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It may finally be becoming a reality for us to move to Austin - I already have a great realtor who has been very patient with me (we currently live in South Florida) and I'm leaning heavily towards the Round Rock area or possibly Cedar Park.
We are definitely going to rent to start vs. buying especially if we have to pick up and go in the next month. I'm currently looking at single family homes to rent in the following Burnet, Hays, Travis, and Williamson. I hear great things about the schools in Travis.
Here's my concern - my older soon-to-be-7 year old son has been diagnosed with high functioning autism (Aspergers), ADHD as well as SPD. He's very bright and is in a gifted 1st grade class - LOVES computers and technology (sometimes to a fault - he gets far too much in the zone with games on my iPhone or the computer even when it's educational that we have to limit it a lot). I've been researching Montessori schools down here in Florida because the public school he is in, even despite its boast of a full-time gifted program, wants him to be this docile quiet child. He is on medication which helps tremendously with the ADHD and SPD to a certain extent, but the Aspergers piece... whew, if he feels things should go a certain way, look a certain way, be stacked a certain way, it's hard to deal with. We have a 504 plan in place so that the teacher understands his challenges and we're preparing to do an IEP. I'm wondering if I'll have to jump through the same hoops at an Austin elementary school or whether, like in NYC, they will have an additional aide to assist when some kids need a little helping hand. Or are there Montessori schools in Austin that might be the better option?
I have a 4-year-old too so I'll be looking for pre-school for him as well. He has about 2 years left until kindergarten.
Basically, I want to move close to the school that will work best for my older son, rather than rent a place and then realize the highly recommended schools are in a different district... Thanks for any info!
I'm currently looking at single family homes to rent in the following Burnet, Hays, Travis, and Williamson. I hear great things about the schools in Travis.
These are counties. 20 min. - 2hours & 20 min. away from each other.
What good things have you heard? (There are about 300 schools in Travis County)
& from the thread above - General Questions to answer (some of the questions might pertain to you):
Quote:
Where in Greater Austin is your job located (give us cross streets nearby)?
Where are you coming from?
Why are you moving?
Will you buy or rent?
What is your budget ?
What kind of place are you looking for?
Will you hike & ride your bike every day (or just twice a month)?
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you?
Define what you mean when you say you want a "good" school.
(off the charts rigorous? nerdy & tough? good academics & good athletics?
good music program, good academics & OK athletics?)
Why are you saying you want a good school "district" when your kids will attend schools?
(& often there are fabulous school tracks & below average school tracks
in the same district)
Are you looking for diverse? When you say diverse....what do you mean?
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in:
(examples: families with young children, young, mature, artsy, diverse, safe, close-knit, block parties, Little League? Tennis? Golf? etc)
Are Malls important? WholeFoods or HEB? Trader Joes or WalMart? BBQ joints or Sushi Bars?
Good Luck.
Last edited by hound 109; 11-14-2013 at 02:01 PM..
Not 100% sure of job location yet but it *might* be W. 51st Street in downtown Austin...or I could be working in Round Rock. I am an IT professional so I will likely work for a software company.
I'm coming from South Florida, married, with 2 kids, 7 and 4, very active boys! Karate, soccer, lacrosse are their sports of choice. My older son diagnosed with high functioning autism and we have a 75-pound pit bull mix - he is a sweetheart.
Renting - maximum per month $2k since that's the mortgage we're paying here. Don't want to pay more than that.
For example, we're actually focused on Williamson County and we're looking at one rental our realtor sent us in Georgetown, TX, on Woodstock Drive that we really like.
"Good school" means to me: not off the charts, but is higher-tech, utilizes laptops, iPads, maybe a bit nerdy but also supportive of kids who need to learn differently. More than one teacher in the room, and a lot of communication, parent involvement, and school activities. A school where you're not just a number, I guess. I meant diverse in that we are a biracial familly - my husband is Caucasian/Brazilian and I'm black so if a school is 99% caucasian, my son may feel a little odd. Maybe not, just something I look at... not a major factor.
Neighborhood? Again, diverse, young children, safe, close-knit, community pool/playground, nice areas to walk, bike, etc., in the neighborhood. Won't look at my pit bull sideways when we're out walking or if we take him with us in the back of our SUV to school in the morning. A place where we're out as a family and we won't be looked at sideways. Sad to say, we still see that in South Florida sometimes that people literally can't process that we're a biracial family.
Malls? Not hugely important no, but yes to Whole Foods and Trader Joe's over Walmart. And hard to say about food - we love sushi and we love our BBQ, but if we walk into restaurants in the areas with our two young loud boys, and people stare us down, that's not where I want to be! Family friendly area!
Hope that covers it, but I am sure I missed something!
I love pitties! And I completely believe you that he is a sweetheart but it might keep you from renting. It will be very hard to find a landlord that will allow a 75 pound dog. Occupancy levels are very high in the entire Austin area and landlords can be picky. This is true of independent owners as well as apartment complexes.
It is going to be a terrible drive from G'town to 51st street everyday. Look in RR at least.
Not 100% sure of job location yet but it *might* be W. 51st Street in downtown Austin...or I could be working in Round Rock. I am an IT professional so I will likely work for a software company.
51st. isn't really downtown. But definitely be looking north of the river.
I'm coming from South Florida, married, with 2 kids, 7 and 4, very active boys! Karate, soccer, lacrosse are their sports of choice. My older son diagnosed with high functioning autism and we have a 75-pound pit bull mix - he is a sweetheart.
There have been a couple of threads regarding "special needs" offerings of RRISD, AISD & LISD. Some of them even drilled down to the schools. Good luck.
