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Old 05-14-2019, 11:56 PM   #1
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Life in Georgia?

What is good and bad about life in Georgia? I am thinking of buying a seasonal place to spend time there with my motor home. I want to look around Georgia so I would like to hear experience from there.
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Old 05-15-2019, 04:58 AM   #2
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Been our home most of our lives, Have lived in the mountains, on the coast and in the west central area. Love west Georgia and the lakes of the Chattahoochee River Valley, but can't say enough good things about the rest of the state too. Traffic around Atlanta is not fun, but thankfully Atlanta is close enough to enjoy and benefit from all the great features of that huge city.

Generally we have found GA roads to be the best in the country. Once in a while you'll hit a bump but not like many other states. We've travelled to and through the entire US using GA as our home base. Wouldn't want to base our home anywhere else.

The majesty of the great Blue Ridge and the Georgia mountains is awesome. South of a line running from about Columbus to Macon to Augusta, known as the fall line or the gnat line, you'll bump into a few sand gnats during a few week of the year. This area is generally known as the coastal plain and is home to many quaint small towns, military bases, vidalia onions, and oceans of cotton, pecans and peanuts. (You can find peaches and apples all around GA). We live in the central area- a swath of rolling hills running across the center of the state known as the Georgia Piedmont-- and life here is fantastic. Georgia is big- many folks don't realize in 'land area" Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi

The cost of living is decent and if retired taxes are low.

We love the ability where we live to be at the ocean in 5 hours, the Gulf in 4 hours, the mountains in 3 hours, or be on the east bank of the Mississippi in 5-6 hours using great highways. I can pretty well be anywhere east of the Mississippi within a day or at most a day and a half.

The climate is mild-- we have tolerable winters- it gets down in the 20's for a few days each winter, and warm summers with enjoyable mornings and evenings.

We made the decision many decades ago and having visited the entire US, to throw the anchor over here, raise our families and will probably get planted here when its time to go to those pearly gates.

We love RVing and camping throughout the state. I don't think you can go wrong finding a spot to set up shop here. You need to check out each region to see what you like and what region best suits you before throwing the anchor.
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Old 05-15-2019, 06:29 AM   #3
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I appreciate your time and opinion. I do plan to spend time there. I've had Kaiser medical forever and GA is another of few states where Kaiser exists.
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Old 05-15-2019, 06:47 AM   #4
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I live in the metro Atlanta area and we are weekends with aspirations to go full time. I moved from the Northeast down here to GA 15 years ago so i've been here awhile. Overall its not bad, but its worn on me over the years. Mostly the traffic issues, i think if you are up in the mountains it's ideal if you just want to weekend in the city. I'm doing the opposite as I work in Atlanta, i live in Atlanta and weekend in the mountains. Atlanta is a city designed for 3 million people with 6 million living it, it's busting at the seams, traffic, and people everywhere....... That said the job market is great. Overall the weather isn't bad, but i am not sure i'd use the word "mild" to describe July, Aug, and Sept. Frankly miserable is a better fit, most days temps will be above 90 with humidity also above 90 its really hard to enjoy anything outside. I'd move down here again from where I was, but we are looking to head west soon to enjoy a bit of a more laid back lifestyle.
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Old 05-16-2019, 09:40 AM   #5
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Assuming you are looking to winter there and stay warm. I would suggest drawing a line from Augusta through Macon to Columbus. South and east of that line is going to have the milder winters and of course the hotter summers. Using that criteria.......
As for where to live depends on whom and what you need/want around you. Like most of the country,politically and culturally the rural areas lean towards being conservative and religious while the cities along with the smaller college towns lean toward liberal and secular. Plenty of good people from all walks of life to be found in all. I'm more of a small town lefty so I tend to favor the college towns.(in order of preference) Statesboro , Milledgeville, Brunswick, Valdosta. As small cities go. Savannah , Macon, Augusta, Albany and Columbus all have enough to offer. As mentioned in the other replies, Ga is a large state and has a lot to offer everyone .IMO the best thing to do spend a month roaming the state and getting a feel for what appeals to you.
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Old 05-16-2019, 11:47 AM   #6
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Lot's of experience here...

Besides unplanned trips out of the country at the behest of the US Gov; I have lived the vast majority of my life in GA. One short stint in RI for Grad school concludes my residency elsewhere. Within the State; I have resided in nearly every geographical region...both city and country and at the extremes of both. I chose to settle in the later. Here's a list of general tips.

* Atlanta. Avoid! It's a great, relatively diverse city but it was obviously not designed to become what it is currently. There is an ongoing, somewhat successful push to alleviate the transportation problems but it simply cannot keep pace with the continuous population growth. It does offer some of the best healthcare options with Emory, CHOA and a few other that are generally regarded as top of the heap. I owe CHOA extreme respect due to the healthy, happy life of my youngest daughter....and donated about $1.1M USD to their coffers!! Move outside your PPO to get the absolute best for your family and you will pay......

* Below the Fall Line is unpleasant to me. Gnats are obviously the work of satan himself. It's hot, humid, and that tends to spoil my comfort at otherwise nice destinations.


