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The Mrs. and I are moving in a few weeks. We've been to Dallas once recently, and spent hours and hours (5days) driving around Plano, Allen, McKinney, and Frisco. Even went west to Rockwall and Heath. Now, we've happened upon flower mound/southlake area and are thoroughly confused. Don't know what to do. Here are some stats:
Married, 2 boys 6&4
Now they go to private Christian school, but open to public
We live in a suburb of detroit (novi)
Wife works in office now - will be working 90% in downtown Dallas
I work from home currently
House budget $650k
She's willing (and kind of wanting) public transportation to work
Current commute for her is approximately 35 min normal and up to an hour in really bad traffic days
Here's what we're looking for:
Sunshine. (Today we're getting 12" of snow. Tomorrow it's supposed to be a high temp of -4 degrees. Yes. It's cold)
4 bedroom
Nearly 1/3 acre or more
3 car garage
Nice pool
Commute is important, but from what she does now, can tolerate 35-45 min or so.
We liked Allen a lot, Frisco seemed to fake to us. Plano was OK, maybe we looked in the wrong area. Then through th Internet we found Flower mound area and thought it was kinda nice.
Headed back in a few weekends to do another round of house hunting. If worse comes to worse we may rent for a short period and take our time. I'd like to move and be done with it.
Flower Mound wouldn't work, your best options are University Park(HPISD), North Dallas( PISD) or West Plano(PISD) with decent housing, commute and schools. If you want to keep private schools then you better stay in DISD.
These are the homes in my area which meet your budget.
Your budget will get you in many places. Flower Mound will be at least an hour drive to downtown in rush hour, almost an hour in Allen as well. I would try Richardson - JJ Pearce HS (BigD can give you more info), Coppell is a little closer than Flower Mound to downtown and has great schools. Not sure where you drove in Plano but that is nice as well. $650k will be good for W Plano, but really depends on what you want. There's also an area called Bent Tree in Dallas. I think it may feed into Plano schools, but not sure.
We have a few friends that send their kids to Trinity Christian Academy in Addison which is close to North Dallas and some areas of Richardson.
Prestonwoood Christian Academy also is another school here. It's at Plano Pkwy and Midway. You could live in the neighborhoods around there which can either attend Plano West or Hebron High (not in Plano - I think Lewisville ISD- but is also good, but not as high test scores as Plano if that matters).
Another area I would have like to have moved to was Lake Highlands in Dallas. Know a few work colleagues that like living there. Some have moved to Lake Highlands from the Plano/Frisco/Allen area and like it better as it does not seem so sports-centric, and has good schools in certain zip codes.
Hope this helps a little. We have been in Plano three years and like it so far, but the emphasis on sports can be excessive at times.
Reality check: public transportation is ONLY an option if you are in central/east Plano (along 75, south of Parker). The DART rail doesn't go north to Allen or McKinney and there is NO public transit from Rockwall / Heath/ Flower Mound/ Southlake AT ALL.
I would actually recommend the Lake Highlands area in northeast Dallas (south of 635, east of 75). It is serviced by several DART rail stations, is a great family neighborhood that is less expensive than some of the closer-in options. Public elementaries are very good though you may choose to do private for 6-12 or even k-12. Several very good and moderately priced Christian schools like Schofield and Highlander are in Lake Highlands and are well under $15k/year. There is also a good Catholic school there, St Pat's. You probably won't find a lot as big as 1/3 acre but you won't find those in Frisco, Plano, or Allen either. Zip codes are 75238 and 75243.
Another option is living in northwest Dallas (south of 635, west of the Tollroad, east of 35). You'd generally want to look between Webb Chapel / 635/ Midway/ Walnut Hill to find homes which will work for your price range. This area is private school central, where most of the elite Dallas schools are, but also some less expensive - but still great quality- Christian schools. Several excellent Catholic schools as well. Your wife could easily drive into downtown in <20 minutes or park & ride from the Green Line station on Northwest Hwy. Many homes here are on 1/3 acre or larger lots. Zip code 75229
The Mrs. and I are moving in a few weeks. We've been to Dallas once recently, and spent hours and hours (5days) driving around Plano, Allen, McKinney, and Frisco. Even went west to Rockwall and Heath. Now, we've happened upon flower mound/southlake area and are thoroughly confused. Don't know what to do. Here are some stats:
Married, 2 boys 6&4
Now they go to private Christian school, but open to public
We live in a suburb of detroit (novi)
Wife works in office now - will be working 90% in downtown Dallas
I work from home currently
House budget $650k
She's willing (and kind of wanting) public transportation to work
Current commute for her is approximately 35 min normal and up to an hour in really bad traffic days
Here's what we're looking for:
Sunshine. (Today we're getting 12" of snow. Tomorrow it's supposed to be a high temp of -4 degrees. Yes. It's cold)
4 bedroom
Nearly 1/3 acre or more
3 car garage
Nice pool
Commute is important, but from what she does now, can tolerate 35-45 min or so.
We liked Allen a lot, Frisco seemed to fake to us. Plano was OK, maybe we looked in the wrong area. Then through th Internet we found Flower mound area and thought it was kinda nice.
Headed back in a few weekends to do another round of house hunting. If worse comes to worse we may rent for a short period and take our time. I'd like to move and be done with it.
