Moving to Dallas area from OH - need advice on good areas for families (Austin: new home, construction)

[ajweiss]

I have been looking at this site for quite a while so I know there are multiple "moving to dallas, looking for advice posts." I haven't found any answers to my particular situation though so I thought I would solicit some advice.

I am moving from Cleveland, OH with my husband and two daughters (ages 3 and 3 months). I will be working in the Addison area, not sure about my husband. We are in a good school district now and I am only 10 minutes from work. A short commute time is very important to me. I would prefer 25 minutes or less, although it seems like that might be tough there. I also want a good school district and a community feel. We can spend anywhere between $300k and $450k and I would prefer a house that is 5 years old or less (we have done the fixer thing already). A subdivision with a community pool/park would be great too.

Anyway, we have looked at Murphy and Flower Mound. What are your thoughts on those districts. Any others I haven't thought of?

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by ajweiss

I have been looking at this site for quite a while so I know there are multiple "moving to dallas, looking for advice posts." I haven't found any answers to my particular situation though so I thought I would solicit some advice.

I am moving from Cleveland, OH with my husband and two daughters (ages 3 and 3 months). I will be working in the Addison area, not sure about my husband. We are in a good school district now and I am only 10 minutes from work. A short commute time is very important to me. I would prefer 25 minutes or less, although it seems like that might be tough there. I also want a good school district and a community feel. We can spend anywhere between $300k and $450k and I would prefer a house that is 5 years old or less (we have done the fixer thing already). A subdivision with a community pool/park would be great too.

Anyway, we have looked at Murphy and Flower Mound. What are your thoughts on those districts. Any others I haven't thought of?

I would focus on West Plano (75093) in the Plano ISD. It is generally the area bounded by Midway (east of the Dallas North Tollroad), 121, Frankford, and Ohio-ish (about midpoint between 75 & Dallas North Tollroad).
*Outstanding public schools (some of the highest SAT scores in the metroplex and about 50% of Plano West Senior High students taking Advanced Placement college-level courses) and a 10-20 minute commute to Addison.
*VERY well located for your husband's job search as it's within 5-45 minutes to the Legacy (Frisco/Plano), Preston Center, 75, Downtown / Uptown Dallas, and Las Colinas/Irving job centers.
*Your price range is Perfect for West Plano! But it won't be a 5 year old home, it will be a 15-30 year old home. You could probably find a 5 year old home in far north Plano (just south of 121) but it will legnthen your commute to about 30-40 minutes.

Murphy feeds into Plano East schools- good, but not as good as the Plano West and Senior feeders. I think there are some great elementary schools in Murphy's zone though.

Flower Mound is WAY too far away to meet your commute criteria- and poorly located for your husband's job. It could end up taking him 60-75 slow grueling minutes if he got a job in Dallas.

[TX75007]

Newer homes in that price range can be found in the 75093 zip code under ten years of age but they are along Preston North of Park. For Plano ISD you have to stay East of Midway road.

Once you go West a little bit, you end up in Lewisville ISD.Your options for new homes are then Austin Waters and the developments around Castle Hills.

[MckinneyOwnr]

I would also second West Plano as your best bet as far as a short commute time and great school districts. If you aren't planning on staying for a decade or longer though, then Frisco could also be a good choice. Frisco ISD doesn't get as high of marks as Plano does once you reach the high school age, but for elementary schools, almost any North Texas suburb can be a good place to live.

You'll have a better chance of finding new construction in Frisco that meets your criteria than you will in Plano.

[Big G]

Let me chime in with the advice I wish I had received when we first moved here (also for a job located in Addison).

The SW corner of the Plano ISD is located at roughly Trinity Mills and Midway (yes, in the city of Dallas). Anything north and east of there will be PISD. That can be as short as a FIVE minute commute to your job in Addison, depending on the house and job location. Certainly, you can keep the commute under 15 minutes with anything in the Mitchell or Rose Haggar elementary areas. New home? No, but not terribly old, either.

[ajweiss]

Wow, these are all really good replies. Sounds like everyone recommends Plano. We will definitely keep that area in mind. Any one have thoughts on Coppell? From my limited search, looks like a good school district, but older homes as well.

BTW... we would prefer public schools.

[Occupydfw]

Coppell is a good alternative but West Plano suits your needs better.I recommend homes with PISD on both sides of Midway Road between Plano Parkway and Spring Creek. This is closer to your work and has access to three tollways. You'll have great schools and proximity to every amenity.There is new construction going on around Windheaven but those are above your price range. However, there is a good inventory of immaculately maintained 10-20 yr old homes available between 350k-2 million. Good luck!

[synchronicity]

Also working in Addison, and would second (third? fourth?) Plano as a choice. Plano is very large overall (250K+ population), so be careful where you look (as other have noted, far eastern or northern Plano is a trek to Addison), but much of Plano is very convenient to Addison, and the schools are arguably the best in Dallas outside of the uber-upscale Park Cities area.

You can get a darn nice house here in DFW in your price range, although as noted it will likely be more than 5 years old. Also be aware that lot sizes here are generally VERY SMALL. You may want to do some quick searches using one of the home search websites (realtor.com, or...mod, just insert whichever site is "approved" for posting here) to get some ideas of what you can buy.

Good luck!

[Big G]

Originally Posted by ajweiss

Sounds like everyone recommends Plano.

Just to clarify - I'm actually not recommending Plano itself, but rather the Collin County portion of the City of Dallas (an area that, for whatever reason, always seems to be below the radar). That small portion of Dallas feeds into Plano ISD, rather than Dallas ISD. So you get the same Plano school system (terminating at Plano West Senior High), but you can get much closer to Addison than with anything in the City of Plano.

If commute is #1, this area would be preferable to the Plano areas cited.

[ajweiss]

Thanks Big G. I didn't get that the first time around. Do you know the zip code in that area so that I can do a house search? I have already looked at 75093 and found some things I like.