Located in the geographic center of the Southeast, the area is the nation’s 9th largest metropolitan area and home to the busiest airport in the country. Atlanta is a regional, national and global center for business operations of all kinds – from headquarters to life sciences, from distribution centers to traditional manufacturing.

Recent accolades received

Ranked 3rd by Fortune Magazine for “Top Cities with the Most Fortune 500 Headquartered Firms” (2007). Ranked 1st in U.S. as least costly large city for business by KPMG (2006). Ranked 3rd by Site Selection Magazine for number of 2006 projects landed. Ranked 2nd by Black Enterprise Magazine for "Top Cities for Black Americans" (2007). Ranked 3rd by Expansion Management magazine's list of “America's 50 Hottest Cities” (2006). Ranked 1st by Expansion Management / Logistics Today magazine as “Most Friendly Logistics City in the Southeast” (2005).

The Metro Atlanta Chamber’s experienced Economic Development staff can provide you with customized information and direct assistance in all aspects of your company's planning, including:

• Commercial and residential real estate
• Talent recruitment and compensation
• Telecommunications
• Employee training
• Access to university resources
• School information
• Business taxes
• Incentives
• Quality of Life

For confidential assistance, please contact John Gilman, Vice President, Business Recruitment at 404.586.8446 or jgilman@macoc.com.

If you are not a company interested in relocating to the metro Atlanta area but are an individual who would like additional information on the metro area, visit our chamber publications section for available resources.

Metro Atlanta Images

Piedmont Park
* click images to enlarge

Piedmont Park lake against skyline		Piedmont Park panorama

Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site

Martin Luther King's grave	New Ebenezer Baptist Church	Coretta Scott King's grave

                             Centennial Olympic Park

Olympic dreamer	Olympic Park athletic statue	Olympic Park children's area

Georgia Aquarium

Georgia Aquarium	Beluga Whale	Shark
New World of Coca Cola at Centennial Olympic Park

These companies have something in common. They have all recently chosen a Metro Atlanta location for their new facilities or as the place they relocated existing operations. They made Metro Atlanta their choice after a competitive evaluation of options in other cities. This is the highest form of praise that Metro Atlanta has the right combination of low costs, business services, quality of life and talent they need to operate and grow their businesses.

Metro Atlanta's commercial development extends outward in all directions from the central business district. Finding a building to meet your company's requirements requires thorough research. The Chamber's Economic Development staff uses a comprehensive building database to provide your company with a customized report of buildings meeting your unique requirements. This report can be based on any of the following classes of buildings and any size range. You simply tell us what you need and we'll run a specialized report and email it to you the same day.

Building type

Office
Flex
Industrial/warehouse
Retail

Other criteria:

Square footage required
Specific county, city or real estate sub-market desired
Rent rates
Ceiling height
Rail service
Proximity to airport

Residential Real Estate

Finding that "just right" home for all of your relocating employees or experiencing a community tour are important steps in your planning and relocation process. Working with the Chamber's top residential brokerages, the Economic Development staff can arrange for all of this assistance for your company.

How does this work? First, your Economic Development project manager will work with you to fully understand your housing requirements, including price ranges and location preferences in metro Atlanta. Information on actual housing meeting your profile, including pictures, will be sent to you.

Next, we will plan a trip to Atlanta for you. A relocation vice president from a Chamber member brokerage will be assigned to work personally with your company. They will conduct home tours for individuals or groups, show you shopping and community amenities, and even provide expert quidance in school selection for children of your employees. All of this on your timetable.

When you make the decision to move or place new facilities here, a presentation team will be happy to travel to your current location and provide a detailed overview of living and working in metro Atlanta.

If you are considering relocating your company and would like a customized report, contact John Gilman, Vice President, Business Recruitment at 404.586.8446 or jgilman@macoc.com.

Knowing what incentives and assistance your company can qualify for is an important part of your expansion planning. The Metro Atlanta Chamber Economic Development staff is highly experienced in this process and can help you learn exactly what your company can expect.

A variety of business incentives and tax reduction programs are available in metro Atlanta. Call the number below to see if your company qualifies.

Job creation tax credit - A credit good against Georgia Corporate Income Tax liability. The amount of the credit varies from $1,250 to $4,000 per job per year, depending on the county in which a facility is located. Jobs must be pre-qualified as eligible. The credit is valid for a period of five (5) years.

Corporate headquarters relocation incentive - Relocating your headquarters or the headquarters of a subsidiary could qualify your firm for an advanced job tax credit (up to $5,000 per job per year for 5 years, if the new jobs pay twice the county average wage rate). The headquarters tax credit can be used against 100% of corporate income tax liability regardless of where the taxpayer locates the headquarters. Credits not applied to income tax liability may be used to reduce withholding tax.

Investment tax credit- A one-time 1% tax credit on a minimum capital investment of $50,000 for manufacturers and telecommunications firms that have operated a production facility in the state the previous three years is offered in metro Atlanta counties. A taxpayer must choose either the regular or optional investment tax credit.

Cost-Free customized employee training - Georgia's highly acclaimed Quick Start training program offers sophisticated customized training jointly developed with your company. This cost-free program covers development and delivery of all training conducted in your facilities or in a state-of-the-art vocational-technical college. The Chamber's Economic Development staff will work directly with you and Quick Start to ensure a full exploration of all training that may be provided to your company.

Property tax relief - Many counties in Metro Atlanta will offer 10-year periods of property tax relief, negotiated on a case-by-case basis. Typically offered only in conjunction with the use of revenue bonds, this type of incentive is predicated on the number and quality of jobs created and the amount of the financial investment.

Sales tax exemptions - State sales tax is exempted on manufacturing machinery, computer equipment used in high tech operations, equipment and materials used in clean rooms, material handling equipment, and more.

Other incentives:

• Retraining tax credits
• Freeport (inventory) tax exemptions
• Childcare tax credits
• Advanced training from the State University System (ICAPP)
• R&D tax credit

To see if your company qualifies for incentives, contact John Gilman, Vice President, Business Recruitment at 404.586.8446 or jgilman@macoc.com.

Taking time for a trip to Metro Atlanta can be one of the most important parts of your city selection process. This will give you or your client the opportunity to see things first hand and to meet with key players in the community and your business sector. The Chamber's Economic Development team can help you plan a trip customized to your timetable and objectives -- all accomplished in complete confidence.

Here are specific examples of what the staff can do for you:

Provide comprehensive briefings in a state-of-the-art marketing center. Such a briefing would be customized to subject matter you want to cover. A project team can be assembled including representatives from the Chamber, state economic development and training agencies, and from appropriate utilities companies. All this in a manner that will allow you to fully explore all mission-critical issues without concerns over confidentiality breaches.

Escort you to view commercial buildings that meet your requirements (a full report will have been prepared in advance and approved by you). During these visits, you will view all aspects of the building and have the option of being introduced to the listing broker (not required).

Arrange interviews with representative employers for the purpose of learning their experience in securing and retaining employees. At your discretion, these employers would not have to know your identity or your client's.

Provide residential housing tours through the services of one of the Chamber's leading residential brokerages. Such tours will focus on the type, location and price range preferred by your employees.

Pick-up and drop-off at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Your Chamber project manager will be happy to pick you up on your arrival in Atlanta (either at the airport or your hotel) and escort you to all meetings. Vans will be provided at no cost when group size dictates. At the conclusion of your trip, you will be returned to the airport in time for your departure.

These are just some of the typical services your Chamber Economic Development team will be happy to provide. If you would like to schedule a trip, contact John Gilman, Vice President, Business Recruitment, at 404-586-8446 or by email at jgilman@macoc.com.