If you live in ATLANTA GEORGIA....

[corky805]

DH and I are looking into a possible move/job transfer to the Atlanta area. Any info that you would be willing to share would be appreciated.

Good areas, schools,cost of living, real estate, taxes.

What do you love? What do you hate?


Thanks,

 

[corky805]

btt

 

[Robinrs]

I've lived here for 16 years. The cost of living depends on where you're coming from. I came from NY so everything here, IMHO, was FREE!

Real estate is based on location. Anything in-town, or inside the "perimeter" or I-285, is higher than outside. The closer the proximity to the city, the higher the price. Do a lot of research on the schools, on the most part they are horrendous, look for the less horrendous areas! There is a book you should check, "the Ultimate Atlanta School Guide" which can lead you to the best areas.

There are plenty of DISers who've lived here all their lives who could probably give you better info than I can. I have never felt like it was home to me, though I'm glad my son is growing up here. It's much safer than Brooklyn!

 

[padams]

Where is the new job? Atlanta has some traffic issues. Your life will be easier if you choose to live near where the job is. There are some good public schools but Georgia is ranked 50th in SAT scores. Many families send their children to private school.

Taxes are less outside of the city of Atlanta. Atlanta's cost of living is not as expensive as NYC or San Francisco but it may not be as inexpensive as you might expect.

I love the weather- today it is 73 and the daffodils are starting to bloom. We had a snow day last week- an inch!. Everything closed for the day. Two days later, we spent a day biking on a nearby bike trail because the temperature was in the 60s.

I love the quality of life here. We are an hour from some nice lakes, a couple of hours from the "mountains", 4 to 5 hours from the beach, and 7 hours from WDW!

Good luck!

 

[atlnewf]

Unless the new job is downtown, I'd recommend moving fairly close to where you new job is. The school systems vary, even within the counties. Traffic does tend to stink, so it needs to be considered. I love all that there is, I've lived in the area majority of my life, I don't think I'd want to live anywhere else. I'm in the Norcross/Lilburn area currently, so if you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Ashley

 

[JDH]

Which is northwest of the city of Atlanta.. about 35 miles. Traffic during rush hour is miserable and in fact extremely busy all ours of the day and night and that is north, south east or west of the city doesn't make any difference. So if you commute the closer you live to your workplace the better you are. If it's downtown then it's MARTA for you. Don't drive.

Best schools are in Cobb County and in North Fulton county. Gwinett. Georgia ranks 50th in SAT scores.

Airport is good distance from just about everywhere and very busy. You can also take MARTA buses and trains to the Airport. Parking is tough but available.

Taxes (ad valorem) vary especially the further you get away from Fulton County which is where the city of Atlanta is in.

Most sporting events, cultural, concerts etc; are downtown and you want to use MARTA to get there. Wide vareity of things to do like Broadway shows, Baseball(Braves) Basketball (Hawks), Football (Falcons), Hockey (Thrashers) and college teams (Georgia & Georgia Tech). Some concerts, Arena Football and minor league hockey is located northeast of the city in Gwinett county. Lots of regional theaters in some counties particularly Cobb.

You have the Georgia Dome, Philips Arena and Georgia World Congress Center.

Most of the nightlife centers around Buckhead, Midtown and Underground Atlanta. All have higher than average crime rates. Closing everywhere is, I believe, 2:00AM except Underground which is 4:00AM.

Lots of parks and hence music festivals. Music Midtown Atlanta is quite popular at Piedmont park.

Websites: www.acccessatlanta.com and www.ajc.com might help.

If you would like the Sunday paper with real estate ads send me your address and I'll stick it in an envelope and mail it to you.

 

[Yzma and Kronk]

We moved here 2 1/2 years ago from Canada. Most of the general things were covered above.
We live in Gwinnett County and from what I hear a very good school area (we are pleased).
Let me know if you need any further info, I'd be glad to give to perspective from a new comer.

 

[Jenn]

We are also looking to possibly relocate to this area - we have been looking at Alphretta, Rome, Canton, Norcross. Any info would be helpful.

 

[CheshireVal]

The best schools are in North Fulton, Gwinnett, and Henry counties. You can find good areas to live pretty much anywhere, though.

A lot of the jobs are in "the city," which is pretty much anywhere inside the perimeter (I-285). The schools aren't so great there, though, so a lot of families choose to go private.

We are also looking to possibly relocate to this area - we have been looking at Alphretta, Rome, Canton, Norcross. Any info would be helpful.

All of those are pretty decent areas, but Rome is WAY out in the middle of nowhere, and is a pretty small town. Canton is also pretty far north of Atlanta and kind of rural. Alpharetta would probably be considered the "most desirable" but houses would probably be very pricey!

 

[kadaten]

On the southside, Fayette County schools are good, and Peachtree City schools, in particular, are excellent! If you/DH will be flying much, this is a great place to live. It's about 20 minutes south of the airport, which is about 20 minutes south of midtown. My DH's parents live there and love it! We love it, too, and would happily move there if the Navy would let us! DH's brother just got out of the Navy and moved his family there....he's a pilot so the location is perfect for them.

Peachtree City is a master-planned community. Practically everyone belongs to an HOA of some sort, there are lots of restrictions on building and therefore things don't "get away" from actual capacity like a lot of cities do. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is connected to the city golf cart paths. Most people have a golf cart (they can come with the house if you're buying a resale) and use it to grocery shop, take the kids to school/scouts/baseball/soccer, go out to eat, and just have fun. The paths are also extensively used by bike riders, walkers, and runners.

There's an excellent quality of life in Peachtree City. It's far enough from downtown that you don't have the crime worries that many places do, but it's close enough that you can go for a night on the town, more extensive shopping, and big-ticket entertainment. Definitely a place I'd move in a heartbeat!!

 

[Pugdog007]

I don't really want to reply to the post as I hate Atlanta... traffic is awful.

However... off topic... is that JBJ photo from the new DVD This Left Feels Right?

 

[Dan Murphy]

Where were all you guys for the meet on Saturday, LOL? We missed you.

 

[atlnewf]

My son was invited to a birthday party by a new class mate.

Ashley

 

[torismom]

I am a little north of the city,In Flowery Branch. We border Gwinnett County and I am in Hall. We are very happy here. The elementary school were my dd attends is wonderful. They just built a new middle and high school 4 miles away that are state of the art.

I agree, live close to where your job will be located.Traffic is horrible in Atlanta. My dh works in Lilburn and depending on traffic can take anywhere from 30 mins to an hour to get there.

We are centrally located here and I honestly love where I live.Flowery Branch, is a great small town community but we are growing

 

[browneyes]

My brother lives about 30 minutes from Atlanta. They live near a lake and have the laid back country feel, but they're really close to the city too. I'm not sure of the schools in that area, but my kids love the community their aunt and uncle live in.

 

[corky805]

Originally posted by Pugdog007
I don't really want to reply to the post as I hate Atlanta... traffic is awful.

However... off topic... is that JBJ photo from the new DVD This Left Feels Right?

no the pic is from a special performance he did at a school to raise some community $$ for the school....it's a great pic isn't it??



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Thanks so much everyone for all the info....we are going to do some more research and I might be back with more ???'s

 

[Yzma and Kronk]

Dan - hope you had a great time in ATL. Sorry I couldn't make it to the meet - DD came down with a horrible case of hives....

OP - as mentioned because of traffic it really depends on where you DH will be working. Let us know and I'm sure we can help you narrow down your search.