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Old 10-30-2015, 11:39 AM
 
216 posts, read 342,091 times
Reputation: 386

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Man - people have gotten kinda negative on this - which is sad. I'm one of the ones that actually LOVES living in Dallas - and I've lived all over. I'm in East Dallas and so I am in one of those 'happening' parts of town - so I am biased there. I also only have to drive a max of 10 miles a day around town - so I am horribly spoiled in that regard - and yet we are always running around doing fun stuff. If it is downtown we just jump on the train and boom we are there.

1. We are looking for a low cost of living (We want to pay 600 at the most for an apartment, but cheaper the better!) Pet Friendly (We have a boxer). <---double that (I agree - you will not find anything for $600 or under. Even a one bedroom in a rundown apartment close to where you would want to live - is sketchy) and you can get into East Dallas (where I live) which is great. It fits all of you list and is hopping AND safe

2. Lots of culture - as a WI girl myself - yes. Lots of culture here. Lots to do and go and see. You might have to take the train to do it - but not a big deal. For you (again out of the $600 budget - because sadly that will not happen now) - I would live at or around Mockingbird Station. There is a lot to do around there, you can walk to things and you can jump on the train to downtown to get other stuff. We just did a Japanese Moon Festival Tuesday night at Klyde Warren Park which is awesome. There are great restaurants, movie festivals, clubs, parks, there was a taco festival, they had DJ's in the park last night, etc.

3. Lots of local coffee shops with job opportunities, local farmers markets, natural food stores, etc... - all within range of East Dallas/Uptown/downtown

4. Lots of beautiful scenery and parks with things to do. - There is White Rock Lake, Arboretum, Klyde Warren Park, great parks in Oak Cliff, Bishop Arts, etc. Museums, Arts, you name it -it is here. It's not like 'woodsy' but there are trees here. it is NOT a concrete jungle.

5. How is the traffic?? And the public transportation system? - Traffic sux. That part is totally true. Public transport isn't that bad. I lived in Atlanta - that public transport SUX

6. And last but not least, how do YOU like it in Dallas??
I absolutely love it here. It is one of my favorite cities in the US. NYC is of course my favorite - but I could never afford to live there. I think the key to living here is going out and doing some of the really cool things this city has to offer. And be friendly. Smile at people - most will smile back and maybe strike up a conversation in line somewhere. We have a 9 yr old and we drag her all over the city and around town - and she loves it. There are neat things to do - you just have to be willing to go to them.

 
Old 10-30-2015, 11:40 AM
 
Location: Frisco, TX
1,399 posts, read 2,158,364 times
Reputation: 1978
When I went to UTD back in 2007 my 450 sq ft apartment that was owned by the university was more than $600/month, and that was on campus in a building that needed some serious updates.

OP, I'd bump your budget up to $1000/month if you're serious about moving here.
 
Old 10-30-2015, 12:28 PM
 
Location: Dallas, TX
5,680 posts, read 11,499,458 times
Reputation: 1915
Love, love LOVE living here, except it seems that lately EVERY street that I use is under construction. Really sucks trying to get home from work lately on surface streets! And WHEN are they finally going to finish resurfacing Garland Rd near White Rock Lake???
 
Old 10-30-2015, 02:11 PM
 
13,194 posts, read 28,154,575 times
Reputation: 13130
To answer your main question,yes, I love living in Dallas, but if my rent budget was $600 MAX (for 2 adults + dog!) then I would probably not like it as much because I'd have no money to do anything and you really do need a car here (unless you are the magic unicorn whose job & home are both on a DART line....that's hard to do with an unlimited budget so it's going to be impossible on your budget unless you're willing to live in one of the more dangerous neighborhoods).
 
Old 10-30-2015, 03:11 PM
 
30 posts, read 85,913 times
Reputation: 31
Quote:
Originally Posted by BigDGeek View Post
REALLY.

I was paying more than that in rent on a pretty middle-of-the-road place out by DFW airport 17 years ago.
My first apartment after college was in West Plano 75093. It was a 1 bedroom w/carport for $640/month. That was in 2008 for a 1 YR lease.

Obviously prices have increased from what they were 7 years ago, but I do know complexes run specials you won't know about unless you go in and speak with the leasing office. They are often lower than rates published online.

I could see maybe $700-850/month in parts of Collin County for a no-frills 1 bedroom, but that's about as low as you'll find, I'd think. Can't comment on Dallas proper, but I'm sure prices are even higher.
 
Old 10-30-2015, 04:08 PM
 
Location: Aurora, CO
8,596 posts, read 14,784,083 times
Reputation: 15350
I liked living in DFW for the first few years we were there. It was a good place to start my career, and for that I'm grateful. After a while, though, I longed for things that DFW just can't provide - better summer weather, less traffic, a more laid-back lifestyle, and abundant outdoor amenities. I've done my tour there and wouldn't go back for any amount of money.
 
