Relocating to Georgia
What do I need to know that locals already do?
What should I know about Georgia before I commit?
Home prices are the easy part to research. The parts that decide whether you'll be happy are cost of living, commute, schools if you have kids, and the feel of a neighborhood at 6 p.m. on a Tuesday. Visit more than once, in different seasons, and stay in the areas you're considering rather than a hotel downtown.
Georgia is bigger and more varied than people expect. The Athens area, the Atlanta suburbs, the mountains and the coast are different places to live.
- How long
- Most people spend about 2 weeks here.
In Georgia
Georgia closings are conducted by a closing attorney rather than a title or escrow company, and property taxes are billed by the county, with a homestead exemption you file for by April 1 once it's your primary home.
How to: Compared the real cost of living
Compare cost of living, including property taxes and insurance, against where you are now
How to: Visited my shortlist neighborhoods
Shortlist neighborhoods and visit them at different times of day
How to: Checked schools and commutes
Check school ratings and commute times from specific addresses
How to: Talked to recent movers
Talk to two or three people who moved here in the last few years
How to: Know the local process basics
Learn the local closing process and tax calendar so nothing surprises you
Go deeper
- Deciding on home prices alone. You're moving your life, not just your mortgage.
- Buying sight unseen. People who do this are the ones who call us a year later to sell.
- Ignoring the commute. What looks close on a map can be forty minutes in traffic.
From the Thrive team
- Stay in an Airbnb in the neighborhood you're considering for a few nights. It tells you more than any listing.
How do I search well from another state?
How do I search well from another state?
Choose a local agent who works with out-of-state buyers regularly, get pre-approved with a lender who can close in Georgia, and let the agent be your eyes: live video tours, drive-bys at rush hour, and honest opinions about the block. Ask for what the photos leave out.
Remote searching works better than it used to, but it still can't replace one in-person visit before you commit.
- How long
- Most people spend about a month here.
How to: Have an agent who does this often
Interview agents about their experience with long-distance buyers
How to: Pre-approved with a Georgia lender
Get pre-approved with a lender licensed in Georgia
How to: Search alerts and shortlist set up
Set up search alerts and a shared shortlist
How to: Getting video tours
Ask for live video tours and street-level footage of anything serious
How to: Agent checking the hidden details
Use the agent to check the things listings hide: noise, traffic, neighbors
Go deeper
- Choosing an agent who's never worked with remote buyers. Communication is the whole job here.
- Searching before you're pre-approved. You'll need to move fast when the right one appears.
- Trusting photos for neighborhood feel. Ask for a video walk down the street.
From the Thrive team
- Ask your agent for a video of the drive from the house to your workplace at the time you'd actually make it.
How do I make the most of one visit?
How do I make the most of one visit?
Plan a concentrated trip: tour your top three to five homes with your agent, spend time in each neighborhood at different hours, drive the commute, and eat where you'd eat. Then sleep on it. A second look at the favorite the next morning usually reveals something the first visit missed.
It's a lot in a few days. Take notes and photos in every house; they blur together by dinner.
- How long
- Most people spend about 5 days here.
- What it costs
- Usually nothing beyond the trip itself: travel, a few nights' lodging and a car.
How to: Toured my top homes
Schedule your top homes back to back with your agent
How to: Walked the neighborhoods twice
Walk each neighborhood at two different times
How to: Drove the commute
Drive the real commute at the real hour
How to: Checked daily-life spots
Visit the grocery store, the park, the school pickup line
How to: Second look done
Return to your favorite before you leave
Go deeper
- Making an offer the same day as your only visit. Give it one night.
- Letting the agent's opinion replace yours. Form your own impression of the area.
- Touring only houses. You're moving to a place, not a building.
From the Thrive team
- Visit at different times of day and days of the week. Traffic, noise and activity all change.
How do I make an offer from far away?
How do I make an offer from far away?
Give your agent clear limits before negotiations start: your maximum, your priorities, what you'd concede. Then decisions can move at market speed without a call for every counter. Keep the inspection, appraisal and financing contingencies; you need them more, not less, when you can't be there.
Georgia contracts typically use a due-diligence period during which you can walk away for any reason. Ask your agent how long is customary in the market you're buying in.
- How long
- Most people spend about 5 days here.
In Georgia
Georgia purchase contracts commonly include a due-diligence period during which the buyer can terminate for any reason and keep the earnest money. Its length is negotiable.
How to: Limits and priorities set
Set your walk-away number and priorities with your agent in writing
How to: Contingencies kept
Keep inspection, appraisal and financing contingencies
How to: Earnest money and dates chosen
Choose an earnest money amount and a realistic closing date
How to: Fast channel agreed
Agree on a fast communication channel for counters
How to: Signing electronically
Sign electronically and confirm receipt each time
Go deeper
- Being slow to respond. Remote buyers lose homes to buyers who answer within the hour.
- Not setting limits up front. Second-guessing every counter is exhausting and expensive.
- Forgetting time zones. Build in the difference when deadlines are set in hours.
From the Thrive team
- Tell your agent your maximum and your priorities once, clearly. Then let them negotiate.
How does a closing work when I'm not there?
How does a closing work when I'm not there?
Inspection, appraisal and underwriting proceed as usual; you review reports remotely and negotiate repairs through your agent. In Georgia a closing attorney handles the closing and can arrange for you to sign remotely or by mail with a power of attorney if needed. Your agent can do the final walkthrough on video if you can't be there.
It's mostly email and phone. The one thing to do in person or by phone with a number you already have is confirming the wire.
- How long
- Most people spend about a month here.
In Georgia
Georgia requires a licensed attorney to conduct the closing; the attorney, not a title company, disburses funds and records the deed.
How to: Inspection reviewed
Attend the inspection by video and read the full report
How to: Insurance bound
Bind homeowners insurance before closing
How to: Closing Disclosure reviewed
Review the Closing Disclosure three days before
How to: Remote signing arranged
Arrange remote signing with the closing attorney
How to: Wire confirmed by phone
Confirm wire instructions by phone, never by email
Go deeper
- Skimming the inspection because you're remote. You need to understand what you're buying more, not less.
- Skipping the walkthrough. Have your agent do it on video.
- Sharing bank details over email. Wire fraud targets exactly this situation.
From the Thrive team
- Ask the closing attorney early what remote signing options they offer. Some can be done fully online.
How do I actually feel at home here?
How do I actually feel at home here?
Handle the paperwork early (address changes, license and registration, a new doctor), then spend your energy on people. Join one thing in the first month. The families who feel settled fastest are the ones who stopped comparing everything to where they came from and started showing up here.
The first months are a mix of relief and homesickness. Both are normal, and both fade.
- How long
- Most people spend about a month here.
In Georgia
New Georgia residents have 30 days to get a Georgia driver's license and register vehicles. File the homestead exemption with your county by April 1 to have it apply that year.
How to: Address and registrations done
Change your address and transfer registrations and licenses
How to: Utilities and providers set up
Set up utilities, a doctor, a dentist and a vet
How to: Homestead exemption filed
File for the homestead exemption once it's your primary home
How to: Joined one thing
Join one group, class or league in the first month
How to: Met the neighbors
Introduce yourself to the neighbors
Go deeper
- Spending the first month unpacking. Get out early; boxes can wait.
- Comparing everything to the old place. Different isn't worse.
- Waiting to be invited. Show up first.
From the Thrive team
- Ask your agent for their list of local providers. A good agent's plumber, electrician and pediatrician list is worth more than the closing gift.
That's the whole path.
Keep it, and come back any time. If something here doesn't fit your situation, ask one of us.
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