Relocating from Dallas to Little Rock... (North Little Rock, Conway: real estate, house prices, find a job)

[danielhv]

Ok, my girlfriend and I are possibly moving to LR. I will have a job out there making ~$80k/yr in this economy, last year the position did $90k. She works for Capital One Auto Finance in Dallas, which is NOT in LR. She makes ~$35k/yr as a funding analyst. We are going to visit LR this weekend... curious where to live, where she can work, etc. So far I have only seen pictures of Conway... but I hear Sherwood is nice... We will be there for 1 day (this saturday) to look around and get a feel for what LR and surrounding cities have to offer. Our main concern is her being able to find a job out there when we do move which wont be for another 3 months or so... So here are my questions...

1. Where are the nice places to live that are within our income levels? I don't want to afford a $200k house... Im thinking in the $120 - $160k range perhaps. I'll be commuting to LR regardless... so it needs to be within driving distance! Also, I'd like to be close to a municipal airport (i own a plane).

2. Aside from just hitting the streets on her job search, are there any other suggestions?

3. Would also like to be within reasonable driving distance from a lake... we have a ski boat. Avg depth of Lake Conway is 6ft.... does that sound right? Seems kinda shallow for skiing!

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by danielhv

Ok, my girlfriend and I are possibly moving to LR. I will have a job out there making ~$80k/yr in this economy, last year the position did $90k. She works for Capital One Auto Finance in Dallas, which is NOT in LR. She makes ~$35k/yr as a funding analyst. We are going to visit LR this weekend... curious where to live, where she can work, etc. So far I have only seen pictures of Conway... and not many at that. We will be there for 1 day (this saturday). Our main concern is her being able to find a job out there when we do move which wont be for another 3 months or so... So here are my questions...

1. Where are the nice places to live that are within our income levels? I don't want to afford a $200k house... Im thinking in the $120 - $160k range perhaps. I'll be commuting to LR regardless... so it needs to be within driving distance! Also, I'd like to be close to a municipal airport (i own a plane).

2. Aside from just hitting the streets on her job search, are there any other suggestions?

3. Would also like to be within reasonable driving distance from a lake... we have a ski boat. Avg depth of Lake Conway is 6ft.... does that sound right? Seems kinda shallow for skiing!

I don't know how deep Conway lake is but I am sure others will be able to give you some good suggestions. I think conway itself is supposed to be a really neat place to live. We would have looked there if we hadn't found NWA.

Nita

[jenni-b]

There are PLENTY of lakes in the central Arkansas area for skiiing: Greers Ferry, DeGray, Ouachita, Hamilton, and Catherine all come to mind. However, Lake Conway is more of a fishing lake. Not good for water sports at all.

Conway and Sherwood are both nice and within easy commuting distance, with plenty of homes in your price range.

[bchris02]

Originally Posted by jenni-b

There are PLENTY of lakes in the central Arkansas area for skiiing: Greers Ferry, DeGray, Ouachita, Hamilton, and Catherine all come to mind. However, Lake Conway is more of a fishing lake. Not good for water sports at all.

Conway and Sherwood are both nice and within easy commuting distance, with plenty of homes in your price range.

Sherwood is a much easier commute (20 minutes) than Conway (40 minutes).

[LittleRocker-Elena]

Hi Daniel

My fiance and I just moved to Little Rock from Texas last December so I've been in your shoes before! I was in Dallas and he was in Austin when we made the move. I was in corporate finance in Dallas, but couldn't find another finance job even close to the income level I was making so I decide to go into Real Estate.

1. There are several areas in the $120-$160 range. One of my favorite neighborhoods is Cherry Creek in West Little Rock - those houses range from about $150-$200K so maybe at the top of your range. There are a few areas in North Little Rock and close to Sherwood that are nice. Conway is inexpensive but there is a lot of traffic going into LR, so may not be worth it. Conway is also in a dry county...don't know if that is a concern for you. If you'd like more specific real estate help, feel free to direct message me.

2. As for your girlfriend I would recommend that she talk to Robert Half International. They do permanent and temporary placement and have a section that just focuses on finance jobs. They should be able to find her something at the salary level that she had in Dallas, or close.

3. Lakes are a little less convenient here than in TX...we were spoiled! We brought our ski boat up and keep it a few miles from Greer's Ferry Lake. It's about an hour and fifteen minute drive north from LR to Choctaw (where we put in). You can also put in on the other side of the lake at Heber Springs but that is a further drive. We haven't been yet, but there is also Lake Ouachita and Lake Hamilton to the SW of Little Rock. Not totally positive, but I think the drive is comparable if not a little longer.

Best of luck to you and your girlfriend!

[LittleRocker-Elena]

How was your visit this past Saturday? What did you think of Little Rock?

[Cabotjack]

Did you get the opportunity to check out Cabot? It is a bedroom community to Little Rock and is a nice town.

[danielhv]

Yes we checked out NLR, Conway, Maumelle, Cabot, Benton, Bryant, and Bauxite. Still not sure where we want to live though! =) Kinda confused.... house prices seemed kinda weird. seems like those in the $120 - $130k range are ~1350 sq ft and have a tiny yard, with no fence, and siding all over the house. Seems odd. Our house we're in now is 1700 sq ft, 4 years old, .20acre lot, brick on all 4 sides, and in Frisco of all places... and paid $125k... So I dunno what to think or expect now. When I heard cost of living was cheaper, I figured we'd be getting more bang for our buck on pretty much everything!

[hotair2]

Originally Posted by danielhv

Yes we checked out NLR, Conway, Maumelle, Cabot, Benton, Bryant, and Bauxite. Still not sure where we want to live though! =) Kinda confused.... house prices seemed kinda weird. seems like those in the $120 - $130k range are ~1350 sq ft and have a tiny yard, with no fence, and siding all over the house. Seems odd. Our house we're in now is 1700 sq ft, 4 years old, .20acre lot, brick on all 4 sides, and in Frisco of all places... So I dunno what to think or expect now. When I heard cost of living was cheaper, I figured we'd be getting more bang for our buck on pretty much everything!

It is hard to believe that you got your current house for 120 to 130K in Dallas.

You can get a house like you described for less than that in Arkansas, but you will probably be living out in the sticks.

[jenni-b]

Houses are pretty damn cheap in the DFW area.