a consideration. As much as I would love to live in an area like Belle Meade, I don't think that's realistic.

Hendersonville looks very nice, and there appears to be a good supply of homes in the $75-$85/sqft range. Bellevue seems nice also, but a little pricier than Hendersonville, around the $100/sqft. Gallatin and Franklin are a bit too far out for my taste. I gotta be relatively close to the city, where the action is. Brentwood looks similar to Bellevue, just slightly less curb-appeal and more cookie-cutter. Mt. Juliet has some nice homes, and appears to be just as affordable as Hendersonville, just a smaller area.

I'll need to do some heavy research on the school districts. I had a website bookmarked that ranked all districts in the country, but I can't seem to find it now.

Since the group identified these areas (Hendersonville, Bellevue, Brentwood, Mt. Juliet) are nice ones, I'm gonna assume that crime isn't really a concern.

Also, I couldn't find much info on property taxes. How does Nashville compare nationally, and how do the areas I mention above compare to each other?

Thanks again, you've been extremely helpful!

[septimus]

Depending where you are in Franklin you are too far from the "action". I live pretty far from the highway and it takes me 30-35 minutes to get downtown Nashville for work.

Also Franklin has a lot of its own thing going on.

Personal opinion here but in Williamson County I like Franklin over Brentwood. Don't get me wrong...Franklin has a suburban feel to it, but it also has more of a small town feel to it with a proper downtown and lots of fairs, activities too. Brentwood is everything I hate about the suburbs. Large houses on large lots with no sidewalks so you have to drive everywhere. Parts of Franklin are semi-walkable. There are a couple subdivisions in Franklin that are quite large with shopping right in the subdivision, some have schools, etc.

[septimus]

Originally Posted by Xtreme

Since the group identified these areas (Hendersonville, Bellevue, Brentwood, Mt. Juliet) are nice ones, I'm gonna assume that crime isn't really a concern.

Also, I couldn't find much info on property taxes. How does Nashville compare nationally, and how do the areas I mention above compare to each other?

Thanks again, you've been extremely helpful!

Taxes in general are very low in TN (and it shows). OUr property taxes in Williamson County are the same as they were in Mass for the houses that are appraised at the same amount. Sales taxes are higher here and they tax food. There is no income tax. Even with higher sales tax we come out way ahead tax wise (unfortunately--being high acheiving yankee education snobs that means we also now pay private school tuition for 3 kids).