20 Things You MUST Know About Living in North Metro Atlanta
Hello! I’m Tim Trevathan with Tim Trevathan Homes and Keller Williams Realty. Today, I’ve got a fun video for you! I’m going to tell you 20 Things you MUST know about living in North Metro Atlanta. Whether you are already planning a move here, or you are just considering the area, there are a few things you’ll want to know before you make the move. In fact, I’ve had the joy of helping several clients relocate to Atlanta from other parts of the country, and perhaps you can be the next one to call Atlanta your home! Whether it’s a phone call, text, email, however you want to get a hold of me, I’d love to help make this city your home! And don’t forget to subscribe to my channel.
1. North Metro Atlanta. First things first. What exactly is considered North Metro Atlanta? The entire Metro Atlanta are is comprised of the 11 counties surrounding Atlanta. North Metro Atlanta is the northern chunk of those counties. For the purposes of our video today, we’re talking about Forsyth County, northern Fulton County, and Gwinnett County when we say North Metro Atlanta.
2. Traffic. In 2020, Atlanta was ranked the metro area with the 10th worst traffic congestion in the US by INRIX, a company that analyzes how people move around the world, with commuters losing an average of 82 hours to traffic a year.
The good news is that while we certainly have A LOT of traffic here, our traffic pales in comparison to Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and New York – commuters in those cities lose over an average of a whopping 140 hour to traffic a year. So hey, things could certainly be worse!
If you are moving here from one of those cities, you’ll probably think we’re crazy for complaining about traffic. If you are moving here from somewhere other than the 10 cities on this list, well, you may need to be sure and pack your patience as you adapt to more traffic than you may be used to.
3. Rush Hour. This goes hand in hand with traffic but deserves its own spot on the list. Here in North Metro Atlanta, rush hour isn’t really rush hour. Its more like “rush morning” and “rush afternoon”. If you want to avoid traffic, you’ll want to hit the road after about 10:00 am or before about 4:00 pm.
One thing that can really help cut down on your commute time if you work in the North Metro area is choosing a home that gives you a reverse commute, so you are going against the primary flow of traffic on your way to and from work.
4. The Perimeter. This is certainly a term you’ll want to be familiar with. The perimeter refers to I-285, which encircles downtown Atlanta and the adjacent areas. You’ll also hear two other terms: inside the perimeter and outside the perimeter. As you can probably guess, inside the perimeter means inside of the I-285 circle and outside of the perimeter refers to areas outside of the I-285 circle. These are abbreviated ITP and OTP. Basically ITP is the cosmopolitan, urban part of the metro area and OTP is the suburbs.
5. Spaghetti Junction. This is a term you’ll hear frequently on the traffic reports and no, no one is eating spaghetti on the interstate. Officially named the Tom Morland Intersection, spaghetti junction is the local term for where I-285 meets I-85, the primary north-south interstate in the North Metro Atlanta area. When viewed from the air, the intersection of these two interstates and a collection of access roads looks like a big plate of spaghetti.
While we’re talking about important traffic terms, I’ve got two more you’ll need to know if you live in North Metro Atlanta. First the top end perimeter. When you hear that on a traffic report, it is referring to the northern part of the I-285 circle, which is the part you’ll travel on if it is part of your commute.
You’ll also hear the term “the connector”, this refers to where I-75 and I-85 merge to travel through the heart of Atlanta. If you live in the North Metro Area and have to travel down to the connector, you’ll want to either give yourself plenty of travel time or have a non-peak traffic time commute if at all possible. Living in the north metro and commuting down to the connector one of the longest commutes you could have in this area unless you live in the North Metro area and work in the South Metro area, which I don’t recommend. Plan to live and work on the same side of the city if possible.
6. Hotlanta. Here’s a pro-tip. No one who lives here calls it Hotlanta. No one. Okay, maybe a few newbies, but they’ll drop it before long. If you want, you can refer to it as the ATL, but most people simply call it “Atlanna”, with that second ‘t’ being silent.
7. Peachtree streets and roads. You probably already know that one of Georgia’s nicknames is the Peach State. Here’s a quick fun fact: neighboring South Carolina actually grows a lot more peaches than Georgia, but somehow we ended up with the nickname and they didn’t.
In the Metro Atlanta area, there are over 70 roads with Peachtree in their names. It can get quite confusing! So, as you get your bearings and start to learn your way around your new home, if you are headed to a Peachtree-something, double check your GPS and make sure you’re headed to the right place.
I don’t know about the past, but in modern times, there are close to zero actual peach trees along any of these roads.
8. Ponce de Leon Avenue. While we’re talking about road names, there’s one more you need to know. If you live in North Metro Atlanta it most likely won’t be a road you travel on regularly, but you’ll hear it on traffic reports or perhaps venture down to the popular Ponce City Market, so its important you know how to say the name.
When pronouncing Ponce de Leon Avenue, forget everything you learned in Spanish class. Its known here as “pohnc duh lee-on”, or simply called “Ponce”
9. Wave to your neighbor and make small talk with the clerk. The United States is obviously a huge country, and so there are a lot of regional quirks and what is normal in one area of the country can be downright odd in another part of the country.
How you interact with strangers is one of those things that can really vary. Here, if you are out in your yard and someone drives past, it is very normal to wave at them even if you don’t know them. The same is true if you are driving through a neighborhood and see someone in their yard, it is normal that you would wave at them.
