[drymalski]

We currently live in the Chicago suburbs and are contemplating a move to either Bentonville or Fayetteville for my husband's job. We have two young boys, ages 2 & 5. I have read a ton on this forum about Bentonville and Fayetteville, but my questions I still have are:

1. For a young family, which city do you think is best and why (I realize this is a personal choice, but curious what you would pick). We would like a lot of things for the kids to do, and we like shopping and some chain restaurants. We need a good education. If we have that we're happy.
2. How long would the commute be from northern end of Fayetteville to Rogers?
3. I have read a lot about snakes and spiders. Are they really that bad? I don't want to worry all the time that my kids will encounter these things.
4. Is there a lot of tornado activity in Bentonville? I was leaning toward Bentonville til I read that they have double the amount of tornados that Fayetteville has. Is this a real concern I should have? I know you never know, but are there scares every year or two?
5. Can anyone recommend a good realor who really listens to what you want and fights a tough battle for you on price.

Thanks so much in advance.

[DC at the Ridge]

Fayetteville has the University. It generally has more activities, restaurants, shopping venues. Benton County has been closing this gap over the past five years, but I think people in the area are accustomed to traveling to Fayetteville for events, while people in Fayetteville are not accustomed to traveling up to Benton County, except for jobs.

[joebaldknobber]

I always thought of Illinois getting more tornados than Arkansas. You'll sees a lot more armadillos than snakes. It seems restaurant choices have doubled in the last 2 years in Washington and Benton counties. No shortage of chain restaurants. Fayetteville to Rogers will take 20 minutes or more depending on traffic.

[rackensack]

Originally Posted by drymalski

1. For a young family, which city do you think is best and why (I realize this is a personal choice, but curious what you would pick). We would like a lot of things for the kids to do, and we like shopping and some chain restaurants. We need a good education. If we have that we're happy.

Depends on the family, of course. If you're used to and enjoy the suburbs of a major city, with lots of newly developed housing, retail, and commercial areas, Benton County is probably closer to what you're accustomed to. If you are, or would rather be, living in one of the older, close-in suburbs with a more compact, semi-urban feel, and more of the cultural amenities of a city, then Fayetteville's probably more your speed. As far as shopping, chain restaurants, etc., the I-540 corridor just south of Bentonville and west of Rogers, from Pinnacle Hills to the Scottsdale Center, probably is the new ground zero for mass-market retail and dining in NWA, though there's plenty of both in Fayetteville also.

Originally Posted by drymalski

2. How long would the commute be from northern end of Fayetteville to Rogers?

From the AR 112 interchange on I-540 on the NW side of Fayetteville to the Rogers/Bentonville area is about 20 minutes under ideal driving conditions. If traffic backs up, it'll take longer obviously. Haven't really had to drive it in rush hour conditions myself, but the few times I've been around during rush hour it seemed pretty manageable to me, but then I live in the suburbs of Atlanta, so anything looks manageable compared to that.

Originally Posted by drymalski

3. I have read a lot about snakes and spiders. Are they really that bad? I don't want to worry all the time that my kids will encounter these things.

If you're in suburban areas with lots of human activity, you're generally not going to have anything to worry about from snakes. When we moved into our house in Fayetteville in 1976, when I was 12, there was nothing but an cow pasture (literally, the cows were still around) behind our lot, with only a single-strand electric fence between us and it. There were a few groves of trees still there, a creek nearby, etc. -- in other words, semi-rural. Of course that became our playground for the next year or so until it was built out with houses also. I saw plenty of critters around, but no snakes at all. Unless you buy a place out in the country where you're the only people around most of the time, I don't think you'll have any snake problems.

Likewise, spiders (the dangerous ones anyway) generally are even more eager to avoid you than you are to avoid them. They're going to set up shop in places you never go. So the only time you're going to have an issue is when you suddenly decide to go into that storage room in the basement or up into the attic you haven't been in in months, and reach into or behind or beneath something without looking first. You'll certainly see other, more benign spiders from time to time, but unless it's a particular phobia of yours it shouldn't concern you.

Originally Posted by drymalski

4. Is there a lot of tornado activity in Bentonville? I was leaning toward Bentonville til I read that they have double the amount of tornados that Fayetteville has. Is this a real concern I should have? I know you never know, but are there scares every year or two?

