Working at Macy’s made it easier for Denise Padrun to uproot and move to Georgia.
Since 1998, Padrun and her husband, John, had traveled from California to Atlanta three to four times a year to see her daughters, Jennifer and Jane, and four grandsons. When Padrun finally decided to move, she was able to remain with her employer of 20 years and transfer to a Macy’s store in Atlanta.
Why Atlanta?
After Padrun’s husband passed away in 2006, her daughters urged her to move to Atlanta. But it was a hard decision. Padrun had lived in the San Francisco Bay area for nearly 40 years. In the years after her husband’s death, Padrun’s youngest daughter, Jane, frequently took her to view condos in Georgia, trying to convince her it was cheaper to live in the South. But she was reluctant to leave her longtime home. “Every time, it was like, ‘Ooh, I don’t want to do that,’” Padrun said.
When she toured the new condos in Sterling of Dunwoody, Padrun said she could finally could envision herself living in Atlanta.
Putting down roots
Padrun, 65, rented an apartment near Perimeter Mall in 2011 while she waited for Sterling of Dunwoody to develop a new building. When the sales agent called her in 2012 to say the top-floor end unit Padrun wanted was available to buy, Padrun got her checkbook, drove over and made a deposit on a two-bedroom, two-bath unit. She moved into the 1,475-square-foot condo, which has 10-foot ceilings, granite countertops, hardwood floors and a balcony, in May 2012. The condos in Sterling at Dunwoody, a gated neighborhood by the Providence Group, are priced from the $130,000s-$230,000s. The community also has amenities including a pool, clubhouse, dog park and vegetable garden plots for residents.
Relocation tip
Take time to check out different communities before buying. Padrun looked at properties in areas such as Buckhead, Midtown and Vinings. Renting an apartment for several months also allowed Padrun to make sure the Perimeter area, where she also works, was the best location. Padrun also enjoys living near amenities such as the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, where she purchased a National Park Service lifetime senior pass for $10.
But on the day of the closing (Friday before Memorial Day 2012), Padrun thought she would never get the keys to the condo. She waited in the attorney’s office for nearly six hours, growing more upset as the minutes ticked by while the mortgage company tried to finish paperwork. “It was a total nightmare,” she said. “They kept coming back, (saying), ‘We’re not quite done, we’re not quite done.’”
The closing was pushed to Tuesday, but the builder agreed to release the keys to Padrun so she could move in as planned over the weekend. Her daughter, Jane, who relocated with her husband and children to England for two years, had surprised Padrun by coming to Atlanta to help her move in, but needed to fly back on Monday. After one more bumpy moment — discovering her car had been booted because it had been in the parking space for too long and getting a $28 ticket (negotiated down from $56) — Padrun was able to open the doors to her new home.
“I am so in love with this place, I still can’t believe that I am actually living here,” she said. “Change is good sometimes and you never know what is on the other side.”
To Our Readers
Newcomer Living is a new feature that will appear regularly in Homefinder. If you moved to Atlanta in 2012 or 2013, bought a residence and are willing to share your story, contact Lori Johnston at lori@fastcopy.biz.
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