Relocating soon and completely at a loss (Plano, Garland: foreclosures, to rent)

[Mckwvu]

My family and I will be relocating for my husband’s job at Legacy West. We visited for the weekend to check out the area and zoom in on where we’d like to live. But I’m struggling with where to focus. Our realtor directed us mainly to Prosper and Celina because she believes that presents the strongest opportunity for resale. We also looked briefly at McKinney. Didn’t really look at Allen. I liked Prosper and Celina fine, but they seem so far out and the MUD/PID were concerning. McKinney was nice but I’m not sure I got a good enough look.

I’d love to know what you all would suggest, particularly which neighborhoods to take a closer look at.

I have a soon to be high schooler and a soon to be middle schooler so looking for good schools. Our budget is around $375k. I’m not opposed to older houses but we aren’t handy people so we would need something pretty turnkey.

Are Prosper and Celina our best bets? Will my husband spend his life commuting to and from work?

I’m so overwhelmed

[speedyg]

I would have thought most of Prosper would be out of that price range. If you are wanting good schools, I would start by looking around Plano (though it almost for sure will be an older house at the price) and Frisco. Both have excellent school districts, good safe cities, and a reasonable commute to Legacy West.

McKinney is a spread out and diverse city. Some parts are nice and others not so much. Nobody discusses their schools much so I don't have a clue. Allen is an alright city. I'm not a fan of their school district. It's not terrible or anything, but it has the highest tax rate in the area and they seem more focused on football than academics. McKinney and Allen commutes are going to be 30-45 mins each way.

I remember 5 years ago when $375K would have gotten an excellent new home. Those days are mostly gone unfortunately.

[DBL60]

375 for anything new or reasonably new in Prosper will be hard to find . Celina will give you the most for your money. Celina to Legacy West is 30 minutes. With many new roads in construction. It is farther out but a small trade off for not being cramped in like a cockroach in Plano/Frisco.

[TurtleCreek80]

I would be looking for an older home in Central Plano or possible west of the tollroad ultimately zoned to Hebron HS. Celina may be 30 minutes now but it’s only going to get worse every year as development pushes north. Your budget is on the lower side for most of Collin County with good proximity to the tollroad which is probably why your realtor has you looking so far north.

[ea0337]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

I would be looking for an older home in Central Plano or possible west of the tollroad ultimately zoned to Hebron HS.

For upto $400k, you could move in to a nicely updated older home in Central Plano (for e.g. 75023 where I stay).

[Mckwvu]

Thanks for the info everyone. I sure had no idea how little my budget would stretch. I’ll take a closer look at Central Plano as well.

[bigbear63]

So I have lived here my entire life and would *never* send someone up to Prosper/Celina. Too far north and you're in the heavy traffic flow. On weekends? Not bad but during the week it's bumper to bumper coming south.

For that price range and work location I would be searching the Carrollton area. You'll find homes in that price range and the traffic flow works better. Schools? Not going to play that game. Schools there are located in multiple ISDs. Also the city sits across several tax districts so you'll need to look at that if every $$ counts.

[WorldKlas]

Carrollton — in Hebron HS attendance zone
Plano — anywhere you find a home you like
Garland — in the Firewheel district

[calgirlinnc]

My advice is: live as close to work as you can afford that also gets you better school options. Distances are weird in Texas; what seems close in other places seems far here. We live 3.5 miles from my kid's school and I wish we lived MUCH closer.

Don't worry excessively about attending *the* best schools. North Texas is blessed with an abundance of stellar public schools and if you go to a school ranked an 8 or 9 vs a 10, it probably won't matter much. (Obviously avoid the low ranked schools).

The exception I would make to this advice is is if either of your children is particularly interested in a certain sport or activity, etc. to choose schools that are extremely strong in those areas. We knew what our high schooler was interested in and avoided specific schools that did not offer coursework in his particular area of interest.

I know it is overwhelming. It is a large area and a big investment. But you will be OK. Many of us have done this and figured it all out, and you will too.

ETA: buy a house with a pool if you can.

[UnfairPark]

Originally Posted by Mckwvu

My family and I will be relocating for my husband’s job at Legacy West. We visited for the weekend to check out the area and zoom in on where we’d like to live. But I’m struggling with where to focus. Our realtor directed us mainly to Prosper and Celina because she believes that presents the strongest opportunity for resale. We also looked briefly at McKinney. Didn’t really look at Allen. I liked Prosper and Celina fine, but they seem so far out and the MUD/PID were concerning. McKinney was nice but I’m not sure I got a good enough look.

I’d love to know what you all would suggest, particularly which neighborhoods to take a closer look at.

I have a soon to be high schooler and a soon to be middle schooler so looking for good schools. Our budget is around $375k. I’m not opposed to older houses but we aren’t handy people so we would need something pretty turnkey.

Are Prosper and Celina our best bets? Will my husband spend his life commuting to and from work?

I’m so overwhelmed

You need a comfortable home with short commute and good schools for your own living, don’t have to start planing for resale before putting a foot in there. Plano is safe for resale, actually safer than Prosper and Celina if country got hit by recession and foreclosures. It is easier to rent out if needed. As other posters suggested central Plano is your best option.