10 Reasons to Move to Fulton County in Georgia
Hi! I’m Tim Trevathan with Tim Trevathan Homes and Keller Williams Realty. Today, I’m going to tell you 10 Reasons why you should Move to Fulton County, one of the most popular areas of Northern metro Atlanta. If, at the end of this video, you realize that you could call Fulton County or anywhere in metro Atlanta your home, then we need to talk! Whether it’s text, call, or e-mail, I’d love to setup a game plan to make your relocation a dream come true!
The Northern part of Fulton County is home to Johns Creek, Alpharetta, Roswell, and Milton, four very popular Atlanta suburbs. A bit further south is Sandy Springs, a popular suburb for those who want to be closer to the Perimeter as Sandy Springs lies on both sides of I-285, the interstate that circles Atlanta.
Fulton County is long and narrow. Very long. In fact, it is 70 miles long from north to south! If you look at Fulton County on a map, the northern and southern parts of the county are connected by a narrow strip of land just North of Sandy Springs.
You have suburbia in northern Fulton County, come down to Sandy Springs and the Perimeter, head south through the city of Atlanta and the areas immediately surrounding it, and then head back out of the southern end of the Perimeter into more suburbia.
Because Fulton County covers so much distance and there is so much diversity in the county, I’m going to focus on the northern part of the county today.
Let’s move on to the 10 Reasons I think its worth considering moving to Fulton County.
First, a sense of community. Johns Creek, Alpharetta, Roswell, and Milton all have a strong community identity and host well attended public events throughout the year. Metro Atlanta is a BIG place. It is huge and millions of people live here. Living in a suburb that has a strong sense of community identity is a great way to help such a big place feel a little bit smaller and more like a hometown.
Johns Creek and Milton don’t have downtown areas, but Alpharetta and Roswell both have popular old town areas and Alpharetta has the Avalon. More on that in a few minutes!
Second, the schools. Northern Fulton County has some very highly ranked public high schools. The top 7 public high schools in Fulton County are all in the Northern part of the county. The top 6 schools have graduation rates of 96% or higher and have great reputations in the community.
The high schools are large, averaging around 2,000 students, but compared to neighboring Gwinnett County even these large high schools are small in comparison. Gwinnett’s high schools average around 3,000 students.
The local elementary and middle schools also have good reputations in the community. Many families move to Northern Fulton County specifically for the schools.
Third, parks and recreation. Fulton County itself does not have a robust parks and recreation department, but the cities in North Fulton have stepped up and run many popular parks providing the community with playgrounds, athletic fields, green space, walking trails, nature trails and more.
Some of these parks have amphitheaters and serve as community gathering places for city run events, such as Newtown Park in Johns Creek.
Autry Mill Nature Preserve in Johns Creek is privately owned and operated and is one of the hidden gems of the area. It is a 46-acre nature preserve with 3 miles of trails that also hosts private events as well as provides education on the area’s history and the natural environment. The petting zoo is quite popular with children, and various events and classes are regularly held.
The Chattahoochee Nature Center in Roswell is also privately owned and operated and is quite popular with visitors who wish to escape the business of daily life and enjoy the peace of nature for a while. Or, with visitors who with to enjoy the zipline, canoe, or attend one of many family friendly educational programs.
If you want to get out and exercise or enjoy nature, you’ve lot lots of options in Northern Fulton County.
Fourth, the Avalon. The Avalon is one of those places you have to visit and experience in order to fully appreciate. This high-end live, work, play community is of course popular with those who live there, but also draws people from all over the area to shop, dine, or attend a community event.
It is arguably the most popular gathering spot in North Fulton County and you’ll find professionals hosting business lunches, families enjoying a meal or the green space, and friends shopping or enjoying a movie together.
If you are in the area, you need to be sure to pay a visit.
Fifth, diversity. While not as ethnically diverse as neighboring Gwinnett County (which, by the way, is though to be the most diverse county in the Southeast), North Fulton county is slowly but surely becoming more ethically diverse. Most of the public high schools have more than 50% minority students and reflect the changing ethnic and racial demographics of the area.
With diversity comes a wide variety of ethnic restaurants and shops. The Super H-Mart in Johns Creek is a go-to Asian grocery and the Johns Creek area in particular has a variety of ethnic cuisine available in its many restaurants.
Sixth, safety. This area has a reputation for being a very safe area. Each city has its own police department and fire department and low rates of violent crime. Many residents say they moved to the area because it feels like a safe area to raise a family. As an example, Johns Creek has a violent crime rate of 0.52 per 1,000 people, compared to the state of Georgia rate of 4.0 per 1,000 people. Roswell has a bit higher violent crime rate, coming in just under the state’s rate. The rest of the North Fulton area though is considerable under the state’s violent crime rate and most Roswell residents will tell you they feel quite safe in their homes.
Seventh, location. If you think of the Metro Atlanta area as a circle, northern Fulton County is almost right in the middle in the top third of that circle. This means residents can go east to Gwinnett County, west to Cobb County, or North to Forsyth and Cherokee counties without having to go all the way across the metro area.
Going south into Atlanta does take some work due to traffic as there is only 1 primary north-south highway that serves the entire area, but the drive into Atlanta is fairly simple in that it is a straight shot down Highway 141 and then taking I-285 to whichever exit you need.
Eighth, swim and tennis neighborhoods. If your ideal neighborhood is a swim & tennis neighborhood with an HOA then you are in luck! There is an abundance of these suburban Atlanta staples in the area. HOAs aren’t for everyone, but they are quite popular here.
Families enjoy gathering at the neighborhood pool in the summer, and many neighborhoods have active tennis teams as well as host events for neighborhood residents throughout the year.
If an HOA isn’t your thing you do have options, not all the neighborhoods are HOA neighborhoods and not all HOA neighborhoods offer a swim & tennis membership. But if having a neighborhood swim & tennis option is important to you then Northern Fulton County is a great place to look for a home.
Ninth, golf. There are a lot of great golf courses in this area. Most are private and require a membership, but there is a very popular public course as well. There are also several robust junior golf programs popular with are families who have children wishing to learn golf.
If you wish to join a private golf club, you won’t be disappointed with your options. Some of the most popular clubs in Georgia are in this area, including Country Club of the South and The Standard Club. Some golf clubs are located in neighborhoods, but membership is usually open to non-residents as well.
Tenth, jobs. Having local jobs is always a good thing. Johns Creek was originally established as a planned community around a business park. Alpharetta is home to a whopping 700 technology-based businesses. In 2020, Alpharetta was home to 13 of Inc, Magazine’s 5,000 fastest growing private companies.
The North Fulton area, including Sandy Springs, is home to the headquarters of five Fortune 500 companies. There are 22 companies with over 1,000 employees and the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce works hard to attract and retain successful businesses to the area, and each city also puts a lot of time and effort into economic development.
To wrap it up, Northern Fulton County has a lot going for it. You have a strong sense of community identity, great schools, a strong business climate and a focus on economic development, safe communities, lots of options when it comes to parks and recreation, and neighborhoods where families enjoy living.
It is a great area and if you want to learn more about Johns Creek or the Avalon in Alpharetta in particular, I invite you to check out my previous videos where I took a closer look at both of those. If you are interested in moving to northern Fulton County, don’t hesitate to get in touch. Have a great day!
