NJ family to Dallas,Texas? (Austin, Plano: for sale, insurance, mortgage)

[JerseyFellow thinking TX]

Hello Everyone,

I'm new to the site and would appreciate any type of feedback on Dallas, Texas living. I'm currently living in Northern NJ and want to move to a more affordable state with a good job market. A good friend of mine sold his house in NJ and bought house cash in Carrolton. He is trying to convince me to move over but I'm a little skeptical on the Dallas economy. I visited Carrollton 2 years ago and noticed many empty homes for sale, which gave me a bad vibe.
My wife and I currently have good jobs in NJ with a household income of $105K and still can't afford to live here. I'm a computer specialist and my wife is an insurance processor.
An OK home in Bergen County, NJ goes for about $475K with taxes that can range from $6K to $8K a year. A mortgage for a home like this including taxes and utilities can easily be $4,300K a month. That's not including the high cost of living in NJ. We have two young children and expecting another. We are looking for a better quality of life for our family without the high cost. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank You,

NJ Family Guy,

[onrway2clt]

I am in a similar situation to yours. I live on Long Island and I am getting squeezed bad.

I do not know anything about carrolton but I did visit the Frisco, Plano, Mckinney area and was very impressed.

If I can land a job in Dallas I am going to move.

[JerseyFellow thinking TX]

Thanks for the reply. From what I've seen in Dallas in the Denton and Carrollton area it is absolutely beautiful. You can buy a late 90s home with 3 BRs, LV, DR, ENK and a 2-car garage in a very nice area for about 150K. The only problem is that there are many vacant homes for sale, which leads me to believe that the job market is not good. My friend is a truck driver so he can find work anywhere. As for someone like myself, I'm a little hesitant.

JerseyFellow thinking TX,

[socketz]

Originally Posted by JerseyFellow thinking TX

The only problem is that there are many

Not so. But there is alot of inventory, hence the whole 'buy to sell' concept.

In fact, I read somewhere that there are 2500 new people per day moving into the DFW area......per day. So there is a pool of buyers, but you need to have the kind of home they are looking for else you become background noise among the thousands of other homes on the market.

[JerseyFellow thinking TX]

Thanks for the reply. I guess the only way to really know would be to start sending out resumes. Ever since my wife and I went house searching in Dallas 2 years ago, that is all she talks about. She wants nothing to do with Jersey and neither do I. It has gotten way out of hand here and I refuse to pay so much money for a house that needs work. Especially with the taxes being so high. New Jersey is the highest in the nation.

Thanks,

JerseyFellow Thinking TX.

[LastDallasNative]

Dallas is transplant city. You could call your local university you graduated from and ask for an alumni association in the area and talk to New Jersey people in Dallas.

[Catherinelady]

I transferred from NJ to Austin, Texas and love it here, the hill country can't be beat and Austin is very techy. I don't miss NJ one bit and the cost of living is fantastic. The one really positive thing you will notice right away here is the friendly driving of Texas compared to NJ.

[Pintea]

We moved from NY, a year ago. I am a stay at home mom, but my husband had a job lined up before our move.
You get more house for the money, everything else is similar in price.
We like it here, even though I will always miss NY...

[Fleur07]

I think you will definitely get more for your money in Texas. Many houses are on the market because the owners want to "trade up" and buy something bigger, not because of lost jobs. The sellers are competing with the new home builders for buyers, so it can take 6 mos. or so to sell even a very nice house in good condition. You could get a very nice 4-BR home in the Dallas suburbs for $475K, maybe with a pool.

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by Fleur07

You could get a very nice 4-BR home in the Dallas suburbs for $475K, maybe with a pool.

True, but keep in mind the annual taxes will run 10K to 14K a year depending on area.