The word is out. Atlanta is the place to be. According to statistics gathered from various sources, Atlanta has ranked first in the nation for new home starts for the past thirteen years. It ranks third in the nation for number of Fortune 500 companies that call the Southern city home - only New York City and Houston boast more Fortune 500 companies. The economy is strong and growing stronger. The weather is sublime year round, and outdoor activities abound in the greater Atlanta Metro area. It is the largest and fastest growing metro area in the South and ranks high among cities throughout the entire nation.

On the reverse side of the coin, the Greater Atlanta metro area also offers some of the most beautiful scenic land in the country. It is still renowned for its Old South gentility and for the unhurried pace of everyday life. A new home buyer would be hard pressed to find a more scenic place to live than along the Blue Ridge Parkway and its surrounding mountains and towns. The new developments and communities in and around Cherokee County are counted among the top homes for sale in Atlanta.

Gated and other master planned communities make up the majority of new housing starts in the Greater Atlanta area, following a trend that has also become popular in other fast growing areas of the country. Master planned communities offer many advantages to homeowners and their families - as well as to the overall community. Because they take into account the needs of a new community from the very start, they tend to meet those needs very early in the development process. The top homes for sale in Atlanta include communities and developments that cater to everyone's desire to live a high quality of life. They provide recreational opportunities of many kinds and offer a leisurely, relaxed lifestyle that is less than an hour removed from the amenities and realities of the big city.

Atlanta has been billed as "where the mountain meets the metro", and that slogan is embodied by list of top homes for sale in Atlanta. These neighborhoods are often built around central amenities and recreational features - but offer the privacy and serenity of living on a mountain lake. The most sought after neighborhoods and communities around Atlanta include luxury gated master-planned communities with integral golf courses, waterways, hiking trails and full-fledged community centers. Residents can avail themselves of fitness facilities that include tennis courts and swimming pools, indoor exercise spas and tracks. Outdoor activities might include marked hiking trails through the lush surroundings of mountain forests and walking paths through nature preserves designed to spotlight the most beautiful features of the community's environment.

The beauty of the natural landscape and the luxury of the homes available may be why CNN named Atlanta one of its Top 10 Cities to Work from Home in 1997. CNN Money speculates that it was the 1996 Olympics that sparked the trend for telecommuters in Atlanta, and it may have been. Whatever the original impetus, Atlanta companies have been quick to adopt work-from-home as part of the culture. Nearly all of Atlanta and its surrounding suburbs and metro area are wired for cable and high speed internet access, a must for many of today's new home buyers.

Atlanta is also rated seventh on Sperling's Ten Best Places to Live, the largest city to make the list. Sperling's cites Atlanta's low cost of living and high per capita income as major reasons for the city's popularity with young people who are concerned with value. The climate - generally warm and pleasant as opposed to steamy in the summer - is a major draw for active older adults who enjoy the social and recreational opportunities that Atlanta living offers. Black Enterprise magazine, which annually publishes a list of Top Ten Cities for African Americans has listed Atlanta in its top three for years. They cite Atlanta's low median home prices and buying power as major reasons for Atlanta's high rating. The median home price for the Atlanta area is $177,000 - on the low side of the scale for major metropolitan areas.

Atlanta is a growing city - growing in size, growing in income and growing in opportunity. It's no wonder that Atlanta regularly makes the Top Ten lists of best places in the country to live and work.