Moving Near Nashville, TN I need some help! Please.

[ThreeMusketeers]

Hi, I thought this would be a good place to post, since I love you all so much here, everyone is always so kind and helpful!

My family and I are moving (after long deliberation on where to go) near Nashville, TN. We don't want to live inside Nashiville, but a close neighboorhood outside of would be great. We will be renting for the first year and then looking to build our own home.
I see that Franklin, TN seems to have some nice Apartments. What about schools and other area's.
How long is your drive to Disney?
Any other help you could offer would be great!
Thanks so much!

 

[Sammie]

Franklin is a wonderful area, great schools and beautiful public parks and a restored historical downtown area.

I have friends that lived there. The drive is about 11 hours, but Southwest flies direct from Nashville to Orlando and if you watch for specials you can get great deals.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

Franklin and Brentwood are GREAT! My friends live in Mt Juliet and have been very happy with the area and the schools there as well.

Traffic in Nashville can be tricky so I would try to find somewhere not too far from work. The city seems to be expanding South down I-65 towards Columbia and Spring Hill - both up and coming areas.

PM me if you have any questions!

Welcome to Music City!

 

[Daisysmom]

Both Brentwood and Franklin are wonderful. And the Saint Thomas Hospital system is the best!

I have a friend living there is a bluegrass band - his name is Dave Peterson and the band is 1946. Check them out when you get a chance!

 

[Evil Queen]

What a great area, Nashville in general.

My parents are in Lebanon, sister in Madison, and various other family members everywhere.

We are looking for housing too, but just looking right now. We will probably locate to the Carthage area.

 

[Stephieann]

I live about 1.5 hrs from Nashville. Nashville is great. I agree with the others about Franklin and Brentwood. They are your higher income areas but great area and from what i have heard.. GREAT schools!!

 

[Harvest02]

My husband and I lived in the Nashville area a few years ago. We found housing in the Old Hickory, TN area. It was very nice, and close to the Hermitage(Andrew Jacksons home). Shopping was convienient also. Don't know anything about the schools there though since we didn't have kids yet when we lived there. Good luck in your search!!!

 

[Leigha]

Hi! I'm in Kentucky but visit Nashville often - going today actually! Franklin is wonderful but you should know, one of if not the most expensive area, of Nashville. I didn't want you to look only in that area for an apartment and think that's what all of Nashville costs. Hope that helps!

 

[jillyjoey]

I am going to add to the list of Franklin, Williamson County, supporters. I live in Madison County but have alot of friends in Nashville area. Alot of people around here try to move to Williamson County because of the schools.

 

[poohj80]

I have to agree about try to live close to where you work as traffic on the I-40/I-65 interchanges between 4-6 during the week seem to always be backed up. I wanted to add my recommendation for Franklin and Brentwood as well, but if you need something on the north side of town, we have friends in Goodlettsville who love the area.

 

[formernyer]

I live 25 miles outside of Nashville in Murfreesboro, TN. I relocated here from Long Island exactly 9 years ago today.

First off, I LOVE Tennessee!

I'm going to agree with all of the other posters that Brentwood and Franklin are the nicest places to live. They are both located in Williamson County, which has arguably the best public school system in the entire state. The point that hasn't been stressed in all of the other posts is that these two areas are SIGNIFICANTLY more expensive than every other town in Middle Tennessee (other than Belle Meade, which is a very small old-money community). Franklin is a lot more affordable than Brentwood, but still very expensive. Since it sounds like you're planning to rent rather than purchase, you can probably find affordable housing in these areas. I'm sure you'll like them...they have tons of retail business and you can be in Nashville in 15-25 minutes depending on traffic.

I chose to live in Murfreesboro because we were building a new home and Rutherford County is somewhat more affordable than Williamson County. The public schools in Rutherford County are excellent. Murfreesboro is a very developed area with homes ranging from $85k all the way up to $500k+.

When I moved to Tennessee 9 years ago I researched school systems and determined that Rutherford and Williamson Counties were the only counties with public schools which I found acceptable. I was looking at not only standardized test scores, but also technology, educational programs, and extracurricular activities. Most of the public schools in Middle Tennessee are poor. My sister's children are enrolled in Wilson County schools and they are among the worst I've ever seen. The last time I made this comment I was flamed by another DISer who happened to live in Wilson County. I'm not looking for another debate here...just offering my opinion.

If schools are not important to you at this time, you should consider Mt. Juliet. It's located in Wilson County, approximately 25 minutes from Nashville. Housing is very affordable and the area is beautiful. It's a growing community with lots of new residential construction.

 

[formernyer]

I forgot to comment on the length of the ride to Disney. Based on mileage, it SHOULD take about 11 hours if you stop only for gas, restrooms, and drive-up fast food.

When we traveled there in March it took 15 hours, including three gas/restroom breaks (5-10 minutes each) and one 25 minute lunch break. The problem was MAJOR contruction traffic getting through Atlanta and MAJOR contruction traffic beginning about an hour outside of Orlando. It took 14 hours to get home. I don't know if this is an ongoing long-term contruction project or if we were just unlucky.

 

[poohj80]

Even though several have mentioned that Franklin and Brentwood are more expensive, it also will depend on your frame of reference. The OP doesn't say where she is moving from but these areas, even though more expensive for TN, may be cheaper than what she is used to. Plus, TN doesn't have state income tax as far as I know (unless that has changed).

