Moving to Georgia?

[Bnb0627]

Thinking of moving from NJ to Georgia for lower cost of living and warmer weather while I am in nursing school. Looking to rent a house but must keep it $800-$900/month since I will not be working. We love that we can get a bigger single family home for half of what we spend on a townhouse.
The hard part now is finding a nice house in a nice neighborhood with good schools. I have come across so many beautiful homes in our price range only to find out the schools are awful.
We are looking at the Northern Atlanta area near Lake Lanier, Suwanee, Buford, Cumming. Any suggestions?

 

[EeyoreEma]

If you don't mind the commute, Oconee county (right outside of Athens) has a great school system. It's about an hour or so into Atlanta.

 

[Shmily1]

The Atlanta area is more costly than the southern part of GA...and we are cloesr to Orlando! For that price range, you can find a really nice house. Good luck and I hope you love Georgia.

 

[Bnb0627]

The Atlanta area is more costly than the southern part of GA...and we are cloesr to Orlando! For that price range, you can find a really nice house. Good luck and I hope you love Georgia.

We realize that but my husband is a chef and there are more opportunities in North Ga and the schools are rated higher. We also had someone tell us not to go below the gnat line lol wherever that is. Said the bugs get worse the closer you get to florida, not that I would base my decision on bugs.....scorpions maybe!!!

 

[laura.anne]

If you don't mind the commute, Oconee county (right outside of Athens) has a great school system. It's about an hour or so into Atlanta.

I second this. I live in Athens right now and Oconee County is a great place to live. I think their school system is one of the best in the state and it is a really nice community. OP, you said your husband is a chef--I'm not exactly sure how the culinary industry works or how easy for a chef to find a job, but in Athens (about 15-20 minutes away from Oconee) we have many really well-respected restaurants like Last Resort, The National, 5 & 10 (the owner was on Top Chef), etc. We also have a nursing school in town, and overall the cost of living here is (I believe) lower than what you're going to find in north Atlanta. If you are interested in looking at the area, you can search for Oconee County, GA or Watkinsville, GA (the main city in Oconee).

 

[Robinrs]

Thinking of moving from NJ to Georgia for lower cost of living and warmer weather while I am in nursing school. Looking to rent a house but must keep it $800-$900/month since I will not be working. We love that we can get a bigger single family home for half of what we spend on a townhouse.
The hard part now is finding a nice house in a nice neighborhood with good schools. I have come across so many beautiful homes in our price range only to find out the schools are awful.
We are looking at the Northern Atlanta area near Lake Lanier, Suwanee, Buford, Cumming. Any suggestions?

I live in Lawrenceville about a few blocks from Suwanee. We moved here last summer and LOOOOVE it. The people and the pace is so much nicer than Atlanta. I moved here years ago from NY so I understand the need for a lower cost of living.

My son is in college so I'm not an expert on the school system. I live in the Collins Hill HS area, not sure about the quality though.

 

[FlyingDumbo]

We realize that but my husband is a chef and there are more opportunities in North Ga and the schools are rated higher. We also had someone tell us not to go below the gnat line lol wherever that is. Said the bugs get worse the closer you get to florida, not that I would base my decision on bugs.....scorpions maybe!!!

Where will you be going to school? You will probably need to be close if you are going to have to do clinical. They send you all over the place for those.

 

[Bnb0627]

If you don't mind the commute, Oconee county (right outside of Athens) has a great school system. It's about an hour or so into Atlanta.

Thanks I will have to look at that area again. I think when I did a job search in that area only 3 jobs came up compared to 220 jobs in Atlanta/Northern suburbs. DH doesn't want to work in the city if he can avoid it that's why we are looking in the northern suburbs. We'd like to keep his commute around 35 minutes. I think he found a few things in Alpharetta and Norcross.

 

[Bnb0627]

Where will you be going to school? You will probably need to be close if you are going to have to do clinical. They send you all over the place for those.

Not sure yet. I want to get my Associates RN but Im so impatient I was thinking of getting my LPN in a 1 year program so that I can work part time and get my my RN. But i have no idea what the lpn situation or payrate is like there. I have to find out if my credits will transfer or not. I have heard some people say that they had to spend 3 days in a hotel because a psych clinical site was so far away!!!! That's crazy.

Once he finds a job We will choose a location between his job and my school if that's possible.

 

[minkydog]

I live in Marietta and work in downtown Atlanta. My advice to you is find the jobs, then find your home on that side of town. Atlanta traffic is really awful. Rush hours are 6-9am and 3:30-7pm. You don't want to live in Lawrenceville and have a job in Kennesaw or Jonesboro.

Cobb co schools ( on the west side) are very good, some of the best in the state. I-75 cuts diagonally SE to NW through Cobb co. Just keep north of I-75, for the most part.

