Moving to Dallas from Philly (Plano, Richardson: for sale, real estate market, 2013)

[peralandra]

My husband and I will be moving to Dallas next fall, coming from Philly, and will both be working at UTSW. We don't know much about neighborhoods, but would like to buy a home in the 250-350K range. We will likely stay in Dallas for ~5 years and start a family. This will be our first home - it doesn't seem like many neighborhoods can make money in a 5 yr time frame, but we'd like to not lose money! We've lived in Center City in Philly and are kind of ready for a change from the downtown city feel to something with a little more space. We enjoy going to the movies, eating at restaurants, art, and also would be like to be close to nature.

Any input or suggestions will be highly appreciated! Including how to go about finding a good realtor!

Thank you and happy holidays!

[TurtleCreek80]

I would recommend any of the in-town neighborhoods that loop around downtown / uptown Dallas. They are FAR more suburban than city centre Philly and still only a 5-15 minute drive to UTSW.

Your budget is borderline small for many of these neighborhoods, but worth a look:

East Dallas neighborhoods of M Streets / Vickery Place/ Cochran Heights (75206), Ridgewood Park, Caruth Terrace, Lakewood Heights (75214), Hollywood Hills-Santa Monica (75223).

North Dallas neighborhoods of Briarwood / Devonshire (75209), Midway Hollow (75220), Sparkman Club Estates (75229)

North Oak Cliff (75208)

Just find a good MLS search engine and use the zip codes to start your search. All of these neighborhoods are close to fun social & cultural activities. The ones in East Dallas are close to White Rock Lake which has miles of bike & run trails and park space. The ones in North Oak Cliff are close to many bike trails. All of these areas have a great chance to appreciate over a 5-year period.

[peralandra]

Thanks TurtleCreek! What about areas like Richardson - reading other posts, it seems like the 75082 is a nice place for 250-350K you can get a lot....or Valley Ranch? Are those too far of a commute? Sometimes it's hard for me to tell, because it's highway routes vs local roads. It seems like anywhere from UTSW is about 20-40 min depending on the hr of the day!

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by peralandra

Thanks TurtleCreek! What about areas like Richardson - reading other posts, it seems like the 75082 is a nice place for 250-350K you can get a lot....or Valley Ranch? Are those too far of a commute? Sometimes it's hard for me to tell, because it's highway routes vs local roads. It seems like anywhere from UTSW is about 20-40 min depending on the hr of the day!

Those are good areas, too, just a longer drive. Richardson is going to be more family centered and Valley Ranch is more of a mix between corporate apartment-vile and where a ton of Indians live. Richardson probably has a better chance for appreciation than Valley Ranch in a 5-year window but I would still encourage you to stick with inner-loop neighborhoods in Dallas for the best chance of appreciation.

Have you spent much time in the neighborhoods of Dallas? (ie, not downtown /uptown or near utsw) They are VERY suburban looking- lots of trees, pretty streets, decent sized yards (bigger than the yards in most of Dallas' suburbs, ironically!) You don't have to go far out to find a peaceful neighborhood and the bonus is you're super close to work and play.

[TurtleCreek80]

These are some houses on the market in the inner-loop neighborhoods I recommended in my first post:

3780 Vancouver Dr, Dallas, TX 75229 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

3916 Clover Ln, Dallas, TX 75220 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

5215 Rexton Ln, Dallas, TX 75214 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

1039 N Edgefield Ave, Dallas, TX 75208 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

[MurphyPl1]

Originally Posted by peralandra

Thanks TurtleCreek! What about areas like Richardson - reading other posts, it seems like the 75082 is a nice place for 250-350K you can get a lot....or Valley Ranch? Are those too far of a commute? Sometimes it's hard for me to tell, because it's highway routes vs local roads. It seems like anywhere from UTSW is about 20-40 min depending on the hr of the day!

75082 is close to 190 via two routes, but it will still be a longish commute to UTSW depending on your drive times. But we do have several people in our neighborhood a little further out who do make that drive.

