Tell me about Castle Hills in Lewisville (Dallas, Austin: townhome, neighborhood)

[MissMee]

Mama3 - we are in MA right now. I grew up in TX but have been here for 10 years. You can PM me a link to your house for sale!

[mama3]

Log on to Ebby Halliday, REALTORS(r) | Dallas Real Estate | Dallas Home | DFW Homes | Fort Worth Real Estate

search by address 844 Winchester drive and you can see hte house and virtual tours. When are you moving?

[momof2boystx]

Anyone know what kind of a commute would it be from Castle Hills to Westlake?

[Rakin]

Today 30-35 minutes (due to construction) but with the new Toll Rd 121 is completed it should be 20-25 minutes depending on traffic. 121 is under construction near the airport / Grapvine Mills Mall area and will slow things down for the next year.

Getting involved with the north end of the airport can get clogged at times.

[momof2boystx]

Thanks, Rakin. Yes, we know about the north end of the airport - a real mess! We're often headed to the airport going West on 635. I wasn't sure if the new commute with 121 when it is finished will avoid the airport mess or not.

[RE Diva]

Hebron High School is supposed to be one of the top high schools in the area. I hear parents rave about it! In McKinney, they've just passed an economic resolution to start busing kids who live on either side of 75 to the other side. McKinney schools are very highly rated as well.

[TriumphOfTheSprint]

Here is an article from the Lewisville paper about the Castle Hills School Foundation. The Foundation provides college scholarships to all residents ($2000 per year), as well as donating money to the Lewisville ISD schools that serve Castle Hills: Star Community Newspapers

[momof2boystx]

Originally Posted by EmBee

However, be aware that some parts of Castle Hills are problematic due to expansive soils, this is true in west side of Frisco too.

The clay soils can shrink and swell due to drying and wetting, therefore anything that's supported on these type soils can in turn shift also. Although this can affect house structures, it is easier to notice on the uneven pavement and pavement cracks in the roadway. Recently, some builders have addressed these issues during construction, but some have not. So ask questions and look around the areas you're interested in to see if it there could be potential problem.

Can anyone expand or provide more details on this...which areas have the problems, which builders are correcting, which aren't, etc.?

[Yoyodyne]

I'd like to hear more clay soil foundation issues as well. We'll be moving to Dallas in August and we are currently looking for a home and really like Castle Hills. (I play golf.) One house we looked at had 66 piers added beneath it to correct a foundation problem. The structural engineering report after the correction reads: "The foundation still has areas of heave and settlement. This area has deep soil problems that will negatively affect the foundation. Future movement may occur." This is all new to me. I understand all of Dallas is a potential foundation problem. However, the words "has deep soil problems" are not very encouraging. Is this just structural engineering talk that goes into all of their reports? Or does it really indicate something worse in this instance? Once a foundation is corrected, will proper watering help maintain the proper moisture around and prevent future expansion and/or shrinkage?

[RE Diva]

The soil in North Texas is very dynamic - it moves. When it gets hot here, it tends to shrink/contract and when it gets cold, it tends to expand. Maintaining proper moisture control around your foundation is paramount. I did hear, but do not know of personally, that when the Castle Hills subdivision first started, it had some problems with foundation issues. However, those issues were soon eradicated and the subsequent builds did not have any further issues with foundations.

Once foundation repair has been taken care of, it typically has a life-time warranty on it. Yes, future movement may occur just because the soil will move. Make sure to keep the foundation at a constant moisture level - not too much and not too little. If you see the soil and sod pulling away from the foundation, that's too little water. Crank up your watering a little. Don't pour water directly into that crack, though. Water next to the crack and it will slowly be filled. Just as importantly, don't let water pond up against your foundation either.

Hope this helps.
T Hayley