Best Areas In GA (Near ATL) To Buy and Hold

[Yasmine Bisumber]

Hey BP Family, I am doing some research and am looking at the GA market as a possible expansion. This is in the very early brainstorming phases of my dive into a new market but I waned to reach out and ask what cities you all recommend for Buy & Hold investments in GA, I really do not want to go to far out form Atlanta so maybe cities within 20 miles or a 20-30 min drive from the city.

Also if you have any suggestions on areas you would recommend a few flips would do well.

Thanks in advance!

[Account Closed]

I am born and raised in Atlanta and can tell you the hot spots very easily.  These are all within a 20 to 30 mile radius of the inner city.

• Cherokee County - cities of Woodstock, Canton, Holly Springs, and Ballground.

• Cobb County - Mostly east Cobb and some parts of northern Cobb county in the Marietta city district.  If you go into west Cobb, stick to Kennesaw and the surrounding area.

• Forsyth County - Anywhere in this county.  It's a great one all around.

• Gwinnett County - I grew up here and there are pockets you now want to stay away from.  Stick to cities of Suwanee, Buford, Sugar Hill, and Lawrenceville.  Parts of Duluth are ok as long as it's closer to Johns Creek.

• North Fulton County - This includes Alpharetta, Johns Creek and Sandy Springs.  Sandy Springs has more crime typically while Alpharetta and Johns Creek are family suburban areas.

• Paulding County is up and coming.  While it's slightly further out, it's becoming a hotbed for new development.

• Dekalb County is ripe for seasoned investors in my opinion.  It's got a lot of older properties that need rehabbing, plus there is more crime in that area.  I wouldn't start here as a newbie.  If you stick to properties around or close to Stone Mountain you'll be better off as Stone Mountain is a state park and much of the area around it is kept up fairly well.

• Stay away from south Fulton county.  There are too many pockets of bad neighborhoods that make it difficult to determine if your property will appreciate properly or get the right tenant / cashflow.  If you want to buy in the city of Atlanta you really need to know what you're doing and have some serious cash in the bank as I've seen many houses just sit there for quite some time.  The seasoned investors with lots of cash are the ones that are typically more successful here.