Moving to DFW, have a few questions :) (Dallas, Fort Worth: fit in, sales)

[Michael_Z]

Hello,

Due to work reasons, my family and I (wife, two kids - 7 & 5) are moving to the DFW area, relocating from Southern California (I know, I know... sorry). From reading these forums, I'm feeling pretty comfortable about the move and can't wait! For reference, I am thinking about living in Plano and my office will be in Grand Prairie. Having said that, I am unable to find specific information regarding two things I am personally curious about.

1. Mosquitoes! -- So coming from Earthquake Country, I totally get how the media can make things like a West Nile breakout seem far worse than it actually is. I'm not worried about West Nile or anything like that. However, I *do* like hanging out in my back yard - BBQing, drinking booze, whatever, and I *don't* like getting bitten! How is the mosquito situation in Plano, realistically? I also realize that last year was a wet one, so I expect the mosquito problem was greater than average. But what is it like typically?

2. The Commute -- According to Google, Plano to Grand Prairie is 32 miles or so with an estimated travel time of 40 min or so. My commute times can be flexible and I can leave home as early as 630am or as late as 9am. Does anyone know what the commute will truly be like? Can anyone recommend coming/going times to and from work? Whats the best route to take?

Thank you so much for your help.

[Rakin]

The new Bush Turnpike will get you there the best but it's a long commute and will cost you at least $10-12 each way. GP is a long (north - south) city. Is your office on the far south end of GP ? If so that's too far IMO.

Also Plano is a huge area. North Plano to South GP is at least a 60 minute commute even with no traffic and taking GBTR. It would be impossible without GBTR.

Look at Mansfield which has a great school district.

Mosquitos ? Not a problem... our Rattle snakes keep them under control.

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

Fire ants are a bigger problem. Just use mosquito repellant. We did have deaths this past year from WNV but not sure how protected they were. There were no deaths in my area (far north smaller town that is almost all middle class housing). My granddaughter got 6 fire ant bites on her foot at one time; her foot was so swollen she could not get a shoe on and it hurt for over a week. I had not yet treated the yard of my new house.

[gsupstate]

Originally Posted by Rakin

The new Bush Turnpike will get you there the best but it's a long commute and will cost you at least $10-12 each way. GP is a long (north - south) city. Is your office on the far south end of GP ? If so that's too far IMO.

Also Plano is a huge area. North Plano to South GP is at least a 60 minute commute even with no traffic and taking GBTR. It would be impossible without GBTR.

Look at Mansfield which has a great school district.

Mosquitos ? Not a problem... our Rattle snakes keep them under control.

Moving to Dallas soon as well. Have already leased a place in the city, while we look for a house. I have two dogs and plan on using the Katy trail and White Rock trail a good deal for recreation. As long as I am on theses trails in the city, are they fairly snake free? I have no experience with rattlesnakes and not a clue what they look like or what type of areas they are found in.

[ChristieP]

Originally Posted by Michael_Z

2. The Commute -- According to Google, Plano to Grand Prairie is 32 miles or so with an estimated travel time of 40 min or so. My commute times can be flexible and I can leave home as early as 630am or as late as 9am. [i]Does anyone know what the commute will truly be like? Can anyone recommend coming/going times to and from work? Whats the best route to take?

There is no reason to live in Plano and drive to GP. As Rakin says, that's 60 miles and $10-12 in tolls daily! There are areas that are just as nice as Plano that are MUCH closer to GP. Mansfield is very popular with young families, as is the far south end of GP. I would recommend you look in those areas instead of making an unnecessarily long commute. The extra 2 hours a day you will have to spend with your family instead of sitting in traffic will be worth it!

[Michael_Z]

Thank you all for the insight thus far! I wasn't absolutely bent on Plano, but Plano does carry a great reputation outside of Texas, so it was the only 'burb that I knew about coming into this.

Are there any other areas near-ish to Grand Prairie that I should consider? My priorities revolve around family, mainly:

1. Public Safety/Low Crime
2. Reputable Schools
3. Cost of Living (really a non-issue in Texas it seems!)
4. No mosquitoes! (just kidding, kind of...)

Along with that, I prefer suburbs to both urban and rural settings.

Thanks!

[ChristieP]

Mansfield

[TX75007]

I'd also consider Southlake, Coppell or Flower Mound. All are the same distance to Grand Prairie as Mansfield. Coppell and FM have better schools than Mansfield and Southlake is a football powerhouse.

[Willsson]

Michael_Z, the posters probably have it right with Mansfield. You mention a feature of Texas is cost of living. Just beware that while there is no state income tax, that there is property taxes. This might run 2 - 3% of county appraisal - which may approximate resale value but is only an assessment for tax purposes. And yeah, if there's no particular reason to live in the north Dallas area then consider the options closer to Grand Prairie. Dallas may look small on a map, but it's nicely spread out. And living OUTSIDE of Dallas County may benefit in lower taxes, home/auto insurance, or other costs. You can locate that Dallas County line in a google map by searching > Dallas County. It will present that county line. Mansfield is in Tarrant County (Fort Worth).

When the time comes, someone can point you to finding what those taxes are and how they are distributed to county, special districts, education, etc.

And there is a state sales tax which runs to 8 - 8.5% of purchase - NOT to include food or Rx. There is a tax free weekend a week or two before the fall semester of school.

[TurtleCreek80]

Forget Plano immediately!!! That is a ridiculous commute to voluntary sign up.

Agree with the recommendation of Mansfield. Also, there are parts of southern Grand Prairie that are zoned to Mansfield schools (GP schools are mostly not good) that is worth looking into. You will soon learn that the school districts are "indepenent" of towns and don't follow the town borders exactly. For example, homes in Lewisville, Dallas, Plano, Murphy, and Parker can be zoned to Plano ISD depending on the home's exact location.

Cedar Hill could also be an option depending on what side of GP your job is. There are also some nice neighborhoods in southern Arlington that I believe have good schools. Do some school research of that location interests you. I have a girlfriend from college who grew up off Cooper a few major intersections south of I-20. The neighborhood looks like most of Plano and the public schools were good in that area.