interested in moving to broken arrow-need advice (Tulsa, Wagoner: for sale, apartments)

[anna10]

Hi, my name is Angela, I'm 36, single and work as an assistant financial planner at an investment firm in South Tulsa. I used to work in Broken Arrow at the MetLife building, but got laid off from there back in 08. I bought a house in Wagoner back then because it wasn't that far of a drive to Broken Arrow and I have family in Wagoner, but now that I'm driving to South Tulsa every day, I am ready to move and I'm preparing for that. I am looking to buy another house and I am interested in Broken Arrow because it has a lot of nice homes for sale in my price range, around 100K. I'm not looking for anything big since it is just me, under 2,000 square feet. My co-worker brought up the fact that I am single and might not be happy in BA because she said there would only be a bunch of families in the neighborhoods. She thinks I would be happier in Brookside or midtown, but 1. I probably can't afford the nicer areas of Brookside and even if I did want to pay more for a house, I'd still be getting a lot less house there, 2. I'm fairly conservative and I'm not sure Brookside would be a good fit for my personality.

To me, living around families would be great because it seems like it would be a safer more conservative environment. But I wonder how those neighborhoods would react to me moving in and being single, would I be the only single and stick out like a sore thumb? I have also considered South Tulsa, it would be really close to work and I have seen a few homes around 110K that are smaller, plus there are also some nice condos in the area. Not real sure about condos yet though, I think I would rather have a house since that is what I am used to.

Well, I would appreciate anyone's opinions. I am kind of an odd ball, a single, but not really looking for the single's scene. I'm a pretty boring person most of the time and just centered on my career right now

[Sorge]

Hi,
It seems that renting might be a good option in your situation. Getting into a house will bind you to a place, but if you are alone and flexible you can afford moving from one place to another often. Say, you want to try Brookside. Rent there and see if you like it. If you don't like it, you can move in a few months to another place. I live in south Tulsa, people are very nice ... but don't talk much to each other. I strongly doubt that whatever neighborhood you move in you will notice any reaction unless you like to host noizzy parties till 5 am.

By the way, I often see people say they are conservative. What does it mean ... specifically? Whole families with guns patroling their sub-divisions to keep single women away? Then, you'd be better off in Brookside.

Also, I think the neighborhoods with smaller houses in southern part of Tulsa (and BA) harbor quite a few of elderly people, some of them are singles. We had a single old lady (in her late 80th ?) living accross the street from us. It doesn't seem she was harassed for being single.

[anna10]

Thanks for your reply. I don't want to rent at all. I really like being a homeowner and with interest rates as low as they are now, it is really a good to time buy and maybe upgrade to a nicer home than I have now. I plan on working in the Tulsa area for quite some time. I used to live in apartments back in college and even a few years after I graduated and I hated the noise I could hear from the other apartments and I don't want to go back to that. I mean its one thing to hear noise from others during the day, but when its midnight and you hear loud music and your trying to get some sleep cause you have to get up at 5:00 a.m., the noise can get old fast.

I don't think I would be harrassed for being single LOL, that's not what I meant from my post, I just wondered if I would stick out that bad, perhaps being the only single in the neighborhood, but it sounds like from your answer that wouldn't be the case. Honestly, I had never really thought much about the possibility of "sticking out" until my friends at work brought it up, so I thought I would ask others about it. I think conservative means different things to different people, just like liberal can. To me it means religious, more strict when it comes to moral issues, that sort of thing, but it may not mean that for everyone. I'm just more of a shy, reserved person who was brought up in a religious environment, so to me it can kind of be used to describe my personality. However, I am also open minded when it comes to others and their beliefs.

Anyway, thanks again for your response. I appreciate your help.

[Sorge]

Originally Posted by anna10

Thanks for your reply. I don't want to rent at all. I really like being a homeowner and with interest rates as low as they are now, it is really a good to time buy and maybe upgrade to a nicer home than I have now. I plan on working in the Tulsa area for quite some time. I used to live in apartments back in college and even a few years after I graduated and I hated the noise I could hear from the other apartments and I don't want to go back to that. I mean its one thing to hear noise from others during the day, but when its midnight and you hear loud music and your trying to get some sleep cause you have to get up at 5:00 a.m., the noise can get old fast.

I agree that in Oklahoma it makes perfect sense to own a house vs. renting. However, you can consider renting a HOUSE if you are not sure about neighborhoods. I think there are also rent-to-own programs.

I don't think I would be harrassed for being single LOL, that's not what I meant from my post, I just wondered if I would stick out that bad, perhaps being the only single in the neighborhood, but it sounds like from your answer that wouldn't be the case. Honestly, I had never really thought much about the possibility of "sticking out" until my friends at work brought it up, so I thought I would ask others about it. I think conservative means different things to different people, just like liberal can. To me it means religious, more strict when it comes to moral issues, that sort of thing, but it may not mean that for everyone. I'm just more of a shy, reserved person who was brought up in a religious environment, so to me it can kind of be used to describe my personality. However, I am also open minded when it comes to others and their beliefs.

Anyway, thanks again for your response. I appreciate your help.

ohh....my pet peeves... I don't think there is a shortage of churches on Brookside. Morals are a separate issue, and I don't think that on practice the moral behavior overlaps too much with religiosity. For example, the fact that some people with all their (large) families go to church on every occasion and sing some hymns aloud on some days, doesn't stop them from letting their dogs to pee and poop on my yard and taking so little care of their growing kids that I begin to be concerned for my safety. Bottom line, I think any neighborhood in Tulsa is good on churches (protestant churches of course, but there is some shortage of mosques) and most neighborhoods are not very high on morals.

[anna10]

Ya, you're probably right Sorge, I agree with your last comment. Just cause someone is religious or goes to church doesn't guarantee a certain set of morals or standards thats for sure. I think since I am outside of Tulsa, I have a tendancy to think about or sterotype certain neighborhoods in Tulsa because all the info I have to draw off of is what I've heard or what I think I know, which isn't always true. That's why it is good to talk to folks on forums like this to get yourself educated on what is really reality. Thanks again for your help

P.S. - As a dog owner myself, I would never let my dog go in someone else's yard and mess things up, thats terrible.