MIL came over this morning to watch DD and we started talking about our 5 year plans. DH & I have been considering an east coast move but thought it was at least 5 years out. Now we are thinking 2! MIL and DH agree that Atlanta would be a great move for all of us.
Any Atlanta bees have suggestions on what neighborhoods are good for families that are close to the city? Are there good schools? How's the weather, shopping, food, etc?
hostess / wonderful watermelon / 39513 posts
How exciting! I have friends in Marietta, Decatur, Kennesaw and Smyrna and they love it!
Hopefully, some GA bees can give ya good advice!
pear / 1861 posts
I can't speak on neighborhoods ( I live south of the city.), but I know Cobb has a good school systems from what I have heard from other teachers. ( Gwinnett too)
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@luckypenny: chopsuey118!!!
Atlanta is H O T and humid. I'm personally not a fan of living In Atlanta. It's expensive and most people move 1-2 hours out of the city bc houses are so expensive in Atlanta.
My BIL lives 1.5 hours southeast of Atlanta.
pomegranate / 3577 posts
@luckypenny: search the Atlanta meet-up and tag those bees! I can't comment on the city itself, but we lived out in Lilburn (east of the city, 25-30 minute morning commute to work for me) and really liked it. They are improving the Lilburn with lots of new parks, sidewalks, etc.
grapefruit / 4770 posts
I'm from Atlanta! I'm a Cobb county girl-Smryna, Marietta, Vinings which is unincorporated Atlanta, are all great places with great schools and relatively close to the city. I worked at the DeKalb DAs office, and there are parts of Decatur that are really cute with young families, and much closer to the city. I personally wasn't a fan, and moved as quick as I could, but am happy to answer any questions!
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@luckypenny: There are lots of good neighborhoods/suburbs close to the city (I have lived in the city and just outside of the city). The best schools in Georgia are (primarily) in Cobb County (and, more specifically, East Cobb), and there are several cities in Cobb that are really close to the city (like Marietta and Smynra). It's hard to give more specific advice about where to live without knowing where in the city you intend to travel on a daily basis (for a commute, because Atlanta is notorious for its commute times!), and without knowing just how long of a commute you want to tolerate (I have had at most a 30 minute commute).
Atlanta is a major city, so real estate) prices are going to reflect that, and some counties are more expensive to live in than others (when it comes to property taxes . . . DeKalb County is an example) . . . but like so many other cities and their housing markets, luck, availability, and timing all come in to play as well.
The weather is pretty decent (when it's not mid-summer!) and the shopping is great (we have so much here . . . you can pretty much find anything in the city.). There are also so many cool little *pockets* of places to discover, too . . . it's a good foodie town and also cultural as well (tons of concerts, shows, and exhibits!).
I am not a native, but I would be more than happy to try to answer any questions you might have!
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
Honestly I would wait to look for areas to live once you know where you/DH will be working. Traffic sucks so you need to cut down on your commute as much as you can. We live in the city and work in the burbs, so reverse of most traffic and I still get stuck in it. House pricing is going to depend on the area.
There are so am y good restaurants and shopping. Tons to do here! It is HOT in the summer but I still love it here.
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
@luckypenny: I'm from CA so I feel like everything's super cheap out here! Even houses in the city.
Lots of great places to eat in the city and in the burbs.
The weather isn't that bad. This summer we've had a ton of rain and the weather's been in the 70's-low 80s.
This last winter was really mild which I appreciated since DS was born in December. Early Spring is annoying because of all of the pollen, but it's short lived. Fall is beautiful and my favorite time of year.
I agree with @Smurfette and would wait til you know where you'll be working. There are lots of good schools in the city and in the suburbs.
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@regberadaisy: I have lived in Upstate NY and much prefer Atlanta . . . for starters, there is waaaaay too much snow. *brrrr* 
GOLD / squash / 13576 posts
I thinking housing in ATL is very affordable. My MIL lives in Marietta. My BIL lives near the zoo. I love visiting ATL!
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
Just saw that you live in the bay area. Omg you're gonna think everything is super cheap too when you come out here.
grapefruit / 4582 posts
@chopsuey119: half the reason we are moving is because of the cost of housing out here! I mean paying $700k for a 2bdr/2ba condo is insane and our money would go soooo much further there! I'm not working but I'm sure DH will be in the city proper. I don't mind the suburbs as log as there's still a "town" area plus I'm from FL so the weather probably will be familiar to me
@regberadaisy: @MsMamaBear: @Espion: thanks ladies!
@dc yoga bee: what didn't you like about it?
@MsLipGloss: DH commutes 45 minutes now so I'm okay with that distance. Coming from San Francisco I'm pretty spoiled with food so that's good to hear! I live for being in/near a big city
@Smurfette: it seems most people live outside of the city! How do you like being in the city proper? Is there a lot of crime? In SF I generally feel safe at night in any neighborhood
@littlek: DD looooves any aquarium! Definitely going in the "Pros" column
pear / 1837 posts
I grew up in ATL and went back for grad school, met DH there, got married there, and worked there for a year and a half after finishing grad school.
My favorite area to live is Decatur- that's where DH and I lived and I love, love, love the area. Compared to San Francisco you'll totally think Atlanta is cheap, so I wouldn't worry about that at all. Food options are different than in CA, but I think Atlanta has great food- I live in DC now, and I actually miss the Atlanta food scene.
I really doubt you'd want to live in "downtown" ATL, but there are lots of great neighborhoods not far from the downtown commercial area. I still vote Decatur as being awesome in general and also for young families (and pretty much anyone! I'm such a Decatur fan-girl) and I think if you like the vibe of San Francisco you'll be much happier somewhere like Decatur than you would be in the suburbs, where very little is walkable and it's a lot more conservative. We also have friends who live in and love Candler Park, Inman Park, Kirkwood, etc.
I didn't mind the heat- I actually think DC in the summer is worse than Atlanta. Plus everything is air-conditioned. And I hate the cold, so I appreciated the fact that you could still comfortably have dinner outside in late October or wear flip-flops in early March.
Re: safety, we lived smack in the middle of downtown Decatur and I walked around by myself comfortably at all hours of the night, but there are other areas where I feel like it's more an issue of "it's not unsafe, but you should be smart/careful."
I miss ATL like crazy and would move back in a minute, so let me know if you need any additional help selling you on moving there or living closer to the city rather than out in the 'burbs
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
@luckypenny: My husband would not look for a house in the surburbs. There is a major highway that does a loop around the city. So a lot reference either inside the perimeter (ITP) or outside the perimeter (OTP). He wouldn't look OTP. We are a mile inside ITP. Not downtown but close enough. We really like the area. I would agree with PP, Decatur is a great area and we would have looked there but it was to far for me for work. Virginia Highlands, Inman Park, are also great.
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@luckypenny: Tolerance for a 45 minute commute will serve your DH well and will present numerous options for housing locations! With regard to safety in the city, like any city, while there are places that you shouldn't go while alone and/or at night, I felt pretty safe most of the time I lived in the city (Midtown and the Virginia Highlands . . . I regularly went for solo runs alone at dusk/dark). But Atlanta has lots of *pockets* of not-so-great areas that are usually sandwiched between 2 great areas . . . but it wouldn't take you long to figure out which areas to avoid.
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