My wife and I awoke early Sunday morning.  The air was cool but the sky was clear and the sun was shining brightly.  It was one of those glorious days in the Atlanta fall, when the humidity was very low and the sky clear blue with no clouds in sight.  We decided to get dressed and drive to a local patisserie on Peachtree Street, near Lenox Mall, and have fresh pastries and cappuccinos, sitting outside watching one the best shows in Atlanta.

On the way back, a former client phoned and asked me about homes available inside Lenox Park, and if any of them would price in the range that would work for her son and his wife.  They have looked at homes intown for a while and believed that homes in Midtown and Buckhead would cost $500k or more, but they wanted a home for around $350k.  I knew there were lots of choices in the area for the price they wanted, but I purposely looked at what was available inside Lenox Park.  I was shocked to see a fantastic home available for $375k.  It was a beautiful home, that had some recent upgrades, and best of all, it was NOT a short sale and could be closed rather quickly.  I live inside Lenox Park and watch listings frequently, and was stunned to see this home available right now.  There are a couple of other homes for sale on the same block for $500k, so I sent the info off to my former Client and suggested we all link up quickly.  

Three years ago the $375k home would have easily sold for $500k+, so someone's misfortune is a economic opportunity for a young professional couple, and with that home off the market, the other two should get quick offers at a much higher price.

Living inside Lenox Park gives me opportunities that most residents of urban Atlanta don't have.  Lenox Park is a planned unit development within walking distance of the subway and the most successful shopping and restaurant district in Georgia and arguably in the United States.  To make transportation even easier, we have a no-charge shuttle that functions as a people mover, carrying riders around Lenox Park and to nearby shopping and the subway.

My wife and I try to walk the perimeter sidewalk around Lenox Park every day.  A steady walk takes approximately forty minutes and the views of lakes, fountains and trees with a backdrop of towering high rise buildings reminds me of walks through Central Park in NYC.  Every day I think how blessed I am to be living in this urban oasis. 

Sometimes on the weekend, we walk the inner ring trails contiguous to the two lakes, which allow us to enjoy the lake more close up with the ducks and geese cruising the lake, and labs fetching balls tossed into the lake by their owners.  The landscape is beautifully maintained by the HOA and on the warm weekends the expansive lawn is filled with people picnicking, chatting or tossing Frisbees.  

The trees are starting to change to their fall colors and sky has been blue and clear for a few weeks.  Fall is not here, yet, so the views will only get better.  I love living inside Lenox Park.    

Before building in Lenox Park, we lived in the Pine Hills neighborhood in Atlanta for over twenty years. I thought Pine Hills was a wonderful neighborhood.  It was quiet, safe and everyone took care of their homes, without the need for covenants.  Pine Hills was walking distance to the major regional mall, Lenox Square, and too many restaurants to count.  My wife and I lived comfortably in the same home on Goodwin Road until we realized we needed a change.  In 2001, I was traveling out of the country most of my time and my wife worked very long hours for AT&T, so we needed to downsize the yard but we wanted more inside space.  This led us to Lenox Park.

For as long as I can remember, the Standard Club & Golf Course existed in the space where the new development of Lenox Park was being built around 1990.  Lenox Park was a planned unit development designed to accommodate a wide spectrum of residential and office space, and was closer to Lenox Square and MARTA (Atlanta's mass transit system) than where we had lived for over twenty years.  The development was planned so that anyone who cared knew where the office buildings, detached homes, condominiums and apartments were to be built.  There would be a primary HOA that every owner was a member and within the park each neighborhood would have its own HOA.  Most of the common cost would be paid by the office building and apartment owners, so the common costs for Lenox Park would be very low for the individual home owners.  Later, Lenox Park allowed an assisted living facility and hospice to be built in the park, so anyone could live their entire life within the park.  

Within Lenox Park, there are large expanses of land kept as open space for all of the neighbors and guests to enjoy.  There are two lakes, two bridges, two lake fountains and one waterfall to enjoy.  There is a sidewalk circling the greater Lenox Park and also a shorter hiking path circling the lakes.  The open space around the larger lake is filled daily with locals who live and work in the neighborhood-walking, picnicking, and throwing Frisbees, footballs and baseballs.  If you have lived in a congested city for a long time, the first time you see this open space with its well maintained grounds and lakes; it will take your breath.  It did mine.   

We have lived here for ten years now and while we have a small front and back yard, we have no outdoor maintenance to maintain since all outside maintenance is done by a common landscape service.  Our total HOA cost for our HOA, which includes our share of Lennox Park HOA costs, is approximately $100 a month-that's right, it costs about $100 a month to live in an urban oasis with no required responsibilities for outside maintenance.

I plan to write more about Lenox Park in the future and maybe add some comments about nearby Pine Hills.

Commercial Office (2050 sf) for sale that was renovated two years ago at 3742 Clairmont Road in Atlanta, Georgia, 30341.  The large lot (11,720 sf)is zoned O&I and fronts on a very busy Clairmont Road, across the street from PDK Airport, a general aviation airport a few miles North of downtown Atlanta.  The office is presently configured for six private offices with two full baths.  The office currently has parking for six to eight cars with lots of space to add a large parking area.

This office was previously used by a small successful law firm with three partners, a business manager and a receptionist.  The office has multiple entrances so multiple offices could be operated from this one space.