Best area or places to live in Waco and the best school. (Spring: appointed)

[Nups]

Hi all, will be moving to Waco, tx very soon. How's the place all together. I currently live in Richmond, Virginia. Which are the best areas to stay with best appartments/town homes also single family homes with the best school.

Thanks in advance

[texasdiver]

Pick your location based on the school district.

Midway School District, which covers the southern suburbs of Woodway and Hewitt (as well as parts of Waco south of Highway 6) is probably considered the top district in the greater Waco area. A majority of the affluent subdivisions in the Waco area fall into the Midway ISD and it is probably where a majority of doctors, lawers, Baylor professors, etc. choose to live and enroll their kids in school. The schools are all highly rated.

Lorena and China Spring are two smaller suburban towns to the south and west of Waco that are also popular and have good schools. They are both smaller districts. If you are looking for a more rural setting rather than suburban than those are popular choices. China Spring has seen a tremendous amount of growth in the past 2 decades and is a popular choice.

Robinson is a suburban town to the southeast of Waco and has struggled more in recent years to pass school bonds and such and the community seems to have more governmental dysfunction. So I would put it a step below.

Waco, La Vega, and Connally School districts cover central Waco and the older areas to the east and north of the city that tend to be poorer and more run down. They will be more diverse than the suburban districts but also struggle because the cover areas with more poverty. There are some super rich neighborhoods along the lake in Waco ISD but a lot of those families send their kids to private prep schools rather than Waco ISD public schools.

Crawford, Valley Mills, McGregor, Axtel, Bosqueville, Bruceville-Eddy, Gholson, and Riesel are all rural towns with their own school districts that are within commuting distance of Waco. They are all very small districts and are going to be more parochial and with more limited options than the more affluent suburban districts closer in. They are not where I'd choose to move coming from out of state. But if you want the really small town thing you can get it in any of those.

All things being equal, I'd suggest Midway if you want the larger, closer, and more urban district. China Spring or Lorena if you want a smaller and more rural district. You will probably have a LOT more apartment choices in Midway than the other two because it is more urban. Most of China Spring and Lorena is going to be single family homes.

[happly retired]

midway or crawford. if your kinds are into sports Crawford teams are always in the top or near there top for their size and its close enough to waco to get there for shopping etc in 15-20 min

china springs are getting crowded with all the growth going on but many of the neighbors still love the district. again easy to get to waco in 15 min.

there are sfh rentals - get a good realtor and they will look for you. also some fbo sites have rentals too

you dont want la vega or waco schools is all possible

[pat233]

I too would like to move/retire to the Waco area in the coming months. After taking a weekend trip back in the fall, I liked the Hewitt area. The problem is housing. I took one virtual tour a couple of weeks ago and was very disappointed in a realtor who didn't listen to what I asked for and a limited number of nice homes under 2000 square feet. Woodway was even worse. Seems most homes are geared for families with very few homes for downsizing retirees. I had my current home built and prefer not to go the new home route. Getting too old to put in landscaping and find most homes too close together. Also, any home I was interested in seemed to go into contract before I could plan a 3 hour trip to tour it. Any suggestions for finding retiree housing in the Hewitt area?

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by pat233

I too would like to move/retire to the Waco area in the coming months. After taking a weekend trip back in the fall, I liked the Hewitt area. The problem is housing. I took one virtual tour a couple of weeks ago and was very disappointed in a realtor who didn't listen to what I asked for and a limited number of nice homes under 2000 square feet. Woodway was even worse. Seems most homes are geared for families with very few homes for downsizing retirees. I had my current home built and prefer not to go the new home route. Getting too old to put in landscaping and find most homes too close together. Also, any home I was interested in seemed to go into contract before I could plan a 3 hour trip to tour it. Any suggestions for finding retiree housing in the Hewitt area?

There are nice retiree-oriented patio homes in Woodway and Hewitt in the 2000 sf range but the lots are going to small with minimal yards. That kind of goes along with the genre. You may not nicer small homes on larger lots with landscaping. That's kind of the opposite of what the market wants. Lot sizes tend to increase with the cost and size of the home.

Like, for example there is a neighborhood called Stoneway Court that is nice with smaller patio style homes: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/9...89229862_zpid/

And there is another one called Sheffield Park: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1...52065791_zpid/

I doubt you will find much that is under 2000 sf on larger lots, at least in the newer areas of Waco or any other city in TX. But you may find that in older neighborhoods.

[pat233]

Thanks texasdiver. Both homes you provided links to are a little larger than I want. Currently have a 1600 square foot home on a 7500 sq. ft. lot and neighbors are less than 15 feet away on both sides. I'd like to stay in the 1600-1800 sq ft home and increase the lot size to 8k-10k range. Too bad developers didn't plan for baby boomers that want to downsize when they retire. Oh well, I'll keep looking.

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by pat233

Thanks texasdiver. Both homes you provided links to are a little larger than I want. Currently have a 1600 square foot home on a 7500 sq. ft. lot and neighbors are less than 15 feet away on both sides. I'd like to stay in the 1600-1800 sq ft home and increase the lot size to 8k-10k range. Too bad developers didn't plan for baby boomers that want to downsize when they retire. Oh well, I'll keep looking.

There are some smaller homes in those same neighborhoods. Probably more in the 1800 sf range. Those are just the two I could find listings for.

1600 sf is going to be a heavy lift for a nicer single family home on a large lot. The way to get that might be to find a more rural lot and drop a manufactured home on it. That will be easier to do in a more rural setting than an existing subdivision.

Or, alternatively, go more urban and find something older that has been remodeled. Like this one, for example: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2...52090807_zpid/

[happly retired]

you are kinda out of luck - older homes were built on large lots 1/2 acre or more and the future you go out the larger the lots

the news housing tracks are like most -5-7 feet property lines - larger and 2 story -

keep a eye out on zillow - FBO sites and get a new realtor - we found ours on a FBO site and hod our relator run out and face time us the house - we got a plan the next day and bought it after a walk through -

we ended up the smallest house but still got over a acre- - lawn service here is 40 bucks per mow -so not too bad

there are smaller house out in crawford too but some areas a bit shall we say lower scale -

[pat233]

Thanks for the input. I'm checking Zillow every day. I think I will contact another realtor, too. I live in a very small town and would like to be closer to amenities when I move.

[happly retired]

check those for sale by owners sites too i know the house at the corner where we lived tried fbo for several months before they listed on MLS