Trying to work out was taxing for Diana and Wayne Mangum because of the commute to their favorite gym. The drive to Concourse Athletic Club in Dunwoody was taking up to an hour each way from their home in Tucker, and it was exhausting them more than the workouts.
The retired couple decided in 2015 to sell the four-bedroom home where they lived for 31 years and raised their two daughters. They wanted to move closer to friends and family in Sandy Springs and Dunwoody, as well as the athletic facility, where they work out three days a week.
Working with their daughter, Jessica Weston of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Georgia Properties, they searched about nine months for a move-in ready home. Diana, who worked as a licensed marriage and family therapist and licensed professional counselor, and Wayne, an attorney and former DeKalb County judge, chatted about their search and buying a five-bedroom home in a Dunwoody neighborhood with 24 homes.
Q: What were you seeking in a home?
Diana: We were looking for a house with a master bedroom on the main. We wanted a bonus room or a basement. We have six grandchildren. We needed a play area for them. This house had the bonus room. We were looking for something that had a lot of light.
Wayne: I didn't want to do yard work anymore. That's one of the reasons we like this so much. You pay an association fee and you get your yard work done.
Q: Was there a big selection on the market?
Diana: No, not really. It was very difficult to find a master on the main. We found a lot of houses that needed a lot of renovation.
Q: When did you get a feeling that this home was the one for you?
Diana: As I was looking through it, I decided where I was going to put my Christmas tree.
Q: Besides yard work being taken care of, what else do you like about the community?
Diana: We can walk to Dunwoody Village. On Mother's Day, I walked to the Dunwoody Arts Festival. We like that you can walk to restaurants.
Q: What are your tips for moving from a longtime home?
Diana: You just have to make up your mind that it's time to let go of some things. We were looking for a smaller neighborhood and places that were close by. It was difficult to leave the house because there's so many memories of raising the children there. We came into this house thinking how much fun it would be to start a new family tradition here.
Q: What’s something you did before you left the home you sold?
Diana: After we moved everything out of the house, I walked through it and remembered things that happened in some of the different rooms. I had to say goodbye to our house. All of a sudden it was a house, not a home any more, and that was OK.
At a Glance
Diana and Wayne Mangum’s home, built in 2000, has five bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,816 square feet. They purchased it in May. Homes in their Dunwoody area average in the mid-$400,000s.
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