What's "a lot"? For someone from the Chicago suburbs, I wouldn't think the risk in Bentonville/Rogers is dramatically higher than where you are now -- but then my perspective is skewed by having lived in the Northeast Arkansas Delta region, along the west side of Crowley's Ridge, where it seems like there's a tornado every week during the season. But even there, the fact of the matter is that the likelihood of you, personally, having your home damaged or you/your family injured by a tornado is vastly smaller than your odds of getting in a wreck. For all the time I've spent in tornado-prone areas (and I've seen several, and driven through towns mere minutes after they were hit), I've never really even come close to being hurt or having my home damaged. As you say, you never know, and you could have three or four "scares" in a week and none at all for years, but for that very reason it's not something you should worry about -- there's almost no place in the U.S. that's immune from tornados. If it's something you obsess about, then yes, Fayetteville is statistically less likely to be hit than Bentonville, but I'd caution that in the grand scheme of things, 100 years of data is a relatively small sample size, so the historical data could be skewed, and remind you that as long as the probability is non-zero, there's no guarantee you won't get hit.

[RTTNFAM]

Originally Posted by drymalski

We currently live in the Chicago suburbs and are contemplating a move to either Bentonville or Fayetteville for my husband's job. We have two young boys, ages 2 & 5. I have read a ton on this forum about Bentonville and Fayetteville, but my questions I still have are:

1. For a young family, which city do you think is best and why (I realize this is a personal choice, but curious what you would pick). We would like a lot of things for the kids to do, and we like shopping and some chain restaurants. We need a good education. If we have that we're happy.
2. How long would the commute be from northern end of Fayetteville to Rogers?
3. I have read a lot about snakes and spiders. Are they really that bad? I don't want to worry all the time that my kids will encounter these things.
4. Is there a lot of tornado activity in Bentonville? I was leaning toward Bentonville til I read that they have double the amount of tornados that Fayetteville has. Is this a real concern I should have? I know you never know, but are there scares every year or two?
5. Can anyone recommend a good realor who really listens to what you want and fights a tough battle for you on price.

Thanks so much in advance.

On #1, I would recommend Bentonville. The Bentonville School District is said to be one of the best in the area! There are also plenty of activities, shopping , and restaurants!

#2 The commute would be about 20 minutes, give or take a few.

#3 Snakes and spiders are not as bad as some make them out to be! It of course is worse if you live out in the country and not in town.

#4 As far as tornadoes go, I agree with joebaldknobber... I don't think you are going to seeing anymore in Arkansas than you did in Illinois.

#5 can't really say on the realtor, you just have to find someone you can work well with.

[drymalski]

Thank you so much everyone!!! All of your answers have been so helpful and have helped me a ton. You're great!

[nmnita]

like others have said, it probably depends on your life style. Fayestteville, being a major university town is a little more diversified and liberal. Either area would not be a bad drive for commuting to Rogers.

Bentonville is more suburbia if this is what you are seeking.

As for smiders, snakes and tornados. Well, the tornado issue isn't all that much, sure you could have one, but I certainly wouldn't worry about that. Spiders and snakes, we live in Bella Vista and really in the woods. We haven't seen anything that really has scared us yet. There have been a few bad snakes spotted this year, but mostly in areas with lots of weeds. If you keep the grass cut and manicured I don't think you have to worry. Again, this is not saying you won't see the 2 s creatures, but they haven't taken over the county yet...

If I had a young family I would lean toward Bentonville. Both cities have a lot to offer.

[GetmeoutofAR]

Ur quality of life will be better in Fayetteville as it is much more interesting and this great pride will well up in you because its such a great town

[RTTNFAM]

Originally Posted by GetmeoutofAR

Ur quality of life will be better in Fayetteville as it is much more interesting and this great pride will well up in you because its such a great town

I don't agree! I think Fayetteville is great, but geared more towards the college crowd and young couples without children. Bentonville to me is more family centered than Fayetteville. Quality of life would be great in either though.

[joebaldknobber]

Drive on down this weekend to see for yourself if you have the time. Take Route 66, turn left at Joplin on 71 and go about 40 or 50 miles south.