Seattle to Dallas (Plano, Garland, Irving: apartment complexes, lease, tech jobs)

[NathanJMc]

It's a pretty good spot. I moved to Frisco to get closer to work and get a larger apartment for cheaper. There's some things in North Plano and Frisco that have advantages over Addison, but it's a bit farther away from Dallas proper and is lacking in other areas.

[mzamot]

I think it's going to be a good entry point to Dallas, eventually, while living there, we will know better other suburbs and neighborhoods.

I don't know much about any area, but does most apartments include water or it is usually apart? Trying to make numbers how much should I expect in utilities on top of the rent. I heard electricity could be 100-120 a month.

[justsomeguy]

Originally Posted by mzamot

I think it's going to be a good entry point to Dallas, eventually, while living there, we will know better other suburbs and neighborhoods.

I don't know much about any area, but does most apartments include water or it is usually apart? Trying to make numbers how much should I expect in utilities on top of the rent. I heard electricity could be 100-120 a month.

Depends, but water and/or "valet trash" would probably average around $35/month.

Also many places only have washer/dryer hookups in apartment and not actual washer/dryer, so you will have to either buy your washer/dryer or rent a pair for around ~$60/mo.

[R1070]

Las Colinas, Addison, West Plano would be your best bets.

[GBCommenter]

Originally Posted by justsomeguy

Depends, but water and/or "valet trash" would probably average around $35/month.

Also many places only have washer/dryer hookups in apartment and not actual washer/dryer, so you will have to either buy your washer/dryer or rent a pair for around ~$60/mo.

My experience is water/garbage/sewer is not included in rent, and justsomeguy's estimate of $35 seems pretty fair. That's in the ballpark of what I pay (maybe a few dollars less).

Budgeting $100-120 for electricity also seems reasonable. In the peak of summer that wouldn't be unexpected but other months I wouldn't be surprised if you get away with less (especially if you select a 500-700 sq.ft. apartment, and if you don't do vaulted ceilings). For reference, my apartment is about 1100 sq.ft. and I have not paid more than $100 (though I'm also a single guy and not home an excessive amount). Worst case scenario you set aside $120, it's only $80, and your gal and you go out on the town an extra night...if you're moviegoers, Alamo Drafthouse is a short drive from Addison to Richardson...

Good point raised by justsomeguy. Many places will have hookups and you either rent or buy a W/D. I personally found a set on Craigslist and just bought the set. I paid $350 for the set and has worked just fine for the 4 years I've now been in Texas. Long ago paid for itself. There's plenty of sets if you're okay with used, not only on old-fashioned CL but Facebook Marketplace or whatever venue you choose.

[mzamot]

That's awesome! Then everything is within my budget ~1300 rent + 160 utilities.

So far, my fiancee and I are now contacting some complex in Addison, seems really cool from everything I heard from here.

One last question, are areas like Downtown Dallas desirable to live?
I see all kind of prices in Downtown and Uptown (usually expensive), but I see the far away from Downtown, the safer it is, and more Tech jobs are usually outside Downtown, like in Plano.

A little of background. I have dual citizenship, and I moved to US last year, I stopped first at Florida, not because I liked it, but because my American dad lives there, and he helped me do the transition from Costa Rica to US. When I had enough savings to move alone, I moved to Seattle, to a suburb.

In Costa Rica nobody lives in the cities, just in the neighbourhoods (suburbs). In Seattle everyone prefers urban, in Florida everyone prefers suburbs, in Costa Rica everyone lives in the suburbs. So honestly I don't know what's desirable or not :P In Costa Rica Downtown San Jose is not usually a desirable place to live, not at all, and that may be affecting my judgement.

But so far Addison is winning! IT's close and centric, basically my fiancee could get a job in any of the major cities in Dallas without worrying to much about traffic.

Thank you folks!

[justsomeguy]

Originally Posted by mzamot

That's awesome! Then everything is within my budget ~1300 rent + 160 utilities.

So far, my fiancee and I are now contacting some complex in Addison, seems really cool from everything I heard from here.

One last question, are areas like Downtown Dallas desirable to live?
I see all kind of prices in Downtown and Uptown (usually expensive), but I see the far away from Downtown, the safer it is, and more Tech jobs are usually outside Downtown, like in Plano.

A little of background. I have dual citizenship, and I moved to US last year, I stopped first at Florida, not because I liked it, but because my American dad lives there, and he helped me do the transition from Costa Rica to US. When I had enough savings to move alone, I moved to Seattle, to a suburb.

