Hello, My name is Bryan and I am living in Southern California, We (wife and 2 boys 2 and 5) are looking for a better life style than we have in CA. We are drawn to Atlanta because of the great things I hear about it. We are moving blind, no family, no firends, no job, just the cash in pocket from selling our Townhouse (if it ever sells).

Can you help us? We have lots of questions. Not knowing where to turn, I am turning to the community I love here in SoCal, Reefers! I have a 90 reef and a 55 fish only, fun stuff, sad to tear them down to move, but they are coming with us...

Sorry to blast you with a million questions, but we just do not know who to ask. So here they are:

1) We are looking at the area called Cumming. We are attracted to the hills, woods, lake and large lots (3/4 acre and up). Are any of you familiar with Cumming, how is it up there?

2) Traffic. I hear traffic is horriable, is is SoCal horriable. what kind of commute times would I see from the Atlanta area into Cumming in the evenings?

3) Schools. How are schools out there? Is the public system strong, or is the Private system favored?

4) Air Quality, how is it?

5) Job Market. It looks strong, I work IT, Windows Servers, anyone want to give a fellow reefer a lead? I would love to work as near Cumming as possiable, think that could happen?

6) Towns. Are there other towns around Atlanta that we should consider that are like Cumming?

7) Bugs, are they thick? Do they eat small dogs in the evening, need FAA licenses?

8) Rain. I read the average is 35 inches a year. Is it cloudy all the time, or do you just get big storms dropping an inch or more at a time?

9) Misc. Tell me what do you love or hate about living near Atlanta?

Thanks for your help!!!! I hope to be living near you and to be a member of your club in the next 6 months.

I live a little west of Cummings area in a little town called Ellijay no traffic problems and a ease of living. the air is clean and sweet. we do get rain but it seams that we get most of it over about a 4-5 month period.
If ya move out here welcome to N. Ga :)

Hello Hello Bryan!!

Atlanta- where do you start?? :D

I have never lived in Cumming nor traveled there that much, but I will tell you as much as I do know. I think of Cumming as one of those smaller towns that is growing fast- I guess it could be compared to Acworth. I think Cumming is only about 15-20 miles from the Roswell/Alpharetta area. I always see IT jobs in that area. Roswell/Alpharetta is the wealthy part of the Atlanta 'burbs- Land of huge houses and nice cars. You will be fairly close to the mall, lots of restaurants, etc. You may not even notice the higher cost of living since you are coming from CA.

Commute times: I don't travel down 400 much, but I'm gonna guess it will take you at least 45 minutes to get to Roswell/Alpharetta and maybe an hour to an hour and a half to get into Atlanta during rush hour traffic. I'm hoping someone here will be able to give a better estimate.

Schools- Sorry I don't know. I do hear Cobb Co Schools mentioned a lot, but not sure about Forsyth Co. I would guess that Roswell and Alpharetta have good schools since its an affluent area. But maybe those kids are in private schools?

I don't think air quality is much a problem. Sometimes we have smog alerts in the city and they tell us to stay inside, but not too often.

IT seems very strong in this area. Not easy for me to say since I have the IT degree, but no job in the field.

A town like Cumming would be Acworth. Smaller town, yet close to all the hustle and bustle. If you move to Acworth, plan to work in Marietta or Vinings, which would be a 45 minute to an hour commute during rush hour. I live in a town just north of Acworth called Cartersville- a place I wouldn't live if I had kids. :D

Bugs?? I guess they aren't too bad. I've seen far worse.

Climate- I think I've heard that this area has about 100 days of perfectly clear skies per year. Winters are mild- everything shuts down if it snows which we *may* get one good snow a year which is only a few inches. Doesn't rain too much in my opinion- it's a very dry summer right now. So humid yet so dry. It's common to have water restrictions during the summers.

