Athens is a city built on choices. Multiple universities, including the University of Georgia, Athens Technical College, and Augusta University, all have campuses in Athens. There are plenty of history and art museums, along with countless independent businesses, boutique restaurants, bars, and retail outlets that serve the students, professionals, families and retirees that populate the city. The city is accommodating to those with cars, those who prefer public transportation, and those who love to bike everywhere. In short, Athens is a city that prides itself on being many different things to its many different citizens, be they students, lifelong residents, or newcomers to the fair metropolis. 

A recent transplant noted: *I moved to Athens from the Washington, D.C., area and feel that I couldn't have found a better location to move to after leaving the suburbs (lived in Fairfax County, VA, drove or took the train to work in D.C.).*

*I really enjoy the bar scene, the friendly locals, the farmer's markets, and restaurants. There's also beer and wine festivals, plus great street fairs such as Hot Corner and Latinx Fest.*

Choices

The Best Thing About Athens?

Finding a house in Athens is a tricky prospect. Renting is fairly easy and straightforward, provided one plans around the August through August lease cycle and high turnover rates on apartments due to the transient student population. However, the process of finding and either purchasing or renting a home in much of the city is generally agreed to be tough for single residents, childless couples, and families alike. Much of this has to do with how housing is now a business and college towns are beloved by investors who like to buy up homes and rent them to students.  If you're considering a move to Athens, and consider a house to be a necessity, it's recommended you secure that home before making the move.  

Local feedback: *Want to buy a house? Good but the market is shrinking due to the number of people who buy up a ton of property and rent it out to college kids. I love Athens, I fought hard to stay here after college and I plan on living here all my days. But it's not for everyone...*

Buying a Home

The Worst Thing About Athens?

There is never a shortage of things to do for fun in Athens. The public parks have some of the most beautiful walking trails in the entire country. The Twilight Races are a must for cycling enthusiasts. Board game bars offer countless tabletop opportunities for those interested. The local museums dedicated to southern and African American experience are considered superb for those interested in the subject matter. And of course the music scene of Athens is absolutely legendary: the 40 Watt Club, the Georgia Theater, Morton Theater, and the Athens Symphony Orchestra are among the best music venues in the country, with a rich history dating back decades sure to catch the attention of music enthusiasts. 

Check out the Athens Event calendar to get a taste of everything going on here: https://www.visitathensga.com/events/?view=list&sort=date


Lifestyle of Athens

The University of Georgia is a major employer for much of the city. As such, many jobs are in either education, administration, or facilities management for the university. Outside of that, if you work in technology, companies both young and old such as Docebo, Roundsphere, and Partner Software are prime candidates for work. Several notable pharmaceutical companies are also based in the area, as well as independent publisher Hill Street Press, and a growing music industry. Outside of that, service industry jobs are always hiring in Athens. For a college town the job prospects are pretty diverse. 


Worklife of Athens

Athens is a city for everyone. No matter who you are, where you're from, what you do, or what you believe, you'll find like-minded people here. There are progressives aplenty. There are conservatives (on the edges). There are music-fanatics, intellectuals, families loving the great public schools. Pretty much they have it all. 

For Everyone

Why You Should Move Here Now

There are several great neighborhoods for Young Professionals and Students in Athens but it never hurts to start your search Downtown. It’s home to the University of Georgia campus so students and young professionals benefit from the restaurants, bars and entertainment options that serve the young population. 

It also is home to much of arts scene and cultural experiences with the Georgia Museum of Art a centerpiece of the beautiful historic architecture. There’s plenty of boutique shopping and an incredibly diverse foodie scene covering local and international fare. The area also plays host to events and festivals throughout the year, including the AthFest music and arts festival and the Athens Farmer’s Market. Live here and you’re walking to fun night’s out as much as you please. 

Five Points is another interesting option for both college students and young professionals. It’s an historic neighborhood just east of downtown that contains part of the University campus and is filled with boutique shops, cafes, bars, cool restaurants and a number of galleries/art studios for the art lovers among you. It’s also notable for the Five Points Fountain, a beautiful and iconic feature that pulls in the community for formal and informal gatherings.  https://www.redandblack.com/magazine/athens-neighborhoods-five-points/article_29e73934-1188-11e6-a224-276163151111.html
- Downtown
- Five Points
- East Athens


Young Professionals/Students

Downtown/Five Points

Families LOVE the Boulevard neighborhood for its historic homes from cottage-sized to mansion-sized, combined with an eclectic, Athens vibe. It’s just a 1/3rd of a mile from downtown so you’re walking distance from the energy and experiences of the city center but in an oasis of historic coolness. It was originally built in the 19th century as a streetcar suburb but now is filled with families looking for a perfect mix of in-city and out-of city-center energy.  It has its own commercial district with galleries, performance art and some of the best restaurants in the city. Perhaps best of all it has one of the area’s  prized elementary schools, for those looking for great public options. 
- Boulevard
- Normaltown
- Milledge Avenue


Families

Boulevard

Lots of retirees have moved to Athens in recent years from hurricane-prone Florida. Plenty choose to live in traditional neighborhoods like Five Points but there are also beautiful gated golf course communities like The Village at Jennings Mill, if you want to truly live in your own world. The Georgia Club is a luxury country club community just outside the city limits that is rated one of the 50 best retirement communities in the country. It has everything from Georgian Mansions to townhomes and apartments. You name it and you get it here: golf, pickleball, healthclub, pools, community events and even a doggo park!
- Five Points
- The Village at Jennings Mill
- The Georgia Club


Retirees

Five Points

Athens

**Life in Athens**

Athens is great imo. There's pretty much something for everyone here, no matter what your interests are. The local art and music scene are rich and varied, with a long history in the town that includes places such as the Georgia Theatre and the Georgia Museum of Art. The parks and the Greenway are well kept and a great place for people of all ages, one even has a small zoo. There are dozens upon dozens of unique and locally owned restaurants of pretty much every cuisine. And of course, the school provides many services that benefit the locals as well (for example, the Ag school has some of the best meat prices in town if you order early enough)

Normaltown and Five Points are my two favorite neighborhoods if you don't want to live right downtown. And if you can commute from just outside the perimeter (10 miles-ish) you can find some very nice rentals that are more 'rural', but honestly everything in Athens is pretty damn close together.