95% of all Private Landlords would not let you rent with a pit bull (or would jack the rent/deposit ALOT (i know i would).
Renting - maximum per month $2k since that's the mortgage we're paying here. Don't want to pay more than that.
You should be able find something (in a number of good areas) that hits everything on your checklist....except for the pit bull.
For example, we're actually focused on Williamson County and we're looking at one rental our realtor sent us in Georgetown, TX, on Woodstock Drive that we really like.
If i was going to work at a Tech company (say Mopac/Parmer or in RR at 35 & 45), & my family was bi-racial, I wouldn't be looking in Gtown. I'd be looking into feeder patterns into Pville HS, RRHS, Cedar Ridge HS, McNeil HS, Hutto HS & Vista Ridge HS (probably 2-3 others). CPHS, WWHS & Anderson HS should also be "on the list" but would likely be too far away or the rent would be higher than your 2K per month.
"Good school" means to me: not off the charts, but is higher-tech, utilizes laptops, iPads, maybe a bit nerdy but also supportive of kids who need to learn differently. More than one teacher in the room, and a lot of communication, parent involvement, and school activities. A school where you're not just a number, I guess. I meant diverse in that we are a biracial familly - my husband is Caucasian/Brazilian and I'm black so if a school is 99% caucasian, my son may feel a little odd. Maybe not, just something I look at... not a major factor.
All of the above schools would offer good to very good feeder patterns & have bi-racial kids. All would have good kids & good parent involvement.
Neighborhood? Again, diverse, young children, safe, close-knit, community pool/playground, nice areas to walk, bike, etc., in the neighborhood. Won't look at my pit bull sideways when we're out walking or if we take him with us in the back of our SUV to school in the morning. A place where we're out as a family and we won't be looked at sideways. Sad to say, we still see that in South Florida sometimes that people literally can't process that we're a biracial family.
Given your checklist & your possible work location, I'd be looking at the east west swath of area between US 183 & the I 30 tollroad (I would look a couple of miles north & south (on either side) of 620/45 toll road). This area would include parts of CP, N Austin, RR & Pville (but you can't tell where one ends & the other begins). I'd dump Gtown for about 5 different reasons.
Malls? Not hugely important no, but yes to Whole Foods and Trader Joe's over Walmart. And hard to say about food - we love sushi and we love our BBQ, but if we walk into restaurants in the areas with our two young loud boys, and people stare us down, that's not where I want to be! Family friendly area!
You'll be fine anywhere in Austin.
Hope that covers it, but I am sure I missed something!
Do a search in the Austin Forum for "autism" and "bi-racial" & you'll find tons of threads that may be helpful. Good luck!
Last edited by hound 109; 11-15-2013 at 08:05 AM..
Thanks so much for the links - your searches didn't come up, but I was able to start searches on my own. The pit bull issue was a disappointing eyeopener!
Thanks also about the info about special needs resources in schools - that will help me narrow down the schools that will work for us. Round Rock, Cedar Ridge and Vista Ridge might be the best bets!
We live 15 miles north of Georgetown out in the country. My husband's business until he retired (so he commuted for over 10 years, some of that before the newer roads were in) was 43 minutes to Burnet and Rutland (a few blocks north of Burnet/183) non-peak, an hour peak.
Unfortunately, the pittie is going to be an issue for almost all landlords, simply because of the insurance issue - their insurance company almost certainly has a clause regarding breeds regarded as dangerous (even if that's inaccurate). Your dog I absolutely believe is a sweetheart - I'm old enough that various breeds have previously held the title pit bulls do now and have known examples of all of those breeds that are real sweethearts - but the landlord doesn't know you, doesn't know your dog, and his insurance company REALLY doesn't, so that's the reason it's going to be so difficult.
Williamson County has a reputation with some that is in some cases seriously outdated and in other cases based on stereotypes held by people who have not lived here. I've lived in Austin and in Williamson County, and my office has been in Georgetown for almost the last decade and our daughter attended school there. I'd say check it out for yourself, hound 109's "five different reasons" notwithstanding.
Thank you TexasHorseLady, I am actually looking on the Love-A-Bull website as I write this, so I feel a bit better than 15 minutes ago. Hearing that 95%-99% of landlords won't rent to me with a pit mix was not good news. He was a rescue and our family wouldn't part with him. Our boys would be devastated. I am definitely willing to get the appropriate additional insurance, do the meet 'n' greet, take photos, all of the things recommended on that site to make things easier for the landlord. Do you find Georgetown to be a more friendly area than others?
The open issue for me is exactly where I'm going to be working since that is not set yet. I've had some interviews set up but nothing firm yet so I could be in Round Rock or closer to the city, hard to say. I'd prefer not to have a long commute since I've commuted long distances pretty much my whole life, and would like a break. When I lived in NJ, I commuted an hour and 15 minutes each way and now, I have a 45-minute commute. A commute or 30 minutes or less would be nice, but it just may not be possible.
In fact, that's an issue in itself is that I find that by not having a local TX address, I may be bypassed for jobs because they see Florida and go, "Eh, why go with someone who's not local?" I see some great positions and I think that's definitely a factor not in my favor.
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Hearing that 95%-99% of landlords won't rent to me with a pit mix was not good news. He was a rescue and our family wouldn't part with him. Our boys would be devastated. I am definitely willing to get the appropriate additional insurance, do the meet 'n' greet, take photos, all of the things recommended on that site to make things easier for the landlord. Do you find Georgetown to be a more friendly area than others? 
