Private pilots Chuck and Samantha English were used to being away from home for days for their careers. After their son, Cole, was born in 2013, they decided that Samantha would stay at home and considered remaining in California or moving.
The cost of housing in Redondo Beach, Calif., and lack of a support network caused the couple to set their sights on Georgia, where Samantha previously lived.
“Moving would be best for us financially and emotionally,” said Samantha, 37.
The priority
Focused on moving to an area with top-ranked schools, they researched class sizes, test scores and graduation rates. As a result, they narrowed the search to east Cobb County, where Samantha also was familiar with the reputation of the schools.
The search
As the couple started to look with Marty Bosworth of Harry Norman, Realtors, they were relieved to see cheaper home prices, compared to California. They found single-family homes with four bedrooms in the mid-$300,000s, compared to townhomes in California priced in the mid-$500,000s.
That doesn’t mean the search process was always easygoing. Once they had a contract on a Roswell home in east Cobb County, they ran into problems with the inspection and the application process for a VA loan. Samantha remembered her husband reassuring her a few times during the process that everything would work out. “We both felt it and just stuck with it and powered forward,” she said.
The home
The couple bought a four-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath home that investors were flipping. Despite the fact that the unkempt yard looked like it was from horror movie “The Blair Witch Project,” Chuck said, they were enamored with the East Spring Lake neighborhood amenities, including a pool, tennis courts, playground and 8-acre lake. “We love our choice,” said Chuck, 43. “We love the area.”
The two-story brick home, built in 1985, had large bathrooms and closets that they weren’t expecting in an older home. The Colonial-style layout was not as open as they had originally wanted, but they were willing to sacrifice for rooms such as a formal living room (now the playroom) and because of the neighborhood. The house was freshened up with new hardwood floors, paint, carpet, granite countertops and tile backsplash. After the inspection, new garage doors, furnaces, insulation and gutters were added.
The lifestyle
The couple has been thrilled with the family-friendly atmosphere at parks and restaurants in the suburbs and the warm welcome from neighbors. “Even before we moved in, people were introducing themselves to us, giving out phone numbers and asking us to call if we need help,” Samantha said.
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