disenchanted with the burbs, looking to make a change (Austin: 2013, rental)

[ladylonghorn2]

you guys helped me relocate back to austin a couple years ago and now I need your advice again. We bought a lovely house in Steiner, but I am just not digging it here. It's not that there's anything wrong with the suburbs, but I'm a city gal and miss central Austin.

However, I am basically in the same financial and family boat that I was when we moved out here. Can't spend more than $350k, ideally more like $300k, need to be near good schools (although, I am really starting to question what makes a "good school". There has to be so much more to it than test scores and ratios right? Maybe I'm overlooking certain schools because they're not at the top of the statistical pile but they are still great. Or maybe I should consider private schools so the house doesn't necessarily have to be near a great public school).

But here's my current situation. We're underwater on our house in steiner, so can't sell now anyway. I was thinking maybe we lease it while we rent another house in the city, so we can figure out where we want to settle down. Our kids don't start school til fall 2013, so we have time to explore, but of course moving is a huge pain and I don't want to be hopping around too much.

So my questions are: are there some good central public schools that might be overlooked because they don't have the most amazing test scores but in other areas, like community involvement and teachers, they are worth looking into?

What neighborhoods in our price range (monthly cost of ~$2200 or less) would you recommend we search in? A couple of years ago your answer was Allandale. Thoughts? We want to be around other families and need a 3 BR, at least 1400 sq ft.

thanks!

[thedogatemyhomework]

consider allandale, crestview and maybe travis heights.

travis heights local elementary has been greatly improved because of parental involvement. i don't know about middle and high schools, but that is an issue beyond just the travis heights area.

if i had the money, i'd be right there!

good luck.

[centralaustinite]

I second Allandale, Crestview/Brentwood, Travis Heights, along with Zilker and Barton Hills. Clarksville too but you'd have to stay renters. Also, consider Maplewood Elementary in the French Place/Wilshire Woods neighborhood, great school and tracks to McCallum HS. You can transfer into many of these schools too, Gullet for example is about 40% transfer students.

The issue of school quality is tricky. Dawson is an exemplary elementary school on S. 1st street but yuppies don't flock to it because is it a majority minority school that is also high poverty but they having figured out how to get high test scores.

Good central elementary schools with strong parent communities include Travis Heights, Becker, Zilker, Barton Hills, Maplewood, Matthews, Zilker, Dawson, Pease (all transfers, so you could move around and keep the kids in one school), Lee, Gullet etc. Spend some time looking at the various school web sites and dig into the TEA data.

Private schools are also an option. You can go private just for middle school and go back to public (possibly a magnet) for HS, there are also very well-regarded magnet middle school programs at Kealing and Fulmore. If your kids aren't even in school yet, you really don't know enough about how they learn to know what options will work best for you.

[austin-steve]

Well, you may just have to do what we (wife and kids) did, which is to decide if good schools trump all other considerations. For us, it did, and we lived where we didn't want to live for a decade because we valued the school and our proximity to it and our school friends more than anything else during that stage of our lives. We sacrificed. No regrets.

In Steiner, you have what is probably a decent enough house with superb schools. You also will have a built in social network (the real life kind) of other kids and families. As the elementary/middle school years go by, you'll attend dozens, if not 100+ birthday parties, summer camps, play dates, etc. Plus Mommy groups, book clubs, etc. You'll watch other familie's kids grow up along with your own. In other words, Steiner (and other similar areas of Austin) provide the planet around which your "family with kids" and school life will orbit for more than a decade. That's a powerful thing to give up, and it's tough to duplicate in Central Austin past elementary school.

I love central Austin, and with our oldest now in college and the youngest now in high school, we moved back closer in (Eanes ISD) last year. We went from a 3,300 custom built home on an acreage lot in Oak Hill to a small 1970s track home which is unremarkable in almost every way other than location. We are sacrificing creature comforts and spaciousness now for location, while still optimizing our school choice. We are willing to do that at this stage of the life cycle whereas we weren't a decade ago when the kids were small.

Are you willing to move into a smaller, older home and forego all of the lifestyle and social advantages that Steiner offers to families raising kids? Are you willing to expose yourself financially by turning an under water home into a rental property which will introduce instability and risk to your family budget? And do you want to raise your kids in a central Austin neighborhood where other kids are much less concentrated instead of the buzzing bee hive of kidville and all it has to offer?

Those are some of the questions you'll need to answer.

I know I'm making some assumptions that can be debated, namely the premise that kids will thrive and excel more in master planned communities with high achieving schools and high concentrations of families than they will in central neighborhoods, but my belief is that, in general, overall, they will.

Steve

[mimimomx3]

I think the OP nailed it with calling out schools that have 'great test scores' as being 'great schools'. I think 21st century education will rely on much more than test scores as a marker of excellent education. Kids can- and do- thrive wherever they land, safety being the only non negotiable. I think kids can get a fabulous education in Steiner, Eanes, on the East side, in private schools, homeschooled, etc. The key, in my opinion, is involved and active parents. Live where it makes you happy. If mom and dad are happy, kids will be happy.