*Extreme South GA offers few economic vehicles outside of farming. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that but it's sort of one sided culturally. If you bring your own money and don't mind the heat and gnats; it could well be paradise for you, though. I spent my young years here and removed myself as soon as I was able.


*I much prefer the North GA mountain region...especially to the East of the State. This is now home base for myself, Wife, and four kiddos between the ages of 18months and 11 years. Much better weather and good economic activity being that it's an easy shot to Atlanta, Charlotte, Greenville....all attractive cities in their own right.


* The roads are some of the best in the union. Like anywhere, you will find otherwise on some secondary highways and inner city streets but it is not the norm. Signage is top notch making travel fairly easy even without GPS.


* The State Parks are fantastic. I've been to many and never run into a problem with traversing the park roads or parking/leveling. Many, if not most, are paved and very level. Some are gravel but still quite level. Add some fantastic golf courses at a fair number of them and my ticket is punched. I figure there must have been a park ranger meeting some years ago where they were directed to make the parks accessible and comfortable. Success achieved!


* The North West and Central mountain regions are fast becoming suburban/exurban Atlanta. Still very nice but I prefer a much less concentrated mass of humans.


* Politically, you'll just have to deal with it like I do. It's certainly not the worst but the establishment has a tendency to step on its own toes repeatedly. I won't get into that but just check the national news right now.

* Do not buy a vehicle or especially a motorcoach in GA and look for a way to legally title either in another State. The road/vehicle tax scheme is special to say the least. I guess it does support the nicer than average roadways but I still find fault with it. In my case; mistakes have been made and I'm a little bitter.


Hope this gives you food for thought.
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Old 05-16-2019, 12:16 PM   #7
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I liked living in Atlanta/Roswell with the exception of the bugs and humidity. And the TAVT tax as noted by someone else. Don’t register your vehicles until you are ready to be there a long time or don’t mind losing a bunch of money if you move out of state. We moved there, paid about $8k in TAVT taxes, then moved out a year later. All that money is gone. I call it a stupidity tax.
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Old 05-16-2019, 01:55 PM   #8
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I appreciate the opinions. I intend to have a slow tour visit of GA and see for myself but I like the inside information from those who have seen it. Gnats...i did not know.
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Old 05-16-2019, 03:42 PM   #9
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Georgia is a great location for an active RVer. I moved here from the upper Midwest and have been here for 30 yrs now.

I feel the weather is near ideal for 6 months of the year. 3 months in the summer its hot and humid and 3 months of the winter its a bit cool. Great times to get in the RV and travel.

We usually do Florida, Arizona or Mexico in the Winter, and the northern US or Canada in the summer.

Also don't overlook Alabama. Lots of great lakes and camping areas and not as populated as Georgia.
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Old 05-16-2019, 03:46 PM   #10
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I've been to Atlanta twice, and both times they were in the midst of horrible ice storms. They can have some really awful weather there. Granted, you can have weather anywhere, but no one thinks "ice storm" when they think of weather in Georgia. Power lines were down, driving was very treacherous. It's not very normal there, but I thought reminding folks of the possibility of this kind of weather was a little important.
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Old 05-16-2019, 04:09 PM   #11
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For me, stay in the mountains of NE Georgia. Cooler in the summer.
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Old 05-16-2019, 06:23 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 1bigmess View Post
I've been to Atlanta twice, and both times they were in the midst of horrible ice storms. They can have some really awful weather there. Granted, you can have weather anywhere, but no one thinks "ice storm" when they think of weather in Georgia. Power lines were down, driving was very treacherous. It's not very normal there, but I thought reminding folks of the possibility of this kind of weather was a little important.
Good point about the ice storms I lived there 10 years and remember 2 bad ones. I lived in Walnut Grove and worked in Atlanta. I ended up staying in a motel for 4 days during one storm in the 1980's because the roads were closed due to ice and accidents.
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Old 05-16-2019, 08:47 PM   #13
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Like I said in a previous post, I have lived in the Metro Atlanta area for 30 yrs. In that time we have only been without power twice. The longest was 50 hrs. and yes...that was the big ice storm a very unusual happening.

Traffic...yes Atlanta has some congested traffic issues. Avoid going thru the city during rush hour commute times and it isn't that bad. I live on the Northwest side of the city and take I-75 south thru the city on avg a half dozen times a year. No big deal.
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Old 05-16-2019, 09:23 PM   #14
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You won't get enough altitude in NE Georgia to get significantly cooler. Yes it'll be a couple of degrees cooler than farther south, but not much. Shade will make a much greater difference. Winter you can get a foot of snow and ice.

Below that gnat line can be perfectly miserable. Hot, humid and the air is full of gnats. Near the coast they're not gnats, they're biting no-see-ums.

That said, I'd be looking Fort Gaines to Lagrange or northwest Augusta to Toccoa, east to the river. Those areas aren't tremendously populated yet.

Atlanta's that big thing in the punchbowl to get around or across.
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