I love the Atlanta area since it has everything I need. I pretty much grew up living close to Atlanta so it's all I know. There is always something to do. We have large venues, concerts, great attractions including the biggest aquarium :tongue: , and especially in this hobby, people say we are spoiled. You didn't ask about our reef club!?!?! We have around 400 members, lots of great LFS, and the Atlanta Reef Club is WONDERFUL!!!

What do I hate? The traffic!!

Welcome to Atlanta- let us know when you get here and keep asking questions!!

Just a quick story about moving to ATL: My bf moved here 3 years ago from Long Island and he loves it. He likes that everything is so cheap here compared to NY. His only complaint is that we talk about the Civil War too much! :eek:


Hello, My name is Bryan and I am living in Southern California, We (wife and 2 boys 2 and 5) are looking for a better life style than we have in CA. We are drawn to Atlanta because of the great things I hear about it. We are moving blind, no family, no firends, no job, just the cash in pocket from selling our Townhouse (if it ever sells).

Can you help us? We have lots of questions. Not knowing where to turn, I am turning to the community I love here in SoCal, Reefers! I have a 90 reef and a 55 fish only, fun stuff, sad to tear them down to move, but they are coming with us...

Sorry to blast you with a million questions, but we just do not know who to ask. So here they are:

1) We are looking at the area called Cumming. We are attracted to the hills, woods, lake and large lots (3/4 acre and up). Are any of you familiar with Cumming, how is it up there?

2) Traffic. I hear traffic is horriable, is is SoCal horriable. what kind of commute times would I see from the Atlanta area into Cumming in the evenings?

3) Schools. How are schools out there? Is the public system strong, or is the Private system favored?

4) Air Quality, how is it?

5) Job Market. It looks strong, I work IT, Windows Servers, anyone want to give a fellow reefer a lead? I would love to work as near Cumming as possiable, think that could happen?

6) Towns. Are there other towns around Atlanta that we should consider that are like Cumming?

7) Bugs, are they thick? Do they eat small dogs in the evening, need FAA licenses?

8) Rain. I read the average is 35 inches a year. Is it cloudy all the time, or do you just get big storms dropping an inch or more at a time?

9) Misc. Tell me what do you love or hate about living near Atlanta?

Thanks for your help!!!! I hope to be living near you and to be a member of your club in the next 6 months.

I live in North Forsyth CO and I will try to answer you questions.

1. We have lived in FC for 8 years now and it is starting to get busier. Still has its rural areas but Cumming is getting bigger.

2. It all depends when you leave for work I am at work @ 6 in the morning and traffic isn't that bad. I don't go into ATL but it's not bad. If you leave after 7, traffic is bad. Probibly not SoCal bad LOL but bad.

3. Schools are getting better. What area of Cumming are you moving to and what schools will your kids go to and I can give more info.

4.The air can get bad in the summer but is crisp the rest of the year.

5.You can check out my company. I will PM you. We are a medical device company in Duluth but have a large IT department.

6. There are a lot of nice small towns in the Atlanta metro area.

7. I think you get bugs no matter where you go. Watch out for the Fire Ants.

8. We can get some nasty storms any time of the year. Sometimes even snow.

9. I'll let you make up your own mind about that one.

PM me if you have any other questions.

Mike,

Hello, My name is Bryan and I am living in Southern California, We (wife and 2 boys 2 and 5) are looking for a better life style than we have in CA. We are drawn to Atlanta because of the great things I hear about it. We are moving blind, no family, no firends, no job, just the cash in pocket from selling our Townhouse (if it ever sells).

Can you help us? We have lots of questions. Not knowing where to turn, I am turning to the community I love here in SoCal, Reefers! I have a 90 reef and a 55 fish only, fun stuff, sad to tear them down to move, but they are coming with us...

Sorry to blast you with a million questions, but we just do not know who to ask. So here they are:

1) We are looking at the area called Cumming. We are attracted to the hills, woods, lake and large lots (3/4 acre and up). Are any of you familiar with Cumming, how is it up there?

2) Traffic. I hear traffic is horriable, is is SoCal horriable. what kind of commute times would I see from the Atlanta area into Cumming in the evenings?