 

[Robinrs]

I live in Marietta and work in downtown Atlanta. My advice to you is find the jobs, then find your home on that side of town. Atlanta traffic is really awful. Rush hours are 6-9am and 3:30-7pm. You don't want to live in Lawrenceville and have a job in Kennesaw or Jonesboro.

Cobb co schools ( on the west side) are very good, some of the best in the state. I-75 cuts diagonally SE to NW through Cobb co. Just keep north of I-75, for the most part.

Agreed! I live in lawrenceville and work in Buckhead...not good!

 

[Jenn]

I'm in Cumming and we LOVE it here. Moved down from Massachusetts 7 years ago and never looked back. Bought a gorgeous house for a little more than half of what our MA house sold for. Our girls have blossomed here. Schools are great. People are friendly, weather is awesome. Our neighborhood has an awesome pool complex that is like being at a resort. With the cost of living savings, I stay home with our kids and have been able to volunteer in the classroom, be their Girl Scout leader, be the helper mom for everything from field trips to dance recitals. We could not be happier with our decision.

Traffic is tough though. Definitely find the job first. My husband's office is in Norcross but he works from home and only has to go in once a month or so. I only know of one family who did not love it here (my husband's sister) and they moved back up north. They were very set in their ways and "small town" people. They just couldn't get over their issues.

It is a different way of life - schools are much bigger than our town up north. The middle school has 1,200 kids, the high school 2,000. And there are 5 high schools in our county (Forsyth). Church is important to people here. We are Christian, but do not attend church and it hasn't been an issue but does come up in conversation more than it did up north. People are very polite - yes ma'am, yes sir. And the neighborhood kids call the adults Miss first name and Mr first name. As in, "say hello to Miss Jenn".

Feel free to ask me any questions!

 

[Bnb0627]

Cobb co schools ( on the west side) are very good, some of the best in the state. I-75 cuts diagonally SE to NW through Cobb co. Just keep north of I-75, for the most part.

I was looking at Marietta, however, everything in our price range ends up being in Marietta city
I will keep checking there though, someone from work told me her sister lives there and loves it!!!

I am dead set on sticking with my budget until I am finished school. With only one income I need to make sure our savings will sustain us should something happen to my husband that puts him out of work temporarily.

 

[Bnb0627]

I'm in Cumming and we LOVE it here. Moved down from Massachusetts 7 years ago and never looked back. Bought a gorgeous house for a little more than half of what our MA house sold for. Our girls have blossomed here. Schools are great. People are friendly, weather is awesome. Our neighborhood has an awesome pool complex that is like being at a resort. With the cost of living savings, I stay home with our kids and have been able to volunteer in the classroom, be their Girl Scout leader, be the helper mom for everything from field trips to dance recitals. We could not be happier with our decision.

Traffic is tough though. Definitely find the job first. My husband's office is in Norcross but he works from home and only has to go in once a month or so. I only know of one family who did not love it here (my husband's sister) and they moved back up north. They were very set in their ways and "small town" people. They just couldn't get over their issues.

It is a different way of life - schools are much bigger than our town up north. The middle school has 1,200 kids, the high school 2,000. And there are 5 high schools in our county (Forsyth). Church is important to people here. We are Christian, but do not attend church and it hasn't been an issue but does come up in conversation more than it did up north. People are very polite - yes ma'am, yes sir. And the neighborhood kids call the adults Miss first name and Mr first name. As in, "say hello to Miss Jenn".

Feel free to ask me any questions!

Thanks for the info!! The homes I have found in cumming are right on Lake Lanier. I'm not sure what to make of this area. It seems more rural, there's a mix of beautiful lakefront properties and then trailers which is disappointing but the schools are great. One person said it is quiet, safe, and beautiful and then another said anything off of exit 16 is trashy. It's so hard when you aren't there to see for yourself lol.

DH sends out his resumes this week, I'm hoping he gets responses even though he is currently in NJ so that we can set up some interviews next month and check out all the places we are interested in.

 

[minkydog]

I was looking at Marietta, however, everything in our price range ends up being in Marietta city
I will keep checking there though, someone from work told me her sister lives there and loves it!!!

I am dead set on sticking with my budget until I am finished school. With only one income I need to make sure our savings will sustain us should something happen to my husband that puts him out of work temporarily.

Try looking at Woodstock (Cherokee Co), Kennesaw, and Acworth (both North Cobb). I don't know what your budget is, but I'm pretty you can find something in north Cobb if you are flexible. If you're looking for a McMansion in a gated community with an HOA, yeah, you probably need a BIG budget for a house in Cobb. I live in a normal 3BR, 2BA home with a large yard,a basement, and excellent schools about 3 miles directly north of Marietta Square. The homes in my neighborhood go for about $90,000 to$200,000. And my neighborhood is not an anomaly. There are plenty of older neighborhoods in north Cobb which are safe, well kept, and are close to doctors, hospitals, schools, restaurants and grocery stores.