[1mintjulep]

Originally Posted by austin-steve

I know I'm making some assumptions that can be debated, namely the premise that kids will thrive and excel more in master planned communities with high achieving schools and high concentrations of families than they will in central neighborhoods, but my belief is that, in general, overall, they will.

Steve

Well, she said she didn't like living in Steiner, so personally I'd just take her at her word that she actually knows where she does and does not want to live. No offense, but you seem to want to stick people out in these master-planned communities whether they want to be there or not.

[nonexpat]

We moved from Plano to Austin last year. I would say Plano is comparable to Steiner Ranch in school quality, homes and attitudes of parents. In Plano my kids had friends who were also in the gifted and talented program, whose parents made sure they did their homework first when they came over for playdates, whose parents gave the kids nutritious snacks when my kids were over for playdates. I felt safe and confident when my children were at these people's houses.

When we moved to Austin, we decided we wanted to live in Austin proper rather than the suburbs. We couldn't afford central Austin, so we chose northwest Austin. My kids went to Murchison Middle School, considered one of the best in Austin. I found--especially with my daughter--that now her friends had single moms, which isn't in itself bad, but one woman smoked like a chimney in her house, had several different boyfriends, one of whom was drunk most of the time. Another had a mother who had her when she was sixteen and was just glad to see the kid out of the house. Honestly, I didn't feel safe letting my daughter go to these homes. She had other friends whose parents were more trustworthy, but still the difference was palpable because of the disparities in socioeconomic status.

I think my kids had a decent education at Murchison, but I felt like I couldn't relax because I was concerned about some of their friends' families. Are there lousy parents in Plano and Steiner Ranch? I'm sure of it, but I think there are fewer.

[ladylonghorn2]

The master planned life is not for me, for lots of reasons. I gave it the old college try, and even though my kids are only in preschool, have already attended countless Playdates, parties etc. Tried the mom's group thing but just wasn't my scene. I see the advantages of raising kids in Steiner, heck that's why ended up there in the 1st place, but after 2 years, I realize it wasn't the right decision.

I really appreciate the specific suggestions and school feedback you're all providing. Thank you!!

[mimimomx3]

Originally Posted by nonexpat

We moved from Plano to Austin last year. I would say Plano is comparable to Steiner Ranch in school quality, homes and attitudes of parents. In Plano my kids had friends who were also in the gifted and talented program, whose parents made sure they did their homework first when they came over for playdates, whose parents gave the kids nutritious snacks when my kids were over for playdates. I felt safe and confident when my children were at these people's houses.

When we moved to Austin, we decided we wanted to live in Austin proper rather than the suburbs. We couldn't afford central Austin, so we chose northwest Austin. My kids went to Murchison Middle School, considered one of the best in Austin. I found--especially with my daughter--that now her friends had single moms, which isn't in itself bad, but one woman smoked like a chimney in her house, had several different boyfriends, one of whom was drunk most of the time. Another had a mother who had her when she was sixteen and was just glad to see the kid out of the house. Honestly, I didn't feel safe letting my daughter go to these homes. She had other friends whose parents were more trustworthy, but still the difference was palpable because of the disparities in socioeconomic status.

I think my kids had a decent education at Murchison, but I felt like I couldn't relax because I was concerned about some of their friends' families. Are there lousy parents in Plano and Steiner Ranch? I'm sure of it, but I think there are fewer.

Wow, I'd love to see what kind of business these single moms are in that they can afford the median home price of $443K. https://www.city-data.com/zips/78731.html
OP, this poster's rather dramatic experience notwithstanding, I think you would enjoy living in NW Hills (78731). It's suburban enough for yards, but definitely more urban than Steiner, etc. Doss, Murchison, Anderson are among the best choices of AISD. There are also many private school options nearby (St. Stephens, St Andrews, Hyde Park).

[centralaustinite]

Don't worry, we have book groups, playdates, camps, carpools and birthday parties by the dozens here in central Austin too!

There is of course an element of luck involved. You could easily live on a street in a master-planned community that is filled with kids but kids who are 5-8 years older than yours and you miss out on your community. The same is true in the central city but the kid population is less dense overall. But you can still get lucky and find same age friends nearby. My two oldest kids do not have kids near their age but my youngest has kids within 1-2 years on this block and the next block. It is great. Halloween will come and he will trick or treat with a whole gang. My older kids have their friends from school come over and trick or treat here because it is such a big deal in this neighborhood.

Certainly in any of the neighborhoods around the schools I listed above, you will find a group of dedicated involved parents. And private schools build community too! Parents are usually super-dedicated and willing to go the extra mile to arrange playdates and build friendships.