Old 10-30-2015, 04:27 PM
 
Location: Kaufman County, Texas
11,821 posts, read 26,709,231 times
Reputation: 10541
Quote:
Originally Posted by octo View Post
Older, non luxury apartments without concierge, fitness center and pool.
Any apartment finder website shows sub $600 availability in decent neighborhoods.
Of course if you want brand new luxury apartments you'll have to spend a lot more $$$.
I find it interesting how perfectly safe and maintained apartments get dissed just because they are old and in "scary" (=with people who make <$30k) neighborhoods.
I looked on an apartment finder website, and those apartments are NOT in decent neighborhoods. They are in Vickery Meadow, the area near Richland College, Coit/Spring Valley, Webb Chapel and east Dallas south of I30. All of those are undesirable areas, and some of them are actually dangerous. I would not recommend someone new to Dallas live in a place like that.
 
Old 10-30-2015, 04:40 PM
 
Location: Southlake. Don't judge me.
2,885 posts, read 4,627,039 times
Reputation: 3776
Quote:
Originally Posted by RonnieinDallas View Post
You don't live here...


If we're doing a city vs. suburb thing, I actually lived IN DALLAS my first 2+ years down in the area. The reasons I don't like the area haven't changed.

Of course, as I've posted countless times, many people DO enjoy Dallas (or "the Metroplex" to avoid the whole city vs. suburb thing), some of them for the same reasons I don't enjoy it. Everybody is different. I can handle the fact that other people have different preferences than I do.

Regarding apartment pricing, the place in North Dallas was a 2BR/1BA 882 sq ft apartment in a pretty scruffy complex (it was clean enough and safe enough for us, but really, this was no fancy place at all. "Scruffy" sums it up well) from 2011 to 2013, and rent when we left was ~$665/month. Trying to find something even cheaper two years later...color me skeptical that'll happen anywhere one would want to live.
 
Old 10-30-2015, 05:22 PM
 
19,545 posts, read 17,806,917 times
Reputation: 17061
Funny timing.

Just last week my wife turned down a once in a lifetime - probably - opportunity to run a massive worldwide IT enterprise HQ'd in NYC. I like NYC more than she does so I was all over going, especially since she'd told them she'd only consider doing the job for 4 or 5 years at the outside. It'd be easy for me to run my business from up there with a few visits per month.

She said no for several reasons:
1. We can't replicate our current lifestyles up there tripling her salary and mine staying the same.
2. Our kids are here locked into long college and professional school tracks.........and they want to be Texans for life.
3. We both believe Texas will continue to excel economically over the next 25-50 years. NYC is broken in many ways and will not improve in our lifetimes.
4. We love to travel and considering our frequent destinations - The Caymans, T&C, Maui, San Diego, Padre, Costa Rica, Cabo, Marfa, Calistoga, Hayden/Steamboat, Santa Fe, Wolf Creek etc. being here/traveling from here is perfect.

__________


The yield is we could live just about anywhere and prefer to stay here.
 
Old 10-30-2015, 05:47 PM
 
Location: Dallas
2,414 posts, read 3,466,809 times
Reputation: 4133
Quote:
Originally Posted by synchronicity View Post


If we're doing a city vs. suburb thing, I actually lived IN DALLAS my first 2+ years down in the area. The reasons I don't like the area haven't changed.

It sort of is and it sort of isn't. I do think it's interesting that everyone who says they don't like Dallas on here actually lives in the suburbs, but of course that says more about the suburbs than Dallas. It's more semantics. You proudly state your location as "Southlake. Don't judge me." You have no problem singing it's praises and trashing DISD. My problem is that you never say "Southlake sucks and I hate living here." Instead you blame your problems living in the area entirely on Dallas. You're not the only one who does this, and it happens frequently. What really gets me is that the same people who claim to "hate Dallas" but don't live in Dallas will go on other threads to boost their own suburb. To be fair, you should hate it consistently and bash where you actually live. In other words, stop suggesting where you live as good, but then go on to trash Dallas when you don't actually live here.

I think I remember you saying you lived in the North Dallas/Addison area. You're right there, that area absolutely does suck, and nothing has changed. I've lived in that area, and when I did I hated Dallas too. I am certainly not an apologist for that area. I never recommend that part of town to new people. You just picked a horrible part of town to live in.


Of course, as I've posted countless times, many people DO enjoy Dallas (or "the Metroplex" to avoid the whole city vs. suburb thing), some of them for the same reasons I don't enjoy it. Everybody is different. I can handle the fact that other people have different preferences than I do.

So can I

What I don't do, is repeat the same old stories even when they aren't relevant to the OP's situation.


Regarding apartment pricing, the place in North Dallas was a 2BR/1BA 882 sq ft apartment in a pretty scruffy complex (it was clean enough and safe enough for us, but really, this was no fancy place at all. "Scruffy" sums it up well) from 2011 to 2013, and rent when we left was ~$665/month. Trying to find something even cheaper two years later...color me skeptical that'll happen anywhere one would want to live.
Terrible area with none of the OP's desired amenities, and over budget...
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Last edited by RonnieinDallas; 10-30-2015 at 06:16 PM..
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