Possible Tulsa Relocation--Advice? (Oklahoma City, Norman, Stillwater: fit in, real estate market, homes)

[jackcat]

My wife, 3 younger kids and I considering relocating to Tulsa due to an excellent job offer for my wife. I am an engineer and contractor by training and experience, and just starting to evaluate the job market. My wife is a physician.

We visited the area once last month, and are planning another visit soon. Honestly the community--while not turning us off--"under whelmed" us. We were there a very short time, and didn't have much opportunity to explore. That is the reason for our return visit--we need to give Tulsa another chance to impress us!

We have young school-aged children and are interested in the catholic, parochial schools (Montecassino and/or Marquette stand out).

When we return we plan on concentrating our "sightseeing" in the south part of Tulsa. To-date we've really only spent time in the downtown and Utica SQ neighborhood.

Any advice for us on some things to consider/look at on our return visit? Specific questions we have include:

1) How welcoming is the area for new families moving in? Good ways to meet people? We are mid-westerners (Iowa) and fairly down-to-earth, educated professionals (mid-to-upper 30's). Where we live we belong to a country-club and live in a community full of similar people to us. That has allowed us to easily meet people of similar backgrounds, positions, etc. What recommendations do native Tulsans have for us on how to achieve a good network of friends/neighbors/playmates for our kids?

2) What is the real estate market like, other than VERY reasonable in terms of price? How long does an average $300,000 home sit on the market?

3) Does anyone have experience with the catholic schools I mentioned above? Any others we should consider? I believe our interest is in living in the south part of town. I presume if we chose say Montecassino and lived in South Tulsa, we would have to drive the kids to school (no bus?)?

4) Is Tulsa an easy or hard town to break into as far as my position--engineering and construction? How about the business community in general? This may be a harder question to have answered and I understand! I'm not an OU or OSU grad, but am a grad of a rival Big-12 school--assuming I can prove myself in ability and skill, would the 'locals' welcome an outsider?

5) Anyone have experience with the MBA program at OSU? Any other schools offer an MBA program in Tulsa? I know TU has a law school, are there other(s) nearby?

The people we have met so far are very impressive and friendly. We are confident that my wife’s position would be great all around, but questions remain about the community and how we would fit in.

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks much.

[midnightcalling]

If you don't have any luck getting replies here, try tulsanow.org

[Suzy-Q]

Hi there!
I'd like to say welcome to Tulsa and let you know that you and your family will love it here! I think it's all about attitude anyway and if you're happy where you are you'll probably be happy when you move here! There are many things to do here! First and foremost we are a friendly city. Don't feel weird if people just wave at you when you come to their neighborhood. That's just how we are. There are many wonderful neighborhoods, gated, non-gated with many amennities or few. You can find just about anything you are looking for here. We have lots of very European designed homes and many Historical Homes in Midtown. Since you like the idea of South Tulsa there are plenty of fabulous homes to choose from with price ranges to fit your needs. Since I am in Real Estate I can get you the statistics that show you how long it typically takes to sell say a $300,000 home . Depending on where it's located and the condition of the home, I've seen them sell anywhere from just a few weeks to up to 6 months. It's all in the marketing,pricing,location and of course it's hard to time the market. Right now some of the homes are selling faster than others. I would be glad to get you some info on Tulsa and the surrounding areas and email some potential homes fot to preview online close to an area you think you'd like to be in. You can also contact the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce on the area have several friends who moved here from Iowa and love it here. Also, there are some great Catholic schools here, Monte Cassino, Marguette, Cascia Hall all elementary I believe and Bishop Kelly High School.
I might let you know of course we have ORU, TU,Northeastern, OU right in Norman, OSU out of Stillwater which they both I believe have excellerated programs at UCT at Tulsa. I graduated from OCU (Oklahoma City University) with a Bachelors Degree in Business ADM here in Tulsa in the accelerated plan and my best friend has received her MBA here. I lack only a few hours having an MBA. It's much faster getting on an accellerated program.
Well, it's getting late and I have some continued Education training in the am but if you'll send me an address I'll get you more information about this area than you need! I hope you like it here! I hope this helps some!
SUZy-Q