OT: Madison vs Brandon

[BlameTheDogs]

Moving to one of the two areas. Married, two kids under 3. Working remote. Wanting to buy in one of the two places, raise a family, and be there for many years to come.

Please discuss the positives and negatives of both.

 

[jethreauxdawg]

Answer one question

Married

You a fan of pineapples?

 

[dawgstudent]

Where will you be working? I would base my decision upon that. Whatever is the shortest drive.

 

[PooPopsBaldHead]

If you choose Brandon, you must repurpose one of these signs and slap it on the moving truck... They can easily be found by following someone home from a Luke Bryan concert.

View attachment 24389

 

[Smoked Toag]

Can’t really go wrong. I’d do what dawgstudent said.

 

[maroonmadman]

What DS said. Furthermore stay in the county and not in either city. We live in the unincorporated area of Gluckstadt and taxes are several hundreds lower than in the corporate areas. Taxes will be less but be careful where you land and check the school district. Some are great, some not so great. We like Gluckstadt.

 

[BlameTheDogs]

Where will you be working? I would base my decision upon that. Whatever is the shortest drive.

We will both be working remote. So we can take that out of the equation.

 

[LocalBeachBum]

Madison has positive growth. Now as many amenities as in the brandon/Flowood area. Traffic is as bad.

it will depend on where you live. West of I-55? I can’t tell. East of I-55, Hoy road backs up (due to construction now).

brandon has lower taxes (or they used to).

you can buy liquor or wine in Madison county, not so sure about Brandon Flowood now.

 

[FrontRangeDawg]

Serious question- if you can both work remotely, what is the tether to the metro area? We work remotely and have been doing the digital nomad life for a few years.

 

[BlameTheDogs]

Serious question- if you can both work remotely, what is the tether to the metro area? We work remotely and have been doing the digital nomad life for a few years.

We work remote but still confined to a geographical territory. Unfortunately.

 

[mstateglfr]

Serious question- if you can both work remotely, what is the tether to the metro area? We work remotely and have been doing the digital nomad life for a few years.

2 kids under 3 means school is quickly approaching for the next 15 years. Typically, parents want a home where their kids will stay for the foreseeable future as that provides stability and builds relationships.
Nomadic life with kids is always cool to read about in blogs, but it also sounds exhausting. Its really cool that more than one way to skin a cat is possible.

 

[Shmuley]

If you are working remotely and internet service is critical, be careful about unincorporated county in either county. There are places in unincorporated county (either county) where internet service sux.

 

[PooPopsBaldHead]

Serious question- if you can both work remotely, what is the tether to the metro area? We work remotely and have been doing the digital nomad life for a few years.

Are you the one with the badass overlanding rig?

 

[Hail_STATE]

We work remote but still confined to a geographical territory. Unfortunately.

From the perspective of someone who has lived in the area for the last few years, I would highly suggest the Gluckstadt area. It has a small town vibe to it, schools don't seem to be terrible, and there are plenty of places on the east side of I-55 that are reasonable. Look out for foundation issues in houses here though, but that can be said for the entire metro area.

Madison is nice, but if you don't want to be part of the hustle and bustle, maybe look in the area towards the Rez? I found some pretty good deals on both newer style and older style homes.

If I were to live in Brandon, I would probably choose to live outside of city limits, and there were several options here as well. Can't go wrong with Rankin County in the Brandon School District. Stay away from Crossgates unless their water problems have been fixed recently (last I checked they haven't). Anything nice with a Brandon address should be good and you should at least have cable internet if not multiple fiber choices in these areas.

Your biggest issue here is going to be battling inflation and availability caused by the current political climate as well as the crazy influx of interest in this area the past few years. Whether this be because of the Amazon facility or some other driving factor, it is common to see a good home hit the market then be contract pending within 24 hours. My advice would be to keep an open mind to any of the three areas mentioned above, and find a realtor that will help you get a leg up on the market and start hitting it hard. See a house you like? Don't wait to purchase because it will go fast.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Does it absolutely have to be in the Metro Jackson area or can it be anywhere in Mississippi?