3) Schools. How are schools out there? Is the public system strong, or is the Private system favored?

4) Air Quality, how is it?

5) Job Market. It looks strong, I work IT, Windows Servers, anyone want to give a fellow reefer a lead? I would love to work as near Cumming as possiable, think that could happen?

6) Towns. Are there other towns around Atlanta that we should consider that are like Cumming?

7) Bugs, are they thick? Do they eat small dogs in the evening, need FAA licenses?

8) Rain. I read the average is 35 inches a year. Is it cloudy all the time, or do you just get big storms dropping an inch or more at a time?

9) Misc. Tell me what do you love or hate about living near Atlanta?

Thanks for your help!!!! I hope to be living near you and to be a member of your club in the next 6 months.

We have not settled on any given area. Cumming is a place that looks nice and has larger affordable homes. The key for us will be Size of the lot and a communte of an hour or less, less being the better option. What we will likely do is move out there, rent a home somewhere and hunt hard for a job. Once we land the job, start searching for a home.

I am completely scared, pulling up roots and just moving. Quitting a perfect job is not something that I would have ever thought I would expect I would consider, but watching m kids play in a parkinglot every day is just not worth it!

Anyway, thaks for the input, keep it coming!

I live in North Forsyth CO and I will try to answer you questions.

1. We have lived in FC for 8 years now and it is starting to get busier. Still has its rural areas but Cumming is getting bigger.

2. It all depends when you leave for work I am at work @ 6 in the morning and traffic isn't that bad. I don't go into ATL but it's not bad. If you leave after 7, traffic is bad. Probibly not SoCal bad LOL but bad.

3. Schools are getting better. What area of Cumming are you moving to and what schools will your kids go to and I can give more info.

4.The air can get bad in the summer but is crisp the rest of the year.

5.You can check out my company. I will PM you. We are a medical device company in Duluth but have a large IT department.

6. There are a lot of nice small towns in the Atlanta metro area.

7. I think you get bugs no matter where you go. Watch out for the Fire Ants.

8. We can get some nasty storms any time of the year. Sometimes even snow.

9. I'll let you make up your own mind about that one.

PM me if you have any other questions.

Mike,

I live in South Forsyth County, nearby the Fulton County line, its still considered Cumming. It is very affordable compared to California property values. The neighborhood is mostly 1/3 acre lots, 4 bdrm, 2 baths. Homes sell in the 230's. Subdivision is called Brookwood the Preserve. Lots of kids and swim/tennis available.

Traffic can be a bear. It really depends on where and when.

Job market is strong here. I did work in IT till burnout occured. There are lots of IT jobs within 15 miles, the Roswell/Alpharetta area. Those areas are in Fulton County and have a slightly higher tax rate, another consideration when purchasing a home.

I don't know too much about public schools in Forsyth County, but I will say school is only meant to suppliment ones learning. It takes parental involvement.

We do have 4 seasons, fall, winter, spring and hot and humid.

Bugs aren't too bad, but they dont like me cause I'm bitter.

Have you considered a visit? I always say nothing ventured, nothing gained.

If I can help in any way, please let me know.

2) Traffic. I hear traffic is horriable, is is SoCal horriable. what kind of commute times would I see from the Atlanta area into Cumming in the evenings?
Yes, traffic is horrible, depending on time of day and where you're going. The north side of Atlanta - pretty much everything north of I-20 - can get really bad. Atlanta is so large that trying to say what your commute will be is impossible - it really depends on the time of day you go into work and where you're going. I live in Stone Mountain and occasionally go into the office in Alpharetta. The commute is different for each hour: 7am - 2hrs; 8am - 1.5hrs; 9am - 50mins. Hwy 400 is two lanes each way, but there's a lot of people that have moved to the Alphraretta / Roswell area, which makes the commute up to Cumming bad as well.

