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Ohio Native, that is very interesting. I did not know about Lanier High School and how North Gwinnett was ranked the 3rd best high school in the state. Is the location of Lanier High located in Duluth or Suwanee? I can see how there would be a big controversy as Lanier takes the lower end neighborhoods from Gwinnett. What is the exact district line of North Gwinnett High? I am assuming that it part Suwanee and Duluth. Schools are extremely important to me when making a home purchase decisions. Thanks.
Lanier High School is in Sugar Hill - it actually opens tomorrow. I wouldn't say that Lanier takes the lower end neighborhoods from Gwinnett in general, as most of those areas of Buford and Sugar Hill are quite nice, and there are lots of nice subdivisions in that part of the county. However, the school will not be as affluent as N. Gwinnett, hence the controversy.
Also Parts of "Johns Creek' are in Forsyth County also,
The city of Johns Creek is in Fulton,
But What people call where they live ie: the post office they are attached to could be on any of three counties, Fulton, Forsyth, Gwinnett.
I consider Johns Creek High, Chattahoochee, and Northview to be all competitive schools and wouldn't mind a home that would feed into any of these schools. I was a bit suprised to see the 2010 High School ranking in Newsweek America's Best High Schools: The List - Newsweek. The ranking shows that North Gwinnett High School ranks 161 whereas Northview ranks 424. Are schools in Duluth/Suwanee better than JC/Suwanee or did Newsweek do a poor job ranking these schools?
Ideally I am looking to live in JC and work in JC Technology Park. Most of the office spaces I have seen are not starts up spaces as the sizes are quite large. I was able to find only one area for start up units between 4000 - 5000 sq/ft office space. Perhaps Alpharetta has more selections when it comes to smaller sized incubator office spaces.
I have been scoping this area out for about 3 years now and feel that real estate in the area should bottom around May 2011. Why does JC have an edge over Duluth while the location is closer to the city? Are Peactree Ridge and North Gwinnett up and coming schools to rival Northview & Johns Creek High in the near future? It appears that there are much more newer homes (0-5 years) in Duluth area than there are in Johns Creek. Are the demographics of Duluth much different than that of Johns Ceek?
Have you looked into the criteria used by Newsweek? I think is based on number of AP classes offered. I would not use that to make fine distinctions, or come to any real conclusion. I can say that -- North Fulton schools (esp the 3 high schools you mentioned) are all very good, so if you choose North Fulton you can be rest assured you can be in "auto-pilot" as far as schools go (no issues related to rezoning. no general concern regarding schools going down.) I dont know anything about Gwinnett schools to say anything positive/negative.
Alpharetta is the major employment center in the northern suburbs. You can look at east-west traffic patterns to figure that out. I said Alpharetta+JC have an edge, but I think it is essentially Alpharetta that is way out there. JC may be number 2 -- due to your living there, its proximity to Alpharetta, ... If I learn anything about JC Tech park will let you know.
I agree with prices bottoming out by May 2011. IMO, your price range of 700K is too much for this area. 350K is sufficient for a good neighborhood. 400K-500K will get distinctive (not cookie cutter) homes. If over 500K, look into the golf course communities. I wouldn't go by 0-5 year homes to decide which area to live in. However, you might want to look at "Gates at Johns Creek" -- Shakerag elem.
Have you looked into the criteria used by Newsweek? I think is based on number of AP classes offered. I would not use that to make fine distinctions, or come to any real conclusion. I can say that -- North Fulton schools (esp the 3 high schools you mentioned) are all very good, so if you choose North Fulton you can be rest assured you can be in "auto-pilot" as far as schools go (no issues related to rezoning. no general concern regarding schools going down.) I dont know anything about Gwinnett schools to say anything positive/negative.
Alpharetta is the major employment center in the northern suburbs. You can look at east-west traffic patterns to figure that out. I said Alpharetta+JC have an edge, but I think it is essentially Alpharetta that is way out there. JC may be number 2 -- due to your living there, its proximity to Alpharetta, ... If I learn anything about JC Tech park will let you know.