 

[pls5286]

I live in Morgan County which is one county south of Oconee. We are right on the Interstate (20). The schools here are excellent. It is a rural area with Lake Oconee nearby. There are lots of places here you can get for under your prices.

I would reccomend staying away from Greene County to live in, which is right next to us. The schools are not great and most parents send their kids to private school. Their is a nice lake resort in Greene County (Reynolds Plantation) and the Ritz Carlton hotel there is always looking for Chefs.

Athens Tech is about 40 minutes away and has a good Assoc. RN program. The thing here about LPNs is they can find work in many DRs offices and some of the area nursing homes, but most hospitals want RNs on the floors. Athens Tech uses Athens Regional Medical Center and St. Marys Hospital for clinicals. Athens also has a branch of the Medical College of GA school of nursing, but I am not familiar with that program.

 

[Jenn]

Thanks for the info!! The homes I have found in cumming are right on Lake Lanier. I'm not sure what to make of this area. It seems more rural, there's a mix of beautiful lakefront properties and then trailers which is disappointing but the schools are great. One person said it is quiet, safe, and beautiful and then another said anything off of exit 16 is trashy. It's so hard when you aren't there to see for yourself lol.

DH sends out his resumes this week, I'm hoping he gets responses even though he is currently in NJ so that we can set up some interviews next month and check out all the places we are interested in.

The lake is beautiful but there is a mix of expensive and redneck, so you would want to check the area well. I'm off of exit 12, we are in south west Cumming near the Alpharetta line. Once you get up to exit 16 it is definitely more rural, more farms, etc. and less expensive so yes there are trailers, etc but also some very nice houses. My mom is off of exit 17 and it's about 30 minutes to her house, and honestly it feels like the boondocks. Cumming is BIG.

We are very close to West Forsyth High School. I would also look near South Forsyth High School and Lambert High School. These are all a little more upscale areas, very accessible to shopping, activities, restaurants, and the highway. We are 45 min to Atlanta with light traffic, an hour with usual traffic.

 

[jgh]

I've lived in Oconee county since I was 3. I graduated from one of the public Oconee High School's in 2010 (if you want to know which one, PM me). I couldn't have asked for a better school system to go through. The teachers are wonderful. The schools are very nice and well kept. Even the students I grew up with were very well behaved...very little drug use/bad things from what I could tell. Fewer than most places anyway. It is very college prep school system, very little technical prep (mechanics class, wood shop, etc...we didn't have much of that, but in High School we did have some Health Care classes, Ag classes, Drafting/Computer Science, Family and Consumer Sciences, etc). A lot of the teachers I had graduated from Oconee and stayed. Many had students in the school system.

From where I am in Oconee, it's a 45 minute drive to Buford (where there is a Disney Store!) and not too much further to Atlanta. It really is a straight shot down 316 or 78 then through Conyers...it's not a bad drive at all. It's almost exactly 8 hours to Disney World (very important detail ). We're also less than 10 miles from UGA (which is where I attend currently) and less than 10 miles from Univeristy of North Georgia (formerly Gainesville State College - a local community college with good 2 year degrees). The Oconee campus is a satellite campus, so you can only get 2 year degrees there I believe. Athens Tech is just a little further out than UGA.

Oconee is really really growing. Things are moving out of Athens/Clarke County and into Oconee. We're about to open a new shopping center with a variety of new shops/eateries (PetSmart, Ulta, Dicks Sporting, new movie theater, among other things). We do have a Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, Kohls, Kroger, Publix, CVS and more. Just on the other side of Athens we have Sam's Club, Best Buy (those might technically be Oconee, not sure), as well as Target, Michael's, Hobby Lobby and many other things. Lots of places to eat and things to do. Lots of nice, well kept public parks in Oconee. Great police team. It's really very safe here.

I love Oconee and won't ever leave. My kids will graduate the same school system.

 

[Robinrs]

Thinking of moving from NJ to Georgia for lower cost of living and warmer weather while I am in nursing school. Looking to rent a house but must keep it $800-$900/month since I will not be working. We love that we can get a bigger single family home for half of what we spend on a townhouse.
The hard part now is finding a nice house in a nice neighborhood with good schools. I have come across so many beautiful homes in our price range only to find out the schools are awful.
We are looking at the Northern Atlanta area near Lake Lanier, Suwanee, Buford, Cumming. Any suggestions?

Where in NJ do you live now and how old are your kids? Please be aware that Georgia schools are lightyears different than north eastern schools... take it from one who knows!