If the latter, I'd choose suburban Hattiesburg (Oak Grove but you might prefer Petal) over either Madison or Brandon.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

From the perspective of someone who has lived in the area for the last few years, I would highly suggest the Gluckstadt area. It has a small town vibe to it, schools don't seem to be terrible, and there are plenty of places on the east side of I-55 that are reasonable. Look out for foundation issues in houses here though, but that can be said for the entire metro area.

You can't stop Yazoo Clay. You can only hope to contain it.

 

[campshelbydog842003]

Moving to one of the two areas. Married, two kids under 3. Working remote. Wanting to buy in one of the two places, raise a family, and be there for many years to come.

Please discuss the positives and negatives of both.

I’m currently in the middle of moving from Madison to Brandon (well it’s the reservoir but it’s a Brandon address). Madison is nice. Neither my wife nor myself liked the fact that the schools shut down entire days for weather that didn’t get into the area until 3 hours after the schools were out multiple times this year nor did we like some of their ridiculous contact tracing policies that finally just ended in the schools and daycare ours attend, but it’s a very nice, safe area. We are moving mainly because we want to be on the water near our friends on that side of the spillway and our kids are just now in kindergarten so we aren’t uprooting them from years of friend making.

 

[GloryDawg]

I grew up in Madison County. After graduating from State I moved to Rankin County. I live in Brandon. The cost of living in Brandon is way better than Madison. Houses are less expensive. My house would probably cost 50K more if it was in Madison. I will probably inherit a house and about 400 acres in Madison. I will not live there. I love living in Brandon.

 

[SteelCurtain74]

I currently live at Reservoir (Brandon address) but have lived in the city limits of Brandon for several years as well. It really depends on what you need or looking for. If you need easy access to I-55 or I-20 then Madison/Gluckstadt or Brandon 39042 would be the better choice. If that's not a consideration then, I would suggest the Reservoir area (Brandon address in county). You would be 15 -20 minutes from Madison and downtown Brandon, 20 - 30 minutes from Renaissance and Dogwood if shopping is your thing and not paying city taxes. I know there is a lot of new construction down Fannin Landing Circle apparently because people are trying to move into the Pisgah school district.

Regardless where you move traffic is going to be an issue because growth in these areas have outpaced infrastructure.

 

[Dawgtruc]

Moving to one of the two areas. Married, two kids under 3. Working remote. Wanting to buy in one of the two places, raise a family, and be there for many years to come.

Please discuss the positives and negatives of both.

You can get more house for your money in Brandon, but it seems like appreciation is better in Madison area.

I'm in Gluckstadt and paid 267K for a house that is now worth 315K. It's one of the few 4/3 houses in our neighborhood. It was new const. when we bought it.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

Live in Madison County. No complaints. Good schools. "Bad" traffic is not ever bad and there are typically alternative routes that are easy, the Hoy Road construction saga not withstanding...

 

[fishwater99]

You a fan of pineapples?

If your a swinger then move to Madison, if your Baptist then move to Brandon.

Like to eat out then move to Madison, like to eat at home then move to Brandon.

Want to keep up with the Jones's move to Madison, don't know the Jones's move to Brandon.

 

[Rog.sixpack]

Go live it up in 39211.

 

[militarydog]

Moving to one of the two areas. Married, two kids under 3. Working remote. Wanting to buy in one of the two places, raise a family, and be there for many years to come.

Please discuss the positives and negatives of both.

What size house and lot are you needing?

 

[johnson86-1]

Does it absolutely have to be in the Metro Jackson area or can it be anywhere in Mississippi?

If the latter, I'd choose suburban Hattiesburg (Oak Grove but you might prefer Petal) over either Madison or Brandon.

This is what I was thinking. I don't know if I'd pick Hattiesburg over Madison. I think I'd be pretty indifferent between the two. Schools are I guess indifferent? I feel like I've heard more complaints about Oak Grove just having too many students for too little tax base as people have fled Hattiesburg, but I guess Sumrall and Petal are also options? Madison I just hear complaints about them being so big and that not being right for everybody (although I think Oak Grove is probably as big?). Hattiesburg would be better because you'd be a reasonably easy drive from New Orleans, the Coast, and Gulf Shores. You would more or less have to drive to New Orleans or GPT for most flights and Jackson does at least have an airport, however crappy.