I agree with prices bottoming out by May 2011. IMO, your price range of 700K is too much for this area. 350K is sufficient for a good neighborhood. 400K-500K will get distinctive (not cookie cutter) homes. If over 500K, look into the golf course communities. I wouldn't go by 0-5 year homes to decide which area to live in. However, you might want to look at "Gates at Johns Creek" -- Shakerag elem.
Yes. the high school rankings were on Newsweek. As far as SAT scores Walton and Northview are tied for the top at 1722.
You know i have already checked out The Gates at Johns Creek as the homes were very cheap as their Single Family Home prices range from $269,900 - $300,000. I also liked the location is in close proximity to the JC technology park, however when i made the trip out there to visit the Gates Development i was bit dissappointed. One of the things that attracts me about Johns Creek is that I can live in a subdivision that is ethnically diverse. However observing the Gates in the evening, I've noticed that 95% of the residence there were indians, including the 2 sales agents. I respect indians as ethnic group as they are highly educated, high networth Asians, but i did not want to live in a subdivision where there is such a high concentratoin of one race in a subdivision. I also felt that I couldn't trust the sales agent I spoke with which appeared that he had favorable prices to certan ethnic group. What bothered me more was the lack of privacy as the homes were literally built on top of each other (with small lots) which is the reason i passed on the gates subdivision. One thing I will admit is that The Gates is an incredible value for the entry point to Shakerag.
On th OPs question, firstly traffic from Alpharetta south on 400 is hugely overated unless you expect minimal commutes. Now I will say this, it depends how far you live from 400 and what times you travel. I live off exit 9 (Haynes Bridge) and I work in midtown. If I leave home at 6:30am, it takes me 30 minutes to get to my desk. If I leave at 6:45, 35 minutes, 7am then 40minutes. After 7:15am is about an hour. Obviously I leave before 7am. Coming home, I leave my office between 5:15 and 6:15 and unless rain or an accident, I average 45 minutes. That to me is not bad but again it depends on one's tolerance. These things about 1.5 to 2 hours, I have never had that scenario other than the very rare occasions where there is a severe back up due to an accident.
Now as to John's Creek and Alpharetta....I personally give Alpharetta the edge just for the feel of the community for me but nothing concrete that anyone else could use to factor in their decision.
The homes in Tavistock are now starting in the $500K-$600K range. Don't know if those were the same prices when you looked at it.
My friend loves her home and the subdivision.
I have good friends in both Blackstone and Jaden Woods. Blackstone is a very nice subdivision, which has the advantage of having a traffic light and being right at the corner of Bell and McGinnis Ferry. So you don't have to stay on McGinnis Ferry for long. Still, my one friend has said that if her child misses the school bus, it can take her 40 minutes to drop her off by car to Shakerag! McGinnis Ferry construction supposedly ends in April, so this should be better next year.
Jaden Woods has some of the prettiest houses I've seen, construction-wise. But it's further east on McGinnis Ferry, and you can't avoid traveling on McGinnis Ferry to get anywhere. My other friend likes the subdivision, but the school bus doesn't come into it, so the bus stop is right on McGinnis Ferry. (The county claims that the bus can't fit on the subdivision roads.) It's just a lot of kids getting off the bus stop onto a very busy road.
Shakerag is very international yet has a strong knit community. There are people from all over the world. Most of the kids speak more than one language, and were born in another country. There is a huge South and East Asian population, and many people who look "white" are actually Russian or German. What's nice, too, though is that despite the fact that people come from so many different places, there is such a strong community at the school. The PTA is very active. There are family events planned throughout the year. We couldn't be happier with the school.
A friend of mine sends her child to Wilson Creek. Her only complaint is that the PTA is not as active. They do not have an Accelerated Reader Program, which is a reading enrichment program that is organized by the PTA. (Don't know if that's important to you or not.) But otherwise, she loves Wilson Creek.
