Moving soon, should we rent IN san antonio or outside it?

[Sharpydove]

Originally Posted by ksk11

Thanks so much!!! Fingers crossed we could find a home when we fly out in 2 weeks and can close in 30 days or less to be in and settled before Aug 23

Thanks for all the info on the school system. .... yes, the site I pulled up was that school digger one. I didn't know what to think when I saw SA was #616th on the list of 870....so knowing more helps and now i think I understand about the bigger cities not being rated correctly. I have read nothing but good reviews and test scores for Northside ISD and Northeast ISD (as far as the other school systems are in that area, I haven't read much about them b/c most of the homes we are looking at are in the those 2 areas)

Thanks again and after we come back from our 3 day trip; I may have more questions for you!!!

Be careful trying to buy a home with only a few days to look. We did this in 2006 and it was a huge mistake. We should have rented for a year and taken the time to explore all areas of San Antonio. It's alot of pressure to feel in such a short time, especially when you are talking about a huge purchase. Also, if you are buying, I hope you can stay put awhile since the housing market is currently unpredictable, at best.

[TexasRedneck]

Gotta agree w/Sharpy here - worst thing you could do is fly in, buy a home, then come back and realize you made a HUGE mistake. Take at LEAST 6 months to get to know the city, traffic patterns, etc!!

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by ksk11

Thanks so much!!! Fingers crossed we could find a home when we fly out in 2 weeks and can close in 30 days or less to be in and settled before Aug 23

That can be easily done, we did it twice when returning from overseas assignments in 1999 and again in 2005. The USAF gives you 30 days in the temporary living facilities and you have to find a house and move in within that time frame, or find someplace else to live. The last time in 2005, it was a seller's market and we still managed to find a great house; so in today's buyer's market you should have no problem.

Of course, having a great realtor made it a lot simpler. We had one recommended to us by a friend and he had a list of houses to look at on our second day here. We found the one we now live in before lunch of that first day of looking. If you want his info let me know via a DM...

Cheers! M2

[ksk11]

Thanks Majormadmax! I Dm'd ya!

I realize it could be a mistake...and unfortunatly with my husbands job we never know how long it will be that we are there...could be a year, could be 6, who knows. We did this with our last move, looked around quickly and made an offer that day and it worked out so great for us, we lived there for 6 years w/o any regrets and everyday I wish I wouldn't have left it and come to were we are currently renting.

Is there anything specific you can share with me about your regrets...like an area you would avoid?