I would strongly recommend seeing how bad your commute will be before buying a house. SoCal is bad; you should know that Atlanta has been compared to LA for many years...

3) Schools. How are schools out there? Is the public system strong, or is the Private system favored?

No real experience with the school system. But I would argue that any private school that is heavily funded will be better than any public school.

4) Air Quality, how is it?
Not bad- even if you're directly downtown. To be honest, I've never really considered the air quality in the 12 years I've lived here, so I guess it's acceptable. There is noticable smog when you see the city from far away.

5) Job Market. It looks strong, I work IT, Windows Servers, anyone want to give a fellow reefer a lead? I would love to work as near Cumming as possiable, think that could happen?
Job market is very strong at the moment, and Atlanta is good in general for IT. I would be surprised if you found a job in Cumming that you liked; it'd more likely be Alpharetta, Marietta, or downtown. PM me for a tech contact.

6) Towns. Are there other towns around Atlanta that we should consider that are like Cumming?
In what way? There's a hundred communities around here. I would consider Alpharetta, based on your comments already.

7) Bugs, are they thick? Do they eat small dogs in the evening, need FAA licenses?
Not too bad. Cumming will be worse than downtown ATL, but that's to be expected. Nothing out of the ordinary, though.

8) Rain. I read the average is 35 inches a year. Is it cloudy all the time, or do you just get big storms dropping an inch or more at a time?
Having lived in London for a while and visited Seattle and other wet places, I can definitely say that ATL gets the downpours, but is nice the rest of the time. It's interesting to note that ATL gets more rain than Seattle, but we have far more clear days. Weather is good all around, although fairly hot and humid in the summer and a little too cold for my taste in the winter.

9) Misc. Tell me what do you love or hate about living near Atlanta?
Pros:
- big city, but very spread out, so doesn't feel quite as congested
- lots of green space in Atlanta - people and businesses seem to go out of their way for landscaping, which is nice
- like any big city, availability of goods is very nice
- easy access to N Ga mountains
- major highways make it easy to get around in; inner streets change names about every mile, though
- major restaurants, exhibits, broadway productions, etc all available
- good universities and scholarship programs in GA (Ga Tech, Emory, and others)
- cheap to live here compared to other large cities
- Delta's main hub is here. You can fly almost anywhere direct
- traffic cops aren't as bad as VA, although LIDAR is ubiquitious

Cons
- Traffic is really bad
- Not enough diversity of things to do for a large city, in my opinion
- City wasn't designed for the growth it has seen, and thus...
- Traffic is really bad

Hope that helps...

Hey Bryan,

My girlfriend and I moved from DC blind a little over a year ago. We came for a weekend to look for apartments, got lost in the city, found a place that ended up being in the middle of everything, and 6 months after our rent ended, bought a place in Vinings, which is the north west side of Atlanta just inside the Perimeter.

I guess since a lot of people have answered your basic questions, I'll go ahead and answer some of the ones you may or may not have thought of...

Out of all the roads in Atlanta, there is only one toll road and it just happens to be 400 coming directly from the north of the city coming down into the city. If you plan on working inside the city, then you may want to stray away from this particular road.

Traffic isn't too bad inside the Perimeter during rush hour but since there are multiple merge points between the perimeter and the three highways up north, it can get pretty nasty coming into the city in the morning and going out of the city in the afternoon.

I'm not sure if you want to take good LFS locations into consideration when buying a house. I don't think I did, but I've also lucked out in terms of buying at a place where I happen to be near two of the better LFS's in the area.

If you want to live closer to the city, I would try to avoid Fulton county and try to find a place either in Cobb county or Dekalb county. The reason being Fulton is currently doing some major renovations to the city sewers (for growth reasons) and we're paying for it through taxes...

I think 9% of the homes in the ATL area are currently on the market so finding a place shouldn't be hard... just within the last 3 weeks, another 2000+ homes came onto the market making it a total of 93,000+ homes. I would definitely take your time since I don't think it'd be too hard to find what you want with the amount of homes available now.

