Thanks so much for all your responses. I have a lot to consider and I'm sure I will make the right decison.

Kristina and Curtis have given you some good starting points regarding Fayette and Coweta counties. I think Hank needs to brush up on his southside facts before discounting Peachtree City especially. Yes, some areas on the southside have seen a free fall in home values, but homes in Sharpsburg and Peachtree City in particular continue to sell well and homes have retained their values. Granted - not the inflated values we saw in 2006. Peachtree City is the new corporate headquarters for NCR and has several international and national businesses and corporations that help keep the area stable. It no longer "lives and dies" according to Delta or the airport as it did in the 90s.
That being said.... if you're looking for a 30-minute commute to Forsyth Street, your best bet is going to be the communities I've mentioned and possibly the Vinings, Smyrna areas. Be sure to "test drive" the commute once you settle on a community. It can easily take an hour (or more) to get to Alpharetta and Roswell from Atlanta during the rush hours.
Good luck to you!

Kristi

There are parts of the southside that appear feasible, the problem there is that areas like Peachtree City live and die with that airport and Delta.

Counties south of Atlanta are in value free fall - that's not me, that's the data.

Hank

Jennifer,
I am sure you will receive many opinions of all areas you mentioned. I grew up in the Atlanta area both on the northside (Roswell/Alpharetta area) and ended up on the southside. I think you should give the southside good consideration. You will find great schools, low crime rates and a very easy commute to Atlanta. You will probably get more bang for your buck when considering homes. You did not mention the Newnan/Coweta area but I would suggest checking it out as well. Newnan has great interstate access with very litte traffic.

Curtis gave a very accurate description of Fayette County and Coweta county would fit that bill as well minus the golf cart paths & concert venues.

I would be happy to answer any questions you have.
Thanks,
Kristina Stephens
Realtor, Accredited Buyer Representative
Keller Williams Realty Atlanta Partners
678-554-1303

Jennifer
Fayetteville, Tyrone, & Peachtree City (a planned development community) are located in Fayette County, along with Brooks and Woolsey, more rural communities.
The Fayette County schools are always rated in the top school systems for Georgia. There are a multitude of things available; close to hospital, doctors, dental, emergency care; shopping centers and grocery stores, a wide variety of resturants, recreational facilities to include swimming, golf, tennis, in addition to the regular sports; two different venues for concerts, and Peachtree City & Tyrone have golf cart paths that you can drive a golf cart on to just about all of the things listed above
Homes cover a wide varity in both cost and style as well as lot size.

Any Help you need just call

Curtis
404-405-6713

Hi Jennifer -

I grew up just north of you in Pt Washington - I would suggest that the north side of metro Atlanta is going to be the best place for you.

Walton HS (East Cobb-Marietta) was the best ranked area high school in a recent US News and World Report article, schools drive the value train here. Other schools in East Cobb are also high perfromers as are those in Roswell and Alpharetta. In these submarkets you will seen better value retention, better stability and top tier market appeal. You should plan for a 45+- min communte depending when/when you go.

You will be hit with opinions of course, mine are based upon 20 years of appraisal/broker experience and the data; I'm beyond the point of just offering off the cuff opinions, mine are based on tangible data that I'm happy to share. Wearing two hats (appraising/brokerage) keeps me in the field and in piles of data - and the programs I use make it completely impartial - have a look - http://www.hrmiller.com/understand-the-data-.asp

Let me know what you need, my contact info is below -

Hank Miller, SRA, ABR
Associate Broker & Certified Appraiser
Prudential GA Realty
678-428-8276