We relocated from Southern California to Metro Atlanta right around five years ago (April 2006). Understanding that we had always lived on the West Coast - specifically Los Angeles. That area has a tempermant and speed all its own (mostly, in my opinion, sort of mean, snobbish and too g.d. fast), so moving to GA, which is reknowned for its being a whole lot slower - was a huuuuuuuuggggggge adjustment! I'll be honest, it took us probably a good couple of years before our "internal speedometers" reset to GA speed. During that time, we wondered whether we made a big, big mistake.
It has been nearly five years for us, and we are glad that we made this move. Notwithstanding this snow that got dumped on GA this past week, the weather is enjoyable. The colors of the different seasons are remarkable. During the summer months, when humidity and heat set in, we've gotten fairly used to it. It's doable. Spring and Fall are what we look forward to here. For different reasons, they are just breathtaking. While there are certainly lovely places in CA, GA has many also, and I get to live in a lot more of them than I ever could in CA. Take, for example, the city of Milton. That is a knockout-beautiful area. Lots of horse farms, beautiful subdivisions and terrific schools. In the springtime, driving down Lower Birmingham/Hickory Flat will just stun you with its gorgeous, multi-colored flowers that seem to pop out of everywhere. The thing that always blows my mind is that this road is totally natural - no one MADE this area so beautiful. It just is.
As for traffic -- yeah, it can be nasty, but, coming from L.A., I don't really see a difference. Schools where we are at (Holly Springs - Cherokee County) are fantastic. Neighbors around us are a true melting pot. A LOT of folks relocated here from the West Coast for the same reasons we did - you get way more house/way nicer housing for far less money.
Politically speaking, GA is a red state, but I do not find that anyone around here has ever beaten me over the head with their politics. Interestingly, GA was, at one point not too many years ago, a blue state.
In general, I would recommend the move. Your winters are not nearly as punishing as the Northeast's are.
Good luck!
E.