Relocating Dallas to Nashville - Need help finding home/neighborhood! (Franklin: for sale, real estate)

[chrlee]

Hi, We are relocating to the Nashville area in the spring from Dallas. We have a young child & want to be in an area with good schools. Most people have said Brentwood or Franklin based on the good school ratings, however, I find most of the homes to all look very similar. Are those areas mainly new construction? Is there an area with older homes that have more charm/character? Is there an area in Nashville proper with good schools? We are looking at homes up to mid $500k. Any feedback is appreciated!

[DonCorleone]

Franklin and Brentwood (Williamson County) are very popular for young families due to the great school system there. I would think you should be able to find older homes, especially in Franklin, in that price range. There are a number of Williamson County experts here so I'm sure you'll get some specific advice shortly.

I'd also look in Hendersonville (Sumner County) as well. The schools are very good and I think it is a little easier to find more bang for your buck up here. Certainly there are newer neighborhoods but there are plenty of older homes in the area as well. $500,000 price range should yield many results for you. Let me know if you have questions about the Hendersonville/Gallatin areas.

I would also recommend that you use Realtracs.com to search for real estate listings. It's probably the best website for this area's real estate because it is a clearinghouse for all listed homes (through a realtor, not FSBY). It also allows you to search by individual schools, if you know specifically what school you want your child to attend.

[CountryGirl2b=]

The older homes with charm and character, in MY opinion, are the ones near downtown Franklin. Not sure you could get one for $500,000 but maybe. I just checked RealTracs for $450,000 to $525,000 in Franklin and you're right, 99% of them are in subdivisions. It's just how houses got built down here. I, too, found it strange.

This house in in "Hidden Valley" - good location, but off the beaten path so it's not going to look cookie cutter, but alas, it's not 'old'. The oldest house I found (at least for sale at the moment) was 1986!

I'll go look at Brentwood for you too . . .

RealTracs Mid-South Real Estate Property Finder Listing Details

[Vandy-bound]

I think you could find something in Brentwood, probably on the west side of town, but perhaps the Brenthaven neighborhood would have something in that you would like in your price range. Good luck with your move! We are looking at a cross-country move this spring and are hosting holidays as well. Having done this before, I just pack away the holiday decorations for the move, instead of putting them back into the normal storage stuff. It's more work to get everything put away, but a few months later I am not worried about precious ornaments or other things breaking because the movers just tossed the plastic bin in the truck!

Good luck!

[yank283]

What about Crieve Hall? This is actually in Nashville proper. How are the schools zoned for this area?

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by yank283

What about Crieve Hall? This is actually in Nashville proper. How are the schools zoned for this area?

Elementary is good. Middle is debatable. High school is Overton. While I know a lot of kids that went to Overton that turned out fine, it doesn't score well at all, statistically.



My advice would be to choose whether you would rather have a newer home + good public schools or a charming older home + private schools?


As mentioned, there are some places in Franklin with some older homes, but they tend to be pricey. One reason is because the number of older homes is relatively low. While Franklin is quite an old town (circa 1799), for much of its existence, it was a very small town...so the housing stock is very heavily tilted towards new construction. It's the same story in most of the other burbs...and to be honest, none of them have as *nice* of a historic area as Franklin does.

Nashville has (as one would expect) far more in terms of historic homes and neighborhoods, but if you are looking for *good* schools, you'll probably have to opt for private, once you get passed elementary or middle school. Nashville does have a top notch magnet school program, but it operates on a lottery. If you can get into that, it's great. If not, though, it would be wise to already have a financial plan in place to attend a private school.



So it really comes down to what is more valuable to you: The house/neighborhood you want, or the school district you want.

[septimus]

What is it about older homes that you like? Is it the charm of the sloping floor or is it more because they are generally in neighborhoods with sidewalks, mature trees and have front porches?