Subdivisions that are west of Medlock Bridge Road can be just as clogged up by traffic as subdivisions east of Medlock Bridge. The best thing would be for you to drive down here and drive around during rush hour. There are a lot of backroads, so if you figure out where your office is, then you can kind of map out how to get there to avoid traffic.
Tresninas,
Jaden Woods's builder Ashton Woods do build very nice homes. I think their latest community is Madison Park at Johns Creek off of Old Alabama.
Travistock prices have definitely fallen since i saw them in '07. I am definitely going revisit as I also really liked the subdivision. Did your friend ever tell you what the monthly HOA is for Travistock is? I know that fulton's taxes are a bit higher than the surrounding counties.
The other elementary i am considering is Findley Oaks. Do you have any friends who sends their kids there? Any opinions about this school?
My wife and I goto Costco, Target and HMArt on a regular basis for our shopping and grocery needs. How close are these stores in Johns Creek?
Yes. the high school rankings were on Newsweek. As far as SAT scores Walton and Northview are tied for the top at 1722.
You know i have already checked out The Gates at Johns Creek as the homes were very cheap as their Single Family Home prices range from $269,900 - $300,000. I also liked the location is in close proximity to the JC technology park, however when i made the trip out there to visit the Gates Development i was bit dissappointed. One of the things that attracts me about Johns Creek is that I can live in a subdivision that is ethnically diverse. However observing the Gates in the evening, I've noticed that 95% of the residence there were indians, including the 2 sales agents. I respect indians as ethnic group as they are highly educated, high networth Asians, but i did not want to live in a subdivision where there is such a high concentratoin of one race in a subdivision. I also felt that I couldn't trust the sales agent I spoke with which appeared that he had favorable prices to certan ethnic group. What bothered me more was the lack of privacy as the homes were literally built on top of each other (with small lots) which is the reason i passed on the gates subdivision. One thing I will admit is that The Gates is an incredible value for the entry point to Shakerag.
Agree about Gates at Johns Creek. Since you mentioned 0-5 years, that came to mind.
On the eastside of Medlock, I (re-) suggest you look into Sugar Mill -- Google Maps search: sweet creek rd, duluth, ga. I dont live there, and have no vested interest in suggesting that (except I think it will suit you). East of Medlock Bridge is likely to have higher Asian population, and west of Medlock Br is likely to gradually have lower Asian population (diverse, but not in an overwhelming way).
I am Asian Indian myself, and I understand your point of view.
mrpanda,
Target is at State Bridge and Medlock Bridge. H-Mart is at Abbotts Bridge and Medlock Bridge. Costco is a bit away -- either Gwinnet Place Mall or Windward Pkwy.
How do Chattahoochee High, and Alpharetta high rank in SAT rankings? I like the Alpharetta High location (close to Alpharetta businesses, and GA 400). Best park in the area - Wills Park. Shopping at Windward Pkwy.
FromGA,
Can you confrim if my observation is correct? In the past three years, I've noticed that Koreans were the dominant Asian ethnic group in Suwanee and (30096) Duluth, whereas Indians are the dominate Asian ethnic group in Johns Creek. Indians are buying up the new homes in the top schools districts in the low end like the Gates and also in the high end custom homes like the Pearl of St. Ives. According to the builder, the last 8 custom homes that were sold in the Pearl of St. Ives were sold to following ethnic group: 1 white, 2 koreans, 5 indians. Is my observation correct?
I am not into the Indian scene much having lived in Johns Creek only a few years, so make sure to investigate. I think the Indian population is concentrated in a few subdivisions, especially around Shakerag (Blackstone, Gates at Johns Creek). I think the Korean population is probably the dominant Asian population of Northview, I think they are concentrated around Abbotts Bridge and Medlock Bridge (around the H-Mart area).
I think Asians (and may be Indians in particular) tend to buy new homes -- I usually joke that it is because Indians usually dont know how to fix things! I grew up in India, and we had easy access to any kind of home maintenance service (electrician, carpenter, plumber, ...), and never learnt how to do a thing related to home maintenance. I think that is atleast partly responsible.
I dont know anything about Pearl at St Ives.
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