Kennesaw Named 'Best Commuter Town' Near ATL: Report

KENNESAW, GA — Trying to find that sweet spot between housing affordability and a reasonable commute time can be challenging, so CommercialCafe put together a list of the 10 best commuter towns near Atlanta, to make things easier for Atlanta commuters.

The blog looked at towns with a population of at least 10,000 located within 50 miles of Atlanta, comparing commuting times, housing costs, school ratings and crime rates.

Kennesaw took the No.1 spot on the list, with an average commute time of 35 minutes and a reasonably low median home sale price.

"Although Kennesaw wasn’t first in any of our individual metrics, its overall appeal across categories lead it to the top spot on our list with an average commute time of 35 minutes," the report said. "It’s also on the more affordable end with a median home sale price of $163,200. The median home price of the Atlanta metropolitan statistical area is $184,200 by comparison. The affordability of this community is a leading factor for why Kennesaw is ranked first. The scores in both crime rate and school quality are in the middle of the cities we looked at."

Located northwest of Marietta, Kennesaw is farther away from Atlanta than Marietta, but remains more affordable, CommercialCafe said. It’s also growing in many ways. Kennesaw State University has been steadily growing its enrollment, which currently sits at 35,000. The new $280 million Eastpark Village mixed-use development near downtown Kennesaw is set to offer 850 market rate and senior living units in addition to commercial and retail space, the blog said.

Only about 2 percent of the residents in the metro Atlanta area commute using public transportation, meaning the vast majority drive, CommercialCafe said.

Drivers from the blog's 10 commuter towns spend on average 37.6 minutes on a one-way commute.

"While that’s likely on the low end for the whole region, it’s still 13.5 days per year of commuting," the report said. "For some, that’s an easy price to pay for lower crime, better schools, and more affordable housing in a quieter neighborhood. Half of the entries on our list are northwest of downtown: Woodstock, Acworth, Kennesaw, Powder Springs, and Marietta."

CommercialCafe looked at average commuting times for residents that would reasonably be commuting to downtown Atlanta. To make the list as useful as possible, the blog weighed the metrics to reflect the importance of commuting and home affordability with 40 percent and 30 percent respectively, with the remaining percentage split between crime and school ratings. The blog's goal is to identify the best overall commuter towns for those considering a move to or around the region.

Other key findings include:

• The most affordable location and landing the 3rd place is Powder Springs, with a median home sale price of $145,100
• Peachtree City has the best school ratings and lowest crime rate, taking the 7th spot on the list
• Boasting the shortest commute time, roughly 26 minutes, Marietta made it to No. 8