It's also right by Breckinridge Park which is a fantastic park with lots of trails and trees and ponds in Richardson.

You wouldn't need the schools right away, but that area feeds to Plano ISD and very strong elementary schools.

[theloneranger]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

I would recommend any of the in-town neighborhoods that loop around downtown / uptown Dallas. They are FAR more suburban than city centre Philly and still only a 5-15 minute drive to UTSW.

Your budget is borderline small for many of these neighborhoods, but worth a look:

East Dallas neighborhoods of M Streets / Vickery Place/ Cochran Heights (75206), Ridgewood Park, Caruth Terrace, Lakewood Heights (75214), Hollywood Hills-Santa Monica (75223).

North Dallas neighborhoods of Briarwood / Devonshire (75209), Midway Hollow (75220), Sparkman Club Estates (75229)

North Oak Cliff (75208)

Just find a good MLS search engine and use the zip codes to start your search. All of these neighborhoods are close to fun social & cultural activities. The ones in East Dallas are close to White Rock Lake which has miles of bike & run trails and park space. The ones in North Oak Cliff are close to many bike trails. All of these areas have a great chance to appreciate over a 5-year period.

I can't give Turtle Creek any more rep, but this.

As far as making money goes, most of those are safe investments which aren't going to fall off any time soon. The one that might be risky is North Oak Cliff--it appears to be at the start of a sustained period of gentrification but it's unclear whether that will end up extending to the single family homes or end up being mostly young singles, and whether it will be a rather short cycle or more permanent. It could turn out to be a phenomenal investment, or it could turn out that your house is on the market for several months without a willing seller. It's definitely a buyer's market right now, but as the economy improves, that should even out.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by theloneranger

I can't give Turtle Creek any more rep, but this.

As far as making money goes, most of those are safe investments which aren't going to fall off any time soon. The one that might be risky is North Oak Cliff--it appears to be at the start of a sustained period of gentrification but it's unclear whether that will end up extending to the single family homes or end up being mostly young singles, and whether it will be a rather short cycle or more permanent. It could turn out to be a phenomenal investment, or it could turn out that your house is on the market for several months without a willing seller. It's definitely a buyer's market right now, but as the economy improves, that should even out.

NOC is definitely not risky. The gentrification isnt just beginning as you say; it happened about 7-12 years ago. Neighborhoods like Kessler Park/ Stevens Park, Winnetka Heights, Kessler Plaza, and Ravinia Heights have seen land values increase by a multiple of 3-4X in the last decade. The real estate market is not there and it has continued all the way through 2013.

The facts are, NOC is a stunningly beautiful (hills! winding streets! a nature preserve!) neighborhood chock full of architecturally significant homes from the 1910-1940's that is only 3-4 miles from downtown / uptown Dallas. That is a 6-8 minute drive to the cultural & financial center of the metroplex during rush hour! That's incredible, and the demand to live a vibrant neighborhood that close to the city center is only going to increase with time, taking home values up. Moving to NOC is no longer an " exciting urban pioneer" thing to do, it's the preferred choice of some big name Park Cities & Preston Hollow empty nesters, as well as top brass at Neiman Marcus / Pier 1/ JC Penney corporate offices, and tons of young professionals and young families. Not just the cool gay guys anymore, not even close! Plus, investors are dumping millions into the neighborhood to fund projects like Sylvan 30, which will bring 50,000sf of commercial space, including an organic grocer, to NOC.

[TurtleCreek80]

OP, I forgot another zip code in North Oak Cliff that could work. Check these gorgeously remodeled homes out:

438 Coombs Creek Dr, Dallas, TX 75211 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

2823 Ivandell Ave, Dallas, TX 75211 - Home For Sale and Real Estate Listing - realtor.com®

[HockDad]

I would go with something in East Dallas, maybe near Greenville Avenue. The commute would not be bad and it is fun place to live.