Manor, TX... who knows? (Austin, Cedar Park: crime, how much, house)

[JonathanS]

I have a family member moving to Manor and I was hoping to get some advice and knowledge from people who live there, or know things about it. Any information about safety, schools, neighborhoods, housing costs... etc.

I heard that traffic is bad there. But any insider information is appreciated!

[johnrex62]

I moved out of the Manor area to the Webberville area about 5 years ago, so my subdivision knowledge is a bit out of date. The traffic is not bad, but it has definitely increased in the last few years. It is still far better than driving down IH35 by a factor of TENS of TENS.

I lived in an area a couple miles south of the city, off Lockwood Road. There are some new subdivisions in that area, but I did not think much of them when they were being built and less of them now. Nothing too bad, but less than desireable to me. I am not aware of any great increase in crime as a result of them, but I am sure there is some increase simply because there are more people now.

The School system is as good as any in the area. When I moved there, it was partly at the advise of a very nice, and shall remain annoymous, person in the State Education Department that gave me a rundown on the problems faced by the more troubled districts in the region and some kind warnings about some of the more desireable districts where my income level would put my kids at a social disadvantage. (I had only one professional income, not two and my kids would not be getting new cars their freshman year in highschool)

My son graduated from Manor High School and since the move my daughter is attending Elgin High School. For the most part Manor, Elgin, Hutto,and Bastrop are all pretty similar in regards to academic, student makeup, economic levels, etc... My daughter did her early elementary years in Manor and was very well prepared when we had to move her into a North Carolina elementary system and also when she went into middle school in Alabama. Both states have better educational structure than does Texas, but a willing child can still make better than average progress in these school districts.

The biggest safety issue I can think of is walking or biking on rural Texas roads is not for the faint of heart or those with wandering attention spans. there are few sidewalks and poor road shoulders on many of our farm to market roads. With the increase in traffic in the area, I would recommend getting your exercise in a sidewalked subdivision or find a trail of some kind to walk or bike.

Housing costs are rising each year, but are still lower in the rural areas east of IH35 than in those North, West and even South of Austin.

[Peterpene]

[quote=johnrex62;839727]

The School system is as good as any in the area. When I moved there, it was partly at the advise of a very nice, and shall remain annoymous, person in the State Education Department that gave me a rundown on the problems faced by the more troubled districts in the region and some kind warnings about some of the more desireable districts where my income level would put my kids at a social disadvantage. (I had only one professional income, not two and my kids would not be getting new cars their freshman year in highschool)

QUOTE]

Hi. With your "inside info", could you or anyone else give me advice on what the best schools may be within a 20-30 minute drive to Bastrop? I'm moving close to family that are in Bastrop, although from what I've heard, Bastrop itself is not the best place for schools so I'm looking a bit away from it. I don't want to be any further from Austin though. Thanks in advance for your help!

[love roses]

I've actually heard and looked online and Bastrop has a mixed bag of schools. I'd say maybe half are acceptable/recognized. Elgin is the only one East of 35 that is not good. Hutto has actually reached exemplary status before,and currently is at recognized. I don't know how recently he lived in Manor, but I live in Hutto, and am about to be putting my daughter in the school system, so have been doing some research. (I just saw he said 5 years ago). Just last year, Hutto had about 2,000 people and this year is over 17,000 so I could just imagine how much larger the population is in Manor, since it's closer to Austin. There are some neighborhoods out here that are starting to inch up closer to 200,000 to start. So, Economically, most students out this way aren't economically disadvantaged. Elgin is still pretty rural, and I think that's the only way they're economically disadvantaged.

[I love Manor]

Okay, I know the original post is two years old, but I had to respond. I've lived in Manor for over 20 years, and I wouldn't live anywhere else. You won't find the kind of diversity that exists in this area anywhere else in this area. Blacks, browns, and whites co-exist peacefully with one another, and the community bond is very tight. Yes, there is a great deal of poverty in the Manor area, but is that a reason not to live here? Myself, I live in a custom house on eight acres that could very easily be located in the Steiner Ranch or Lakeway area of Austin, and my husband and I both have college degrees.

My kids have a received a very high quality education in Manor schools, and regularly are commended on the yearly TAKS tests. Yes, there are troublemakers in our schools, but my kids are not only getting a good education, but are learning abour real life in the process. Their friends are of every color and socio-economic background. Can you say that about Cedar Park or Bastrop?

The schools are rated acceptable or low-performing, but it's not because the teachers and adminstrators don't try. I've found most of them to be outstanding. Yeah they could teach in Eanes or a District would be much easier, but they are here because they truly love kids and want to make a difference in the world.

I love Manor!