In Costa Rica nobody lives in the cities, just in the neighbourhoods (suburbs). In Seattle everyone prefers urban, in Florida everyone prefers suburbs, in Costa Rica everyone lives in the suburbs. So honestly I don't know what's desirable or not :P In Costa Rica Downtown San Jose is not usually a desirable place to live, not at all, and that may be affecting my judgement.

But so far Addison is winning! IT's close and centric, basically my fiancee could get a job in any of the major cities in Dallas without worrying to much about traffic.

Thank you folks!

My non-expert opinion is:

If you have children, more people probably prefer the suburbs here because the schools are better in the suburbs, and the houses are a lot bigger and the price per sq ft for homes is generally better. Crime is also usually lower.

If you do not have children and are a younger person, more people probably the urban area, or at least the neighborhoods that are peripheral around the urban core, because that is where most of the "action" is. More bars, restaurants, people gathering, nightlife, etc. There is more of a pulse. These would be neighborhoods like Uptown, Deep Ellum, Trinity Groves, maybe Bishop Arts and Lower Greenville. The schools are typically not as good and crime may be a bit more iffy, but without a family, most people just deal with it to enjoy the amenities of the city. I haven't lived here long but I think the general trend is that over the last 10-15 years the urban scene has come a long way in Dallas and continues to improve.

And to a large extent it also just depends on where you work...if you're job is in Frisco, even if you're a young person without kids and you'd prefer the urban scene, the commute may be too much for you so pick a spot nearer to the suburb.

So I'd say it's really a mix here in Dallas of people who prefer the suburbs vs. urban.

[the_potion_darling]

Hey OP! I sent you a PM, made a similar move in May. I explained more in my PM. Let me know if I can help!

[GBCommenter]

While I don't think downtown is horrible, I personally don't find it appealing enough to consider it. It seems a bit hit and miss for nightlife and you'd probably end up going to a different neighborhood for activities (Deep Ellum which is on edge of downtown, Knox-Henderson or Uptown are the usual suspects for nightlife). I can't think of a lot of shopping options downtown and cannot think of any grocery store downtown (won't say it's not there, just don't recall one).

If your finance's job isn't in downtown, you'll find lots of driving just to live downtown and not much to make the driving worthwhile. I just heard today (to whatever extent it's true) DFW is 5th worst commute in the country. We all don't need to argue if it's truly 5th or 6th, but traffic is a bear and I don't think there's enough downtown to choose it if you end up driving all the time.

While I'm biased since I live here, I think Addison is a nice compromise. Close enough to relatively easy go to the hip neighborhoods, near major traffic thoroughfares, some park area or somewhat near other park areas, near shopping. You'll also find the mix of residents trends younger so I think you'd fit in here in Addison.

[J800]

Originally Posted by GBCommenter

While I don't think downtown is horrible, I personally don't find it appealing enough to consider it. It seems a bit hit and miss for nightlife and you'd probably end up going to a different neighborhood for activities (Deep Ellum which is on edge of downtown, Knox-Henderson or Uptown are the usual suspects for nightlife). I can't think of a lot of shopping options downtown and cannot think of any grocery store downtown (won't say it's not there, just don't recall one).

If your finance's job isn't in downtown, you'll find lots of driving just to live downtown and not much to make the driving worthwhile. I just heard today (to whatever extent it's true) DFW is 5th worst commute in the country. We all don't need to argue if it's truly 5th or 6th, but traffic is a bear and I don't think there's enough downtown to choose it if you end up driving all the time.

While I'm biased since I live here, I think Addison is a nice compromise. Close enough to relatively easy go to the hip neighborhoods, near major traffic thoroughfares, some park area or somewhat near other park areas, near shopping. You'll also find the mix of residents trends younger so I think you'd fit in here in Addison.

There's an interesting dynamic in Dallas in that half of the people that go out in Uptown don't actually live there. They come from surrounding neighborhoods and suburbs. Yes, people that do live in Uptown actually go out there, but after the initial few months of living there they go to surrounding hoods.

I've lived Downtown, Uptown and in the M Streets right off of Greenville. Most of my neighbors had their usual spots in the neighborhood, but most people ventured out elsewhere on weekends. Uptown folks ventured over to Deep Ellum and Knox/Henderson, Downtown people to Deep Ellum, Knox/Henderson folks to Lower Greenville and vice versa.

Downtown is a pretty good option if you work in the area and live within walking distance of Main Street, which is almost always active these days with a pretty solid selection of places to go...if not, you might be better off choosing a different neighborhood. Addison is solid too, but I've never known anyone to choose it over the other neighborhoods I mentioned if they worked downtown or in uptown and they could afford to live within a 5 mile radius.