But regardless, unless the geographic restriction is Jackson Metro area, I'd want to be at least looking at other options, even if it's very small town options.

 

[BlameTheDogs]

Does it absolutely have to be in the Metro Jackson area or can it be anywhere in Mississippi?

If the latter, I'd choose suburban Hattiesburg (Oak Grove but you might prefer Petal) over either Madison or Brandon.

Yes, it has to be in the Jackson area, or outskirts.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

This is what I was thinking. I don't know if I'd pick Hattiesburg over Madison. I think I'd be pretty indifferent between the two. Schools are I guess indifferent? I feel like I've heard more complaints about Oak Grove just having too many students for too little tax base as people have fled Hattiesburg, but I guess Sumrall and Petal are also options? Madison I just hear complaints about them being so big and that not being right for everybody (although I think Oak Grove is probably as big?). Hattiesburg would be better because you'd be a reasonably easy drive from New Orleans, the Coast, and Gulf Shores. You would more or less have to drive to New Orleans or GPT for most flights and Jackson does at least have an airport, however crappy.

But regardless, unless the geographic restriction is Jackson Metro area, I'd want to be at least looking at other options, even if it's very small town options.

I'll admit I'm biased towards Hattiesburg some (but what do you expect from someone who's username includes the word Eagle?) but I love the area-- particularly Oak Grove.

Petal and Oak Grove are both fairly big (Oak Grove is slightly larger and projects to be in the new 7A in 2023 while Petal would be 6A). Petal seemingly has better schools (which I included since the OP mentioned small children) but I'm not a K-12 expert like 615dawg.

Hattiesburg is nice. I just know quite a few folks who live in the city proper who send their kids either to Sacred Heart or Presbyterian Christian. I also know some Oak Grove folks who've sent their children to private schools (maybe 2-3 families?). I don't know many Sumrall folks.

Your points about transportation are well taken and are worth considering. Even though the OP mentioned both jobs are remote, one has to wonder if there be substantial travel too?

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Thanks for clarifying.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

My goto for severe clay problem detection is drive through the neighborhood. If the roads are terrible with heaving and sinking, the houses will be the same.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

What if you're both?

 

[johnson86-1]

I'll admit I'm biased towards Hattiesburg some (but what do you expect from someone who's username includes the word Eagle?) but I love the area-- particularly Oak Grove.

Petal and Oak Grove are both fairly big (Oak Grove is slightly larger and projects to be in the new 7A in 2023 while Petal would be 6A). Petal seemingly has better schools (which I included since the OP mentioned small children) but I'm not a K-12 expert like 615dawg.

Hattiesburg is nice. I just know quite a few folks who live in the city proper who send their kids either to Sacred Heart or Presbyterian Christian. I also know some Oak Grove folks who've sent their children to private schools (maybe 2-3 families?). I don't know many Sumrall folks.

Your points about transportation are well taken and are worth considering. Even though the OP mentioned both jobs are remote, one has to wonder if there be substantial travel too?

Hattiesburg is fairly nice for Mississippi but I have trouble judging it fairly because it appears to have everything it needs to be the best place in Mississippi to live because it has a university, a cool looking downtown with decent housing stock in walking distance, some decent income because of the university, a large medical industry, decent industrial industry, etc. But it's just not nearly as nice as it shoudl be because of the way it has developed, with a lot of it's money being spread basically directly away from the city down hwy 98.

That said, Cane Brake and the newer neighborhood developed by the same guy (the one that tried to incorporate, belle grass? belle view?) are really nice. They are just way out there and I hate hwy 98. But that's not different from what I know of Madison. But I don't really know about Madison proper and how it is to live there.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Hattiesburg is fairly nice for Mississippi but I have trouble judging it fairly because it appears to have everything it needs to be the best place in Mississippi to live because it has a university, a cool looking downtown with decent housing stock in walking distance, some decent income because of the university, a large medical industry, decent industrial industry, etc. But it's just not nearly as nice as it shoudl be because of the way it has developed, with a lot of it's money being spread basically directly away from the city down hwy 98.