Air quality here is not bad at all... Even though it's hot, we're kind of sitting on a hill so rolling breezes are common. As for bugs, I've only noticed it this year after getting two dogs and having to walk them a few times at night. I'm sure the bug problem was about the same last year but since I didn't go outside at night, we didn't really get bit by the mosquitos.

Atlanta is also a very dog friendly town, I would say a great number of people here have dogs and there are a few huge dog parks around the area.

As for other towns to consider, I don't know what your budget is or what your ideal home is, but most decent sized homes can be found here for $300,000 or less and I would also check out some communities closer to town, in particular, Marietta, Vinings, Smyrna, Decatur and Kirkwood.

I'm sure the upper surburbs are great too but I personally don't spend much time up there.

Some of the websites you can check out for homes here are: craigslist and metrobrokers.com. I think BuyOwner.com is also pretty popular here...

Hello, My name is Bryan and I am living in Southern California, We (wife and 2 boys 2 and 5) are looking for a better life style than we have in CA. We are drawn to Atlanta because of the great things I hear about it. We are moving blind, no family, no firends, no job, just the cash in pocket from selling our Townhouse (if it ever sells).

Can you help us? We have lots of questions. Not knowing where to turn, I am turning to the community I love here in SoCal, Reefers! I have a 90 reef and a 55 fish only, fun stuff, sad to tear them down to move, but they are coming with us...

Sorry to blast you with a million questions, but we just do not know who to ask. So here they are:

1) We are looking at the area called Cumming. We are attracted to the hills, woods, lake and large lots (3/4 acre and up). Are any of you familiar with Cumming, how is it up there?

2) Traffic. I hear traffic is horriable, is is SoCal horriable. what kind of commute times would I see from the Atlanta area into Cumming in the evenings?

3) Schools. How are schools out there? Is the public system strong, or is the Private system favored?

4) Air Quality, how is it?

5) Job Market. It looks strong, I work IT, Windows Servers, anyone want to give a fellow reefer a lead? I would love to work as near Cumming as possiable, think that could happen?

6) Towns. Are there other towns around Atlanta that we should consider that are like Cumming?

7) Bugs, are they thick? Do they eat small dogs in the evening, need FAA licenses?

8) Rain. I read the average is 35 inches a year. Is it cloudy all the time, or do you just get big storms dropping an inch or more at a time?

9) Misc. Tell me what do you love or hate about living near Atlanta?

Thanks for your help!!!! I hope to be living near you and to be a member of your club in the next 6 months.

If you guys are any indication, the South is as nice a place as the rumors indicate it is! Thanks for the war welcome and the great information.

My wife and I are coming out to visit on Sunday 9/17 through Wed 9/20. the wa the flights line up we will have 2 full days to explore, meat head hunters and real estate agents. I wish there was time for the aquarium, but there will be time enough for that later.

We are excited! The though of getting out of CA where everyone is rude and selfcentered to a place were people are more polite, puts a big smile on my face!!!!

Welcome to the ATL.

People in CA are rude? Maybe I should re-evaluate my long term plan to move there...

lol. people out here do not know what to do if you say hello to them. it amazes me how mean people can be.

OK, I am flying in on Sunday afternoon, I will be out there until Wednesday morning. What should be on my must see list as we size up Atlanta and build our short list of communities to move to?

Where would you point a new commer to look for a home?
Where would you like to live?

What else should I see (there will be time enough for the aquarium once we move).

Thanks again!!!

--Bryan

As someone that moved from CA years ago, I am very happy in Atlanta. The quality of life is better, and your living space is better. I never have regretted it. Having said that, no area can do everything. You will also note that very people are actually from Atlanta, as the area has grown significantly. In my opinion:

Pros:

Cheap(er) housing
4 seasons, including an incredible spring and fall
Close to everything - either by air or driving
Friendliness of the people
Great places to eat, great places for young kids


Cons:

Traffic (although I never see it - my commute is short and at unusual times)

Less diversity of cultures (although getting better)

Small Arts scene (again, getting better - the High Museum is getting a large loan from the Louve, there is a new Childrens Museum, a new symphony hall is proposed in 2013, and again, the Georgia Aquarium)

As far bugs and smog, they are really non-entities in my opinion. As far schools, they vary. I have had my kids in public and private schools, and there are many great schools, and many bad ones. E-mail me and I can help more. As far as college, it is basically free to students with high GPAs at any of the state schools.

