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I am considering a relocation to Texas, and have identified the Coppell ISD as a good place to live with my family (2 kids in elementary and middle school). I would work in Dallas at UTSW. The plan is to arrive in early August in time for school.
I have the following questions:
1) The commute from Coppell to UTSW seems reasonable (at least the best option considering my criteria for school districts) , but I'm trying to figure out if driving to the nearest DART station and taking the train makes sense. I'm curious what the time savings (if any) would be between driving and transit. My hours would be approximately 8am starts, and 5-6 pm departure.
2) We would eventually purchase a home, but renting initially seems to make the most sense. Ideally we would rent in the same school district as where we purchase a home. There seems to be one rental community, Regency by the Lake, in Coppell is part of the school district and near residential areas. Reviews on the web seem mixed. Does anyone have any experience with it? I would probably rent a 3 bedroom apt. It's expensive, but that's less of concern than finding a good quality and well maintained facility.
3) What about renting a home? Is this an option, and if so, can anyone suggest places to find available rentals?
4) Are there any other rental complexes/apartments recommended by others in the Coppell. There are some nice options, but many of them aren't part of the school district. My initial search turned up some options from the Coppell ISD and the Coppell municipality website.
5) If we plan to stay for 5-7 years, is it worth buying a home? It doesn't have to appreciate significantly, but we wouldn't want to see it depreciate. I know one can't predict the market, but in general is 5-7 years a sufficient time to recoup the costs associated with selling the house?
I think your commute would be good. I live in Coppell and work near Love Field and I think UTSW should only be about 5 minutes longer. On a typical day I'd say the commute is 30 minutes. I've made it in as few as 20 minutes, but that's with no school traffic and depends on which side of Coppell.
I've done the green line DART train but I think it actually takes longer. It was great for those days when we had ice so I didn't have to drive as far but I the benefit would be not having the wear and tear on the car and potential gas savings rather than time.
I think the real estate market here has held up well. Nobody can predict the future but I think great schools and a very good location make Coppell a good bet. There aren't many apartments zoned for Coppell schools and the two that come to mind are on Moore road near the intersection of Parkway drive. They are older but look well kept from the outside. There are some homes for rent and I believe you can find them in the MLS listings. There is one down the street from us and although they have changed tenants a few times they always seem to have someone moving right in when it becomes vacant. I think the ask $3000 a month as a reference.
Also, don't forget that the west side of MacArthur, north of 635, in Valley Ranch of Irving (zip 75063), is also zoned for Coppell ISD and there are many apartments there, plus a few condos/houses that may be up for rent. Just remember, they must be located west of MacArthur, not east... east is CFBISD.
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Thank you both very much for the information. I did find the two apartment complexes that new2aus recommended and am inquiring about availability. There is also another complex in the northwest quadrant called the Regency by the Lake. They both look decent, although the Regency seems a bit upscale. I'll post a thread on that topic, because I'm curious if anyone has any more details/experience with those communities beyond the pictures on the website.
If you are working at UTSW the Regency will probably be the farthest commute of any of the Coppell apartments. It is about as far west as you can get (pretty much in Grapevine) and you'll be heading to work on the east side of town. It shouldn't be a deal breaker, but it will add a little bit of time.
The other consideration is where you think you may ultimately wind up if you are planning to buy. That way you could try and potentially find an apartment that might be in the same attendance zone where you plan to purchase so the kids don't have to switch schools (There are 9 elementary schools and 3 middle schools here). Valley Ranch in Irving would also offer more apartments that would be zoned to Coppell schools, but if you were buying my recommendation would be to try and get into a house in Coppell with Coppell schools.
Another apartment you may want to look at is called Villas of Vista Ridge. It is on the north side of town (actually in Lewisville) but I believe half of the complex is zoned to Coppell schools.
new2aus: I agree with your assessment of the Regency and location within Coppell. That was one of the negatives on my list. The issue of renting where we end up buying is a tricky one. At this point, I know that the Coppell schools are all good, and beyond that I don't have a feel for the community. The area by the community center seems nice, and the region to the east of North Lake is closer to UTSW, but seems a bit more cramped (when evaluated from Google Maps). There is a healthy availability of homes across Coppel, but if I was to narrow it down to the same elementary school our rental is in, I think we would only see a few homes come up in a 1-2 month interval. For that reason, I've come to the conclusion that (for my daughter age 9 especially) that she might end up switching schools after the first 6 months/year after we find a home. My son (age 11) will be less susceptible because the middle school boundaries cover a larger area. The joys of moving!
I found a good document on the CISD website which lists all the streets/addresses that are within the school district, along with which school they are served by and whether or not they have bus service. Very organized and helpful for someone like myself.
Within this document, they seem to have highlighted the apartments/hotels that are within the school boundaries, and you're right there were a few more within the Valley Ranch Area.
We're excited (and nervous) about coming to Dallas from Canada, especially in the middle of your summer!
