Moving to Dallas from NYC (Plano, Frisco: fit in, rent, house)

[HelloKitty123xyz]

Hello, I've been reading through old threads and find all of the information sharing to be very helpful. We are moving from NYC and would like to find a neighborhood that's similar to the downtown areas of Manhattan, young, diverse and generally affluent. In particular we love to eat out so we're looking for a neighborhood with great restaurants. We have young children and are still deciding between public versus private school options. Please share any thoughts on which neighborhoods we should visit, also if I've missed a similar thread that's already addressed this topic please share the link. Thank you!

[TrueDat]

Uptown, Knox-Henderson, Deep Ellum, Bishop Arts District (North Oak Cliff), and perhaps downtown itself are going to be the closest to what you're looking for though no one's going to mistake them for Manhattan. And, depending on the age of your children, you may have to consider private school options.

[ChristieP]

Where will you be commuting to for work?

[RJ312]

There's probably nothing in Dallas that will fit being young, diverse, affluent, and child-centric. DISD schools are generally a joke, so living in a hip central neighborhood will have you going the private school. There won't be many children nearby, as city dwellers in Dallas generally decamp for the suburbs soon after marriage and babies. Uptown and Downtown have good restaurant options. Uptown in particular is the hub of young and professional. Somewhat affluent. The most affluence in a centrally located neighborhood are enclaves called the Park Cities (University Park and Highland Park). Those are just very well located suburbs.

[TurtleCreek80]

I was born and raised in Dallas and spent my early 20's in NYC. Check any expectations of replicating your downtown Manhattan life as soon as you cross the Hudson.

Parts of Dallas proper that have a lot of families, are affluent and relatively diverse include East Dallas (neighborhoods like the M Streets, Vickery Place, Lakewood Heights). Lakewood proper is pretty white but the middle and high school draws from a larger area that is about 80% not-white and over 50% lower income. Several great public elementaries there and YMMV re middle & high schools. FWIW, most top private schools are about 1/3 non-white and about 20-30% economically diverse. East Dallas is more liberal which will probably appeal to you. Walkable depending on where you live in relation to Lower Greenville Ave and Henderson Ave. Great if you work downtown/uptown; less so if you work in Las Colinas; awful if you work anywhere near Plano/Frisco where Toyota & other HQs are. Zips 75214, 75206, the parts of 75223 zoned to Lakewood Elem.

North Oak Cliff also comes to mind. Some of the city's best indie restaurants are in the Bishop Arts District. In feels in a tiny way like the Brooklyn of Dallas- ie, liberal yuppies. Rosemont School (K-8) is a great neighborhood public with a dual language immersion program. Again, good if you work downtown/ uptown/ Las Colinas; horrific if you work in north Plano. Pretty topography- some of Dallas' only hills and winding streets are here. Zip 75208

**Most of the top private schools are in North Dallas which is about a 20-30 minute drive from East Dallas or NOC depending on which school and where you live. No busses.

The Park Cities (Highland Park & University Park) are like two lovely Westchester towns plopped right in the middle of the city. Much more conservative than East Dallas or North Oak Cliff, but the most affluent towns in North Texas with one of the top two public school districts in all of Texas. Walkable if you position yourself near Snider Plaza (UP's "downtown"), Highland Park Village (like Madison Ave shops in a historic Spanish style shopping center), or near Knox Street or Preston Center. Not diverse but throwing it out there because it is a great place to live - the city services are "conceirge" level, i.e. the cops will drive by your house while you're out of town and the city bulk trash will pick up your dead Christmas tree on demand. Most centrally located for commutes. Zips 75225 & 75205 zoned to HPISD.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by RJ312

There's probably nothing in Dallas that will fit being young, diverse, affluent, and child-centric. DISD schools are generally a joke, so living in a hip central neighborhood will have you going the private school. There won't be many children nearby, as city dwellers in Dallas generally decamp for the suburbs soon after marriage and babies. Uptown and Downtown have good restaurant options. Uptown in particular is the hub of young and professional. Somewhat affluent. The most affluence in a centrally located neighborhood are enclaves called the Park Cities (University Park and Highland Park). Those are just very well located suburbs.