When checking out at a store, it is normal to greet and make small talk with the cashier or other customers waiting in line with you, which I know is very much not normal in other parts of the country.
It can take some getting used to at first, but soon you’ll find yourself waving and chit-chatting like a local.
10. Waffle House. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, you need to visit your closet Waffle House soon. I promise there is most likely one less than 20 minutes from your house, unless you’re moving way out to the edge of the North Metro Atlanta area.
Headquartered and started in Atlanta, this 24/7 breakfast joint is the opposite of fine dining but is a local staple. Particularly popular are the waffles, obviously, but also the hashbrowns. Look at the menu to decide if you want them scattered, smothered and/or covered. Translation: do you want them crispy, cooked with onions, or covered with melted cheese?
11. Chick-fil-a. Another Atlanta staple you’re almost never more than a few miles from. Despite only having about 2,500 locations nation-wide and being dwarfed by other chains, Atlanta-based Chick-fil-a sells more chicken sandwiches than any other fast-food restaurant in the country.
They are also know for their great customer service. Even though the line can get quite long during peak meal times, the service team will have your food to you quickly and with a smile on their face.
If Chick-fil-a is new to you, head over as soon as you get a chance. I recommend starting with their “Number 1” – a chicken sandwich, waffle fries, and a drink as the best way to try their most famous staples. For the full Southern experience, order Sweet Tea for your drink.
12. Sweet Tea. Speaking of sweet tea, if you are moving here from outside of the South, you’ll want to make a mental note that when you see “tea” on a restaurant menu, the default is sweet tea, served chilled. Unsweet tea is almost always available, but you’ll want to be sure to specify that you want unsweet tea. If you just order “tea”, you’ll get sweet.
13. Coke. Did you know Coca-Cola was invented in Atlanta? In some places people drink pop, in other places people drink soda, and here people drink coke, or if you are talking to an old timer, you may here. If you are hosting and ask someone what they want to drink and they reply “a coke”, you can then ask them “what kind” and they’ll tell you the specific soda they want.
14. Sports teams, win or lose. Atlanta is home to the Braves, Falcons, and Hawks. The Georgia Bulldogs are over in Athens but many North Metro Atlanta residents are alumi.
Atlantans love their sports teams despite their all-too-often habit of having a great season followed by a spectacular exit from post-season competition. 2021 and 2022 have been phenomenal years with the Braves and Bulldogs (called the Dawgs by local fans) winning the World Series and National Championship respectively, ending season after season of heartbreak.
15. Local events. It’s no secret that North Metro Atlanta is huge. Fortunately, many of the cities in the area have worked hard to form their own local identity and give their residents a sense of place and that hometown feel you’d have in a smaller city.
A big part of this is city-sponsored events. You’ll find fall festivals, outdoor concerns, movie nights, food truck nights, and a plethora of other events.
Most of the cities in the North Metro area have also worked to establish a walkable dining and shopping district.
An easy way to see what the areas you are considering moving to have to offer is to go check out the local government’s website. Most are very informative and offer a wealth of information to new residents.
You can also check out my channel here on YouTube. I’ve done deep dives on many North Metro Atlanta cities, and you’ll find information on neighborhoods, things to do, and more.
16. Ethnic Cuisine. If you love food, you’ll be happy to know there is no shortage of fantastic ethnic cuisine in the North Metro Atlanta area. You’ll find it all over the area, but it is especially easy to find great ethnic cuisine in Duluth and Suwanee. You’ll find food from all over the world, which is not surprising considering Gwinnett County is the most diverse county in the entire Southeastern United States.
17. Easy Access to Nature. Even though you’re moving to a metro area, one thing you need to know is that you are never very far from a local park. Gwinnett and Forsyth Counties have fantastic local park systems, and most of the cities in the area have great parks as well. Walking or jogging trails, mountain biking, getting away from the noise on a nature trail or greenway, or even canoeing or kayaking –whatever it is you like to do outdoors, there’s a great chance its offered at a park not too far from you.
18. Weather. We all know the 4 seasons: summer, fall, winter and spring, right? Well, here in Atlanta we add a 5th season: pollen season. Now, I’ve obviously not lived everywhere in the US, but I’d say it would be hard to find somewhere with more impressive pollen than Georgia. At times, it is so thick during the spring that you can see swirling clouds of yellow dust blowing off the trees, and your car will go from freshly washed to bright yellow in a matter of hours. Long story short, if you have seasonal allergies, don’t forget to bring your allergies meds when you move.
19. Weather, Part 2. We just added a 5th season, and now we’re adding a 6th season: humidity season. Humidity season is technically summer, but summers aren’t just hot here, they are hot AND humid.
In July, the average temp is between 85 – 95 F, but when you pair that with an average of 69% humidity (often even higher) and you’ll feel like the air is almost so thick you could cut it with a knife on the most humid days.
Certainly something to keep in mind if you are moving from a drier area of the country.
20. New in town. No matter where you are coming from, you won’t be the only new person in town. From July 2020 to July 2021, an average of 117 people per day moved to the Metro Atlanta area.
Sometimes it almost seems like everyone is from somewhere else. About 40% of the population was born in another state, and about 15% was born in another country. So, over half of the Metro Atlanta population was born somewhere else.
That is what makes Atlanta, and the North Metro Atlanta area, the wonderfully diverse, vibrant, and growing area that it is.
If you are ready to start searching for your North Metro Atlanta home, my contact information is below. Please reach out! I specialize in the area and would love to welcome you and help you call North Metro Atlanta home.
