Relocating to Dallas......... (Plano, Garland, Irving: to rent, HOA fees, townhouse)

[Otto.Vaance]

My wife and I are moving from far north Phoenix/Cave Creek Arizona to the Dallas area for a job opportunity downtown. We are 50’s, working professionals with no children and seeking advice on were to be looking to buy a house. This question has been asked countless times but most always involves the kid and school factor. The school system is not important to us other than from a property value standpoint. We love where we now live as it is fairly new, clean, safe, out of the rush of the big city but only a short drive to the shopping and restaurants found in north Scottsdale. We are not Scottsdale people but close and frequently access the high-end amenities found there. A new or new build available would be our first choice but well kept and established could also work. The brick houses with character, steep roof pitches and mature trees like in the Trophy Club area has always had an appeal to us. The brick houses in Texas have much more appeal than the blah stucco everywhere houses they build in Phoenix. Interior details like crown molding and high vaulted or tray ceiling are also not common here. Would like to keep the commute to <40 minutes during normal office hours and $450k for a 2400' one story/ranch/rambler style house. A 55+ is an option but it looks like most of these in the area are of the townhouse type with no yard or outside space. A large yard is not needed or even wanted but some outside private space is a necessity. A downtown high rise has some appeal for the short commute factor but looks to be very expensive for what it is and lacks much if any outdoor private space. Sunnyvale offers some space similar to what we have here but looks to lack amenities. Going north to Grapevine – Plano would have more amenities but also more bustle, traffic and a longer commute? Is airport noise an issue in any particular area near DFW?

I was acquainted with the Dallas area in the early 90’s but it looks nothing now like it did back then. Advice on all this from the natives and those in the know is much appreciated!

[cordata]

I would suggest checking out the M Street / Vickery Place area. This will have lots of character and is very close to downtown. You won't get new build for your budget and probably not the size desired but it's a good reference point on charming vs distance etc.


There is one "new" (15 years old) build in the M Streets that is just at your budget point and square footage ... maybe you're the right buyer for it. Kind of a unique property.



Good luck!

[ChristieP]

If you're going to be working in downtown, then you really need to limit your search to Dallas County to avoid having a horribly long commute. There's no good reason to live in Plano and drive all the way to downtown when you aren't concerned with schools. As much as I love Grapevine, it's not a good commute to downtown, either. Sunnyvale is in Dallas County, but it's an oasis of nice in the middle of lower end Mesquite and South Garland.

Since schools are not an issue, and you're looking for something relatively new, look in the Las Colinas area of Irving. It's a fairly easy commute to downtown via 114, and using DART rail is also an option. Remember that school districts here do not follow city limits, so keep your search in the areas that are Irving ISD or CFBISD to avoid the higher prices and bidding wars for properties in Coppell ISD. Las Colinas has a fairly good amount of shopping/restaurants, and you are fairly close to both Highland Park and Southlake for the high-end shopping/restaurants.

As for airport noise, yes, some areas do have it. The easiest way to see if the neighborhood you're looking at is affected is to go stand outside for 10-15 minutes. DFW is a busy airport, so planes come and go all day. The usual flight pattern is to take off to the south and land from the north, but that does occasionally change due to weather or runway maintenance.

[NP78]

I would second the Las Colinas area suggestion. A lot of amenities close by, decent commute to downtown, and properties that should fit your criteria.

[TurtleCreek80]

$450k is not new/newer construction money within a decent commute to downtown. I would shift your priorities to “remodeled / updated” and then you have many, many options within 10-20 minutes of downtown.

For houses, Ridgewood Park (75214) is a great neighborhood popular with first time buyers and empty nesters. It’s a tad less pricey than the neighborhoods south of the DART rail which are zoned to a sought after elementary. No need to pay an extra $100k for schools you’re not using when you can be in the same great area. You’re 15 minutes to downtown, tops, from here, and close to Lakewood, Lower Greenville, and Knox-Henderson for dining, shopping, and entertainment. And about a mile to White Rock Lake via the Katy Trail extension you can pick up at the DART rail.

A good high rise option is The Highland at Mockingbird and 75. Your budget is probably a big 1 BR or small 2 BR and beware high HOA fees because of all the amenities but might be fun to rent there for a year to get your bearings. It’s just across 75 from Highland Park (Scottsdale on steroids, money-wise) and an easy bike ride over to White Rock Lake or into Uptown via the Katy trail that runs right there. Also close to Lower Greenville and Knox-Henderson.


A note on the other places you mentioned:
Sunnyvale is family-ville and has literally zero options for shopping/dining/ entertainment. You would forever be driving 20-30 minutes into Dallas every weekend.

Grapevine is at the upper end of your 40-min commute range. Cute historic downtown and lots of entertainment options for a suburb. One of your better bets if you really do want a new build.

Plano is also at the upper end or beyond your desired commute range depending on location. Great diverse suburb. $450k is not going to get you new / newer construction there though - at least not in the southernmost parts that would consistently hit 40 minute drive times in rush hour.

[Otto.Vaance]

Thank you for the input.
The nearest new construction I find in what we are looking to spend is in north Hebron by 121 and the Dallas North Tollway. I assume this would be a nice area? What is the tollway cost to downtown and is that and 35E traffic bad southbound if I could start work hours at 8 or even 7am?

[cordata]

So new construction is your first priority ? I think 121/DNT is going to be over an hour each way.

[RonnieinDallas]

Originally Posted by Otto.Vaance

Thank you for the input.
The nearest new construction I find in what we are looking to spend is in north Hebron by 121 and the Dallas North Tollway. I assume this would be a nice area? What is the tollway cost to downtown and is that and 35E traffic bad southbound if I could start work hours at 8 or even 7am?

It's a nice area but unless you're Asian, have kids, or dead set on a new house I don't think it's worth the commute at all. Turtle Creek gave some good suggestions. It might be a smart idea to rent in Downtown or somewhere close for a few months and explore some neighborhoods closer in.

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

The usual metric is 2-3 min per mile in rush hour which STARTS about 7 a.m. and levels off around 9. Evenings get bad after 3 p.m. until about 6:30 p.m. in general. Some routes are worse. I drive the DNT starting at 9 a.m. and it's crowded but it generally moves around 40 mmph.

Your budget, new, and close-in don't match. Give up one of them.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by Otto.Vaance

Thank you for the input.
The nearest new construction I find in what we are looking to spend is in north Hebron by 121 and the Dallas North Tollway. I assume this would be a nice area? What is the tollway cost to downtown and is that and 35E traffic bad southbound if I could start work hours at 8 or even 7am?

You can’t replicate your Phoenix lifestyle here....there are twice as many people living in roughly the same land msss as Phoenix metro. There’s no living “aways out from town” and “zipping in” to the city for wok and play.

You’re probably looking at the Castle Hills area from what you described. It’s Sunday afternoon, super low traffic and the curren Drive time from there to downtown is 34/36 minutes via either DNT or 35. You’re looking at an hour+ during rush hour. Tollroad will run you $6-8 per day.

Starting work at 8AM won’t Chang a thing. You’d be getting on the road with half of Collin County then. Starting at 7AM would keep you around 40-45 minutes. But if you leave the office between 3:30-6PM, you’re still going to hit heavy traffic coming home. It just seems like a lot of Drive time for a new house when schools aren’t a factor.