Lack of a closer ocean.

Welcome!

Steve

I moved to Atlanta 3 years ago from Chicago suburbs and LOVE it here. You get 4 seasons without a real winter, plus the winter is very short.

My shot at your questions:

1) We settled in a subdivision in Cumming that has large, natural lots. Many of the subdivisions in Atlanta clear cut the trees before building so mature trees are a harder to come by. Take a look in Roswell/Alpharetta and Cobb county as there are some homes on bigger lots on the west side of 400 in those areas. It is a buyers market here right now so there should be plenty to choose from. Try and steer away from houses on roads with painted stripes down the middle as they can be harder to re-sell. Swim and tennis and golf neighborhoods are very popular. You will get more for your money in Forsyth county (Cumming) and real estate taxes are much cheaper too. Of course, the price for large lots and low taxes is a longer drive to work and back.

2) Traffic on 400 right now is aweful. Forsyth county was one of the fastest growing counties in the country for a while. They are widening the road now but that may be a temporary fix if the area keeps growing so fast.

3) Georgia takes a beating each year because they are one of the lowest for average SAT scores. This is partially due to the fact that every graduating senior takes the SAT whether they are headed for colege or not. Your realtor should be able to provide you with a book that ranks the schools state wide. I am very happy with the schools in south Forsyth. I think they are every bit as good as the schools in the Chicago suburbs. Of course, this can vary from school to school.

4) Perfect compared to southern California.

5) There are LOTS of companies off almost every exit on 400 from 12 down. Near the intersection of 400 and I-285 there have to be 10 - 20+ story buildings of offices. That is the nice thing about Atlanta, the buisness is all spread out. The company I work for has 2000 IT people off exit 11. I'm sure you can find something in Alpharetta.

6) West side of Alpharetta and Roswell. Cobb county. Parts of Gwinett. Of course, the real estate taxes are much higher in those areas compared to Forsyth (Cumming).

7) Depends on where you are. Coming from Chicago, there are much fewer mosquitos here but many more spiders and scary looking spiders too...

8) Compared to Chicago, there seems to be 100% more sun here. The rain seems to come in afternoon storms, then it clears up again. Tons of sun here IMO.

9) The weather. Perfect weather from March to June and again from September to November. Summer is a bear but that is what the lake and AC are for. Winter is pleasant, never too cold (compared to Chicago) and it can be 70 degrees any given day. The winter sun is warm, so a calm 60 degree day is very nice. There are a few cold snaps in the winter but they don't last long.

I don't like the energy costs here. You either have a $400 electric bill or a $400 gas bill every month. I do not think the cost of living is any cheaper here than Chicago. Of course some of that energy bill is due to my reef tank but we will keep that quiet... :)

Welcome to the area!

3) Georgia takes a beating each year because they are one of the lowest for average SAT scores. This is partially due to the large rural population and the fact that every graduating senior takes the SAT whether they are headed for colege or not. Your realtor should be able to provide you with a book that ranks the schools state wide. I am very happy with the schools in south Forsyth. I think they are every bit as good as the schools in the Chicago suburbs. Of course, this can vary from school to school.


Like he pointed out, SAT rankings by state is an unfair system of looking at our education. Many states favor the ACT and in those states usually the brightest students also take the SAT. In the top ten states, only 8% of the kids took the test. Just so many reasons why it's worthless in determining the quality of our education.

The GA Lottery is making a huge impact in our education. It will only get better. Like Dr Steve mentioned, you can't beat the Hope Scholarship- I maxed it out and only paid one semester of my college.

