I'm coming home!! (now where should we live?) (Houston, San Antonio: sales, homes)

[LittleTPot]

It's official! After a 17 year absence, I'm moving back to Texas. I still can't believe it's true, but my husband accepted a job this morning that will take us to the city of our choice in Texas. Since my mom is in San Antonio, I really want to be close to her. I'd really appreciate some suggestions on a good place for us to buy a house, as we have a number of factors to consider:

1. My mom is in Fossil Ridge, and I'd prefer to be within half an hour or 45 minutes of her. (unfortunately we can't afford that neighborhood, but we sure like visiting!)
2. My husband is in sales and will drive to Houston every week. We need to be on the east side of San Antonio or community east of the city so that we can avoid some of the driving mess.
3. We'd prefer to spend around $250,000 on a house.
4. We have an infant son so the school districts are an issue.
5. Coming from Chicago, we'd prefer an older home, but we know that might be hard to come by in San Antonio. We already looked at home prices in Alamo Heights and we're not willing to pay that much for a home.
6. I work in higher ed and will need to find a job in a local college within six months or so of relocating.

I know that's a lot, but any feedback is appreciated. We were considering the Shertz/Cibolo area although I'm not sure it would be the best fit for us. What about New Braunfels? Is there some more character in the homes there?

All feedback is appreciated. While I'm certainly going to miss the seasons, public transportation and food in Chicago, I'm so very excited to get back to my "home country"!

[Insomniac]

Schertz, Cibolo would seem ideal for you. An easy 1604 drive to either Fossil or 10.

[kevcrawford]

I agree. Possibly the Garden Ridge area, but I'm not thinking you'll find what you like for the price. Maybe consider New Braunfels. It might be a slightly longer drive to Fossil Ridge, but not much.

[LittleTPot]

Thanks for the feedback. Are there any areas that might have slightly older homes on the east side? Or is it possible to live in another area downtown that would be an easy shot to I-10? I want to keep all of our options open.

Thanks!

[kevcrawford]

The further east you get, the less desirable the areas are. Especially if you're keeping school districts in mind. Consider the schools for downtown too. There may be a couple of neighborhoods that feed into the Alamo Heights schools, but aren't the typical AH homes ($$$). They probably wouldn't be a straight shot to I10 though.

[adtobias]

ther are a lot of home near san antonio college that are old and need some tlc but are cheap and is an up and coming area

[Bowie]

I've noticed a lot of new construction on both sides of 1604 between Converse and Selma. No idea what the price range is of the homes being built, but the location seems right up your alley.

[buffy888]

Congrats on the return home. We just moved back after about 15 years away (I grew up here off and on throughout my school years).

Sounds like you are getting good ideas on locations on which to focus for housing. Just wanted to mention that if you do choose any of those areas, you won't be overly far from Live Oak. Not sure if you will be looking for work at a community college or a university, but they are adding a new campus for Alamo Community College District in Live Oak - it's scheduled to open fall 2008. Here's a link with a bit of info about the new campus: Northeast Lakeview College - Main Page

[LittleTPot]

Thanks for the info everyone. Buffy, I currently working at a university, but I'm open to any option. My mom (who is having an absolute fit about her only child and grandchild moving home!) recommended the new Cibolo Canyon development, but it looks a little more expensive than we can afford to spend right now.

Any additional recommendations are welcome. I look forward to spending lots of time here planning our return to Texas!

[smuboy86]

You could always try Windcrest on the Northeast side, home are older. You are still in NEISD, which imho is better than JISD. You have a pretty easy shot to I-10, the airport, and Windcrest just scored a major economic windfall with Rackspace moving there.