I've left out a LOT I'm sure, but one of the best references I found when I moved here was the local paper, the Flagpole. They publish weekly on everything going on in Athens and it's a good way to get a feel of the town. Check them out for more than I could ever tell you at www.flagpole.com

Good Luck!

**Life in Athens**

I'm a native, and I love it! Actually, I feel like I've only really taken advantage of the town in the past few years (aka after I lost my car). If you like taking walks, there are so many great places! I'm lucky enough to live near Birchmore Trail and Oconnee Forest Park, but there's also the State Botanical Garden (gorgeous - better than the Atlanta Botanical Garden, I'm told) and the Greenway. Campus is also very nice, and there are several beautiful neighborhoods I like to walk through. I'm a single woman, but if it's like the 5 Points area, I feel safe walking by myself even at night.

It's also great for music - I found my musical niche a couple of years ago, started going to concerts just all the time. Of course, Atlanta is nearby, too, so you have fairly easy access to some bigger names, too (although I have to say, I'm kinda surprised at some of the people who perform in Athens - I've seen a couple who're kinda one-hit-wonders in the mainstream, but continue to be popular in their own sub-genres).

There are some nice, unique little shops downtown... Oh, and the local artist scene is pretty great! If you're into indie-folk music, both Family and Friends and Kishi Bashi are great (I've had the opportunity to meet both of them, although I'm afraid I made a fool of myself with the latter); I've had a few opportunities to meet acclaimed graphic novel artist and New York Times illustrator Eleanor Davis (she's very nice, and I've gotten all my works by her signed)... Oh, and I'm in a poetry group, Word of Mouth Athens! Or at least I was, before the pandemic. I don't know what the status is with that now, especially since a lot of the members are older... I should ask the leader of the group. But yeah, a lot of great writers there, and they also bring in poets from other places to read.

There's also Contra Dance at Memorial Park... But again, I don't know when they're gonna meet again, because a lot of the members are older.

If you're into knitting/crochet, there's Revival Yarns, and they do knitting/crochet circles sometimes.

As for disadvantages, game days can be kind of a pain if you're not into football - the traffic is bad, and there's partying in areas with big student populations. There's also a lot of wealth inequality.

But yeah, overall, I really like Athens! I didn't take advantage of it when I was growing up, but now that I'm on my own, it's kind of been the perfect place for me.

**What is Athens like?**

Nice! Yeah I’m pretty big into the outdoor scene. I’ve been here in Athens like two weeks now just up in a hotel and have tried to immerse myself in local activities and restaurants. I am from Memphis and my apartment there is backed up to one of our greenlines that runs like 20-30+ miles over the city, so I checked out the Greenway here. I’ve gone hiking up in Amacola Falls and Yonah Mountain the last two weekend I’ve been here. Super cool places. I definitely enjoy the city and who knows. Maybe I’ll be a local as well soon enough.

**Considering Athens**

As someone who did live there and is now trying to get back, it's a wonderful town. It's the size of a gnat but the constant cycle of college students keeps the culture and atmosphere fresh and hip (still in my 20s too, I can say hip without it being too cringey). And yet the whole town feels lived in and comfy. There is not a lot of work to go around, hence why I'm not there atm, but if you find that perfect situation you should defiantly live there for a while at least!

The hiking scene isn't great. Probably more accurate to say that there isn't one. But you're hardly an hour from a ton of amazing hiking. An hour from a big city with a big airport. Only 4 hours from the beach. Btw, if you're interested in having some babies. Consider living in the county limits of Oconee. The public schools there make private schools look like a joke. Academics, Athletics, Arts. They do them all very well. And all for the low low price of rubbing elbows with a bunch of southerners who think they're a cut above the hoi polloi because they pay a shit ton of property tax. But they're good people, don't let anyone fool you. There's some stats out there that 1 out of every 4 students that graduate from North Oconee is considered gifted on a national level, and 2/3rds of their graduates qualify for the Hope scholarship. It's ranked in the top 2% nationally. Just saying... those are dice I would roll.

Hey all!

Adam Rogers here, today I will be the one to discuss with you the pros and cons of living here in Athens, Georgia. We all know no place is perfect but we can call it home nonetheless. Hopefully with this video I will be able to inform you what you need to know and help you make a decision or just to give you food for thought.

Moving to Georgia! Reach out to us! We absolutely LOVE it when people reach out to us, and we have helped people from all across the world make the move right here to our home city. We can't wait to hear from you! Livinginathensgeorgia@gmail.com


**Athens, Georgia is The South's Favorite College Town, Go Dawgs! | Hey Ya'll | Southern Living**

Athens, Georgia has always been known for its music scene, and we love the live shows, but there is so much more to this picture perfect southern town than tunes. That's why The South's Best Awards recognized this quaint little town as the best of the best. The food is off the charts, and staying in one of the unique local hotels will make your trip into an event you can tell people about. Now is the time to visit, since the Dawgs are national champions, so grab some soul food and ice cream, tour the campus, then you can thank us for the tip later. Have fun!

Athens, Georgia