All the positive coments about your home is making me so excited to think I may be part of this soon. I have been readig your boards, you have a great club. I am looking forward to seeing you all at the meetings.

Thanks for all your comments!

our fisrt impressions... WOW

The area is beautiful, the homes are amazing, the people are so nice.

In one community in Alpharetta we drove through and stopped to look at a home for sale. A neighbor was out front, we asked a simple question, and talked to her for a good 20 minutes. We may have a jaded point of view, but in CA we would have been lucky to have our question answered.

So far we love it here!

So where are you staying for the time being?

Schwaggs,
What burb you from?

We are in Alpharetta. We really liked Woodstock. The drive looks like it will be a long one from there, but it is beautiful, near the lake, and the homes are large, with good lots.

I am going to have to excahange a longer froe more home. With my wife staying at home with the kids, it means a lot for me to have them in an active neighborhood and in a home that they can be active in. Lots of yard is a must for 2 boys under 6 :-)

All said and done I am very encouraged by the entire area. Beautiful and so many friendly people.

Atlanta is great place to live. Great weather. Great people. I lived in Alpharetta for 2 years but Gwinnett County taxes were better so I moved to Sugar Hill/Buford area about 4 years ago and love it. Since I work in Johns Creek the drive is a straight shot for me but it can get nasty when GA-400 or I-85 have backups or major accidents.

It takes balls to pack up the family move across the country. Best of luck to you!

I'm not reading what other people said but here are MO's...

1) Cumming?! NO! very small town... IMO cartersville or Jasper are key to the woodsy type... I live in woodstock/canton VERY great area for kids and lots of nice areas. Closer to Atlanta by about an hour...

2) HORRIBLE. porbably 1 1/2 hours. my buddy lives in cumming he HATES the commute...

3) Schools are so/so Private schools are great (Walker i hear is great, Marietta)... I went to Etowah High (woodstock). LOVED IT open campus lots of fun... Also Cobb county has good schools.

4) GOTTA love the fall hahaha... Its Atlanta ofcourse...

5) Job market is strong... BUT I dont think you realize how far cumming is from Atlanta... IMO Kennesaw (cobb county) Or woodstock/Acworth (Cherokee County) Now im speaking for the north side ofcourse. I work for a company called AMI in Kennesaw they might be looking for some IT guys...

6) Woodstock Kennesaw Acworth Roswell Alpharetta. Why Cumming?? Just asking...

7) Cumming?! Maybe... Kennesaw woodstock, no.

8) Rain>????? If you see clouds RUNNNN Just pop up storms mainly!!!

9) I love woodstock I work in Kennesaw 4 miles south. Only thing that stinks is I-575... But they are building service roads to kill the traffic right as im typing...

10) WELCOME TO ATLANTA!! GO FALCONS!! GO DAWGS!!

Man what do you have against Cumming. I live in Northern Forsyth CO and I love it up here. As far as traffic. It doesn't matter where you live in the metro area, traffic sucks. I can be in Atlanta in an hour. I'm not reading what other people said but here are MO's...

1) Cumming?! NO! very small town... IMO cartersville or Jasper are key to the woodsy type... I live in woodstock/canton VERY great area for kids and lots of nice areas. Closer to Atlanta by about an hour...

2) HORRIBLE. porbably 1 1/2 hours. my buddy lives in cumming he HATES the commute...

3) Schools are so/so Private schools are great (Walker i hear is great, Marietta)... I went to Etowah High (woodstock). LOVED IT open campus lots of fun... Also Cobb county has good schools.

4) GOTTA love the fall hahaha... Its Atlanta ofcourse...

5) Job market is strong... BUT I dont think you realize how far cumming is from Atlanta... IMO Kennesaw (cobb county) Or woodstock/Acworth (Cherokee County) Now im speaking for the north side ofcourse. I work for a company called AMI in Kennesaw they might be looking for some IT guys...