Lol. My friends' street in Lakewood has over 40 kids living on it. There are plenty of good schools (private and public) in Dallas and tens of thousands of families with kids living here.

[HelloKitty123xyz]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

Where will you be commuting to for work?

Hello, I expect to be working in north Dallas, close to the Galleria

[HelloKitty123xyz]

Originally Posted by RJ312

There's probably nothing in Dallas that will fit being young, diverse, affluent, and child-centric. DISD schools are generally a joke, so living in a hip central neighborhood will have you going the private school. There won't be many children nearby, as city dwellers in Dallas generally decamp for the suburbs soon after marriage and babies. Uptown and Downtown have good restaurant options. Uptown in particular is the hub of young and professional. Somewhat affluent. The most affluence in a centrally located neighborhood are enclaves called the Park Cities (University Park and Highland Park). Those are just very well located suburbs.

Thank you, I wasn't sure what Park Cities referred to. I expect to be working in north Dallas so these communities would be well located for our family. Are they both very alike or can you compare the two?

[HelloKitty123xyz]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

I was born and raised in Dallas and spent my early 20's in NYC. Check any expectations of replicating your downtown Manhattan life as soon as you cross the Hudson.

Parts of Dallas proper that have a lot of families, are affluent and relatively diverse include East Dallas (neighborhoods like the M Streets, Vickery Place, Lakewood Heights). Lakewood proper is pretty white but the middle and high school draws from a larger area that is about 80% not-white and over 50% lower income. Several great public elementaries there and YMMV re middle & high schools. FWIW, most top private schools are about 1/3 non-white and about 20-30% economically diverse. East Dallas is more liberal which will probably appeal to you. Walkable depending on where you live in relation to Lower Greenville Ave and Henderson Ave. Great if you work downtown/uptown; less so if you work in Las Colinas; awful if you work anywhere near Plano/Frisco where Toyota & other HQs are. Zips 75214, 75206, the parts of 75223 zoned to Lakewood Elem.

North Oak Cliff also comes to mind. Some of the city's best indie restaurants are in the Bishop Arts District. In feels in a tiny way like the Brooklyn of Dallas- ie, liberal yuppies. Rosemont School (K-8) is a great neighborhood public with a dual language immersion program. Again, good if you work downtown/ uptown/ Las Colinas; horrific if you work in north Plano. Pretty topography- some of Dallas' only hills and winding streets are here. Zip 75208

**Most of the top private schools are in North Dallas which is about a 20-30 minute drive from East Dallas or NOC depending on which school and where you live. No busses.

The Park Cities (Highland Park & University Park) are like two lovely Westchester towns plopped right in the middle of the city. Much more conservative than East Dallas or North Oak Cliff, but the most affluent towns in North Texas with one of the top two public school districts in all of Texas. Walkable if you position yourself near Snider Plaza (UP's "downtown"), Highland Park Village (like Madison Ave shops in a historic Spanish style shopping center), or near Knox Street or Preston Center. Not diverse but throwing it out there because it is a great place to live - the city services are "conceirge" level, i.e. the cops will drive by your house while you're out of town and the city bulk trash will pick up your dead Christmas tree on demand. Most centrally located for commutes. Zips 75225 & 75205 zoned to HPISD.

Thank you so much for the long and thoughtful reply! I will be working in north Dallas so it looks like the park cities are where we should focus our search for a home. Do you think we could rent a nice home there for a year until we figure out where we want to live. In terms of the schools, is there a public or private option that would be a good fit for a mom who works full time? I want my kids to fit in but I won't be around to be involved as I'm moving for a new job.

[ChristieP]

Originally Posted by HelloKitty123xyz

Hello, I expect to be working in north Dallas, close to the Galleria

The areas being suggested will work well for you.

I would highly recommend renting for at least 6 months to get used to the area and find out where you fit I the best before buying.