Moving to atlanta soon? Read this first (Alpharetta, Dunwoody: crime rate, income)

[munsterpaul]

Opinions greatly appreciated

We are a family of three (son aged 7) non-national (I'm Irish, my wife is English) and I am working in the US on a L1 Visa for my European company. I work from home and my main need is a hub airport that allows me to fly to the major metros throughout the US.
Currently we are residing in Brookline in Boston and besides the outrageous rent, cold winter and terrible drivers and pedestrians (only joking about last two) but seriously we want to move somewhere where we can don't have to pay $8 for a gallon of milk and we enjoy a temperate climate- we contemplated Austin but then the climate scared us.
We are seriously thinking of Altanta.

1. BUDGET-Initially we will rent and then buy- rental of $2/3.5k per month. We figure our budget to purchase will be 500,000 to 700,000
2. TYPE? House only, with pool. Ideally in a leafy suburb. Not too concerned about sq footage more about location and neighbourhood
3. EMPLOY STATUSI work from home, need to be close to airport as possible without compromising quality of life. My wife will be looking for work (HR/OD executive)
4. SCHOOLS- very important, so private id public schools are not high rated. We are spoilt in Boston with public schools
5. LIFESTYLE= close enough so we feel the energy of the city but balanced by suburbs that are not too sleepy
6. PUBLIC TRANSPORT not so important, AIRPORT IMPORTANT
7. PREFERRED DEMO OF NEIGHBOURHOOD; we are europeans so naturally diverse- my family is a mix of jewish, black and Caribbean and I married an english girl...
OTHER THINGS
8. we have an energetic dog and cat
9. i love golf, anything to do with the sea, mountain biking
10. as a family we are outdoor
11. my son loves winter sports having takes to hockey and skiing like a duck to water- I know this will be a problem in the south...we all actually love skiing now!

any thoughts or ideas would be most appreciated. we are also considering Charlotte, Jacksonville, Denver, Houston/Austin (possibly ruled out because of heat in summer) and Arizona

[suchaladyjay]

Originally Posted by munsterpaul

any thoughts or ideas would be most appreciated. we are also considering Charlotte, Jacksonville, Denver, Houston/Austin (possibly ruled out because of heat in summer) and Arizona

Out of all of those listed above, I would say Denver would be best. Arizona IS STIFLING HOT in the Summer and Atlanta (Ordinarily) doesn't offer the Winter things that your family likes to do. You have a great budget to live nice in Denver.

[Thaddeus_Hewitt]

Hello everyone..Currently stationed at Fort Hood in Killeen,TX I am a future military veteran that will be moving to the Atlanta region soon as I am out of the military.I am originally from Southwest Georgia. A region of Georgia that is stricken in poverty as well as crime. GOD has blessed me though and I am very thankful where I am in my life right now and where I am going in the future. My move to Atlanta is for me to begin a new life.I want to move to a safe neighborhood in Atlanta so bad. A diverse neighborhood where everyone is just peaceful. I seen where some teens burglarized this woman's house in the Amhurst subdivision in South Fulton County and eventually killed her which sort of puts me on edge because I don't like feeling like I'm deployed overseas again..I pray for those teens but one day teens like this could burglarize the wrong persons house. Anyways I just want to stay in a diverse neighborhood..My budget is up to 1200 dollars. I do plan on using the MARTA transportation services both bus and rail to commute to school and a part time job wherever that will be.

[Relo5]

My sincerest apologies for not posting this as a new thread. I couldn't figure out how to, and figured my novice to this site, will be forgiven this once. My husband is being relocated to Atlanta in April. We currently live in Chattanooga TN, and we will join him by this June. We won't have a lot of house hunting weekends available, and we plan to buy.

Here is the info about us....

1. Husbands job is in Norcross, so he will be the only commuter in our house
2. I do not work outside the home, but prefer amenities close by....
3. House from $275,000 to $350,000
4. Public schools for 12 and 9 year olds, and PK for 4 year old
5. Suburban, but can do a mix of urban/suburban
6. Public transportation not a factor
7. Would like newer construction or at most 10 years old

We will be in Atlanta for the next 8-10 years, so I'm thinking more towards the high school quality, than middle school or elementary.

Thanks in advance!

[jason.ross0913]

Love living in Atlanta, such really great people here. I really didn't think I was going to like it, but I love it! The food is great, the culture is great, it is easy to get around. I think I can sincerely say this since I have lived in just about all regions of the US, expect for the Pacific West Coast.

Who here agrees with me that the ATL is great!