That said, Cane Brake and the newer neighborhood developed by the same guy (the one that tried to incorporate, belle grass? belle view?) are really nice. They are just way out there and I hate hwy 98. But that's not different from what I know of Madison. But I don't really know about Madison proper and how it is to live there.

Bellevue.

Canebrake is nice. I have family living there. The neighborhood got power back on the Thursday morning after Katrina hit thanks in large part to buried power lines.

98 is the obvious direction Hattiesburg had to grow what with Petal being to the east and Camp Shelby is to the south. 98 is towards I-59 and more land.

Hattiesburg just doesn’t have enough good east-west roads.

98 is the only good one with 4th Street and Lincoln Road being alternatives.

The past several years though there’s been growth northward into the southern part of Jones County and South Jones’ enrollment has gone up too.

 

[Cdeer]

I live in the downtown Brandon side and I am debating moving out on the Rez. We get raped on car tags being inside city limits. But I work in madison and my wife works in flowood. I like our neighborhood but it seems like the mayor is against getting anything that resembles progress. They throw money at revitalizing the old downtown but there’s no where to park so we basically go back to flowood or madison when we go out

 

[coach66]

Pelahatchie, the garden spot of rankin county.

Mayberry on steroids. I gre up there and for a kid it’s great.

 

[CountryHouse]

39047 in the Northshore Elem zone. 10 mins from Dogwood, 20 from Renaissance. Don’t worry about going to Jackson.

 

[dahmer17]

All the public schools are fairly good. Germantown, north of Madison is a very good school.

If I did private school, MRA would be my choice. Prep and JA are good. If you are loaded, Saint Andrews is very good.

 

[greenbean.sixpack]

Where does your extended family live? If in N MS, then living in Gluckstadt will cut an hour round trip off the drive when you visit. If South MS, then Brandon will be closer.

Houses/land in 39042 Brandon will be cheaper. There are essentially two Brandons, Hwy 80 Brandon (the City of Brandon) is 39042 and 39047 Brandon is Rez/Flowood. If you buy a house near the water, it may the on Pearl River Valley Water Supply District Land (called leasehold), if so this will be an additional tax.

Although there are good schools in the metro, NWR, Brandon, MC and Germantown, private schools are growing like crazy.

We live in 39047 Brandon, not far off Hwy 25 which makes commuting to Starkvegas easier.

 

[Smoked Toag]

If your a swinger then move to Madison, if your Baptist then move to Brandon.

Like to eat out then move to Madison, like to eat at home then move to Brandon.

Want to keep up with the Jones's move to Madison, don't know the Jones's move to Brandon.

There’s actually some truth to this.

I’ll say that Brandon is on the precipice of being really cool. Just need a little more progressiveness in the city government. It’s so close, but in many ways still stuck in the 90s.

 

[greenbean.sixpack]

Madison has positive growth. Now as many amenities as in the brandon/Flowood area. Traffic is as bad.

it will depend on where you live. West of I-55? I can’t tell. East of I-55, Hoy road backs up (due to construction now).

brandon has lower taxes (or they used to).

you can buy liquor or wine in Madison county, not so sure about Brandon Flowood now.

Not sure about Flowood proper, but within a couple hundred yards of the Spillway/Old Fannin intersection (this is 39047 Brandon, but essentially Flowood), there are three liquor stores. I think I recently read that 39042 Brandon was going to allow liquor.

 

[MtPigsmore]

Moved to Madison from Starkville back in 2010. Mainly due to the thoughts of safety and property values. It really sucked till we had kids in 2013 - once that happens you really find your type of people based on what school you send your kids to.

The public school group are people that moved here for the same reasons as us and good quality folk for the most part. You do have the other crowds that are determined to still pay for private schools due to the status of kids playing sports. They can be awesome folk as well, but completely different lifestyles. Both types still mingle pretty well in the city.