Moving in two weeks........questions (Austin, Round Rock: rental homes, low crime, house)

[famv5]

A little over two weeks from today and we'll be landing in Austin! We are all very excited, however, we still haven't secured a landing spot yet.

We are staring at a list of 15 rental homes but each one has its pros and cons. I cannot tell you how confused I am about what schools are the best ones to choose. We need an elementary and a middle and it seems harder to find a good middle school rather than elementary.

So far we've been targeting our search in the Cedar Park - Round Rock area. My husband's boss lives in Steiner Ranch and I think it's a beautiful area, however, I don't care for how confined and secluded it is from the city. He has told us stories about the traffic coming and going into Steiner Ranch and I also see many alerts of school lock downs which I'm not sure why that is.

We have completely disregarded south Austin because of things we have heard regarding the schools. We've heard that the Eanes District has many drug problems in the schools. Do any of you live in that area or have knowledge of this? I've had two people tell me this to avoid that area/district because of the drugs. If this is not the case, we could open up the search area to include the south, too.

Also, we have been told to stay West of I35. I can see there are some bad areas near the city but what about north? Parts of Round Rock seem to be on the east of I35 along with Pflugerville. Just wondering why everyone tells us to avoid the east.

Lastly, rentals are moving like fire. We need to make a decision within the next week and I just want to feel that we made the right one. It's so hard to not be in that area and make this sort of decision. My husband will be there next week to secure a place so time is ticking.

Any suggestions? Ideally, we'd like to find an area that is safe (low crime), has a highly rated elementary and middle school. We need a 4-5 bedroom home, too. My husband will be working in the city so he's not really thrilled with the commute from Cedar Park. Unfortunately, we can't seem to find any rentals that have what we need that are closer.

I would love any suggestions because at this point everything is starting to look the same to me.

Thank you!

[steve78757]

What's your budget?

[mark311]

Originally Posted by famv5

We have completely disregarded south Austin because of things we have heard regarding the schools. We've heard that the Eanes District has many drug problems in the schools.

Also, we have been told to stay West of I35. I can see there are some bad areas near the city but what about north? Parts of Round Rock seem to be on the east of I35 along with Pflugerville. Just wondering why everyone tells us to avoid the east.

I'll just comment on these two points, but people need your rental price range in order to give good information. Also, where will your husband or you be commuting to?

The reason that people talk about drug problems in Eanes schools is because those are the "rich kids" schools and people like to put down the rich kid over-achievers. However, they can afford to buy the drugs if they want them so some of it is probably true. And yes, homes that feed into Eanes are expensive.

The East vs. West thing is really only relevant for the city of Austin, not the surrounding towns/cities so disregard it for Pflugerville, Round Rock, etc.

[Salgal1113]

As far as Pflugerville goes, the areas around SH-130 and SH-45 have multiple highly-rated elementary schools, a highly-rated middle school (with a new MS set to open this year), and a highly-rated high school. My kids attended the middle and high school. Depending on where your hubby has to go for work, it could be a brutal commute, but it is right next to 130, so that's a plus.

Neighborhoods in this area are Blackhawk, Falcon Pointe, and Avalon. Variations on those names abound, like Fairways @ Blackhawk, etc.

It's also close to a good-sized shopping area. Downside (for me) is that you don't really feel like a part of Pflugerville "proper" (i.e. old town).

Good luck with your move!

[EzPeterson]

It seems to me that you have received some really odd and possibly misleading information, or the over-abundance of information is causing some paralysis by analysis!

- The last time I can remember Steiner schools going on lockdown was due to the huge fire in 2011, so I don't know what "alerts" you keep seeing.

- South Austin neighborhoods (particularly SW) have excellent schools.

- Mark311 covered the Eanes "drug" issues in the schools pretty well.

That said, without a rough price point or commute destination, you could get some really bad advice, or miss out on some good advice!

Assuming the Cedar Park/RR areas fit your budget and commute length (and if those are on the table, then SW Austin probably shouldn't be - since there's no point in between that it would make sense driving to, you'd be one or the other).

- Add Avery Ranch to the mix.
- Possibly add Milwoods (although 4-5 BR homes are going to be tougher to find, but the lots can be huge and the school track is great from most of that neighborhood)

[hound 109]

Since we don't know the location of the employer or what the budget is....this thread is kind of a bust.

Loving the rampant drugs & school lockdown concerns though. Don't forget the scorpions, the parts of town that will run out of water & the areas of the metro that are on the "tornado track".

[famv5]

I got the school lock down information from being subscribed to their neighborhood Facebook page. It sends out alerts to the "neighbors" about upcoming garage sales, etc., and I've seen different schools go into lock down at least 2-3 times this year. Just made me wonder why. One reason for a lock down was a domestic dispute nearby.

Our budget is to stay around $2000 or less for rent. I hate the thought of paying more since we are renting. But, if the right place comes along, we may entertain that option.

My husband will be working on W 15th street in Austin. I apologize for not knowing more exact information but this is all new to me.

Believe me, he would LOVE a shorter commute but we just can't seem to find anything closer that is 1) in our price range and 2) has both a good elementary and middle school.

I appreciate all of your suggestions and help.

[EzPeterson]

I'd move SW Austin up near the top of the list. The commute from Cedar Park/RR is going to be a pain, and is only getting worse. SW Austin won't be a quick and easy drive, but it'll be much quicker and easier than being stuck on 183 and Mopac!

Look for Mills elementary, I have a friend with a kid in Small MS, and he seems to be doing very well.

The other option is to bump the price up and look in Great Hills (there's exactly one house listed there that fits, it's on the golf course but the interior is meh at best), run through Hill Elementary, may track to Murchison MS? (not sure here).

[famv5]

Yes, I was just looking at the schools in the SW and Mills Elementary caught my eye. Small MS and Bailey MS seemed good, too.

Hmmm...maybe I'll have to span our search to that area, too. Thank you.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by famv5

Yes, I was just looking at the schools in the SW and Mills Elementary caught my eye. Small MS and Bailey MS seemed good, too.

Hmmm...maybe I'll have to span our search to that area, too. Thank you.

For the price, the south will be a little less expensive than the equivalent distance north. There are good schools all over austin (except the east side). I would probably look south/southwest.

Eanes schools are excellent (I wouldnt worry about drugs) but eanes is also one of the most expensive areas in austin. I suspect it is out of your price range.

In the RRISD canyon vista is the best middle school, I would think there are a few affordable rentals in the 1500-2000 sq ft range around oak knoll, dk ranch etc. There are duplexes in that area.

So if you are willing to go smaller with less bedrooms then I think you could find something in your price range up north a little closer in than cedar park/pflugerville.