Relocating..permenently

you coming from Phili no the traffic is not bad.
We are in Evans , Ga, VERY good schools in Columbia County. My daughter being in one of the best in the county.
Neighbors are just like anywhere else , it depends on the person but generally neighbors are great.

I love Georgia but everything is relative. It really depends on what you are looking for. Traffic can be bad in and around Atlanta but only at certain times. If you know the traffic patterns it's manageable. I've been in much worse cities across the country. The rest of the state is as different as any other large state that has different areas. Do you know exactly where you would be living? I've been all over the state all of my life because of my Dad's business and now my husband's business...if you'd like some specific info, I'd be glad to help if I can. Feel free to PM me.

M.

We relocated here seven years ago and love all that this area has to offer. There is so much for kids in this area. As far as schools, Gwinnett County School District is one of the best in the nation so if you have a choice, try to get in that zone.

Hi,
I grew up in NY (on Long Island), lived in Manhattan for a few years, then Los Angeles for 8 years and have now been in Alpharetta, GA for 12 years. I've loved each place for different reasons. When I was fresh out of college I loved Manhattan and the social aspect. When I was dating my husband we lived in Manhattan and then LA and loved the active/outdoor lifestyle LA offered. Once I was pregnant with my first (she is 12 yo now and we have a 9 yo boy) we decided to move to a more family-friendly area. We wanted the East coast due to both our families still living in NJ and NY but we wanted warmer weather due to getting use to the LA weather. We decided on a suburb of Atlanta (we wanted to be close to a city since we both grew up near NYC). We couldn't be happier with our decision.
Like the other people who responded I would say that you need to learn the traffic patters but that wasn't a big concern of ours since LA has horrible traffic and we were use to that.
Of course, it all depends on your family, lifestyle, etc. but we zoned in on North Fulton since we wanted excellent schools. The house pricing was great compared to where we came from but if you compare it to other places in GA you'd find it pricey (being in a top school system and its proximity to downtown makes Alpharetta a more desirable place to live). Since we've moved here there has been a lot more development and I'd say you could get more for you money in Cumming and still get good schools. It all depends on where your work is and the commute you are looking for.
If you would like more information feel free to pm me.
Good luck with everything,
L.

We relocated to GA in May of 2010. It has been a pretty easy transition. Our neighborhood is very family friendly. The family that moved out of the house had prepared a scrapbook for potential homebuyers about the neighborhood's family friendly events, such a great selling feature for us - 4th of July Parade, Easter Egg Hunt, Cookies with Santa, etc. The traffic can be bad, but I'd figure out where you will be working and try to live nearby. My husband's job is in Alpharetta so we decided to live in Alpharetta although we travel quite a bit and the airport is quite a bit of drive from here. I miss being closer to the airport. We had three to choose from in the DC Metro area. The school system is okay though not ideal. We do not have the best teacher so that is a factor. We moved from Northern Virginia and feel this year is the same information that our child learned last year though it is Kindergarten so we are concerned.

Depends on where you will be living. I've lived all over the country but mostly CA (22 yrs) and the east coast the last 25 yrs.
Middle GA isn't so bad. You learn the rush hour times and directions, find the back roads to get around when you need it.
I have 2 children- 1 that went partially through (7-grad) the other started Kindergarten and now middle school. This town is better than the town north as far as schools go. Lots of Title 1, but the edcuation is pretty good.
Lots of neighborhoods to choose from- lower cost but good neighborhoods to espensive neighborhoods. Lots of colleges, tech schools, etc around as well. You are close to beaches, National Parks, hiking trails, local parks, etc.
FYI, this was the LAST place I ever thought I would live! i wasn't happy to move here, but the job brought us here. And, after living all over the place, it really shouldn't have been the last place I ever thought I would live.
Feel free to PM me if I'm closer to where you guys are looking at relocating.

I really like it in Marietta GA with my 7 & 3 yr olds. The schools are top-notch in 30066 zip code -- we have #1 HS, #5 Middle School and in top-50 Elementary school. Check out greatschools.org for more regional details.

Traffic's OK if you know the backroads, my neighbors are awesome, friendly and trustworthy in our under-80 home older subdivision -- Plains Estates off Sandy Plains Road.

If you wish anything else, email me, and good luck:)

We relocated from Southern California to Metro Atlanta right around five years ago (April 2006). Understanding that we had always lived on the West Coast - specifically Los Angeles. That area has a tempermant and speed all its own (mostly, in my opinion, sort of mean, snobbish and too g.d. fast), so moving to GA, which is reknowned for its being a whole lot slower - was a huuuuuuuuggggggge adjustment! I'll be honest, it took us probably a good couple of years before our "internal speedometers" reset to GA speed. During that time, we wondered whether we made a big, big mistake.

It has been nearly five years for us, and we are glad that we made this move. Notwithstanding this snow that got dumped on GA this past week, the weather is enjoyable. The colors of the different seasons are remarkable. During the summer months, when humidity and heat set in, we've gotten fairly used to it. It's doable. Spring and Fall are what we look forward to here. For different reasons, they are just breathtaking. While there are certainly lovely places in CA, GA has many also, and I get to live in a lot more of them than I ever could in CA. Take, for example, the city of Milton. That is a knockout-beautiful area. Lots of horse farms, beautiful subdivisions and terrific schools. In the springtime, driving down Lower Birmingham/Hickory Flat will just stun you with its gorgeous, multi-colored flowers that seem to pop out of everywhere. The thing that always blows my mind is that this road is totally natural - no one MADE this area so beautiful. It just is.

As for traffic -- yeah, it can be nasty, but, coming from L.A., I don't really see a difference. Schools where we are at (Holly Springs - Cherokee County) are fantastic. Neighbors around us are a true melting pot. A LOT of folks relocated here from the West Coast for the same reasons we did - you get way more house/way nicer housing for far less money.

Politically speaking, GA is a red state, but I do not find that anyone around here has ever beaten me over the head with their politics. Interestingly, GA was, at one point not too many years ago, a blue state.

In general, I would recommend the move. Your winters are not nearly as punishing as the Northeast's are.

Good luck!

E.

I guess like any state or city for that matter has its good and bad things We moved to Columbus Ga in summer and I find it fine, we are raising a 5 yr old and the teachers are good with him--we are working on behavioral issues right now due to ADHD and finding help was not easy you just gotta know who to ask. If you have any questions you think I can answer let me know.

well i have been to both PA and GA for a long period of time each and i certainly liked PA better, but GA is warmer, more retroactive and prettier.