Apartments for Rent in Riverdale, GA - 114 Rentals available

Riverdale welcomes you! It's just 13 shorts miles from Atlanta and 74 miles from Macon. NerdWallet called Riverdale the 116^th “Best City for Young Families in Georgia,” based on factors like family-friendly activities, affordability, and quality of education.

It’s a small community, as evidenced by the fact that it's a full 72 times smaller than Atlanta. But it still shares many of the same characteristics of its closest big city.

For instance, the weather in Riverdale is relatively hot. The average high temperature in July is a warm 91 degrees. January’s average low is about 33°F, but with 217 sunny days a year, it feels warmer. The city gets a full 50 inches of rain per year, but only a scant inch or so of snow.

The cost of living in Riverdale is 6 percent lower than in the rest of the country. A month of electricity, water, and waste disposal for a 915-square foot apartment will cost you around $146, which is right on par with the US average.

Dinner for two, including three courses, will set you back by about $50, but a morning cappuccino is just around $3.82.

Enjoy your coffee on the local Xpress public transportation system to cut down on commute costs. A one-way fare is $3 or $4, depending on where you’re going. A 10-ride pass is available for $25, and 31-day passes cost $100. Children younger than 6 ride the bus for free.

One advantage of living in Riverdale is that housing costs are low. The diversity of the big city also spills over into this suburb, and its proximity to Atlanta means easy access to some of the country’s best educational institutions, entertainment venues, and outdoor activities.

Some downsides to living in Riverdale include its crime rate and the commute into Atlanta. Riverdale’s crime rate is 114 percent higher than the rest of the country, and the violent crime rate is 21 percent higher. Residents who drive to Atlanta for work also face a lot of traffic congestion.

For things to do within the city, look no further than the Riverdale Town Center. With an amphitheater, stage, an arts studio, and a dance studio, something is scheduled nearly every day of the year. In the summer, the amphitheater is home to the After Work Cool Down Music Series, which features musicians and bands performing on the fourth Thursday of the month.

The Riverdale Seafood and BBQ Festival is an annual summer event, featuring some of the best food in the region.

There are a few parks in Riverdale for family fun, such as the Riverdale Regional Park. It has several sports fields for football, baseball, and soccer, along with an indoor basketball court. Flat Shoals Park features tennis courts, a children's playground, soccer and baseball fields, and picnic facilities. And the Virginia Gray Recreation Center is an indoor facility featuring a weight room, basketball courts, and a pool.

There are so many things to do in Atlanta with the family, you’ll be glad you live so close. The Georgia Aquarium is the country’s largest – and just a few miles from Riverdale. Another family friendly activity here is visiting the Children’s Museum of Atlanta for hands-on science fun, or the Lego Discovery Center Atlanta to build imaginative creations.

During baseball and football seasons, you can also catch the Atlanta Braves or Atlanta Falcons in town.

The culture in Riverdale revolves mainly around the Arts Clayton Gallery, which features both state and national exhibits, plus a pretty cool gift shop.

There's even more great stuff to check out in Atlanta, beginning with The Center for Civil and Human Rights, which allows visitors to interact with historical information about the struggles of human rights advocates.

Spend an evening on the town in Atlanta listening to the Grammy Award-winning Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, or by taking in a play at the Alliance Theatre, which routinely features shows before they make their way to Broadway.

For art lovers, there are more than 13,000 works at the High Museum of Art. Or for a serene getaway, the Atlanta Botanical Garden has more than 30 acres of greenery and flowers in the middle of the city.

The unemployment rate in Riverdale is 8 percent, and the majority of jobs here are in the healthcare and service industries. Southern Regional Medical Center is one major employer in the area. 

For more employment opportunities, Riverdale residents can look to Atlanta, where some of the headquarters of the world’s largest corporations are located. That includes the Coca-Cola Company, Delta Air Lines, CNN, Chick-fi-A, Home Depot, Marble Slab Creamery, and the American headquarters of Mercedes-Benz and Porsche AG.

There are no higher education institutions in Riverdale, but Atlanta has quite a few to choose from. They include Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State University, the Art Institute of Atlanta, Morehouse College, Spelman College, and a branch of Savannah College of Art and Design.

Riverdale is within the Clayton County School District. One local school, Elite Scholars Academy Schools, has been ranked the 28^th-best high school in Georgia by U.S. News & World Report.

If Riverdale is the place for you, there are a few renter’s rights you should know about before your move.

For one thing, Georgia doesn’t have a “cold feet” period. If you sign a lease, you don’t have the option to back out within 72 hours, as you can in some states. If you do change your mind after signing, the landlord has the right to impose penalties, like charging you for the first month’s rent.

If you do sign a lease with the intention of moving in, you're legally allowed to inspect the place before your move-in date – if you paid a security deposit. Your landlord should also give you a list of any damage he knows of before you move in.