Moving to Dallas area from New England with young kids (sales, 2014)

[Katana49]

Originally Posted by JadeT

Hi everyone,

My husband and I want to move to Plano from the Boston area hopefully sometime before Fall this year. We have 2 young kids and our oldest can start going to pre school by this fall. I know I know, some might say " you and everybody else in the country want to move to TX at the same time" or "you pick the wrong time to move" but we actually have looked into moving 3 yrs ago when my husband visited Plano for a business trip and loved the vibe in Plano. We've been wanting to move down South since we hate the long dark winter days in New England. But the plan to move was put on hold because of pandemic and I gave birth to our youngest.

We've set our hearts on Plano but it has been impossible. Lost several houses already on the crazy bidding wars. We initially wanted new construction just because that would be the most convenient for this stage in our life with young kids and not have to worry about immediate house reno/projects but there are hardly any new construction in Plano anymore. Don't need a huge house, maybe max 3,000-3,200 sq ft with a good enough backyard for kids to play in and hoping max $550k and ideally dont want to wait for a build and would love a quick move in or constructed house already. A couple years older is also ok if there are not a lot of things to be done in the house or a completely renovated older home.

My husband works mainly from home but def need access to DFW for future business trips and family travels. I work in healthcare but not currently at this time, might go back in a few years so it would be nice to be near some good reputable hospitals. We love Plano because of the highly rated public schools, family friendly community and access to all kinds of restaurant and asian grocery stores (Hmart, 99 ranch, Mitsuwa). We looked into Allen and Frisco but weve ruled out Frisco for now because of all the things I read here about one minority overwhelming new construction communities and schools. We do want a well diverse community and schools for our kids to grow up in (for reference our heritage is Filipino-Singaporean mix). Allen seems to be great but I'm not sure if they paused new construction there because of all the shortage of materials. We haven't seen any listings of new houses in the area.

Are there any other towns we should be looking at that we might be overlooking? We did a quick exploratory trip last year to Plano and Allen but didnt have time to visit other towns. My husband mentioned Flower Mound or Sunnyvale but not sure about diversity in those towns. How about Carrolton? McKinney and Prosper seems to be too far out. Any input? We keep praying we can still get into Plano but maybe we should also widen our search area. Hoping to pull some great input from the knowledgable pool of minds that is city data forum and absolutely appreciate any advice you guys can offer us. Many thanks!!!

OP, if you want to get into Plano, (or any of the other suburbs right now) you do really need to be here. I honestly can't remember a time in the last 30 years where the market has been so tight. We all thought that 2014/2015 was bad, we had a ton of companies relocating here, prices were surging, and there was a huge influx of new people, but that was a pleasant, calm market compared to today.


Come and find a place to rent for 3-6 months while you search. I'd suggest somewhere along 121... that would put you in the middle of Plano, Allen, McKinney, and Frisco. As far as Plano goes, I grew up there. It has a lot going for it, certainly, and it's in the middle of seemingly everything, and not far from Dallas proper. But I chose not to live there now, as traffic was worse than I was willing to put up with. You may have a higher tolerance for such things being from Boston. I also decided that I wanted to live in an area with an HOA... I'd seen neighborhoods with no HOA decline when the original owners leave and subsequent owners failed to keep up their homes. Plano (and Allen) have a lot of areas with no HOA, so keep that in mind as you search, and pay attention to the neighborhood and you can see whether the owners are maintaining their homes with no HOA oversight. Frisco and McKinney are a bit better in this regard, as the housing stock is newer.



I wouldn't worry too much about not getting a new home, wherever you may end up. In Plano for example, I would expect an updated home in your price range, and I think you can find a 3k+ sq ft home for your budget... if you are able to move quickly when you do. That's not going to be possible unless you are physically here.

[texstout]

Since your oldest in just starting pre-school, you won't need to worry about getting into a certain school by its start date in mid-August. That gives you a lot of flexibility. I'd get a short-term rental and spend your time getting to know the area and really find a house you'll love.

[Rakin]

Originally Posted by EDS_

We used to live in Deerfield (Plano)................maybe 15 years ago a full-on scum bag wormed his way into a temporarily vacant house, he instantly began running guns and cooking meth.