[simplyshree]

We are an asian couple in our thirties and relocating to Atlanta from Nashville, TN. Hubby will be working in the Riveredge Pkwy NW, Atlanta, GA 30328 area and I will be working from home.
Being Walk-friendly and a safe neighborhood with easy commute to H's work are our biggest priorities. We are not into clubs,bars or the nightlife but
looking for an area where I can be within walking distance of shopping, grocery, fast food and preferably a bookstore/public library.

1. Renting or buying ----- Initially we will rent. Rental budget of $1500-1700 per month.

2. House/Condo/Townhome? ----- Apartments/Condo/Townhome can all work but we need at least 2 bedrooms and an attached garage and a good residential community.

3. Children(public school vs. private)------- No kids,so school district not relevant.

4. Suburban or Urban lifestyle preference or a mix of two-------Prefer Urban lifestyle but don't want to be in a cramped downtown loft, so a mix of two can also work.

5. Easy access to public transit, important or not? --- Yes that's a priority and important but not an absolute dealbreaker.

6. Preferable demographics of desired neighborhood ---- We like diversity, preferably with a mix of Asians & Indians and young professionals. Not a place overly dominated by 1 single race group.

7. Work location (commute/work from home) ------- Daily commute to 2100 Riveredge Pkwy NW, Atlanta, GA 30328

8. Airport access, important or not? Not important

All your suggestions and comments will be highly appreciated.

Thanks!

[Ajinomoto123]

Hello, I´ve been searching cities to live in the US and I guess Atlanta would be a nice place by what i´ve heard Let us get to the facts about myself:
- 20yrs old, born in Brazil.
-Already lived for 4 years (6 to 10) in Pittsburgh.
-Planning to study International Relations, but not on the next years since I haven´t decided yet.
-Likes to meet different people and hear different thoughts (Open headed)
-Maybe meet a girl that I like
-I work on the Front Desk of a hotel, that is the only job experience that I have, but I can do anything
-I will be going on a tight budget, about U$3,5k, so I´ll be needing a job soon.
-I like living with different people, sharing a house.
-I like bars, shows, nightlife in general and nature.

Ok, so in your opinion is Denver a good choice for me?

Here are some points that I have interest (I´ve searched about all, but just for you to know)
-Security, Parks, Jobs, People, Sports, Living Cost, have something interesting happening often, like shows, football, theater, etc.

Thanks!

[hartl12]

1. Budget: $1500/mo rent- plan to buy in a year $240,000 or less
2. House/Condo/Townhome? House
3. Employment Status(commute/work from home): Both of us will work in Lawrenceville, right off of 316
4. Children(public school vs. private): Public- but most be a good school with low rates of drug, violence and bullying
5. Suburban or Urban lifestyle preference or a mix of the two: Suburban- with lots to entertain young children. Also want them to get involved in sports, gymnastics, dance, swimming etc, so looking for a town where that is available
6. Easy access to public transit, important or not? Not important
7. Preferable demographics of desired neighborhood: family neighborhood with lots of young children (mine are 2 and 3), We are white but are not concerned with demographics as long as the area is very safe and the people are nice, welcoming and moderately educated. We are not religious so proximity to church/synagogue is not an issue.

We would be happiest within a 30 minute drive of Gwinnett Medical Center (job) but are willing to drive a little further for good public schools and safe area.

PLUS we are moving from Asheville and are not fans of heat (yeah I know, not the best place to be moving to- no choice) so we would like to be near some place for the kids to cool off in case we don't find a neighborhood with a pool.

[DiamondF]

My husband and I are thinking of moving to the Atlanta area in September. We're moving from Arkansas, so strickly urban areas would be a bit much for us. We were thinking more of a mix of urban and suburban. My husband is self employed and my job will transfer so that won't be an issue. However, we don't know much about the area so we are looking for advice on good areas to live in. We are in our early-mid 20s, but we're pretty mature for our age. I'm looking to find a good graduate school. We don't have any children (yet). We need help on other things like is it cheaper to rent an apartment or a house. We are looking for something around $600-800 monthly for a spacious 1 or 2 bedroom. We are open to all suggestions.

[Boogey2]

Im thinking about moving to Atlanta somewhere around june,July.I'll be looking for an apartment. Im a 39 year-old single truck driver,no kids with me so I'm looking for a 1bedroom,I have a small pet (dog). I wanna keep rent between 750 to 900. I wanna be in a area not boring but not dead either. I don't go to clubs so that's not important for me. Just trying to get info asap so I can start looking for apartments. Thanks in advance