Austin address/RR schools? (Round Rock, Cedar Park: how much, houses, neighborhoods)

[Dianajoy]

I've been looking in the 78759, 78750 zip codes, and alot of these homes are in RRISD, which means very good schools, which I would be happy about. I'm just wondering if these zip codes are reasonable commutes to downtown, or is it just like living way up in Round Rock, which I really don't want. I love the area around the Arboretum, where we're living, and of course West Lake Hills, but may be priced out. The 78727 zip code also comes up with nice houses in my price range; is this a good neighborhood? Any insider impressions would be great!

[h886]

Depends what you mean by "reasonable." You'll slow down on 183 once you near Mopac and then Mopac tends to slow down quite a bit just after that. But, if you're already living near the Arboretum, you're familiar with how long it takes once you reach that spot. So I'd tack on another 10-15 minutes each way depending how far into the neighborhood you are and that's probably a fair estimate. Definitely wouldn't be the worst commute in town. Just depends how much you hate driving. If you already live here, it should be simple enough to get up early one morning and drive up there to see.

[Dianajoy]

Hmmm, so we're looking at a 30-minute, vs. 20-minute commute during rush hour? It really hasn't been bad at all; my husband is used to 2-hour commutes (by rail) each way, and doesn't mind driving. He's the one who works downtown; I'll be wanting to go downtown alot too, but probably during off-peak hours.

[h886]

Originally Posted by Dianajoy

Hmmm, so we're looking at a 30-minute, vs. 20-minute commute during rush hour? It really hasn't been bad at all; my husband is used to 2-hour commutes (by rail) each way, and doesn't mind driving. He's the one who works downtown; I'll be wanting to go downtown alot too, but probably during off-peak hours.

If it takes you 20 minutes now, I would plan on 35-ish minutes depending on how far back you live in the neighborhood. I used to live up in that area (been a few years) and the biggest issues were getting past the curve at Duval by the Catfish Parlor where traffic always slows and then seeing how bad it is getting from 183 to Mopac (just depends on the day.) Of course, you also need to factor in that the population is growing constantly up in Cedar Park and Leander. 183 is the only straight shot into town and with the toll roads, more people are willing to make the commute.

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by Dianajoy

I've been looking in the 78759, 78750 zip codes, and alot of these homes are in RRISD, which means very good schools, which I would be happy about. I'm just wondering if these zip codes are reasonable commutes to downtown, or is it just like living way up in Round Rock, which I really don't want. I love the area around the Arboretum, where we're living, and of course West Lake Hills, but may be priced out. The 78727 zip code also comes up with nice houses in my price range; is this a good neighborhood? Any insider impressions would be great!

78759 IS the Arboretum. 78750 is just SW of it. Both should have as good or better access then where you are living, near the Arboretum. See this map http://www.city-data.com/zipmaps/Austin-Texas.html

78727 might add a few minutes onto the commute, most of the area consists of pretty decent neighborhoods. Allthough not as nice as parts of 78750 and 78759.

[h886]

Parts of it are the same. Since she mentioned liking the idea of RRISD, I assumed she was looking more towards the northern end of those zip code boundaries. The areas closer in are part of AISD, but when you get out near the outer fringes, you're in RRISD. My guess is that would end up being a longer commute than from the Arboretum area, which is more centrally located.

[ScoPro]

We live in 78717 (Brushy Creek) in Wilco next to Round Rock, yet we have an Austin mailing address.

Go figure.

Kids in our neighborhood are split between McNeil HS and RR HS.