Falafelosophy, I did look on realtor.com and there were about 25 rental homes in the Coppell area right now, so you're right. The leases range from 1800 to 3000 depending on what you're looking for. My only hesitation with them was the assumption (perhaps wrong) that they would be looking for a 12 month (at least) lease. Our current plan is to start home hunting once we're there so we can plant down in a home at the beginning of 2013.
I have the following questions:
1) The commute from Coppell to UTSW seems reasonable (at least the best option considering my criteria for school districts) , but I'm trying to figure out if driving to the nearest DART station and taking the train makes sense. I'm curious what the time savings (if any) would be between driving and transit. My hours would be approximately 8am starts, and 5-6 pm departure.
Coppell is a popular choice for med students, residents, and docs at UTSW (including us!). Don't bother with the DART, it will just take longer. Unfortunately, your commute time puts you in the worst of rush hour, but it isn't awful.
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2) We would eventually purchase a home, but renting initially seems to make the most sense. Ideally we would rent in the same school district as where we purchase a home. There seems to be one rental community, Regency by the Lake, in Coppell is part of the school district and near residential areas. Reviews on the web seem mixed. Does anyone have any experience with it? I would probably rent a 3 bedroom apt. It's expensive, but that's less of concern than finding a good quality and well maintained facility.
If you can find a home to rent, that is probably your best bet. Coppell is a hot rental market and they do go quickly. Expect to pay at least $1500/month in rent. As for apartments, pp have recommended good options. I also suggest you look west of MacArthur in Valley Ranch as that will cut down your commute time and you may find a better deal on apartments. Vista Pointe (I think) in Valley Ranch looked good on our search. I really liked Townlake in Coppell proper too. Do stay away from Wellington Apartments in Coppell, sadly it is low income, not really maintained, and honestly not safe.
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3) What about renting a home? Is this an option, and if so, can anyone suggest places to find available rentals?
Realtor.com and Craigslist. I'd go ahead and work with a realtor too, cant hurt to be on top of new listings.
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4) Are there any other rental complexes/apartments recommended by others in the Coppell. There are some nice options, but many of them aren't part of the school district. My initial search turned up some options from the Coppell ISD and the Coppell municipality website.
see above
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5) If we plan to stay for 5-7 years, is it worth buying a home? It doesn't have to appreciate significantly, but we wouldn't want to see it depreciate. I know one can't predict the market, but in general is 5-7 years a sufficient time to recoup the costs associated with selling the house?
Hopefully Rakin will chime in, but I'll offer what we know. We are about to close on a home that is probably in the price range you are looking at--the bottom of Coppell under $200k. What we have been told and what we have found is that homes in that range are very desirable as people (like us) are looking for starter homes and homes to buy as investment properties and rent out. They go quickly and there isn't much on the market. That was a real struggle for us--it took awhile to find something and we were outbid on one home. Coppell is comparatively more expensive than some of the surrounding areas--we could have gotten much more house elsewhere but we bought with resale in mind. Coppell has stayed stable and homes resell quickly if they are priced right. I think it will stay that way as Coppell is almost fully built out, so no competition from new homes.
5) If we plan to stay for 5-7 years, is it worth buying a home? It doesn't have to appreciate significantly, but we wouldn't want to see it depreciate. I know one can't predict the market, but in general is 5-7 years a sufficient time to recoup the costs associated with selling the house?
Yes, it's worth buying a home. When you pay $1500/month for 5 yrs = $90,000. (I took that rent from another poster.) Even you if bought a $300k house and had $1200/mon payments ($66,000 after 5 years), AND you spent $20k on closing costs, you'd still be slightly ahead. (Yes, you technically need to subtract all the costs for owning a home.)
I almost hesitate to mention this other point, given the recent housing mortgage fiasco. But, how serious are you about the 5-7yr time frame? We knew that we would only be in our last 2 homes for 2-4yrs. A co-worker suggested we get a 5/1 ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) since we knew we would only be in ATL for 3 yrs. We did the same when we lived in MD (another 3yrs). (Getting ARMs are more common than you think for people who are relocated every 2-5 yrs.)
Benefits: Your morgage payment is less because you aren't paying on the principal of the loan. If you're fiscally astute, take the difference between a 30-yr mortgage and a 5/1 (or 7/1) ARM and this can mean more money for savings/IRAs/529Plans.
BIG CON: If something happens to your time frame and you come up to the 5 (or 7) year deadline. (If you move/sell earlier, no big deal.) If you decide to stay longer, then you'll need to refinance your home mortgage. IMO, the refinance may cost you more than any amount you may have saved.
Once you've lived in the area awhile and are looking to buy, talk to your realtor about your timeline and situation and ask them about the ARM. It's not for everyone, but it might work for your case. (BTW - we now have a 30yr fixed because there's no plans for us moving )
I say lease if you intend to stay for few years only. You can get a good house on lease for slightly less if you offer a multiple year lease. Landlords like to save on paint, cleaning & leasing agent's expense and you can stay put in same house and save money for a better house. Buying & selling commissions, property taxes plus home ownership expenses adds up pretty quickly. You can't buy a trouble free older house in Coppell for 250k and nicely updated or mewer houses are in a higher price range.
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