6) Woodstock Kennesaw Acworth Roswell Alpharetta. Why Cumming?? Just asking...

7) Cumming?! Maybe... Kennesaw woodstock, no.

8) Rain>????? If you see clouds RUNNNN Just pop up storms mainly!!!

9) I love woodstock I work in Kennesaw 4 miles south. Only thing that stinks is I-575... But they are building service roads to kill the traffic right as im typing...

10) WELCOME TO ATLANTA!! GO FALCONS!! GO DAWGS!!

Fun stuff... Well here I am still in So Cal :-( we are getting lots of people to come and look at the house, but only one bad offer so far. I have no idea when this place will sell, but we are hoping that the holiday up tick will be our time. I have been busting my butt here, have my 90 drained and cleaned and ready to go to storage, that will make the main room down stairs look much larger, hopefully that will help.

We were looking at Cumming because the lots were larger and we are hoping to land a job in Alpharetta. Woodstock is #2 on our list, but that is a long drive to Alpharetta. I so hope to be spending Christmas in a rental in Roswell. It is all in the hands of the market here. :-(

anyway, thanks for all the helpful information! I am reading your boards almost daily. I can not wait to become an active member of this club, it sounds great!!!!!

Nothing against Cumming as I stated in my post, but I have a friend that lives there and I visit him alot and he moved from Woodstock and im just hearing what he has to say, but he is 25 so it may be diff than other opinion's. I.M. Girls. O Woodstock is closer to roswell/alpharetta, than cumming is. Woodstock to Roswell taking Hwy 92 is 13 miles. (My girl works in roswell so she claims its closer I dont know) Good Luck and welcome to Atlanta:cheers:

our fisrt impressions... WOW

The area is beautiful, the homes are amazing, the people are so nice.

In one community in Alpharetta we drove through and stopped to look at a home for sale. A neighbor was out front, we asked a simple question, and talked to her for a good 20 minutes. We may have a jaded point of view, but in CA we would have been lucky to have our question answered.

So far we love it here!

Live in Alpharetta here.. LOVE IT!! Small town feel (for now) with all the big city stuff!!

Alph is growing VERY FAST and homes values are skyrocketing up here.. I bought in 12/02 and will admit I am VERY HAPPY with my home investment.

Plus there are a few huge developments happening right behind me that will shoot prices up even further..

Example, a townhouse development less than 1/4 mile away from me was seeling large/nice townhomes in 2001 for $180k. Today, those homes are going for $500k.

You had mentioned Cumming. I was riding up that way with friends just this weekend and some very nice developments being built with great prices on the homes. Those too will go up in value very quickly.

Just popping in to say that I live in Cumming, more on the North side as well. I'm basically on the lake and LOVE the area. I do have a rough commute, from Cumming to Stone Mountain daily, but if you have a job with flexible hours leaving earl (before 6) can help. I love the smaller town feel and the outdoorsy-ness of the area, having grown up in Gwinnett County. Welcome to the area and good luck with the house sale!

Welcome to the ARC site Janet :)

Any one who eats a melon like Tony, needs a term as President!

LOL... great... now Im known all the way in Ca as a freakin meloneater! My life is a disgrace.

Bryan, drop me a PM... I want to ask you about some Atlanta stuff.

Woodstock is closer to roswell/alpharetta, than cumming is. Woodstock to Roswell taking Hwy 92 is 13 miles.

Dude, check a map, the borders of Cumming and Alpharetta almost touch these days. From downtown Alpharetta it is 14.8 miles to downtown Cumming, it is 16.9 to downtown Woodstock.

It's obvious you love Woodstock. Not sure why you feel the need to bash Cumming...

We drove from Roswell to Woodstock (can't remember the community name, nice area) and it took us over an hour aroud 5pm, it is a long 13 miles at the wrong time of day.

If I could only sell this house, then I cound really get into the debate as to where we want to live...As long as I have a basement with a big ol' fish room, who cares what city it is in :-)