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I know Annikan...I was spoiled. 2100 sf for me and two kids but then when my mother's health declined and we moved to hell to be near her, I could only find a 1200 sf with no garage (FWP) that did not fill me with the urge to defecate, so to speak. It's only about 4 years old and while I despise the open floor plan, at least it is not falling apart as many rentals are here. I did find that I seem to qualify for down payment assistance in Boerne of all places. Boerne? :/ So that is an option though not one that fills me with joy. lol and also in Collin County, there is one wee, tiny census tract that I could get assistance in but it seems like a less than desirable area. That is not an option!
How is Melissa? I know the schools are not stellar but the proximity to McKinney appeals. Is it a hot market too?
I am taking you seriously. I have to assume you are renting so you can move easily. I think you should partner with a real estate agent and make offers immediately in your target areas that meet your criteria. I have often made offers sight unseen (using Google Earth to check out surroundings like what's across and behind the house) off posted MLS photos. I have done this in potential multi-bid situationsm and only one time in about 6 total times I won the bid did I back off once I personally viewed the house.
I have Plan A and Plan B advice on two levels -- Actions and Emotional Fortitude
ACTIONS: So, here's what I would do to BUY (Plan A):
1. Make sure I had loan pre-approval in hand
2. Partner with a trusted realtor (I actually know one in Plano I can recommend)
3. Identify the areas you will look at: Grapevine Schools; Plano schools; Allen Schools, Garland Firewheel area; Coppell Schools; Frisco; McKinney; etc. and start getting a daily feed from your realtor of listings that meet your house criteria
4. Understand there are many fine school districts in the DFW area and some of the "Average" districts have outstanding programs for gifted kids. Example: Irving has a fine gifted program and less competition to get into it....
4. Make full price offers unless the house is a fixer.
ACTIONS: In the meantime (Plan B):
*Start scouting out rentals --
*Start researching Dallas Charter schools so you might be sending in applications for school year beginning Fall 2017 so you won't be school attendance zone dependent. -- example North Hills Prep in Las Colinas.
EMOTIONAL FORTITUDE: (yes, I bet you are doing these things but have to comment)
1. Count your blessings: you have healthy smart kids, a job, roof over your heads
2. Take charge of what you can and cannot control: yes you can control feral animals - make sure there is nothing near your house to shelter or attract them; make sure to harrass local animal control. Make a point of harrassing the city code department about keeping grass mowed and address any building issues that harbor stray animals. Drop into the police station and discuss your unsafe neighborhood. Request increased patrol on your street.
You don't necessarily have to save 20% but I would definitely keep saving until you have 5% down + closing costs + MINIMUM 3 months living expenses (mortgage, food, bills, cars, etc- essentials) saved up. In previous threads you have mentioned how much consumption spending you do on your kids, if you tighten your belt this summer it shouldn't be that hard for someone with a $100k salary to save $18-20k in closing costs & emergency fund.
I think this is a really good option for you. Again, you don't have to save the full 20% - though if your credit score keeps improving while you save, it could really help lower your eventual mortgage payments. IMO, you are not financially ready to buy and any bank loaning you a mortgage is taking a pretty big risk. Renting is not the end of the world.
I would think you'd rather "suffer miserably" in cramped quarters living in a safer city with excellent schools and no drug dealers on your block than where you live today.
If your children really are "utterly brilliant", check out the Grand Prairie School for the Highly Gifted mentioned in another thread. Grand Prairie's cost of living is a helluva lot cheaper than the hot northern suburbs you're fixated on. Arlington Martin's zone is also very well regarded with recent grads matriculating at Stanford, Cornell, and UT Business Honors. Median home prices in both Grand Prairie and Arlington Martin's zone are around $175k.
You also could look at school districts in smaller towns and less "hot" suburbs that are highly regarded:
Pottsboro, Mansfield, Sherman, and parts of Denton are worth a look. All have SAT scores equal to or above the lowest performing district on your list. Top graduates from these schools matriculate at Georgetown, NYU, Harvard, USC, Carnegie Mellon, Yale, Naval Academy, etc.
Austin is even more expensive than Dallas.
Hope is not a plan.
