Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have been creating a database of homes in realtor.com in the following areas: Carrollton, Denton, Flower Mound, Garland, Hickory Creek, Highland Village, Lake Dallas, Lewisville, Rowlett and Fort Worth Zip Code 76135 & 76133 only. I deleted the homes I had in the 'The Colony' due to comments made in 'City-Data Forum.' Any help regarding regarding these areas would be very appreciated. Leaning towards the following three communities: Carrollton, Denton and Garland.
Pretty familiar with all of them since I have lived in all three. Grew up in Farmers Branch and Carrollton, college in Denton and live now in Garland. Depends on where you are going to be working and how long of a commute you are wanting. If you are going to be closer into Dallas to work the commute on 35 to/from Denton can be brutal. You are not going to have many if any at all options if there is a major wreck on 35. A few weeks ago 35 was shut down twice in one week near Lake Dallas (Lewisville Lake to all the newcomers ) due to a bad accident. Parts of Stemmons Freeway - Interstate 35 are horrible and it is in dire need of repairs (more like replacement). Staying in Carrollton or Garland will give you more options if your main preffered route is backed up.
As far as housing, depends on your price range. All 3 pretty much run the gamut in that area. You can find older, very affordable homes in established neighborhoods or if you are looking for the high end home w/ all of the fluff, that too.
Schools, I've never experienced the Denton ISD but have not heard any complaints. Comparing the other two, I prefer the Garland ISD because of the many programs offered based on academic ability, fine arts interests, vocational interests, etc. The Garland ISD blows away the Carrollton/Farmers Branch ISD in that area.
If you have a price range, more specific wants/needs, etc I can probably direct you to areas in all of those cities that might be of interest to you.
Dear Momof2DFW,
Thank you, you have been very helpful in helping me narrow my search. I have two daughters still in school, one a freshmen in HS and one in 3rd grade; therefore, the school system is very important to us. We like older homes in established neighborhoods due to the character of older homes. Older homes always have more character. We would love to find a well kept older established neighborhood with the home price being around 150K. Commute is not a factor, I will be managing Oklahoma and North Texas territory. I will work out of my home and I can plan my commute times around traffic. I had heard the Carrollton has one of the best High Schools in the US. You think that Garland ISD is better than Carrollton?
OMY, Carrollton has one of the best high schools in the nation? LOL!!! Now that is funny. Actually the #1 high school according to Newsweek is in the Dallas ISD, Townview. It is a TAG school and kids from out of the DISD can test into it and attend. A very good friend of mine teaches there and loves it. As far as the high schools go though, they all have problems and it is not just isolated to one area, school, city, state, socio-economic level, etc. It is just up to us parents to know what our kids are doing, who they are with, etc. I have one that wants a firefly phone. Um, no. No because no one needs to call you and I will ALWAYS know where you are. I'm looking for small gps chips to sew into the hems of her clothes in another year or two (just started middle school).
But seriously, the high schools in Carrollton are R.L. Turner (hubby went there), Newman Smith (my school), Creekview & Hebron. The last two are the newest additions to the C/FBISD. Smith never wins in football, it's almost a joke and really pretty sad. Turner was the only school until the late 70's. Creekview has done well in the sports area. I found a page recently on the dallasnews.com site under the local news catagory and in each high schools sports page you can click on "famous alumni". Very interesting. It will tell when they graduated, what year, what they are famous for and if they participated in a sport. If your wanting a school with a huge fan base of sorts where the adults that went to school there now have their children going there and they make it a family affair to attend games, Garland hands down. I have a child in the gifted & talented program in the GISD and LOVE IT! I have to say it is something that any other district around here does not come close to even touching. If you have a child that is gifted in academics, fine arts, etc, the GISD has so much more to offer as almost every high school (all 7) have something different to offer. My other child is not in the g&t program but attends our neighborhood school. Great school w/ tons of parental involvement.
In Carrollton, you are going to be looking at mostly the older Fox & Jacobs tract homes and some of the older "custom" homes in the Rosemeade area. After my last visit to Carrollton a few weeks ago and going thru a lot of the Rosemeade area of the older custom homes, the F&J's are better kept up. Really is sad. Zipcodes to look under are 75006 & 75007. You can also look under 75234 in Farmers Branch. Now I think FB has more character w/ the nicer custom homes, older custom homes, etc than Carrollton.
