DENTON area questions (Plano, Frisco, Little Elm: townhomes, transferring to, schools)

[Chagen77]

I am transferring to Aubrey from West Central Minnesota. A small town of 800 people. My wife and I have both lived in large cities (Minneapolis and Chicago) too. Want a little bigger schools for our boys who are 12 and 10 years old. Aubrey is bigger than here but we might want even bigger to avoid small town drama that comes with knowing EVERYONE. And we are not religious at all so don't want our boys to be excluded due to their "heathen parents"(sarcasm, we arent anti religious just openly agnostic and more on the socially liberal side than conservative). Church seems to be an important part of small town life in Texas (as it is to a maybe lesser degree here). Aubrey might be big enough but we are looking at Denton, Celina, Prosper, maybe Frisco and Little Elm. Sports is not a big draw for us. Both boys are more on the artistic/musical side than athletic. They both play basketball and baseball but most likely wont as the competition grows with school size. Academics is more important to us. We have noticed that the school rating seem to fall in line with demographics. A little diversity is important to us too so I take those rating with a grain of salt for the most part. Any insight from anyone who's kids have experienced the larger 2,000 plus enrollments as well as the under 1,000 enrollments would be appreciated. Any insight i can get from afar i'll take. My wife is an elementary teacher and will be looking for a job in the same areas. any advice for her would be great too.

[compSciGuy]

What's your budget? What is your commuting tolerance? Do you have any flexibility with your hours? What do you expect from the house? (size, age, etc.)

[TeamLynn]

My first thought is Denton. College town with plenty of diversity. Bigger school system and not so far from Aubrey. What's your price range. Frisco is a great place with probably all the academics you could wish for, but homes will likely be much more pricey than Aubrey or Little Elm.

[Chagen77]

Originally Posted by compSciGuy

What's your budget? What is your commuting tolerance? Do you have any flexibility with your hours? What do you expect from the house? (size, age, etc.)

looking for a house in the $250,000 to $300,000 range. I have done lots of research as far as houses. Have found suitable housing in each of the areas I listed in my post. I would like to keep the commute under 30 minutes.

[Chagen77]

Originally Posted by TeamLynn

My first thought is Denton. College town with plenty of diversity. Bigger school system and not so far from Aubrey. What's your price range. Frisco is a great place with probably all the academics you could wish for, but homes will likely be much more pricey than Aubrey or Little Elm.

Looking in the $250,000 to $300,000 range. Have found a few in Frisco but they are harder to come by for sure.

[stephwin]

Originally Posted by Chagen77

looking for a house in the $250,000 to $300,000 range. I have done lots of research as far as houses. Have found suitable housing in each of the areas I listed in my post. I would like to keep the commute under 30 minutes.

Commute to where? Did I miss it somewhere?

[compSciGuy]

Originally Posted by Chagen77

looking for a house in the $250,000 to $300,000 range. I have done lots of research as far as houses. Have found suitable housing in each of the areas I listed in my post. I would like to keep the commute under 30 minutes.

What is suitable housing for you? You can definitely find houses in "old Frisco" less than your price range, but they are apt to be older and smaller. You should be able to find "townhomes" in "highly ranked" districts lower than your price range. Lots of people move to this area and insist on new homes, or less than X years old, at least 3000 feet, etc. You may be able to find smaller/older (1990s) houses/townhomes in North Plano in both Plano & Frisco ISD in your price range. In ideal conditions, it's slightly more than 30 minutes to Aubrey via car. The more affordable housing in Frisco is either "old Frisco", toward "Little Elm", or in "South Frisco" that's east of Preston.

[Chagen77]

Originally Posted by stephwin

Commute to where? Did I miss it somewhere?

Aubrey. I am transferring to Aubrey for work.

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

How big a house?

[Chagen77]

Three bedroom two bath. Size not important. We have a small dog so some sort of yard would be necessary for her to “fertilize”