It will work out, but you're probably going to need to focus on other parts of the metroplex. I wouldn't call Wylie's schools fantastic, so if you're ok with Wylie, check out less expensive places like Arlington or Mansfield (very good publics but not Plano level). And keep saving and repairing your credit. Life is not a race; you'll get a house when you're really ready for one.
Wylie's schools are respectable. Pretty consistent as opposed to Plano and McKinney, where you can find lots of low rating schools as well as high. I also don't want Plano even if I could find something I could afford because there are too many kids per grade. School population is a pretty important consideration for me.
My kids are both "gifted" (yeah, I live in Lake Wobegon) but my son has some executive function challenges that cause him issues. He has deficits in working memory and processing speed (not across the board but he does struggle at times) but is very strong verbally - at 3 he measured over 3 years ahead (yes, this from my baby who would have qualified for early intervention at 21 months/18 months adjusted!!) - and does well with other areas too. Daughter is across the board very strong. She was teaching herself to read before she was 2 1/2, from nothing at all but having been read to. I did not even let them watch Sesame Street. (As an aside, we were Team Umizoomi fans, which is a beyond excellent show for little ones, teaching a variety of early math skills and skills that transfer to reading too).
I should take another look at Denton I guess. Distance to Wichita Falls is a pretty big consideration so that would not be so far. And I do want there to be an IT hotbed so I can slip into another job easily should I need to and not find another remote position.
I'll keep plodding forward, saving money, and adjusting my plans. But I will also keep a dose of hope. It's been a great plan since - surprise - I could not work for 16 months after my children were born. I could only return to work if offered a job that paid enough I could afford care in my home and that took time to get. I got a job exactly when I needed one and they paid for my relo and gave me a decent $ for expenses too. I returned to an old company a year later working from home, bridged my time, and got better benefits. Due to an alliance, ended up doing same job for another company. Bridged time again, got WAY WAY better benefits. Faced lay off and stumbled into another position with more visibility and a chance to learn new skills. I'm pretty lucky.
Wylie's schools are respectable. Pretty consistent as opposed to Plano and McKinney, where you can find lots of low rating schools as well as high. I also don't want Plano even if I could find something I could afford because there are too many kids per grade. School population is a pretty important consideration for me.
I understand that you have your opinions about school sizes. We all do.
My viewpoint though ~ I was a gifted student in Plano schools and my parents kept wanting to move to a place with small schools. It would have been an inner circle of hell for me. I needed the other students that were smart and the ones that were different and the classes that challenged me.
Totally understand that different schools work for different students; not one size fits all.
I have read that overall 600-900 is the ideal high school size. I do not mind something somewhat larger as there will be more opportunities to learn (am hoping my kids have other foreign language choices besides Spanish for example) but the thought of over 1000 kids in a class scares me! I think my son will do better in smaller schools too. For me academics matters but like I said in a recent thread, things like recess, art, and school lunches do too. Population matters too. Life was so much simpler when I had only myself to worry about!
I have read that overall 600-900 is the ideal high school size. I do not mind something somewhat larger as there will be more opportunities to learn (am hoping my kids have other foreign language choices besides Spanish for example) but the thought of over 1000 kids in a class scares me! I think my son will do better in smaller schools too. For me academics matters but like I said in a recent thread, things like recess, art, and school lunches do too. Population matters too. Life was so much simpler when I had only myself to worry about!
Just food for thought- the Senior High schools in Plano where class sizes are over 1000 only serve 11-12th grades. K-10 are all done in smaller schools- for example, Plano West has 14 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, and 2 high schools that feed into the Sr High. What ends up being 1250 per students in the junior and senior years is birthed from elementary schools that average 90 kids per grade, middle schools that average 310 per grade, and high schools that average 625 per grade. By the time a student is in a school with 1250 people in his grade, he's mature in his social skills, study skills/ academics, friend groups, extracurriculars and hobbies, etc. Plano's K-10 schools are really about the same size as Highland Park, Coppell and other top districts.
Now, I doubt you'll find much that meets your budget in Plano, but you may want to consider the above when evaluating any of the mega sized high schools - is the whole district experience mega sized or just a few years at the very end of a K-12 career?
