Small town life close to Nashville? (Chattanooga, Murfreesboro: real estate, condos, homes)

[Micah Girl]

Where is the best place to live near Nashville that has its own small town character, friendly community, own hospital (husband is a nurse practitioner) and cultural opportunities (preferably from a college or university.) I'd like to be commuting distance from Nashville for cultural events, museums, higher education (I want a doctorate) but a home base that is much more manageable and less big city. I am not interested in a McSuburb with strip malls--I want a real town! I think Nashville is a cool place to be near, but we are looking for a smaller hometown for our young family (3 kids 8 and under). Good school systems are a plus, although we are currently homeschooling and are likely to continue.

We are currently exploring various areas for relocation from New England including TN, KY, IN & OH, so you may have seen my name around the boards.

Thanks for your help.

[akm4]

Franklin is near Nashville and has a very charming town square area. There's a hospital here, but you'd have to go to Murfreesboro or Nashville for the nearest Uni.

Our school district is one of the best in the state, but lots of families still homeschool here.

[Micah Girl]

Originally Posted by akm4

Franklin is near Nashville and has a very charming town square area. There's a hospital here, but you'd have to go to Murfreesboro or Nashville for the nearest Uni.

Our school district is one of the best in the state, but lots of families still homeschool here.

I actually have stopped in Franklin once to get take a break when we were roadtripping from TN to KY on a short visit. It seemed very charming indeed, and I did see it on a list somewhere as one of the best southern small towns.

Realistically, how long does it take to get into Nashville (with traffic) for work, study or field trips with the kiddos? I only drove the highways during off-hours--how is rush hour traffic?

I plugged in some information in a realty web site and it seems like the real estate is pricier than in some areas. I think I was looking for more of a bargain for a home. We aren't looking for fancy, but something with a little bit of land and probably 4 bedrooms for our family, but well under 200K. I know that's possible in KY--is TN that much more expensive?

Thanks.

Maybe I actually visited Franklin, KY not Franklin, TN. Whoops..

[wellkids]

Originally Posted by Micah Girl

Bumping this to the top. Can anyone help me please?

Thanks.

Hi Micah Girl,

The only town that really fills your wish list that I can think of is Murfreesboro in Rutherford County. Murfreesboro is about a 45 minute commute into Nashville, but unless you worked or went to school there you really would not need to drive there very often. There is everything in Murfreesboro that you could want or need and unlimited activities for families to do here.

MTSU is located here. Middle Tennessee State University is the largest State university and offers doctorate programs in many fields.

There is a large hospital here and many, many physican offices and outpatient facilities as well.

Smyrna is also in Rutherford County but more of a surburb of Murfreesboro and Nashville instead of its own true city. They have a very nice Tri-Star hospital there.

Housing in Murfreesboro is much more affordable than Williamson County and you could find a home for under $200,000.

[Micah Girl]

Originally Posted by wellkids

Hi Micah Girl,

The only town that really fills your wish list that I can think of is Murfreesboro in Rutherford County. Murfreesboro is about a 45 minute commute into Nashville, but unless you worked or went to school there you really would not need to drive there very often. There is everything in Murfreesboro that you could want or need and unlimited activities for families to do here.

MTSU is located here. Middle Tennessee State University is the largest State university and offers doctorate programs in many fields.

There is a large hospital here and many, many physican offices and outpatient facilities as well.

Smyrna is also in Rutherford County but more of a surburb of Murfreesboro and Nashville instead of its own true city. They have a very nice Tri-Star hospital there.

Housing in Murfreesboro is much more affordable than Williamson County and you could find a home for under $200,000.

Thanks for the input. I will look into it more.

[BroncoFan]

Franklin has the town square and really has the "small town" feel to it all while being relatively close to Nashville (20 Minutes to downtown). Could be ricey though as most of the locals have figured out the same thing. We live currently in Spring Hill (20 minutes further south) and love it The growth here is incredible though. The schools are great in Williamson County and their no state income taxes. Traffic though, going north on I-65 in the morning can be a real headache as more and more folks move out of town. Many of our neighbors do commute though and are happy to put in an hour on the road each way everyday.

[ridgetop]

Williamson County (Franklin/Brentwood) is definitely the best choice for many reasons but you won't find a decent home for under $200,000. Everyone wants to live here and the prices reflect that ever-growing reality. The property values have just exploded in the past 5 years.

[maggiekate]

Originally Posted by BroncoFan

Franklin has the town square and really has the "small town" feel to it all while being relatively close to Nashville (20 Minutes to downtown). Could be ricey though as most of the locals have figured out the same thing. We live currently in Spring Hill (20 minutes further south) and love it The growth here is incredible though. The schools are great in Williamson County and their no state income taxes. Traffic though, going north on I-65 in the morning can be a real headache as more and more folks move out of town. Many of our neighbors do commute though and are happy to put in an hour on the road each way everyday.

Hi, I need to get out of Florida. I was looking at new condos, or villas
in Franklin, and spring hill came up. In the spring hill area are there any catholic churches around.

[Micah Girl]

Originally Posted by ridgetop

Williamson County (Franklin/Brentwood) is definitely the best choice for many reasons but you won't find a decent home for under $200,000. Everyone wants to live here and the prices reflect that ever-growing reality. The property values have just exploded in the past 5 years.

So the time to move to Nashville was probably 6 years ago???

Ah, well....

[irishfan]

I'm not sure how close to Nashville you want or need, but I'm familiar with a great place about 100 miles East of Nashville off the I-40. It's Cookeville (Putnam County/Upper Cumberland). It has it's own hospital and Tennessee Technological University in town. It has a small art community that includes painting, sculpting, Appalachian arts and crafts, community theater and free concerts around the the town. TTU is in Division 1-AA Ohio Valley Conference, so there's football, basketball and cultural events to attend. Cookeville is almost equidistant from Nashville, Knoxsville and Chattanooga. Nashville provides a great airport, restaurants, mega-shopping, cultural attractions, and pro-sports. I bought a place just out of town with 13+ acres. I love the climate (moderate four-seasons), the scenery (farms, rivers, lakes and forests), and the gentile small town atmosphere. The university provides an influx of students and faculty from outside Tennessee, which helps make the place more cosmopolitan. Wish I lived there full-time. Have made quite a few friends there and we enjoy it every time we go back. It's Middle Tennessee, which has it's own flavor. It's a great place to live or retire.