Haven't moved to Smyrna yet? You're almost out of time

In metro Atlanta, it doesn't take a genius to figure out when the next established area is about to cross into the super high-end. Start with an area that is densely populated in the core of the metro area, with an established housing market that attracts wealthier residents. Have established amenities that attract upwardly-mobile young professionals (in Smyrna's case, young professionals with families). New housing that is higher priced than throughout most of the metro area, and investment into upgrading older housing. Good schools. Additionally, significant investment.

I want to start with a prediction: Smyrna will be inextricably tied to the in-town market, being essentially in-town itself and a city that emerged from blight like much of in-town did. As such, it will continue to trail leading in-town areas like Virginia Highlands, Druid Hills, Buckhead and even Vinings for some time, and further separate itself from other Cobb markets other than Vinings. We should see a continued transformation of the city of Smyrna, which is already unrecognizable from years past. Eventually, it will be the same market as the Northern intown.

Before getting into some of the reasons Smyrna is hot, let's talk about the real estate market here a little and why you are running out of time...


So, with all this going for it, Smyrna must be out of reach, right? Well, luckily for you, you still have a little time. Compared to the resurgence of Virginia Highlands, Sandy Springs, and a few other areas, Smyrna was a late-comer. It, like many portions of the core of Atlanta, has gone from decades past of urban blight, to a resurgence in the late 90s and early 2000s. Had we not had an economic downturn, it would have probably been out of reach already. 2006 and 2007 were especially hot years for Smyrna and it seemed to have "popped". It was now nationally known instead of regionally known, and people moving to metro Atlanta were now asking about it. The sky was the limit.

However, as luck would have it for all the procrastinators that haven't made the move to Smyrna yet, we had a national downturn. Smyrna got hit less hard than most of the metro area, but it got hit nonetheless. Beyond downsizing of some major projects in the area (such as Jonquil Plaza and Columbia Property's holding on the South side) it put a temporary halt on new construction in Smyrna (though not entirely to the renovation/flipping market). Four bedroom homes saw a temporary drop in value of up to 10%. One and two bedroom homes were hit harder. Three bedroom homes seemed to fare the storm the best, probably because this is a great segment for young families and Smyrna has good schools, so in that segment people continued to flood into Smyrna.

However, the effects of the temporary downturn has been wiped out! And Smyrna looks even stronger than it did in 2006/2007. Smyrna now has a gigantic housing shortage and prices are approaching highest levels once again (except for the North end and two-bedrom homes, which are lagging). Venerable Smyrna townhome construction has started up again. For instance, check out the new charts on an article from SmyrnaVinings.org. Home sales the past 12 months have been increasing at a steady clip, getting closer to 2007 levels, whereas inventory has stayed at an all-time low!

Alright, fair market experts. Tell me what happens when demand is high, and inventory is low? Prices increase! And of course they have. In less than a year, as mentioned, prices have almost rebounded on single family homes in some parts of Smyrna, especially areas South of Windy Hill, which were more established (with a few exceptions) before the downturn. For three and four bedroom homes, they may be poised to reach all times this year. The Northern edges near Pat Mel and Old Concord Rd may take longer, however real estate pressure and investment will probably help revive the Northern reaches - the oldest part of Smyrna - as well. It just may take years until we see any activity.

As someone who does real estate investment on the side of my full-time job, I know it is little secret to investors that Smyrna is one of the hottest markets for small investors right now, considering Atlanta is extremely competitive right now where competition from large international investors have made things difficult. That leaves Smyrna as one of the well-known target markets for investors. And the signs of investment can be seen all over city as house after house is renovated and a new family finds Smyrna their homes. Families can be seen walking around Smyrna almost all the time, be it on Atlanta Rd, Concord Rd West of South Cobb, Market Village, Spring Rd or around the Silver Comet Trail.

Especially in areas like Forest Hills and neighborhoods in the Southern "West Vinings" part of Smyrna, we're seeing something we've never seen before: We're seeing a Smyrna on a trajectory that you can start to see it heading towards prices in Buckhead or other in-town Atlanta areas. We're seeing areas that are shooting up even into the $400k+ range for some larger bungalows from the 60s and 70s, when upgraded.

However, at the same time, the low low end homes in Smyrna, even in the hot areas, are depressed. They are 50s cottages and essentially tear-downs or rentals. So therein lies your window. If you can't afford a newer $300k+ home, but you can afford a tiny fixer-upper that you can make look and feel like gold and add to as you add children to your family or pool tables to your bachelor pad, then you have a small window to beat the investor in there and to beat the millionaire to a nice 1/4 acre lot with a house that is oh so sad and neglected but can be given some tlc and turned into a home that feels like home. There are so many homes in Smyrna, one home spared from a tear-down fate won't even be a blip. However, for those that won't otherwise be able to afford to live in Smyrna soon, it will mean they can move here and add on when they can afford it.

If you can afford the high-end home instead, then you already know what to do.



Essential Smyrna

So you have Smyrna. You have things that defined Smyrna for decades like Market Village and its proximity to Atlanta, Cumberland, I-285 and Vinings. Then you have new aspects, such as significant interest in the historic Forest Hills neighborhood, improving schools including the top-tier Campbell and King Springs schools, the high-end Southern district which is essentially an off-shoot of Vinings now re-defining itself in a more urban way. Then, you have the central portion which is benefiting from not only the spread of Vinings influence in decades past, but now that Smyrna has its own identity, it is now defined by its proximity to Market Village and the spirit of new-urbanism.

As far as amenities, there is the start of the Silver Comet Trail, road-side trails, public pools and tennis, and plenty of parks. Additionally, newer neighborhoods add their own associations. Additionally, Smyrna is building more, such as extending the Spring Rd linear trail along Concord Rd to connect to the Silver Comet Trail (the portion West of South Cobb has already been done for a while)

Smyrna also benefits from being in one of the main arts and entertainment districts in the metro area, since Cumberland is a growing district attracting such ameneties such as the Cobb Performing Arts Center.  To quote a comedian that visited and performed there, it's a "beautiful theater", definitely world class. Smyrna has also benefited from the proximity to world-class retail districts and mixed-use communities (beyond Market Village in Smyrna proper) including Ivy Walk and West Village.

It is also a hop, skip, and a jump away from a major amusement park, conveniently located in Cobb County.

Another thing not to be overlooked is its proximity to not only Cumberland but midtown, Buckhead, perimeter and downtown along with it being a popular location for airport and airline employees to find home. For an outside-the-perimeter community, it's conveniently close to pretty much everything. In fact, closer than some inside-the-perimeter neighborhoods. That's little surprise, since it almost touches I-285 (and in one part of the city, it actually does).