Relocating Boston to Richardson (Dallas, Plano: low income, rentals, buying a house)

[MAMOMOF2]

My husband and I are looking at a relocation from Boston to Richardson,TX for his job - office is located on Waterview Parkway.

We are looking to live in a suburb - possibly Richardson - that is no more than a 30-40 minute commute to the office.

I am a stay-at-home Mom with two small children - 5 and 7 (Kind. and 2nd grade) so I am looking for a family friendly community with really good elementary schools, parks, pool, etc.

Am also open to renting for a short time to get to know the area.

I have never been to TX so any advice much appreciated.

[cdelena]

There are a huge number os options open to you. I suggest renting in the Richardson area (if possible; multiple moves are a big hassle) until you find what you want. Texas is so different from Boston that it will take some time to figure out what is comfortable for you.

[FarNorthDallas]

You will be right on the border of Richardson and Dallas. The Richardson school district covers both areas. Once you cross Coit Road heading west you are in Dallas. There are several exemplary public schools roughly along Campbell Road (not right on Campbell). They are Brentfield, Bowie, Mohawk, Canyon Creek and Prairie Creek. All feed into Pearce High School which is a good high school.

Good neighborhoods are Canyon Creek, JJ Pearce Addition, Reservation (all in Richardson) and then ones on the Dallas side - Highlands North, Hillcrest Manor, Prestonwood, Prestonwood East, Estates West and Holiday Park (north of Arapaho only).

You will also be near southern Plano and that may be of interest to you, too. Plano ISD is a great school district, very academically competitive. There are private Catholic schools in the area if you want to go that route.

[MAMOMOF2]

This information is very helpful - thank you - there is so much information on-line that it is overwhelming.

I have been reading other on-line posts about realtors selling places and saying the schools are great only to have people find out later about redistricting and overflow schools. Do you think any of that is a consideration here?

Thank you for the mention of catholic schools - my children are currently in catholic school now and that is a serious consideration too.

Are the commute times from the places you listed reasonable?

Also, another poster reccomended renting for a year or so to manage the transition - what are your thoughts and would these places still be options?

I am very nervous about the "change in culture" so to speak - I have only lived in the Northeast - Boston and NY and am nervous.

Last question - for now - I have been reading too about the huge amount of building in recent years making just around town driving to local stores, etc. almost unbearable - how affected are the areas you mentioned?

Thank you for your help.

[FarNorthDallas]

Traffic isn't bad in that Waterview area - Richardson/Far North Dallas/southern Collin County. It's essentially a residential area with retail and the University of Texas at Dallas, plus a couple of businesses on Waterview like Lennox's HQ.

During rush area there is more traffic particularly on Coit because a lot of Collin County folks use Coit all the way south until you can get on Central Expressway/Hwy 75. But if he is working off Waterview and you live within 5 miles of there and the schools are within 5 miles, you aren't really going to be getting into a lot of traffic. Certainly no freeway traffic. The heavier traffic areas are the new high growth areas where the roads haven't necessarily kept up with the growth, like Frisco and Little Elm. Also, you get into a lot of heavy traffic if you are making long freeway commutes out of Collin County into Dallas County.

The Catholic schools in the area are St. Paul in Richardson near Sping Valley and Central/75 and All Saints on Coit just north of Frankford. They are both K-8 and then there is Pope John Paul High School which is in Plano at Coit and Plano Parkway. St. Paul is a lot cheaper than All Saints. There are a couple of other ones in Plano as well, but not as close.

About the realtors with the school misinformation. There are plenty of realtors who have bad school information. The best thing to do when you find a house you like is to call the school district and ask them what schools that house feeds into and then call the schools and ask them if they have room for the grade level you need. If a school is full you will get switched to another one in Richardson ISD. I don't know how Plano handles overflow. There is a state law that limits the number of kids in any one K-4th classroom to 22.

Sometimes the realtor just has bad information. They think because a house is right next to a school, that must be the school, but it's not always the case. In the high growth areas like Frisco they open new schools every year and kids get switched around. And then in McKinney they bus kids around based on income because they don't want all their low income kids in one school. Call the district. That's the best thing to do before buying a house.

You can rent, no problem. I would do that. There are a lot of rentals around.

[MaryS80]

Another benefit of going the private school route that is if you do rent and then buy your kids will not have to change schools again.

St. Josephs is the biggest Catholic church and school in Richardson. They are located near Jupiter and Beltline.

There is also St. Marks in Plano, which is another large congregation and school. St. Marks is on Alma, next to Collin Creek Mall.

I know a lot of people who go to St. Josephs and they are all very nice.

[Drew610]

I wouldn't worry about the "change in culture" so much as long as you might the right call about where to live and that sort of thing. Like about lake highlands, in the Richardson ISD, but not so far out in the suburbs.

[Drew610]

I can say don't worry about the culture shock cause I grew up in Brookline and can say all that stuff about dramatic differences in culture is overrated - that said, you will notice differences much more out in Plano/Frisco, etc. If you stay within Dallas - you won't find it different in a bad way.

[Lakewooder]

I was talking to a nice girl from Boston at the Habitat fundraiser at One Arts Center on Saturday night - she lives in the Lakewood area (more Old East Dallas) and she loves it because the homes and buildings are more like home to her...she said a lot of her friends have settled in the area also. She even makes a pretty long reverse commute because she likes the neighborhood.

[MAMOMOF2]

I had not come across that in my search at all - any idea how far to Waterview Parkway in Richland or what the schools might be like - the elementary schools in particular?