In Garland you will have a larger inventory of areas to pick from, maybe less homes for sale but more areas to choose from. Zipcodes too look in are 75044 & 75040.
Richardson is also probably another good option in a few areas. Richardson schools are also pretty good. Look in the SpringPark area (city of Garland but Richardson schools). Then in the Canyon Creek area of Richardson is nice. Try zipcodes 75081 & 75080.
Another area you may want to consider since a commute is not an issue is the Lake Highlands area for older homes. Although it will probably be higher than what you want to spend. But it does fall into the older, established area w/ nice homes and famiy friendly.
Well, it has one of the highest tax rates in the county. Their water rates were already one of the highest and that was before they raised it 3 times over the last 3 months. I had a $300 water bill on an empty house in Rowlett while my house in Garland that was twice the size, we lived in it, bathed, washed, pool, landscaping, etc and it was only around $75. HUGE difference. It costs a lot of money to live in Rowlett in property taxes and utility bills and it is just not worth it. The roads and alley's are in horrible shape and the bickering amongst the city council, mayor and the citizens has not helped. In other words the citizens liked it just like it was when they moved there, they want the convience but don't want the buildings there. They want good streets but will not pass a bond to make it possible. They voted down the bond to expand the library to bring it up to just the minimium guidelines recommended. This is a bunch of people that liked the idea of buying a new house that backed up to a pasture but then got mad when they developed the pasture. LOL!!! Not realizing that at one time the land their own house sits on was a pasture that backed up to someone elses house. The citizens have put the mayor down every step of the way and when the next mayoral race comes up, I don't want to be anywhere near that place. It is going to be UGLY! The entire mentality is totally messed up. And this is just giving you a very small glimpse of what it is like to live there.
Also the community in Rowlett called Waterview, while it has this nice, huge waterpark for the residents and a public golf course (one that the citizens put down and want closed up ) backs up to the city of Garland's new landfill. There are also TONS of foreclosed homes for sale throughout the community. I've got some pics of Rowlett that I need to post on here. Let me try and get them done.
Momof2DFW,
Thank you for your help. I think perhaps Garland is our best choice. Both my daughters are gifted in academically. My 9th grader in Language and Arts and my 3rd grader is off the charts in Math. I appreciate your help with the Zip Codes to look in. I have noticed there are some great churches to choose from in Garland area also.
Momof2DFW,
Based on your help so far I have deleted all the homes I had in realtor.com in the following areas: 'The Colony' and 'Rowlett.' I did notice, even though I have homes in the Garland area you suggested: 75040 and 75044, I also have zip codes 75043 and 75041. In the pics and description they look and sound very nice. Are those good areas too?
Your very welcome. Garland HS has the IB program if you have one interested in that. My oldest is deadset on going thru the IB program. All of the high schools have AP classes. You can check w/ the district right now about how to go about getting them in one of the programs since you don't live here now but will be moving into it (garlandisd.net). The testing is under way for most of it right now but being in the older grades they usually go off of current grades, test scores and what program they are in currently.
For your youngest child that is strong in math you will probably want to check on the G&T academies (Walnut Glen, Hillside & Kimberlin). Now, the academies are not going to be in the "nice" neighborhoods but I nor the 100's of other parents that I know that have attended or do attend have not had any trouble w/ the neighborhood and the kids around there are really sweet. The academies are much smaller and I really like that. They do so much in class at school that is hands-on that they really do learn a lot. I also like the the parents are all academics first, church & family right there first and everything else falls in line behind. If your 3rg grader is wanting to explore more in the fine arts you may want to check on the Classical Center at Vial. For math there is Beaver Technology Center for Math & Science.
Yes, there are several really good churches in the area. That is one thing that I like over the way it was when I was in school. It is okay for the kids to say where they go to church and more than likely they are in school w/ kids they go to church with. Even though I'm a native to the Dallas area and as many people want to believe we are all "staunch Southern Baptists" and such, it is a real misconception. It could not be farther from the truth. Back then you did not utter one word to your friends at school or teachers about where you went to church. Nowadays you may be at the same church as your teacher.
We relocated to DFW in 2001. There are a lot of great or terrible areas depending on who you ask.
