relocating to nashville/from Nor-Cal...need help (Franklin, Brentwood: real estate, new home)

[englishproff]

My wife and I are thinking of relocating to the Nashville area from the Sacramento/Roseville area of northern cal due to a job transfer. We like the prospect of a low cost of living, friendly people, etc, but are concerned we may not know everything we need to know...We are looking for any and all info, but would specifcally appreciate answers to the questions below:
1- Is it possible to find a 2-2500 sq ft home, 4bdr, 2.5 ba in nice quiet neighborhood for 175-200k? If so, can this be done in Brentwood/Franklin area? We have heard those are the nicer areas.
2- We have heard people are friendly, but what form does that take? Neither of us are religous so we dont really want the invite to church or the pressure to go. What are the chances of getting this kind of pressure there?
3- What is the area around the universities like? We both love the university life and would love to find a town with good coffee shops, cafés, bars, and cultural events from football, to theatre to symphony...any suggestions where this can be found?
4- Any pictures of brentwood/franklin would be great...or other parts of nashville
5- What is the weather like...what about bugs...is the humidity horrible? We have horrrible pictures of cockroaches nibbling on our toes at night and need to be reassured that doesnt happen
6- We have a 9 month old son and are thinking of having a second child...where is a good place for young, "hip" parents in town?
7- What do younger families do for fun there? Is it an "invite the friends over" kind of town or a "lets go hang out at a little cafe kind of town...
Ok...I guess that will get us started...thanks for the help!

[akm4]

Hi!

My family of 4 moved from Plumas County to Franklin 5 years ago. We love it.

1- Probably not, but check the real estate listings online in case one slips by. You're not a long way off, but would need to come up some to make it work.

2- Never ran into that pressure myself. You will, however, be asked which church you attend a time or two. That one surprised us, but it wasn't followed by any pressure. Some folks will invite you to their church when they discover you're new in the area. I can't imagine it going beyond that, though.

3- Hillsboro Village in Nashville.

4- No time, but I think I saw that below. Try franklinis.com or city sites.

5- We heard horror stories about bugs before moving here too. What's that about? Have yet to see ONE cockroach. Humidity hasn't been a big deal, but it's certainly more humid here than in Sac.

6- Young, hip parents? I wouldn't know

7- Both. Our neighborhood is very party-oriented. Oftentimes we'll all be outside with the kids and end up ordering pizza or Chinese with other families. The usual coffee thing too. Very social here, connected.

Want more? Just ask!

I think you're gonna love it here.

[TNSoundsGood2Me]

Here's some general info:
Brentwood and Franklin are suburbs of Nashville. It is located in Williamson County, which is known for top-rated schools and is recognized as the 11th wealthiest county in the whole U.S - the median family income in Williamson County is $90,087 and in Brentwood it's $118,450. The Brentwood/Franklin area is a beautiful place, too, with all the green hills and trees. Brentwood is mostly a residential area - Many people who live in Brentwood shop in Cool Springs, although there is somewhat of a 'downtown' spread out off of Franklin Rd between Concord Rd and Church Street and also the Maryland Farms area of Brentwood. The city has started the slow process of building a real town center with trendy stores and restaraunts that will take shape in the next 10 years. Cool Springs has recently been named the new home of Nissan North America and all business and commerical areas across Williamson County are growing by leaps and bounds. Also, I believe Money magazine listed Brentwood in their Best Places to Live list for 2005. Franklin is another great town. It's bigger than Brentwood and also has a beautiful historic downtown. Franklin has more affordable housing as last year the average home price in Brentwood was $523,477. In Franklin you may be able to find a house in you price range eventually, but I would also check out Spring Hill, Fairview, Thompson's Station, Nolensville, and other small towns that are still in Williamson County. Both Franklin and Brentwood have plenty of parks still have some beautiful horse farms and countryside. All of Williamson County has little crime. I'm going to private message you with a few websites i know of because I don't think you're allowed to post websites on the forums.

I'm sure you would love the area!