Exploring Cumming, GA: Insider's Perspective on Living in Forsyth County

Cumming, Georgia is an awesome community located in Forsyth County, which sits on the southwest end of Lake Lanier. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area and widely populated by people who work in the city but chose to live in the suburbs and commute into work, as it’s only about 39 miles from the heart of Atlanta, and 15 miles from Alpharetta.

Cumming itself is not that large of a city, with a population of less than 9,000 people and a total area of just under 7 square miles. However, the city has experienced a ton of growth over the last few decades and is quickly transforming into metro-Atlanta’s next suburban hot spot. You could say it is pretty up and Cumming…

Come on, I know you saw that one Cumming. It is a very diverse area and is growing rapidly, so don’t expect that smaller population to stay that way for long.

So- what are the pros and cons of Cumming, GA?

Let’s start with the pros. For starters, the location is awesome. Parts of Cumming sit on the beautiful Lake Lanier, which means you have easy access to the lake from most anywhere in town. Who doesn’t want to be on Lake Lanier?

If this is your first time hearing about Lake Lanier, check out my channel. I have made tons of videos talking all about the lake. Despite the fact that it is a city, Cumming has a lot of great parks and public outdoor spaces, both on the lake and in other parts throughout town.

In fact, you can go hike at the Sawnee Mountain Preserve for some beautiful views. Another huge plus to the location is the close proximity and easy access to Georgia State Route 400, which will quickly take you straight into Atlanta. Like we talked about earlier, this is a really popular area for those who work in Atlanta but don’t want to live right in the city and need an easy commute.

If you saw my Pros and Cons of living in Flowery Branch video, this will sound like very similar information, or even my Pros and Cons of living in Buford video… a suburb of the city with easy access to both the lake and Atlanta. This is true, all of these towns both have a great location, but Cumming definitely feels like an extension of Atlanta, so if Flowery Branch is a little too quaint for you, Cumming might be a better fit. 

Another great feature of Cumming is the shopping and restaurants. There is no shortage of either one of those things in Cumming! In fact, Cumming has what I would consider the mecca- a Super Target. You know, the kind that has all the beautiful lit-up displays in the cosmetics area, all of the groceries so you don’t have to go to two different stores, and the beautiful home goods displays that make you want to buy 36 throw pillows and fake plants and totally redo your living room? Anyway, the shopping in Cumming is great. There are several different shopping strips, with everything from Costco, Walmart, TJ Maxx and Homegoods, and everything in between.

There’s also a really cool place called Lakewood 400 Antiques Market, which is a massive indoor shopping plaza of antique & vintage items with tons of different vendors, and it is open to the public on the third weekend of every month. It’s a really neat place and you are sure to find something cool even if you aren’t into antiques- or you’ll end up with something really yummy to eat. If somehow whatever store you need isn’t located in Cumming, there are plenty of other places in Forsyth County to shop too. 

Besides the big box stores and chain restaurants, Cumming also has a cute downtown area with more unique restaurants and small businesses. Something that you might be a little surprised to find in a city like Cumming is the City of Cumming Fairgrounds. Every year in October, there is a huge fair with all of the fried food and rickety rides you can think of. This draws massive crowds of people from all over North Georgia every year and is a huge hit. The fairgrounds are also used to host many events throughout the year, like the rodeo, a Christmas festival, and Easter egg hunts.

They also hold a huge 4th of July celebration and an event called The Taste, where tons of food vendors come in with their food trucks, there’s live music and competitions, the whole nine yards. All of these events help Cumming feel like a good ole small country town, despite the fact that this is a booming metropolitan area. A little fun fact for you country music fans- Zac Brown of the Zac Brown Band was born and raised in Cumming. How bout that?

Something that I can’t fail to mention when talking about Cumming is the awesome schools. Forsyth County schools are rated #2 Best School Districts in Georgia according to niche.com which is a great tool for researching schools. They also have a 94% graduation rate, which is pretty great compared to the state average of 84%.

Despite the fact that as I mentioned earlier, Cumming is not that big of a city, there are a ton of homes for sale in the area currently- and a vast majority of that is new construction. This is definitely a pro of Cumming- lots of opportunities to build a new construction home. However, that can also be a con, there are not a ton of resale homes in Cumming. 

That leads me into the first of the cons with Cumming- the price. Home prices here are pretty steep, whether its new construction or resale. Lake homes here are most definitely going to run you a pretty penny.

If you picked up a house from Cumming and moved it to somewhere like Oakwood- the price would drop significantly. Cumming has great schools, a great location, a great economy- all things that you are going to have to pay a higher price for, but for good reason. 

Not only are the home prices higher in Cumming, but so is the overall cost of living. On a scale based on the US average of 100, the cost of living here has a score of 116.1, putting it 16.1 points higher than the national average. That is one of the highest levels in the state of Georgia, and if you saw my cost of living in Gainesville video, you know that that is a huge difference, with Gainesville coming in 26.5 points lower!

That is a massive difference, and the majority of that higher number comes from housing prices, which sits at score 144.6 compared to the Georgia average of 80.7 points, and the US average of 100.

Though it sounds like the cost of living is outrageous, it is actually significantly lower than the majority of the areas immediately surrounding Atlanta, like Brookhaven which is ranked at a cost of living score of 144.6, or Sandy Springs at 137.3. 

These numbers feel heightened when compared to Gainesville, but that is mainly because the cost of living in Gainesville is so low. When you compare the cost of living in Cumming to somewhere in say California, you realize that that is pretty low. Depending on where you are moving from, it might be super low to you, or maybe really high.

The cost of living is all relative. One of the reason that home prices are higher in Cumming is because many people who live in Cumming commute to Alpharetta and the Roswell area for work. Cumming is an attractive suburub because while the homes prices there may seem expensive, Cumming offers a lot more for your money in comparison and is a short commute away. 

Another con to Cumming is the traffic. With 400 being a huge connector to the city, you are going to wind up in commuter traffic during rush hour. Northside Hospital is located in Cumming (huge pro there, by the way. Tons of jobs and great healthcare) so that definitely also adds to the traffic. Just like any suburb of Atlanta, you are going to have traffic on and around the interstate, which is where most of the shopping and stores are located, which then also increases traffic… you know how it is.

There are of course some parts of town where traffic is not that big of an issue, but of course, if you want to be in a city, you’re gonna have traffic. Cumming is definitely a really cool part of north Georgia. Beautiful, stately homes close to the city, with some small town country charm found at the fair every year. So, what do you think? Do the pros outweigh the cons here?

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