Mansfield vs Desoto (Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington: middle-class, fit in, hair salon)

[QueenKeye]

My family is looking to move from Phoenix due to the lack of culture for us as African Americans. It's difficult to find decent hair salons and barbers, no activities for us(unless its the club scene) and I don't want to even discuss the non friendly attitudes here. We are a family with 5 children, so schools are very important to us. My husband works for AA so he will commute to the airport area for work. We have visited there a few times and love both Dallas and Ft. Worth, however we don't know enough to know where to move to. From reading they both have what we like. Many people continue to tell us that Mansfield and Desoto are good options for us, but besides nice homes, can't find much information. We are in our very early thirties and our lifestyle is that we are family oriented, love going to family events that come in town, concerts, comedy shows, and of course great restaurants and activities for date night Our budget to buy a home is 250k and need at least a 4/5 bdrm home. Which cities would cater to our needs and have a decent work commute? (we are open to all options

Thanks

[ChristieP]

What's your definition of a "decent" commute?

[Acntx]

Hello QueenKeye. State Highway 360 runs north-south from Mansfield to the DFW Airport area, so if a simpler, more direct commute is desired, that may be the area to focus on. My knowledge of Mansfield is limited, but it is generally considered to be a safe, suburban community with decent schools.

DeSoto is a nice community as well. The city is safe and there are many well-kept neighborhoods to choose from. I grew up in DeSoto and lived there for 16 years. My brother and I both attended DeSoto public schools. We did well and received a quality education. The suburbs of southwest Dallas County (DeSoto, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, Lancaster) all have a significant middle-class African American presence. If your husband is open to a slightly longer commute, I would recommend expanding your search to include all of these communities.

For the most part, each of the places I've mentioned are family-oriented with regularly scheduled events and other activities taking place throughout the year. Community recreation centers offer a variety of different programs as well. The greatest concentration of restaurants and retail in southwest Dallas County is found in Cedar Hill, although you can find great "mom and pop" type restaurants all over. Larger entertainment venues can be found nearby in Dallas and Arlington.

Hope this helps!

[WorldKlas]

Mansfield has better schools and is a bit of a closer communte to the DFW airport. DeSoto has more Black families and real estate is a bit less expensive. If my spouse was going to be working at the airport, I'd be looking in Hurst/Euless/Bedford area.

[TheProtege]

If your determined on staying in the southern area: Mansfield except for the SW area, Grand Prairie anywhere south of I-20, Arlington North or anywhere West of Cooper St, Desoto has some nice areas and some sketchy areas, same with Cedar Hill. School: SW and West Arlington will have the best schools, Followed by Mansfield schools just make sure the school is located in Mansfield or Grand Prairie and not Arlington. South Grand Prairie is mostly in Mansfield schools, Never heard anything bad or good about Desoto schools, Cedar Hill has the worst Public schools (Recommend Private school). Your Husband will must likely have to take Highway 360to the airport which is a pain. If you can Avoid 360. You should be able to find a home in your budget in any of these areas. Desoto and Cedar Hill have the highest Black percentages of population. followed by South Grand Prairie and Mansfield and then West Arlington. As WorldKlas says you might look at the central cities just stay West of the DFW airport.

[QueenKeye]

Thank you all! We are open to all cities in DFW, area doesn't matter. I consider a decent commute no more than 30 minutes. 45 min. max. You have given some great info here for us to consider and look at! So to clarify between two comments, is or isn't 360 a good commute? Overall in DFW where are the better schools? When we first started looking, our real estate agent took us to Keller. Keller is beautiful, but it seems far out and nothing out there.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by QueenKeye

Thank you all! We are open to all cities in DFW, area doesn't matter. I consider a decent commute no more than 30 minutes. 45 min. max. You have given some great info here for us to consider and look at! So to clarify between two comments, is or isn't 360 a good commute? Overall in DFW where are the better schools? When we first started looking, our real estate agent took us to Keller. Keller is beautiful, but it seems far out and nothing out there.

A good rule of thumb for commuting in DFW is to budget 2-3 minutes per mile. If you want a 30-45 minute commute, locate your office on a map and draw a circle that goes out 10-15 miles in each direction. If Keller, DeSoto, or Mansfield fit in that circle you can consider them. Your $250k budget will knock a lot of the areas with good schools out like Coppell, Colleyville, and Southlake. You really can't be "open to all cities in DFW" unless you're ok with commute times up to 2 hours- that's how large the DFW area is! You're going to need to focus.

[WorldKlas]

360 is a tough commute going north in the mornings and south in the evenings. Close to the airport for $250K will be HEB and N. Arlington. HEB has acceptable schools, N. Arlington is fine for elementary, and just average for middle & HS. Both will be a challenge in your price point. Heb= Hurst, Euless, Bedford. Some of N.Euless and a teensy part of N. Hurst are in the better school district of Grapevine/Colleyville ISD. But your price point is not likely to work. Our school attendance zones don't follow city limits so always verify schools.

Dallas is a minority/majority city and the burbs are diverse -- except for the very, very expensive areas -- so I would focus more on commute and schools vs. budget than your enthicity. However, just FYI, there is a contributer to this forum "Fxxxx" (you'll have to find him, he has posted frequently in Fort Worth and DAllas forums comparing Arlington and DeSoto to various areas) who is going to move from Keller to DeSoto because he feels his kids would do better living and attending school among AA professionals and Keller is not diverse enough. You can DM him thru City Data.

Also close is Irving, which only has good schools in Las Colinas and Valley Ranch sectors and your price point will not work. North Grand Prairie is close but I don't know anything about their schools at all. It would work better for your budget.

If I were in your situation, I would focus on HEB, accept average school in N.Arlington or be prepared for a 45 min drive from Mansfield.

[TheProtege]

Dang, every time someone has a question about the southern area. They're always told to look in the northern areas AL well. Compared to all of the cities mentioned in the forum HEB schools are probably the best. Once you get into Bedford or anywhere north of that Black residents become a rare site. Also 4/5 Bedroom home for 250,000 Will become a hard thing to find the further north that you go. A alternative to 360 is taking the Toll road 161.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by TheProtege

Dang, every time someone has a question about the southern area. They're always told to look in the northern areas AL well. Compared to all of the cities mentioned in the forum HEB schools are probably the best. Once you get into Bedford or anywhere north of that Black residents become a rare site. Also 4/5 Bedroom home for 250,000 Will become a hard thing to find the further north that you go. A alternative to 360 is taking the Toll road 161.

OP is not being "steered" north; the combination of their work location and desired commute simply knocks out DeSoto and many other southern suburbs. From DeSoto HS to the AA HQ is 27 miles. There is no way to make that commute fit during traditional commuting hours. It's physics, not a northern agenda.