We’ve had so much fun this spring break…I can’t believe its over already! I’ve eaten out about a million times (including a great lunch yesterday with the lovely Lee!) and spent a ton of time with my awesome family. Our final outing of the trip was taking Ashley to our local natural history museum. I used to love this place as a kid and it was great to take Ashley there.
But one of the real “serious” reasons we’re here in Atlanta is to look for places to live when we move here after graduation. We don’t have permanent jobs in the city yet, but we’re taking the Georgia Bar exam and so we know this is where we’ll be starting our careers. We’ve done some touring in past visits but we’ve now narrowed it down to our top three choices. For those familiar with the Atlanta area, we’re planning to live in the Emory/Decatur/Virginia Highland area of town and so that’s where we toured.
You’ll probably be able to tell which place we liked best based on how many pictures I took, but I’ll attempt to be objective about it. Maybe some of you can weigh in and tell me what you think!
House #1:
This place is in a very trendy area, and right within walking distance of dozens of great restaurants and bars. It’s an extremely walkable area and very “Atlanta”. I love all the small businesses nearby and there’s a great neighborhood culture. The price of these units was very affordable, and actually under our target price range.
The fixtures and everything are nice because the property is fairly new, but some of the materials didn’t seem like the highest quality. The kitchen countertops seemed like laminate or some other fake-ish type material, and the carpets were just okay in quality.
The only other major con of this place was that the area isn’t incredibly safe. I wouldn’t find it wise to walk my future dog outside past sunset. And the only unit available for us to rent is at street level, which I feel makes it more vulnerable to break-ins and creepers. Like in the picture below, you look out the window and you’re essentially looking right onto a busy street.
But the location of that property can’t be beat!
House #2
The second property is located right next to the university. It’s one of those new live-work-play communities where they’ve built restaurants, shops, and apartments all together into a community. It’s a new development so we would be the first people living in our apartment, and everything is brand spanking new. They had a furnished model to show us that was really beautiful and pretty much won us over.
I mean, I LOVED the kitchens. Beautiful quartz countertops and a modern backsplash and lots of space for all my crap. Even the unfurnished version of it was beautiful to me.
The price range was the same as house #1, and while the units were nicer with newer amenities, the location isn’t as amazing as #1. There are lots of things inside the community, but they’re all chain establishments and the whole thing feels very manufactured. It would be fun to live upstairs from an Ann Taylor Loft store though!
And it comes with a pretty amazing view of the Atlanta skyline.
House #3
The last place that we looked at is the priciest option, being several hundred dollars more than the other two properties. The units are built more like homes and come with very high quality features like barber carpets, real hardwood floors, and beautiful crown molding.
I wasn’t extremely impressed with the kitchens, which to me didn’t reflect the higher price tag. The appliances aren’t brand new and there wasn’t as much storage space.
But overall it’s clear that everything was high quality and there was definitely plenty of room. The location is a bit safer than option #1, but it’s not exactly walkable to very much. It’s more like a short drive to lots of awesome places.
What do you think?
What kinds of things do you think about when you’re looking for a new place?
-Lauren
2 Responses
Lee
Where is the first one? I would go for the walkable one for sure. Unless it’s somewhere really scary. But walkable is always nice, especially for the first place you’ll have here after you move back. Sort of get the lay of the land again (even though you’re from here.)
Jess
As my husband and I only have one car, we have to keep in mind that one of us has to be able to take public transit/walk to work. This time, he lucked out and we got a place that is literally a 5-10 minute walk to his job. Next time he might not be so lucky. Haha.
I always look to the kitchen first and once I’m in there I check three things in rapid succession: the appliances, the water pressure, and cabinets/storage.
Happy hunting!