Neighborly

Stephany Darden loved the Roswell home she shared with her family, but there were a few things that didn’t work. Rather than alter the abode to suit or leave the neighborhood, the family moved across the street. “We thought we would be in our house for many more years. But when the house across the street, which had more space and an unfinished basement, went up for sale, we had to take a look,” says Darden. It’s a rising trend, according to agents Molly Beery and Cia Cummings of the Beery Cummings Group with Dorsey Alston (dorseyalston.com). “We are seeing people move within the same neighborhood,” says Beery. “People get to know their neighbors and neighborhood and don’t want to leave, but their housing needs change over time.” While a move—even within the immediate area—can be a production, it might be simpler than an addition or renovation. “Renovation projects have become increasingly expensive; good labor is hard to find and living through a renovation can be time-consuming and disruptive,” says Cummings, who notes that expanded work space, pools and ground-floor bedrooms top homeowners’ wish lists. “[As a result] we are seeing the desire to move to something that accommodates their current lifestyle.”