The Perfect Place for Me (Dallas, Plano: extended stay, apartment complexes, rental)

[GBCommenter]

So, here goes...

I have been offered a position with a company with offices in Addison. I will be moving within the next few weeks and will, obviously, be looking for a place to call my new home. That said, I know between little and nothing of Dallas so advice requested. I can find temporary housing for the interim, but would like to find the "perfect place for me".

Items important to me:

1) Not more than a 20-25 minute drive to the Addison area, so I'm thinking I will end up on the north side, or perhaps northwest? To go longer in commute would have to be really the "perfect" place. I'd like to catch some Rangers games (perhaps my new favorite team?) so if there is a distance balance that would be nice. However, drive to work is more important.

2) Budget of not more than $1000/month, prefer closer to $850-900. I would like 2BR, W/D in unit, dishwasher. House would be nice, but I'm not sure if that is realistic on the rent limit.

3) I am a single guy with no kids so schools are not important to me. That said, I'm 41, so I'm not looking for an area that is only college age, though maybe not the only person on the block that doesn't have 2 kids and married?

5) I'm not a huge shopper, but I would ideally like to be somewhat near stores such as Target, Trader Joe's, similar. Also, I don't need 7 day/week nightlife partying, but some nightlife/restaurants would be nice.

6) I'd also like to have some sense of community and sidewalks, if possible. That doesn't have to be urban and probably not a fan of intense density anyway, but not necessarily wanting to have to drive everywhere because the street grid is such that it's unsafe to ever try to walk on the street. I hope that makes some sense.

Thoughts? Any such place exist in my new home of DFW? Thanks in advance!

[Keepingitsimple]

Addisson itself meets your requirements so why bother with commute?

[RonnieinDallas]

Originally Posted by GBCommenter

So, here goes...

I have been offered a position with a company with offices in Addison. I will be moving within the next few weeks and will, obviously, be looking for a place to call my new home. That said, I know between little and nothing of Dallas so advice requested. I can find temporary housing for the interim, but would like to find the "perfect place for me".Thoughts? Any such place exist in my new home of DFW? Thanks in advance!

Stick with Addison. Short commute, and a great location to explore Dallas

1) Not more than a 20-25 minute drive to the Addison area, so I'm thinking I will end up on the north side, or perhaps northwest? To go longer in commute would have to be really the "perfect" place. I'd like to catch some Rangers games (perhaps my new favorite team?) so if there is a distance balance that would be nice. However, drive to work is more important.

Addison will obviously be the closest to work and has many great apartments. I would check out post apartments at Addison Circle.

2) Budget of not more than $1000/month, prefer closer to $850-900. I would like 2BR, W/D in unit, dishwasher. House would be nice, but I'm not sure if that is realistic on the rent limit.

Realistically, it will be very hard to find a place with 2bedrooms in a safe area with washer and dryer all for under $1000. A house will be even harder to find unless you want a long commute to an exurb. Plus it's very hard to get to Addison without taking a tollroad. Those toll fees add up fast!

3) I am a single guy with no kids so schools are not important to me. That said, I'm 41, so I'm not looking for an area that is only college age, though maybe not the only person on the block that doesn't have 2 kids and married?

Addison will be a good fit for your demographic

5) I'm not a huge shopper, but I would ideally like to be somewhat near stores such as Target, Trader Joe's, similar. Also, I don't need 7 day/week nightlife partying, but some nightlife/restaurants would be nice.

There's a Target in Addison, and a Trader Joes nearby in Plano. Dallas will be getting a Trader Joes on Greenville ave. Might be good to check it out and explore that area too.

6) I'd also like to have some sense of community and sidewalks, if possible. That doesn't have to be urban and probably not a fan of intense density anyway, but not necessarily wanting to have to drive everywhere because the street grid is such that it's unsafe to ever try to walk on the street. I hope that makes some sense.

Addison Circle is very walkable! Vitruvian Park is a new community in Addison with lakes and walking paths. It looks nice


Good Luck

[BeanyMalone]

Not sure about budget relative to the space you want and how much you are willing to go over for the right place, but you should probably start your search in Addison. Look at the Addison Circle area and the new Vitruvian Park development. You might also try looking to see if there is a rental in some of the townhouse developments (Walnut Square, for example) in Addison. There is a new-ish one off of Beltline west of Midway, not sure what the name is. There are also some nice apartments on the east side of the Tollway near the Galleria (the Reserve at the Galleria, as well as some along Prestonwood between Belt Line and Arapaho). The apartment complexes along Montfort and Preston between Spring Valley and Arapaha can be hit and miss. Make sure you check out the sites that specifically post apartment reviews, as well as the crime report sites.

The area generally described has a couple of Targets and Walmarts, a Kroger, it is getting a new Whole Foods, tons of restaurants and carry out, Galleria for the mall stuff.

I think it's unlikely you will find a house for your budget.

[txgolfer130]

As mentioned...Addison. About 30-45 min depending on traffic to 'The Ballpark', Cowboy stadium is across the street. Six flags a block away from that. If you need to go to Uptown, it's 20 min away, and the American Airlines Center (AAC) is also just down the Tollway about 30 min.

You budget may need to stretch a little for some of the nicer places but I can't recall seeing anything more than $1,300 for something really nice in a 2/2. Those places are out there, but they're not the norm.

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

Your idea of walkable may get redefined in the heat here. No one in their right mind walks between roughly 9 am and 8 pm in the summer. Yesterday was only about 88 but the humidity was quite high. I didn't like walking from store to car.

[GBCommenter]

Thanks for the thoughts...I'll start with Addison. Being somewhat near downtown might be nice, but I much prefer not having a crazy drive to work. If I want to visit anything downtown, I can take the drive - Google Maps doesn't make it seem that terrible a drive once in a while. My only concern (which might have been unfounded especially since I don't know much about Dallas area) is if Addison was so heavily suburban and if it was ALL families where I would be the total anomaly.

By the way, on budget - I could go a little higher if needed, but with the new job I also have the opportunity to save money and/or do some retirement planning. I'd rather live a little more frugal now and put money away for later. Even for this 41 year old, while retirement seems far off better to plan ahead in as much as I can.

SouthernBelle, thanks for the thoughts on the heat/humidity. I don't know that I'll do all sorts of walking all the time, more than it's an option once in a while.

All - take care!

[BeenThereDunThat]

While apts in the Addison Circle area are nice, they are a tad pricey. I think a studio starts at $900 (if you're lucky).
You may want to try a little further up the road and look at the area called Bent Tree. It's closer and you'll probably find
something to suit your needs. Apts on Frankford, Trinity Mills, Timberglen....there's quite a few choices and you're a quick shot down Midway Rd to Addison (without tolls).

Good Luck

[GBCommenter]

I'll check out Bent Tree too. I saw some on Bent Tree Forest Drive (is this the same?) that would be close to where I'm working. You are right in that some I saw on Vitruvian Way were nice, though pricey. I imagine I ultimately will get into town and into an extended stay hotel for a short while. I can then physically drive neighborhoods and inspect. That's always better (IMO) than trying to get a feel on Google Maps.

[BeenThereDunThat]

Bent Tree is just north of Addison Circle maybe a mile +/- and probably a couple hundred less per month than Post-Addison Circle area. Not as trendy but a good choice if the area is where you want to be. I'll PM some links. The area you're looking at is South of Addison, South of LBJ/635 but not bad either.

Good Luck