 

[formernyer]

Even though several have mentioned that Franklin and Brentwood are more expensive, it also will depend on your frame of reference. The OP doesn't say where she is moving from but these areas, even though more expensive for TN, may be cheaper than what she is used to. Plus, TN doesn't have state income tax as far as I know (unless that has changed).

I moved from Long Island, so obviously TN was a much cheaper place to live, but depending on what these people do for a living, money could still be a concern. Jobs pay a lot less here than they do in expensive areas. Even if money isn't a conern, some people don't choose to live in the most expensive areas available, just because they can afford it. It's very difficult to find ANY family-sized home in Brentwood for under $400k. In Franklin you can still find some homes for $200k, but they will be the smaller, older homes. You get a lot more bang for the buck if you live outside of Brentwood and Franklin. It's just personal preference.

You are correct that TN has no state income tax; however, sales tax is just under 10% and it applies to virtually everything you purchase (even food). In addition, there have been votes on implementing a state income tax for years now. Eventually it WILL pass. When that happens, some sales tax concessions will likely be made, but not to the extent that it compensates for the income tax.

 

[rockyroad]

I forgot to comment on the length of the ride to Disney. Based on mileage, it SHOULD take about 11 hours if you stop only for gas, restrooms, and drive-up fast food.

When we traveled there in March it took 15 hours, including three gas/restroom breaks (5-10 minutes each) and one 25 minute lunch break. The problem was MAJOR contruction traffic getting through Atlanta and MAJOR contruction traffic beginning about an hour outside of Orlando. It took 14 hours to get home. I don't know if this is an ongoing long-term contruction project or if we were just unlucky.

Yup, from Memphis it is 15 to 18 hours, depending on what you encounter.
Road construction and Atlanta are the sticky places. Try to time going through Atlanta at just the right time. It is also better on weekends.

 

[jillyjoey]

Even though several have mentioned that Franklin and Brentwood are more expensive, it also will depend on your frame of reference. The OP doesn't say where she is moving from but these areas, even though more expensive for TN, may be cheaper than what she is used to. Plus, TN doesn't have state income tax as far as I know (unless that has changed).

True - if I lived in Chesapeake VA where my mom lives I could never afford the house that I just built-- nonetheless the 2 acres we own. Very affordable housing -- I would equate to Texas. No state income tax is a plus if you don't figure in the 9.75% sales tax -- and 8.75% on groceries (at least where I am -- each county has option of adding on to state base -- every county around me has added max). This means adding $30-40 each week to grocery bill). I also 2nd the poster who commented on TN public schools -- definitely not the best -- at least where I am. (especially if you are from the North -- what I rec'd in public education 20 years ago is far better than what is offered in our public schools here today). Most people choose to leave the county I am because you pretty much have 3 options -- private school, cross your fingers and hope to get in the 1-2 good magnet options (thankfully this is my option) or leave the county. So - if you have school age children and do not want to pay for private school -- that should be number 1 choice in choosing where to live.

 

[Tiff54]

I'm from Murfreesboro also.. and I have to say that it is a great area to live in. Rutherford County is one of, if not the fastest growing counties in Tennessee. I agree on the tax issues.. because our sales tax is SO high... it's almost like having a state income tax. I do have children in Rutherford County Schools also... which have excelled from day 1. I've never had any issues with the school system. Traffic from Murfreesboro to Nashville.. during rush hour will take you about an hour.. to drive the 25 miles.

 

[hollieplus2]

Murfreesboro must be really popular I agree with formernyer about Franklin and Brentwood. They are very expensive but it's very nice there and the schools are great. I have co-workers who live there and although they like it, their kids don't. If you don't fit into thier social class the kids can feel a little out of place. The Nissan headquarters is relocating from CA to Franklin and the prices are only going to go up. Our newspaper ran a story about house prices a couple months ago and the average home price in Williamson county is aroung $450,000 where it's only $175,000 in Rutherford County. The cost of living is not high but Franklin is very expensive. I have a child in the school system here and I couldn't be happier. He attends the county school even though we will in the city of Murfreesboro. Murfreesboro is growing very fast and we are building a new section called the Gateway that is supposed to compete with Franklin when it's finished. Anywhere you move in middle tn is going to get busy. It's just a fact, the place is growing so fast. They are doing a pretty good job and keeping up though. They are expanding the highways and building a lot of houses. I absolutely love Murfreesboro and couldn't be happier. I couldn't afford Franklin though. I love to go up there and go shopping but I like my house payment over here much better.

 

[ThreeMusketeers]

WOW, Thanks to you all for so much great information!
I am still open to anything anyone else wants to contribute, we can use all the help we can get. We are moving from Niagara Falls, NY. My husband is an Accountant and I am a Staff Nurse. Murfreesboro, /Rutherford County sounds more our speed. If anyone has some added info on those places, or some websites I could check out I would appreciate it. And to FORMERNYER , whats your favorite part about living in TN now? I am a little nervous about moving from NY to the south? Also we will be custom building our home as well, after about a year. How are property prices there? And Construction Costs?

ETA: I see there are ALOT of apartments available in Antioch, TN, where abouts is this? Is it a good area? WIth the great schools everyone is talking about. B/c schools will be a HUGE factor in where we live. Our daughter will be in Kindergarden our first year there.

 

[ktink]

I live in Shelbyville, which is around 20 some odd miles to Murfreesboro and around 50 to Nashville. I agree w/ what everyone has said about Brentwood and Franklin they are great locations. But Murfreesboro is pretty great too. Actually Shelbyville isn't all that bad just alot smaller.