Moving to DFW from NYC (Dallas, Irving: city hall, for rent, HOA)

[suttonzach]

Originally Posted by Rakin

I've been curious how a Liberal from NYC will feel about living around a bunch of people who carry guns and keep guns in their homes.

This is actually one of my wife’s biggest apprehensions about moving to Texas (aside from getting “stuck” in some monolithic exurb...)

[loves2read]

Originally Posted by suttonzach

This is actually one of my wife’s biggest apprehensions about moving to Texas (aside from getting “stuck” in some monolithic exurb...)

There are people who do have a CC permit and guns in their homes but I don't think you will find it overwhelming
We believe in responsible gun ownership, have several guns in the home, but no CC permit and our guns haven't been fired in years--not really good for them but they are legacies from my husband's father mainly
Gun culture in TX is like wearing boots--more hype than fact in most areas
And I think as your income goes up, there is less of it...
But that is just my POV

[loves2read]

The issue to certain extent is rental property---with the hot housing market you maybe be limited by what is available for rent

It's too bad that you are too far away to consider downtown FTW
Walkable urban area--parks--people kayak on the Trinity in downtown now
Mix of restaurants/pubs
Condos for rent in several high rise bldgs
Overall there is not really the "liberal" mindset though--
FTW is very traditional mindset

[WorldKlas]

Originally Posted by suttonzach

This is actually one of my wife’s biggest apprehensions about moving to Texas (aside from getting “stuck” in some monolithic exurb...)

Lived in DFW from 1978 on. I’m from NYC originally. When we first came to DFW, we lived in Plano. That was a loooong time ago. Have lived and owned properties in every area — north, south, east and west —- and finally landed in the M Streets/University Crossing area. You can find what you like in the city or ANY of the inner burbs. Just be really, really aware of traffic. Traffic in DFW is not as bad as LA, NYC, Chicago, etc. But its still a soul sucking experience to spend hours of your life in fumes and sometimes icy roads, away from your loved ones. I spent years and years commuting because various areas seemed to appeal to me when in the end I grew to realize I could find whatever I wanted close enough to work if I put my mind to it. Irving is one of the most diverse cities in the USA. It has a rail service and bus service. It has lovely parks and many charming — certainly NON-MONOLITHIC—neighborhoods. I suggest you seriously look at traffic patterns before you decide where you want to live.

[numbersguy100]

Originally Posted by suttonzach

This is actually one of my wife’s biggest apprehensions about moving to Texas (aside from getting “stuck” in some monolithic exurb...)

OP, I'd check out North Oak Cliff or State Allen area in Uptown as a second option. It's not a bad commute NOC to Irving. I know people who do it and I've never heard them complain about commute (especially relative to people who commute to N Dallas or Plano/Frisco). Since you're looking to rent and don't need schools, there are more areas in NOC to consider other than traditional Kessler recommendations. I don't love the "hipster" term but our family checks a lot of the same boxes you described in your intro, and N Oak Cliff has been a great place for us for over a decade (we moved to Dallas from NYC as well).

[Annikan]

Hi OP,

Do you currently live in Manhattan now? Or do you commute into the city?

So we did an opposite move 5 years ago--Dallas to NYC area, but we ended up settling in Hoboken. My favorite family friendly area with a slight hipster vibe is Lakewood/Lakewood Heights/Greenville Ave. I like Bishop Arts district PPs have mentioned, too...it's not quite as family friendly *to me*. I lived in Lakewood and my Dallas friends from my single life have now married and had kids and they are all in or near Lakewood. And my one remaining Texas sibling lives off Greenville Ave. I actually used to commute to really close to where you will be working in Irving, but I commuted at off hours--around 7 in the morning and left at 4:30 pm, so traffic was not quite as bad---usually a 45 min drive. During peak rush hour, it would be much, much worse. I'm not sure I would do it with kids unless you can flex your start and leave times.

Maybe also check out rentals near Southlake town center. It would be a shorter commute for you (still heavy traffic) and it's full on suburbs for sure, but schools are good and if you can walk to the town center (it's basically just a planned outdoor shopping/townhouse community with restaurants and stuff), then I think it'd be fine for 2-3 years. Houses there are much more "Texas-y" though. They're all those brick, two story, "grand entrance" wood everywhere monstrosities. Lakewood has more varied housing stock. But again, renting and not buying--who cares short term. Even in Lakewood or North Oak Cliff, Dallas is a driving city. When I lived in Lakewood, I could walk to Whole Foods, everything in the Lakewood shopping center (a variety of bars and restaurants and some retail) and I could bike to Greenville, Deep Ellum, Old East Dallas.....and still, I drove daily to get to everywhere else I needed to go. Like--if I needed to hit a "regular" supermarket on Mockingbird lane, I had to drive. If I was meeting friends uptown or at Knox/Henderson, I'd drive. I drove to work, I drove to the gym.

My friends in Lakewood with young kids (mine are 2 and 4) go to the JCC a lot for baby classes and there's a pool somewhere in Lakewood they use for lessons, too.

[ChristieP]

Those townhomes near Southlake Town Center aren’t rentals (unless you happen to find one that’s being rented privately.) They are private homes with a very large price tag. Southlake has no apartments within their city limits. You’d have to look in Grapevine or Colleyville,

[WorldKlas]

Re: post #26. Lakewood is lovely. It is East Dallas. Irving is west. Between Lakewood are jams of streets (Mockingbird, Northwest Hwy are excruciating) and a need to cross 75/Central and 183/Carpenter or suffer on 635/LbJ. This would be an incredibly painful drive on our constantly under construction roads. Why would anyone choose to do this where there are so many other options? Someone who lived in Dallas 5 years ago doesn’t understand how much worse traffic is now.

[Rakin]

Originally Posted by suttonzach

This is actually one of my wife’s biggest apprehensions about moving to Texas (aside from getting “stuck” in some monolithic exurb...)

Well Zach, when you get here go to a gun range and learn the joys of target shooting and safe handling of a gun. You might get addicted.

[loves2read]

Originally Posted by Rakin

Well Zach, when you get here go to a gun range and learn the joys of target shooting and safe handling of a gun. You might get addicted.

Re the "joys of target shooting"---

Did anyone happen to see Anthony Bourdain's new season/show last night?
Forget the title--came in mid stream so to speak--

He was in West VA, among the people living in the hills but upscale, young (under 40 from what I saw) gun-loving people who hunt/cook game and run ventures like a ranch for mudders--people going 4-wheeling...
One group owned a specialty gun company--
One guy had lived in Europe--different countries for years at time from what he said--but always came home to WVA---
They showed him the fun of letting loose with a fully-automatic weapon===shooting at targets and blowing up pumpkins with their own blend of black powder and other explosives-
And he admitted it was fun while it lasted--but he also tried to draw them into conversation about gun owners who as Bourdain said "didn't have the sense to pour **** from a boot"

Interesting conversation--definitely no meeting of the minds re responsible gun control
And Bourdain mentioned that after this episode was filmed the Las Vegas shooting occurred with legally-obtained rifles and then later the Parkland shooting--also with a legally obtained weapon...