New to UT and Austin...need some moving advice (Bowie: best city, 2014)

[yazberrie]

I recently accepted a position at UT and will be moving with my husband and 2 children (ages 4 and 13) from MS in June. We are excited to finally be closer to my family (in the DFW area), but our biggest problem is that with my teaching schedule and my husband's class schedule, we will not be able to look for housing until late May.

We are trying to identify areas in Austin ISD where we can rent for a year while we get a lay of the land. We would prefer areas where we can find rental homes or town homes over 1800 sq. ft. and under $1800. Commute to UT matters but I won't have a 9-5 so I can get around traffic to some extent. We want to live in an area where we would be comfortable letting our daughter walk to friend's houses or ride her bike safely (she's very independent). My daughter has an app in at Kealing but we will not have an admissions answer until after she takes the test after we arrive to Austin in June. Since we will not know about Kealing until we get there, being zoned to a good middle school is important for us. Note: by good, I do not mean top of the line, national rankings good; I mean diverse, challenging classes, community-oriented good.

We visited briefly in December and looked around some. Our take from that visit was that the east side was a really mixed bag (some sketchy neighborhoods and some not), but we really liked the area between William Cannon and Slaughter Lane. What we need: the names/locations of neighborhoods in Austin ISD that are tied to a "good" middle school where we can live safely and modestly while we house hunt. A shorter commute to UT is preferred, but not a deal breaker. Any advice on the best way to identify rentals beyond the typical online sites (hotpads, MLS, etc.) would be helpful as well.

About us (just in case this helps): We are a non-religious, kind of crunchy, pretty liberal, multi-ethnic/racial family. We have no issues living around and befriending people from different walks of life, we just DO NOT want to live in area where these things may be an issue for us.

Thanks!

[Komeht]

William Cannon and Slaughter would be a terrible choice. I don't care what time of day you think you'll be able to shift your schedule to - I-35 can bottleneck at almost anytime of the day now.

Do yourself a huge favor - the blue squiggly line running through the middle of Austin - pretend everything below that line doesn't exist.

[yazberrie]

Originally Posted by Komeht

William Cannon and Slaughter would be a terrible choice. I don't care what time of day you think you'll be able to shift your schedule to - I-35 can bottleneck at almost anytime of the day now.

Do yourself a huge favor - the blue squiggly line running through the middle of Austin - pretend everything below that line doesn't exist.

We figured that would be the case (although I heard opinions from many who said the local commute was okay after rush hour). We heard similar things about the North suburbs as well. I put it up there anyway so people would get a sense of our tastes based on what little we have seen.

[qwertyasdf]

Between Wm Cannon and Slaughter on the Southwest side is not a bad area, and good schools. Bowie High School is one of the best city schools in Austin, and the middle schools and elementary schools are also among the best in the city. Easy acesss to Mopac and UT area. At morning rush hour, about 45 minute drive, unless the traffic is backed up due to some unforeseen circumstances, which happens ocassionally, but more times than not, the traffic is moving. Maybe about 15-20 miles an hour, but at least it's moving. I'm guessing driving from SW Austin between Wm Cannon and Slaughter to UT is quicker than driving from Far NW Austin to UT.

Southbound Mopac from 183 in North Austin is going to be down to 2 lanes due to construction for the next year or 2 and will really slow down the drive time, so that is something you might want to consider.

[scm53]

Originally Posted by yazberrie

IAbout us (just in case this helps): We are a non-religious, kind of crunchy, pretty liberal, multi-ethnic/racial family. We have no issues living around and befriending people from different walks of life, we just DO NOT want to live in area where these things may be an issue for us.

If you can accept your neighbors in Austin, there isn't a place in the metro area where they won't accept you.

Your target area would be a good one. Problem might be that the MS that serve those areas - Covington and Bedichek - aren't among the best in the city. Changes W of Mopac to Small and Gorzcky - but I don't think you can get in that area for your budget. Could be wrong on that. Hope she gets in Kealing. Had you thought about the Ann Richards school? Might be another option.

Ignore the guy that says don't live south. That is a bigotry that has existed since my mother arrived at UT in 1946. I live as far south as one can and still be in Austin, and non-rush hours, I can get to UT in thirty minutes. What you heard is right - after 9 inbound and after 6:30 outbound, it drops off considerably.

[gpurcell]

Look for rentals in Northwest Hills/Far West.

Kohmet is right--Town Lake is a huge barrier to commuting to UT and it is only getting worse as some of the surface street paths get more congested. The idea it is quicker from William Cannon to UT than Far West is absurd--if MOPAC is tight you can just cut across on surface streets.

[scm53]

Originally Posted by gpurcell

Look for rentals in Northwest Hills/Far West.

Kohmet is right--Town Lake is a huge barrier to commuting to UT and it is only getting worse as some of the surface street paths get more congested. The idea it is quicker from William Cannon to UT than Far West is absurd--if MOPAC is tight you can just cut across on surface streets.

I know this will come as a shock to north Austinites that feel qualified to opine on what the commute is like from the south without ever really driving it. Right now - peak commute time. William Cannon & Mopac to UT - 21 minutes. Far West & Mopac to UT - 17 minutes. No one said quicker, just comparable.

[yazberrie]

Originally Posted by scm53

I Had you thought about the Ann Richards school? Might be another option.

I looked at Ann Richards school but didn't think my daughter would be interested. Now I kind of wish I did but it seems we missed the deadline for fall 2014. We barely made the deadline for Kealing.

Originally Posted by scm53

Ignore the guy that says don't live south. That is a bigotry that has existed since my mother arrived at UT in 1946. I live as far south as one can and still be in Austin, and non-rush hours, I can get to UT in thirty minutes. What you heard is right - after 9 inbound and after 6:30 outbound, it drops off considerably.

That's good to hear, because my husband really liked the communities we visited. If he is able to find a job in the area, I wouldn't be surprised if that is where we end up buying or building our next home.

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by gpurcell

Look for rentals in Northwest Hills/Far West.

I agree with this recommendation. It is a nice area of town, UT runs a student shuttle bus to the Far West Blvd. area that is free for faculty and employees also, which would make a nice commute to the UT campus.

http://www.capmetro.org/schedulemap-...f1=661&s=1&d=0

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by scm53

I know this will come as a shock to north Austinites that feel qualified to opine on what the commute is like from the south without ever really driving it. Right now - peak commute time. William Cannon & Mopac to UT - 21 minutes. Far West & Mopac to UT - 17 minutes. No one said quicker, just comparable.

I am retired now, but commute every 2 - 4 weeks from Legend Oaks in SW Austin to my allergy Doctor in N. Central Austin (north of UT, 41st & Lamar) during off peak hours. It is 11.5 miles and usually takes less than 20 minutes.