By the time the PPD and the feds took the guy down the inside of the house reeked of gun oil, bore cleaner/carb cleaner and the walls had been penetrated with DMEA and other bits so nasty the house had to be gutted.

Part of the TX TREC Disclosure now includes whether Meth has been cooked in a house. Apparently it leaves enough toxic residue, the homes have to be gutted or (I assume) cleaned like they do for Black Mold.

The smell or presence of Black Mold (although rare) is another hazard you can't see from just photos on the internet.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by Rakin

Part of the TX TREC Disclosure now includes whether Meth has been cooked in a house. Apparently it leaves enough toxic residue, the homes have to be gutted or (I assume) cleaned like they do for Black Mold.

The smell or presence of Black Mold (although rare) is another hazard you can't see from just photos on the internet.

Good info. thanks. Deerfield called in an environmental engineer who directed that he house be stripped to the studs and slab and then cleaned and then rebuilt. To their credit they did it right.

[4Movingeast]

Originally Posted by Rakin

You've never been in.....
1. A heavy smokers house,
2. A Catladies house (or dog) with 14 cats who's urination has penetrated the carpets, grout and saturated into the concrete subfloor or
3. A vacant home where the smell of Curry / other spices have penetrated the walls and still strong 3 months after new paint and carpet.

Not every house has a strong smell but these 3 circumstances will penetrate into walls, tile, wood, flooring and the whole house where it can take extreme measures to get rid of the odors.

I've seen all 3 many times.

OK I stand corrected. And admittedly my sample size is smaller than yours as you are in the biz. Thankful I've never had to deal with that.

[JadeT]

Thanks everyone for the helpful insight. We actually have thought of renting out first but of course that is not our first choice as I really do not want to have to move twice in a short period of time but as many of you have pointed out, that may be the best thing to do at this time. Also, when we visited Plano and Allen last year we were so dead set on getting a new construction and that trip was just to make sure we liked the neighborhood those new houses are in. So we had no problem with putting in an offer long distance on a brand new house esp we planned to have a 3rd party inspector do inspection also. We didnt expect that we will end up looking at the used houses market at all and be part of the crazy bidding wars. We do thorough research about a property before we put an offer though, we look at past owners, flooding zones, of course the seller's disclosure etc and even use special satellite imaging from my husband's job to look at the property and surrounding area. But you guys brought up a very strong point about SMELL. Change of tactic seems to be needed for our situation.

[Grapevine Guru]

Renting certainly has advantages, especially because with the sheer size of the DFW area, there are many nice places and neighborhoods that you will discover only gradually and over time. So, having a chance to explore the area is a substantial advantage for you in finding the best fit for you. Having said this, you also need to balance your other considerations and whether you are OK with waiting to see how the market develops. Most likely, the seller's market will at least soften, if not flatten completely, at some point. But this is completely out of your control. So, if you find an area that you visit and find very appealing, and a house hits the market in your price range, things might work out for you without needing to rent. Just come up with a plan and follow it, whichever way you decide to go. I moved here and rented in Grapevine for a year, which caused me to look in North Grapevine, Flower Mound, Coppell, Colleyville, and Las Colinas -- all wonderful areas with houses that I liked and did not like. We ended up buying in North Grapevine and could not be happier -- you just never know. Lots of excellent options here in your price range, but if you decide to buy now, be prepared to be aggressive for the right house.

[tcualum]

If you don't want to fully move twice, I would put most of your stuff into a Pod and take to the rental only what you absolutely need. That's what a friend of mine did who moved here from Midland (West Texas).

[peaches1435]

If you're still interested in new construction, home construction is picking up in North Texas. In fact, it set a record for the first 3 months of 2021. This is expected to continue.

The downside is that construction is taking longer, about 6 months to complete a house, as opposed to the typical 3-4 months.

I agree with the advice to make the move, but plan on renting at first. Become familiar with the area. There are so many suburbs, with good schools and reasonably close to DFW airport. I don't think you'll be disappointed with North Texas; it's a great place to raise a family.

[iamgeah]

Steer clear of building with Shaddock Homes. They will happily take your large sum of money for a deposit and then either offer a refund unless you agree to pay a higher price, or languish in delaying building the home for many, many months with zero updates and communication. It would have been easier to simply buy an existing home and make some renovations (yes, even in this crazy market that would have been the easier, cheaper, and less frustrating route).