HELP: Dallas (Preston Hollow) vs. Coppell (Hillcrest: good schools, living, price)

[turf3]

Originally Posted by jd433

The 3 rules of Real Estate are location, location and location. So Preston Hollow is a better location because it is in North Dallas and it is close to pretty much everything. It is also right off the North Dallas Tollway. I don't even know why I am trying to explain this. Preston Hollow is better.

If you've got $300,000 to buy a house and three school age children, you're going to be in a two bedroom condo in Preston Hollow sending your kids to Hillcrest High School, or spending vast sums to send them to private schools. In Coppell you can (maybe) buy a small house and send them to a well-regarded public school.


"Better" depends on what your needs are and the resources you have available.

[turf3]

And my original comment was aimed at a real estate agent saying a house next to Marsh Middle School is "in Preston Hollow" which it isn't, not by any definition.

[mastershake575]

Originally Posted by jd433

Is this a joke? Of course Preston Hollow is many times better than Coppell

Originally Posted by jd433

The 3 rules of Real Estate are location, location and location. So Preston Hollow is a better location because it is in North Dallas and it is close to pretty much everything. It is also right off the North Dallas Tollway. I don't even know why I am trying to explain this. Preston Hollow is better.

Blank statements without context are literally use-less (suprised a real estate agent even posted this comment).

His budget doesn't even allow for Preston Hollow (the house he listed was a medicore house in Northwest Dallas), the schools are signficanty worst, and his commutte would be worst.

LOL at "uhhh i think it's a better location uhhhh more money uhhh dallas tollway" (translation: "i'm not from DFW and have no idea what i'm talking about")

[Wittgenstein's Ghost]

Originally Posted by jd433

The 3 rules of Real Estate are location, location and location. So Preston Hollow is a better location because it is in North Dallas and it is close to pretty much everything. It is also right off the North Dallas Tollway. I don't even know why I am trying to explain this. Preston Hollow is better.

That's nonsense. It is simply not true that a "better" location is always better, no matter the cost. A family of four living in a one bedroom condo in a great location is not better than that same family living in a four bedroom house with a yard in a good neighborhood.

Regular people misunderstand the "location, location, location" meme all the time. You're supposedly a professional, though -- you should know better.

[Rakin]

Originally Posted by jd433

The 3 rules of Real Estate are location, location and location..

Actually a better saying is Schools and Location. Then Coppell would be the best deal.

Lot of crappy neighborhoods with great locations and bad schools.

[numbersguy100]

Originally Posted by Rakin

Actually a better saying is Schools and Location. Then Coppell would be the best deal.

Lot of crappy neighborhoods with great locations and bad schools.

Well that isn’t exactly true either. Bad schools is a problem that can be solved with money. Bad location can’t be. Preston Hollow is a more desirable location than Coppell, full stop. Coppell (or insert other suburb with good schools) is a good choice for people who can’t afford to live in Preston Hollow and pay for private school, or who just don’t have any interest in doing so. Since OP can not afford to live in Preston Hollow (actual PH, that is), Coppell is not the “better” choice, it is the only choice among those two that is viable. Between NW Dallas where OP was looking and Coppell, Coppell is still probably the better choice given the information provided.

The point is, an area’s relative desirability, as reflected in price, is somewhat objective. An area’s suitability for any particular buyer is a question of trade offs and decisions on what is most important and within the budget of any given family.

[Rakin]

Originally Posted by numbersguy100

Well that isn’t exactly true either. Bad schools is a problem that can be solved with money. Bad location can’t be.

Point being in my many years of experience, for the average Family it's a lot more than just Location, Location, Location. Schools are probably a bigger factor for the average Family than the best location.

Most people search out a good balance of the 2 and of those 2 criteria location is the lesser factor than schools for a family.

And yes, there are plenty of exceptions. We're talking the average family.

Schools also drive resale prices higher in most cases. It's one reason Homes in Coppell will run more than homes in Carrollton or Irving ISD homes which have just as good or better of a location.

[TeamLynn]

I've lived in both general areas and now live in Coppell.
I would say live in Coppell.

One thing I told one of my buyers the other day is also think about city services when he asked if it was safe?
Call DPD and see if they show up, see if they send an officer or one of the new 700 uniformed unarmed report takers.
Call Coppell PD and probably 2 cars show up within 3 minutes or less.

Have a breakin in Coppell and PD probably sends a SWAT team to canvas the neighborhood, check 75% of the homes that have Ring and solve the crime within the week. Live in Dallas and they make it super easy on you to file an online report you can provide your insurance company so you'll never have to be bothered with an officer coming out to speak with you.

and...foundation issues are ripe in the North Dallas area.....rare to see a home without significant issues, even if they're "fixed" temporarily. Tough to fix gumbo dirt.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by TeamLynn

I've lived in both general areas and now live in Coppell.
I would say live in Coppell.

One thing I told one of my buyers the other day is also think about city services when he asked if it was safe?
Call DPD and see if they show up, see if they send an officer or one of the new 700 uniformed unarmed report takers.
Call Coppell PD and probably 2 cars show up within 3 minutes or less.

Have a breakin in Coppell and PD probably sends a SWAT team to canvas the neighborhood, check 75% of the homes that have Ring and solve the crime within the week. Live in Dallas and they make it super easy on you to file an online report you can provide your insurance company so you'll never have to be bothered with an officer coming out to speak with you.

and...foundation issues are ripe in the North Dallas area.....rare to see a home without significant issues, even if they're "fixed" temporarily. Tough to fix gumbo dirt.

If you are going to play that game at least don't be silly about it.

1. "Rough" parts of urban centers drive crime rates in big cities to higher numbers than "burbs" in nearly all cases. No one is arguing that. However, we live in North Dallas and the picture you painted above is nonsense. DPD shows and shows quickly when serious crimes occur. They often won't respond to minor car wrecks but that's a different matter. I've lived a total of 33 years in Dallas and I've been a crime victim exactly 0 times here. A friend's car was "keyed" two weeks ago at night. DPD showed up promptly. No online report. No report taker.


2. Your line, "rare to see a home without significant issues" about North Dallas is somewhere between slander and dishonesty. There are three relatively small areas in North Dallas with significant foundation issues plus a number of pockets within neighborhoods etc.

Coppell has its share of foundation problems as well.

[turf3]

Originally Posted by EDS_

However, we live in North Dallas and the picture you painted above is nonsense. DPD shows and shows quickly when serious crimes occur. They often won't respond to minor car wrecks .

There's a HUGE difference between living at Park Lane and Fair Oaks, vs. living on Desco between Preston and Hillcrest.