Just food for thought- the Senior High schools in Plano where class sizes are over 1000 only serve 11-12th grades. K-10 are all done in smaller schools- for example, Plano West has 14 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, and 2 high schools that feed into the Sr High. What ends up being 1250 per students in the junior and senior years is birthed from elementary schools that average 90 kids per grade, middle schools that average 310 per grade, and high schools that average 625 per grade. By the time a student is in a school with 1250 people in his grade, he's mature in his social skills, study skills/ academics, friend groups, extracurriculars and hobbies, etc. Plano's K-10 schools are really about the same size as Highland Park, Coppell and other top districts.
Now, I doubt you'll find much that meets your budget in Plano, but you may want to consider the above when evaluating any of the mega sized high schools - is the whole district experience mega sized or just a few years at the very end of a K-12 career?
Thanks for this.
Also, you can think of the senior highs as transitional schools to college. Most colleges and universities have more than 1250 students entering for their freshman year.
I have read that overall 600-900 is the ideal high school size. I do not mind something somewhat larger as there will be more opportunities to learn (am hoping my kids have other foreign language choices besides Spanish for example) but the thought of over 1000 kids in a class scares me! I think my son will do better in smaller schools too. For me academics matters but like I said in a recent thread, things like recess, art, and school lunches do too. Population matters too. Life was so much simpler when I had only myself to worry about!
Not trying to change your mind, but for other parents that may read this thread and wonder:
Wylie ISD foreign languages taught ~ French and Spanish
Plano ISD foreign languages taught ~ American Sign Language, Chinese, French, German, Latin, and Spanish
Denton ISD foreign languages taught ~ French, German, Latin, Spanish, American Sign Language
Not trying to change your mind, but for other parents that may read this thread and wonder:
Wylie ISD foreign languages taught ~ French and Spanish
Plano ISD foreign languages taught ~ American Sign Language, Chinese, French, German, Latin, and Spanish
Denton ISD foreign languages taught ~ French, German, Latin, Spanish, American Sign Language
Ugh, Wylie is not large enough to have Latin? Two pathetic languages? I have to admit having taken Latin through high school I would love for it to be an option for my kids. Oh the pain....
Ugh, Wylie is not large enough to have Latin? Two pathetic languages? I have to admit having taken Latin through high school I would love for it to be an option for my kids. Oh the pain....
Wylie HS is definitely large enough to offer Latin as the high school has about 500 students per grade. It's just not an academic powerhouse which is what I've been trying to tell you:
1. Average SAT score (1488 M+V+W) ranks 50th out of 110 DFW area public high schools. Wylie East is lower (1454). Every single Plano, Frisco, Allen, and McKinney high school outscores Wylie HS by 50-230 points. Wylie ranks towards the bottom of Collin County SAT scores, in the same range as Melissa and Anna.
2. Recent Wylie valedictorians and salutatorians have matriculated at UT-Austin (4), Texas Tech, University of San Diego, and UC Berkley. IIRC, a huge percent of Wylie seniors matriculate at Collin County Community College.
3. Wylie's course offerings are less challenging and smaller in scope than the other 6A- district 6 high schools (schools in the same geographic area with similar populations).
# of AP classes offered
Wylie - 22
Allen - 22
Denton Guyer - 25
McKinney - 28
McKinney Boyd - no course catalog online
Plano - 31
Plano East - 31
Plano West - 31
Foreign language offerings:
Wylie - 2: Spanish, French. Both AP.
Allen - 5: Chinese, French, German, Spanish, ASL. 2 AP languages
Denton Guyer - 4: French, German, Spanish, Latin. All 4 are AP languages
McKinney - 6: Chinese, French, German, Latin, Spanish, ASL. 4 AP languages.
McKinney Boyd - no course catalog online
Plano - 6: Chinese, French, German, Latin, Spanish, ASL. 5 AP languages.
Plano East- 6: Chinese, French, German, Latin, Spanish, ASL. 5 AP languages.
Plano West - 6: Chinese, French, German, Latin, Spanish, ASL. 5 AP languages.
International Baccalaureate program offered:
Wylie - NO
Allen - YES
Denton Guyer - district's program housed at Denton HS
McKinney - NO
McKinney Boyd - NO
Plano - district's IB program housed at PESH
Plano East - YES
Plano West - district's IB program housed at PESH
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