Deal? Is Stone Mountain, GA A Good Location For Rental?

Question

Anyone familiar with Stone Mountain, GA (near Atlanta)? A realtor sent me a short sale at 55k. 3bed, 2bath. Move-in ready. Recent rent is about 750 to 900 per month.

Concern: school district is very bad. I understand that is a less desirable part. Is this a dying town or blue collar area?

Thanks

Zac Caudell · Answer

I'm from Lilburn which is right next to Stone Mountain and I second @Justin Bundrick's remarks. In general, the schools are terrible and most of the homes are in C and D neighborhoods. In this area, school district is often king. If you come across a house with a Stone Mountain address that is in Gwinnett County (very small area) then your chances of success are greatly increased. Otherwise, I would be wary.

There are a couple of anomalies: Smoke Rise and Pine Lake. While the schools aren't any better, these two sections might be considered mostly B class areas with just a few A class streets mixed in.

There are a couple of anomalies: Smoke Rise and Pine Lake. While the schools aren't any better, these two sections might be considered mostly B class areas with just a few A class streets mixed in.

Account Closed · Answer

@harry zhou

I am an Atlanta investor and familiar with just about all cities in GA. Stone Mountain, GA is good for rentals but it depends on the exact neighborhood. If there is a short supply of rentals available in the neighborhood of the property, get it. If plenty are plenty of rentals available, I would suggest looking a little more West towards the city. Decatur and North Decatur are EXCELLENT rental neighborhoods right now.

With this size home I would think the school system matter, with a small home not so much.

Harry Zhou · Answer

That's very good point. I saw on zillow that tax has dropped a lot since 2011. Are you experiencing high tax?

Jean Paul Rousseau · Answer

I bought a house in Stone Mountain two years ago, one of the problem is the high tax level. In my particular case it's more than 2 months rental.

Kevin Polite · Answer

i had a home in Stone Mountain in the 90's and sold it in 2004. I saw that 2 years ago it sold for half of what I sold it and 20% less than what I bought it.  You can find plenty of cash flowing properties with no problem, but I dont forsee any growth in rents are any appreciation.

Because most scools in thst entire area are medicore at best, I dont think that is aconcern because its actually a good renter's market. @Harry Zhou your goals should determine your strategy

Justin B. · Answer

I actually moved from Snellville years ago, which is right next to Stone Mountain. You can see the granite from many of the neighborhood streets. During the housing market crash, someone-I-was-close-with's home went from $150k to a foreclosed value at $50k (like many places). But maybe unlike other places, Snellville was surrounded by Lithonia and Stone Mnt/Clarkston which is an area dominated by class C and D homes. When Snellville became affordable, those areas bled into Snellville. Needless to say, that market never fully recovered. This is just my interpretation.

That's really just a background story. If I were to purchase properties, it would be closer to the east side of Stone Mnt, not on the west side neighboring Clarkston.

Of course I have not done a market study from a real estate perspective but growing up in Dekalb Co, I was kinda scared of those areas.

I hope this helps.

Deal? Is Stone Mountain, GA A Good Location For Rental?

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