Decatur Real Estate Information

Located in north central Georgia is Decatur. Decatur is the county seat of DeKalb County and a part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. It was founded at the crossing of two Native American trails and named after Stephen Decatur, a naval hero. Decatur proper has a population of 18,000 people, but is often considered larger because of those living in unincorporated areas around the city.

Decatur is a very historic town, with many homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places. During the 1830’s, there was talk about making Decatur the most southern terminal on the railroad. Because of pollution and noise problems associated with the trains, the city fought this plan and a few years later the train company built a stop to the east called Atlanta.

During the Civil War, Union Soldiers occupied Decatur in order to stop supplies being shipped from Augusta. During the 1960’s and 1970’s whites left Decatur to move to more distant suburbs, thus property values decreased.

Schools in the area are provided by the Decatur City Schools and there are several colleges and universities serving Decatur. Some of those colleges include: Agnes Scott College, Art Institute of Atlanta – Decatur, Columbia Theological Seminary, DeVry University, Emory University, and Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Service. Residents of Decatur have some of the highest levels of education in all of metropolitan Atlanta. Forty nine percent of all residents have at least a Bachelor’s degree. Fifty three percent of residents are employed in public administration and 29% are employed in services making a total of 82% of all jobs.

There are many points of interest in Decatur, most of them of significant historical value. There are buildings, neighborhoods, streets and districts that are all listed in historical registers.