DFW experts- please help!!
Thanks!
If you liked Allen and are looking for a 1/3 acre lot or more, I would strongly recommend you do some research on Lucas & Fairview. They border Allen (zip codes 75002 & 75069), but the lots would be larger, in addition to giving you the size of home you're looking for.
Not to mention, if you did decide to go the public school route, both these towns are in Lovejoy ISD, which is one of the best school districts in the area. You would also have great resale because so many people will pay a premium to live in that district.
In terms of public transportation, there is no DART in Allen, but most places with a 1/3 acre lot in that price range won't have public transportation. That being said, I know several folks who live in Allen and work downtown. What your wife can do in this case is drive south on 75 to Plano and get on the DART light rail in Plano and take it all the way downtown.
I think this is the best option for y'all based on what you said your requirements are. FloMo, Southlake etc are all equally GREAT areas, I just don't see how you'd get to Downtown from there! I feel the same way y'all do about Frisco, Allen has more of that small town feel than Frisco.
Also, I just found out a week ago about a express commuter bus from Plano to downtown with a Park and Ride at the Aloft Plano at Tennyson/Dallas Pkwy. Bus has to follow the flow of traffic as there are no HOV or commuter bus lanes on the route to downtown, but at least you are not driving. Heard they run every 15-20 mins, but that's all I know.
I don't think that UP is an option on that budget, but I would look at Lake Highlands and Pearce Richardson if you want to stay public. If you want to go private, you can find all sorts of nice houses in that budget, but tuition will run 10-25k per kid (I think it is worth it depending on what school you can get admitted to). Plano will run her 30-45 minutes during rush hour, and it can get worse.
If you liked Allen and are looking for a 1/3 acre lot or more, I would strongly recommend you do some research on Lucas & Fairview. They border Allen (zip codes 75002 & 75069), but the lots would be larger, in addition to giving you the size of home you're looking for.
Not to mention, if you did decide to go the public school route, both these towns are in Lovejoy ISD, which is one of the best school districts in the area. You would also have great resale because so many people will pay a premium to live in that district.
In terms of public transportation, there is no DART in Allen, but most places with a 1/3 acre lot in that price range won't have public transportation. That being said, I know several folks who live in Allen and work downtown. What your wife can do in this case is drive south on 75 to Plano and get on the DART light rail in Plano and take it all the way downtown.
I think this is the best option for y'all based on what you said your requirements are. FloMo, Southlake etc are all equally GREAT areas, I just don't see how you'd get to Downtown from there! I feel the same way y'all do about Frisco, Allen has more of that small town feel than Frisco.
The commute from Lucas and Fairview would be too long. Traffic on those two lane roads coming from those two towns is horrible as well.
Also, I just found out a week ago about a express commuter bus from Plano to downtown with a Park and Ride at the Aloft Plano at Tennyson/Dallas Pkwy. Bus has to follow the flow of traffic as there are no HOV or commuter bus lanes on the route to downtown, but at least you are not driving. Heard they run every 15-20 mins, but that's all I know.
I don't use it but people seem to like it. If you live in far west area of Plano then this is not the only public option, you can take dart from Carrollton or East Plano. Drive to Dallas's elite privates is very reasonable. With a good spot near 190, 121, DNT, you save time on commute in any direction. Prince of Peace, Prestonwood, Parish, John Paul etc are closeby. To be honest, West Plano schools are as good or better than most privates. Lots here are usually 1/4 but plenty of homes with bigger lots as well. We had similar requirements and very happy with our choice, don't have to pay a fortune to privates and didn't have to settle for a condo in Park cities. $650k gets you a decent home here. No not as big and new as exurbs but considering the perks of location, resale and schools ... I would make the same decision if I have to make it today.
I don't understand why would someone suggest Lucas/ Fairview?
Reality check: public transportation is ONLY an option if you are in central/east Plano (along 75, south of Parker). The DART rail doesn't go north to Allen or McKinney and there is NO public transit from Rockwall / Heath/ Flower Mound/ Southlake AT ALL.
I would actually recommend the Lake Highlands area in northeast Dallas (south of 635, east of 75). It is serviced by several DART rail stations, is a great family neighborhood that is less expensive than some of the closer-in options. Public elementaries are very good though you may choose to do private for 6-12 or even k-12. Several very good and moderately priced Christian schools like Schofield and Highlander are in Lake Highlands and are well under $15k/year. There is also a good Catholic school there, St Pat's. You probably won't find a lot as big as 1/3 acre but you won't find those in Frisco, Plano, or Allen either. Zip codes are 75238 and 75243.
Another option is living in northwest Dallas (south of 635, west of the Tollroad, east of 35). You'd generally want to look between Webb Chapel / 635/ Midway/ Walnut Hill to find homes which will work for your price range. This area is private school central, where most of the elite Dallas schools are, but also some less expensive - but still great quality- Christian schools. Several excellent Catholic schools as well. Your wife could easily drive into downtown in <20 minutes or park & ride from the Green Line station on Northwest Hwy. Many homes here are on 1/3 acre or larger lots. Zip code 75229
Whats wrong with the express bus service from the NW side of Plano to DT Dallas? I had great experience with the Houston express bus commute with a similar distance. Is the Dallas one unreliable etc?
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