Moving to Dallas....best places to live out of dallas?? (Fort Worth: houses, new construction)

[laneaosborne]

My family is getting ready to move to dallas. We have never been there, my husband will be working right in the middle of Dallas and I'm not sure where we should be looking for houses. We want out of the city and possibly on an acre or more would be nice. Looking for a slow paced country feel where my kids can ride the 4-wheelers and dirt bikes but also don't know how far too far of a commute is going to be or how bad traffic is. SO any help would be really appreciated.
thanks so much!!

[FarNorthDallas]

Go south or east instead of North. Most of the new growth and suburbs are north, so traffic is worse heading into downtown Dallas from the north and property is more expensive.

Try Midlothian, Red Oak, Kaufman, Forney, Waxahachie, Ennis - the schools are okay but aren't as academically competitive as the schools in the northern half of the Dallas area, but to find a country feel up north will be a lot harder and cost a lot more money. Plus the houses are really close together. I'm talking Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Plano, Grapevine, Coppell - when I say north of Dallas.

[laneaosborne]

thank you for your help! We definatly don't want to be in a subdivision where you can reach out the window and touch your neighbors house. How bad is the commute from downtown Dallas to Fort Worth? crazy? I found a nice log home on quite a few acres over there but its an hour drive and thats not considering traffic....probably not worth it??

[Squirl]

Do you care about the school district? Some are very good, some not so much. Most of the better school districts are in the touch your neighbors' homes communities in the north. What is your price range? You may like Forney or Rockwall

[MurphyPl1]

Some people believe it's more important for their kids to be able to run and play on four wheelers than to get classroom learning. And the areas suggested by FND would fit that.

[TurtleCreek80]

What is your budget? And what are your expectations for schools?

Without knowing those answers, I'd recommend Rockwall and Sunnyvale to the east of Dallas, parts of Cedar Hill near Joe Pool Lake, parts of Southern Arlington by I-20. These would all have the possibility of a large lot and a commute under 45 minutes (most days).

Fort Worth is a tough commute because you are driving straight into the sun both ways (east in the am, west in the pm). It would be around an hour to up to 90 minutes, depending on what side of downtown FW the house is.

Some of the areas recommended to you by myself and pp's have good schools, some have abomidable schools (including most of FWISD). I mean, horrible, horrible public schools with distractions of drugs, out of control kids, and metal detectors/police on campus. If you do have kids and intend to put them in public schools, you really do need to do your homework so you're not surprised.

There is also the option of kids going to private school in Dallas; mom or dad could drop them off on the way to work. First Baptist Academy is Downtown, Bishop Lynch Catholic HS and some catholic elementaries are on the drive in from the eastern suburbs.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by laneaosborne

My family is getting ready to move to dallas. We have never been there, my husband will be working right in the middle of Dallas and I'm not sure where we should be looking for houses. We want out of the city and possibly on an acre or more would be nice. Looking for a slow paced country feel where my kids can ride the 4-wheelers and dirt bikes but also don't know how far too far of a commute is going to be or how bad traffic is. SO any help would be really appreciated.
thanks so much!!

Also, where in the "middle" of Dallas is his job- actually in downtown Dallas? Or did you look at a map and just describe the location as the middle?

If his job is further north or northwest of downtown that would open up more housing opportunities with better schools.

[laneaosborne]

Wow, some of the schools are really that bad? I will definatly be checking into them! Thanks everyone for the input, keep it coming. When I say Middle of Dallas I'm talking about love field. I found a couple of houses with acerage around Melissa would that be a bad commute?? or what are everyones thoughts on that??

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by laneaosborne

Wow, some of the schools are really that bad? I will definatly be checking into them! Thanks everyone for the input, keep it coming. When I say Middle of Dallas I'm talking about love field. I found a couple of houses with acerage around Melissa would that be a bad commute?? or what are everyones thoughts on that??

Depends on your criteria for a "bad" commute. That drive would take around an hour with NO traffic (so, never during rush hour and "maybe" if your hubbu works odd hours)....in rush hour, probably closer to 80-90 minutes, up to 2 hours if there is a bad wreck on 75/Central.

If you have a big enough budget, you could look at northwest suburbs of Flower Mound (new construction has a 1 acre min lot size now), Colleyville, or Southlake. All have excellent schools and around a 40-60 minute commute to Love Field. But you'll need $$$.

[artsyguy]

Cedar Hill or Duncanville? Both have small hill country, preserves, and a state park. The Colony is near a lake. Try those 3 cities.