Hospital Radiology v. Radiology Clinics & $50,000?

While I enjoyed my leftover chicken tacos (taco salad!), I spent my lunch hour calling around to different radiology clinics today. Found out that the clinic my doctor’s office referred me to is associated with Piedmont hospital (of course....since I go to Piedmont Physicians group), so their fees are expensive. It would’ve cost me $40 out of pocket to get a chest X-ray at Piedmont West Office. I found some alternate places to go to, where I will be spending less than $10 to get an X-ray. Now the question is, can I find one open on a Saturday so that I don’t have to miss work next week? Keeping my fingers crossed.

In housing news, I heard about a program in Atlanta that will give you up to $50,000 for down payment assistance if you buy a place along the “beltine.” http://www.beltline.org/ I looked at some of the condos/townhouses on their website and they are way too expensive. If I’m going to spend $150,000 - $200,000, I’m buying a house. And the $50,000 was the amount they tried to lure people in with. If you’re not planning on spending $250,000 on a condo/townhouse/house, then you’re more likely to get 20% of what you spend. And that whole 20% isn’t a guarantee.  And the "$50,000" isn't really free money, they refer to the amount as a "soft mortgage". It's sort of a loan that you don't pay interest on, and if you don't stay in the condo/townhouse/house for 15 years, you have to pay the money back (at a fairly low rate). That could be good or bad, I guess if they prorated the payback then it wouldn't be so bad, but say you stay in your new home for 8-10 years and then need to move? Then you owe X amount back? No thanks. I'll stick with the government down payment assitance programs with no (or fewer) strings attached.

I will admit that I really liked the places I saw on there. They’re upscale and most of the units have been updated with hardwood floors and granite/stainless steel in the kitchens. I especially like the ones in the Buckhead/Lindbergh areas, which is an area I would love to live in, but it’s a little far from work (I work in between downtown and Marietta). One or two of those condo communities has a 1 or 2 bedroom that I looked at online before...for considerably less money (somewhere in the $50,000 to $80,000 range), but I’m still not sure. I still LOVE the original condo community I’ve had my eye on. But because that area is more of a mix of suburban and urban, it’s pretty expensive. But I’m keeping my eye out for any other short sale/foreclosed properties until then. But before anything else, I need to focus on my health and then go back to looking for a new place. I was sad to email the realtor that I started working with to tell her I had to put things on hold, but you gotta do what you gotta do!


Off to make some Rotini with Alfredo sauce for dinner!