Richard and Olivene Makerson were living in the four-bedroom Ellenwood home — southeast of Atlanta — that Richard had bought before they got married in 2011. Olivene graduated law school and began working in Duluth — a northern Atlanta suburb — and Richard wanted the option to bike to work in Midtown, so the couple decided to move intown.
“I was driving about an hour each way in traffic. It was just insane. We both came to the conclusion that to save us some sanity, it would make more sense to move intown,” said Olivene, 31, who works for a financial services company.
While looking off and on for two years, they viewed hundreds of options online and more than 20 homes in person. They narrowed their search to Atlanta’s Morningside community, which included these three properties they viewed when they started working with Donna Boynton and Joy Myrick of Beacham & Co. Realtors.
No. 1
Classic Colonial
A three-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath home on East Morningside Drive had a four-sided brick exterior, which gave the house an old Atlanta feel they were seeking. Since the home was older, the floor plan wasn’t open on the main level, but that was OK because they preferred separation between the dining room and kitchen. The home, built in 1929, was listed for $775,000.
No. 2
Two-story Tudor
A three-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath home on Johnson Road in Morningside had been renovated with stone countertops, stainless steel appliances and an island. They thought the third bedroom might be too small and better served as a study or library. The home, built in 1935, was listed for $730,000.
No. 3
Million-dollar listing
A five-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath home was on a prime street for them — Atlanta’s East Morningside Drive. Gorgeous details included custom cabinets in the living room, and granite countertops and stainless steel appliances in the kitchen. The porte cochere gave the exterior a luxurious look. The home, built in 1928, was listed for $1 million.
The Choice
No. 1. They mulled the options for a couple of weeks and decided on the three-bedroom Colonial in Morningside. “We got really lucky to wait that long to put in an offer on this house,” Olivene said. They purchased the home in June and have enjoyed living near Piedmont Park, other local parks and restaurants. “It was great for us to take the time to understand the kind of personalities of all the neighborhoods and reflect on how we would fit in, but also having a Realtor who was really, really knowledgeable about the area and the homes built in that area,” said Richard, 33, a partner in technology company, BlueFletch.
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