Important lesson I learned the hard way was that what I called a quiet neighborhood was nothing close to the same as well meaning co-workers or real estate people. Long drive is totally based on each persons history of average daily driving.
We found that Budget Suites Extended Stay Hotel was a wonderful opportunity to check out various areas. Check out their web site. They offer a 1 or 2 bed suite with a separate kitchen/living area for $200 or so a week - 1 bed all bills pd. TV cable phone & INTERNET. 2 bed is higher. This may seem costly to you. It was worth it for us, not getting stuck in a lease at a property that we THOUGHT was great. Longest 6 months ever.
Is the commute to work and school acceptable, traffic & amount of time on the road. A TX joke I saw "You know you are in TX when the distance from one place to another is given in hours not Miles. From Garland to Downtown Dallas is 15-20 miles or 30 min during light traffic. It usually is 60 to 90 minutes during peak times with no rain. Double if it looks like any other driver could think they see snow or heard snow mentioned on the radio, it doesn't make a difference if it was the weather report or the song Let it Snow.
Is this an area I would be comfortable having a HS girl coming home alone after activities when no one had been home all day. Is this driving route that you would be comfortable with her doing the driving?
DART Rail can be a great time saver. The rail gets from Ft Worth to Dallas in about an hour. Rush hour driving is at least 2 hrs. The rail seldom gets stuck in traffic so the time is pretty certain, unlike driving. The web site will also assist you with the route and times from A to B. Their maps are great for learning the area too.
Schools are something I suggest you really check out. Then check them again. Try not to take them on advice from anyone that doesn't know you and your children REAL WELL. Maybe the best way to convey this information is I worked for 10+ years in a job that put me in almost every school covering 1/2 a state. I got to see good schools and great schools and a couple of bad schools. I was amazed at the number of thriving successful private schools in this area. They are absolutely everywhere. After experiencing 5 different districts with an elementary now middle schooler. I understand totally why in 3 of the 5 parents would assume the additional and expensive cost of private schools. The "Public Schools" were buildings with employees not schools with teachers. Several yrs. ago Texas voted to allow each district to govern themselves, no State Department to oversee or hold them accountable for providing quality education. My opinion after dealing with the 3 of 5 mentioned earlier, the worst I have ever seen and one was beyond nightmare vision...
I do not want to sound so negative, there are wonderful opportunities available here. I just wish I had known about the extreme standard variation where the schools were concerned.
Have Fun!
IE
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
) due to a bad accident. Parts of Stemmons Freeway - Interstate 35 are horrible and it is in dire need of repairs (more like replacement). Staying in Carrollton or Garland will give you more options if your main preffered route is backed up. 
Actually the #1 high school according to Newsweek is in the Dallas ISD, Townview. It is a TAG school and kids from out of the DISD can test into it and attend. A very good friend of mine teaches there and loves it. As far as the high schools go though, they all have problems and it is not just isolated to one area, school, city, state, socio-economic level, etc. It is just up to us parents to know what our kids are doing, who they are with, etc. I have one that wants a firefly phone. Um, no. No because no one needs to call you and I will ALWAYS know where you are. 
I'm looking for small gps chips to sew into the hems of her clothes in another year or two (just started middle school). 
I had a $300 water bill on an empty house in Rowlett while my house in Garland that was twice the size, we lived in it, bathed, washed, pool, landscaping, etc and it was only around $75. HUGE difference. It costs a lot of money to live in Rowlett in property taxes and utility bills and it is just not worth it. The roads and alley's are in horrible shape and the bickering amongst the city council, mayor and the citizens has not helped. In other words the citizens liked it just like it was when they moved there, they want the convience but don't want the buildings there. They want good streets but will not pass a bond to make it possible. They voted down the bond to expand the library to bring it up to just the minimium guidelines recommended. This is a bunch of people that liked the idea of buying a new house that backed up to a pasture but then got mad when they developed the pasture. LOL!!! Not realizing that at one time the land their own house sits on was a pasture that backed up to someone elses house. 
) backs up to the city of Garland's new landfill. There are also TONS of foreclosed homes for sale throughout the community. I've got some pics of Rowlett that I need to post on here. Let me try and get them done.
Relocation info we found helpful
