Dallas or the suburbs? (Plano, Richardson: transplants, apartment, to rent)

[dexter14]

I was originally looking at Plano and McKinney to relocate to from southern California. However, more and more people are saying its more family oriented with soccer mom and stroller clubs. Im a 38 year old male, single and no kids. I don't necessarily want some party town, but I dont want to be in a suburb filled with families either. So maybe I should be looking closer to the Dallas area itself? Somewhere not too crowded but still within a short drive to live music, movie theaters, electronics stores, restaurants and good sports bars. I could do a home or an apartment, want to keep it under $2k a month rent though. Recommendations?

[frenzyrider]

Uptown. Stay as far as possible from college kids though... U will do great! $2k is more than doable there. A friend of mine had a 2BR / 2BA for $1.4k just walking distance from Mckinney Ave. Bar may not be important but check for walk scores of wherever you live.

[dexter14]

Originally Posted by frenzyrider

Uptown. Stay as far as possible from college kids though... U will do great! $2k is more than doable there. A friend of mine had a 2BR / 2BA for $1.4k just walking distance from Mckinney Ave. Bar may not be important but check for walk scores of wherever you live.

Thanks for the input!

[ChristieP]

Find a job first and then decide where to live. DFW is HUGE! It's bigger than some states, and commutes can be very long. You will want to live fairly close to where you work, or you can literally spend an hour each way sitting in traffic.

FYI: Uptown is pretty densely populated, and there are not good electronics stores down there. Most of the people there are much younger than you, too. Personally, I would say your wants sound more like Las Colinas...

[jennifw]

I agree with ChristieP. Uptown might be a little young for you. I think it is more just-out-of-college-not-yet-30 crowd.

Where is your job? That is key, too.

[RonnieinDallas]

LOL the OP isn't too old for Uptown.

Check out the first chart on the city-data page that covers the zip code(75219) Uptown is in, many people in their 30's living there
//www.city-data.com/zips/75219.html

Uptown is a great neighborhood. It caters to many different types of people, and is well known because it's one of the few good neighborhoods in the area for young singles, but doesn't necessarily mean you have to be 22 right out of SMU looking to party. I was at Uptown pub a few weekends ago, and saw people from their 20's to 50, and liked the band playing.

[GripeWater]

I have single/divorced friends in their late 40's & early 50's who are living happily in Uptown and Plano's Legacy Village.

[MckinneyOwnr]

I think Addison is a better fit than Uptown.

[Aceraceae]

Originally Posted by jennifw

I agree with ChristieP. Uptown might be a little young for you. I think it is more just-out-of-college-not-yet-30 crowd.

Where is your job? That is key, too.

Incorrect.

[BeanyMalone]

If you are one of the Raytheon transplants who will be working in McKinney, Uptown (and the other "single professional" Dallas neighborhoods) will be a helluva commute by Dallas standards, although possibly not by SoCal standards. I would look to stay north of 635 (LBJ Freeway). Legacy Village is a possibility, as is Addison. You might look to rent a house in west Richardson. Because it's an older suburb, there is an age diversity in most neighborhoods. In addition to its own entertainment attractions, it is close to Addison and Plano, and also relatively centrally located on Central Expressway, so the drive to the attractions in Dallas is not prohibitive.

If you are working in Dallas, in addition to Uptown you should also look into Lakewood, north Oakcliff, Oaklawn and Knox-Henderson.