Relocating to GA (Alpharetta) from North NJ.... what to expect???

[ashley0139]

hi all... the OP here... so my husband got the job offer from Delta. numbers look good. BUT, we don't know if we should pack up and move southbound, for the following reasons:

- children: I have a 9 yo and 6 yo. I don't know how they will adapt.
- schools: my current school has good ranking. within top 300 according to US News. If we move, we need to stay in district that is as good as my current school district.
- housing: the hassle of busying/selling... DH is not looking forward to the housing hassle.
- parents: our parents are not happy about the move though they don't live with us... they don't live in USA. they want us to "settle down". We have moved quite a bit, all for husbands job. He likes new challenges... We have lived in MA, OH, CA, CO and NJ.

We could stay in NJ but, be honest, I feel people in NJ are as cold as the NJ winter. Part of me longing for the warm weather and warm people.

I am praying on my knee for some wise guidance from God... Maybe I will find it here on DIS

- Children adapt. They'll be fine. We moved from NYC area to Atlanta area when I was 6 and I say I'm from Atlanta.

- There are many schools in the Atlanta area that are top ranked. My high school is one of them (5th in GA and around 200 in National rankings).

- Parents who don't live with you or even in the country are not a reason. They don't get a vote. You have to do what is best for your family, and it seems like this is probably it.

 

[Southernmiss]

- Children adapt. They'll be fine. We moved from NYC area to Atlanta area when I was 6 and I say I'm from Atlanta.

- There are many schools in the Atlanta area that are top ranked. My high school is one of them (5th in GA and around 200 in National rankings).

- Parents who don't live with you or even in the country are not a reason. They don't get a vote. You have to do what is best for your family, and it seems like this is probably it.

Perfectly said.

Kids that young will adapt just fine. If moving were a probability in your future and moving now prevents a move when the kids get older, I would jump on it. As kids get more entrenched in their own stuff it gets much harder to move.

I'm sure you'll find schools to meet their needs in a big city/area like Atlanta. If parents are supportive and involved, kids can thrive most any where.

Grandparents don't get to vote in this. Ultimately, it's your family.

 

[kirstenb1]

That is a lot of moving. I moved a lot as a kid, and hating having to adapt to new schools, new friends, etc. If you make this move, will it be the last for a while? Also, I've never been to Atlanta, but it's traffic is notorious throughout the South. We're in central Va, and Northern Va/DC area is probably the closest we have to it. The weather would definitely lure me.

 

[Klayfish]

hi all... the OP here... so my husband got the job offer from Delta. numbers look good. BUT, we don't know if we should pack up and move southbound, for the following reasons:

- children: I have a 9 yo and 6 yo. I don't know how they will adapt.
- schools: my current school has good ranking. within top 300 according to US News. If we move, we need to stay in district that is as good as my current school district.
- housing: the hassle of busying/selling... DH is not looking forward to the housing hassle.
- parents: our parents are not happy about the move though they don't live with us... they don't live in USA. they want us to "settle down". We have moved quite a bit, all for husbands job. He likes new challenges... We have lived in MA, OH, CA, CO and NJ.

We could stay in NJ but, be honest, I feel people in NJ are as cold as the NJ winter. Part of me longing for the warm weather and warm people.

I am praying on my knee for some wise guidance from God... Maybe I will find it here on DIS

Congrats on the job offer! To your points (and remember, we did this near exact thing 3.5 years ago...moved from PA to Atlanta, pretty much on a whim)

Children - they'll be fine. Our oldest kid was 10 (just turned 10) and our twins were 6, going on 7. They're fine. I'm not going to lie and say there weren't any times that they were a bit sad and missed home early on. But those faded fast and now they've built quite a life here. The twins actually have little memory of PA.

Schools - Plenty of very good schools here. Plenty.

Housing - it is what it is. You'll have to buy and sell. Not necessarily fun, but you'll get through it. We even had to live in a short term rental when we moved here, but it wasn't a big deal...we survived with no trauma...in fact the kids met their now best friends while we were there.

Parents - this is just subjective, but they'll have to get over it.

 

[MomofKatie]

Lots of Delta employees live in the Powder Springs area. Cobb County schools- very good. Cobb County property taxes- very cheap compared to Fulton County (Alpharetta/Roswell). Commute- closer to downtown/airport than N Fulton County.

I grew up in the East Cobb County area- loved it!

 

[macraven]

Hi yaya74, we moved to Georgia 2 years ago quite quickly

We had sold our house in northern Illinois and needed to buy a house quickly

We searched and secured a real estate company and agent within 4 days

He set up and handled our house search and everything that needed to be done

We made the trip down, viewed houses and made a decision

Our agent guided us the entire time
He had the answers to questions we had not thought of asking

You might be feeling stressed doing the relocation
Finding an agent would be a start for a move to a new state