Greenville, Texas and the Dallas area (Garland, McKinney: renting, custom home, neighborhoods) - (TX) - City-Data Forum

snipes · 02-15-2007, 03:44 AM

Hi,

I will soon be moving to Greenville for work and was wondering what the most suitable suburb to be in. I'm in my early 30s, married with a 2 year old boy. Is Greenville an ok town? Or is it worth living closer to Dallas, say Farmersville or Princeton?? or maybe even as far as McKinney? If so what would the commute be like from McKinney, etc to Greenville? I want a convenient safe suburb with shopping, entertainment and good schools, etc.

Any input anyone can provide would be much appreciated.

Cheers

Snipes

stargazer · 02-15-2007, 08:29 PM

Greenville is a pretty depressing town imo. My father use to work for the county there and I lived most summers with my dad growing up in my teenage years there. My youngest sibling has lived there for 11 years now and he is ok with it however it is economically depressed and the kids as he puts it are wild. His 16 yr old he guards like a hawk. I don't know if there is any new housing either, most of the homes are going to be Post WWII type of construction that has no foundations or beautiful old mansions that have been fixed up or in need of being fixed. The last time I went through Farmersville last, I did not see any new construction but was told that in a few years there will be some subdivisions popping up. Princeton now does have new construction but I have heard the schools are not funded well and teachers pay is low, which to some it could indicate new teachers without much experience.
I live in Mckinney and it has it's ups and downs however for the most part I love living here. I like the area we chose for schools. If you do choose Mckinney be sure to look into where the best elementary, middle and high schools are.

I like the fact I can go shopping just around the corner whether it be groceries or clothing. There is a small mall in Greenville but it really doesn't compare to the shopping we have over here. My brother actually likes to come over here to go shopping. Plus if you want to go to a major mall, Stonebriar is going to be the most close. It takes me about 20 minutes to get there depending on the traffic.
Mckinney to me compared to the other towns is going to be more progressive than the other areas you have mentioned. I hope that helps in some way. Good luck with your new job.

snipes · 02-15-2007, 11:02 PM

Thanks Stargazer, that's useful information.

What would the commute be like from McKinney to Greenville though? Would it be a 1 hour drive?

Any suggestions for other possible areas? I'm after a more affluent part of Dallas. How about Garland and Rockwall, what are those areas like? I would prefer the commute between my place of residence to work to be no more than 40 mins but I guess if there's no suitable areas closer to Greenville then I'm open to living further away.

KantLockeMeIn · 02-16-2007, 01:13 AM

McKinney would definitely be the most affluent area out of the ones you mentioned. If you look just a bit past McKinney on 380 out to Propser, there are some beautiful neighborhoods there as well.

Rockwall is a nice area, the commute on 30 headed East probably wouldn't be bad at all since it would be going against traffic. Like McKinney, you can get a small inexpensive home or a sprawling mansion in Rockwall.

UNT_Eagle · 02-16-2007, 07:05 AM

Hello,
You are probably looking at a 40 min. commute from McKinney to Greenville or vice versa.. Best route to take would be 380. They've been expanding it more and more out there. Hope that helps

momof2dfw · 02-16-2007, 07:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snipes

Thanks Stargazer, that's useful information.

What would the commute be like from McKinney to Greenville though? Would it be a 1 hour drive?

Any suggestions for other possible areas? I'm after a more affluent part of Dallas. How about Garland and Rockwall, what are those areas like? I would prefer the commute between my place of residence to work to be no more than 40 mins but I guess if there's no suitable areas closer to Greenville then I'm open to living further away.

Garland and Rockwall both have affluent areas. In Garland look around Firewheel. In Rockwall check out The Shores and Buffalo Creek. The commute from either of these are going to be MUCH better than from McKinney. You would be going against most of the traffic. In Garland in the Firewheel area you have EASY access to Hwy 190 aka George Bush Turnpike and soon it will connect w/ I30. The commute is still going to be close to 1 hour or little less depending on traffic. From Rockwall it will be less than an hour depending on how far away from I30 you live. Both of these areas are growing and expanding w/ new shops & restaurants opening. I've posted some pics of both Rockwall and Garland on here so if you use the search feature you should be able to find them.

socketz · 02-16-2007, 08:05 AM

You need to visit all the places mentioned. All are VERY different in many more ways than one and have lots of trade offs

If commute is your #1 priority, then Garland is your best bet.

stargazer · 02-16-2007, 01:59 PM

I can make it to my brothers home in about 40 minutes coming off of El Dorado to 75 to 380. It takes my brother 30 minutes, I guess by that estimation who drives the fastest LOL. To go to my brothers, I have to go through downtown and go through old neighborhoods. Depending on what part of town you will be working on, it will be more or less. 380 is not a bad drive but remember you would be crossing the lake that way. I always hated commutes with crossing lakes since I saw a rescue team trying to get a woman out of a truck who went into Lake Ray Hubbard going into Rockwall. That was December 15, 1989 and that date still stays with me. I won't ever forget it because she had drowned. If though these things don't bother you, I would try to live more in Mckinney or more direct east of Dallas. Maybe also look into from east Wylie to Nevada, they have some sprawling mansions that way for much less than some areas. I know a lady that lives in Nevada and she has told me about how nice some of the homes are. There are subdivisions going up that way and many are custom homes. Now I have not driven from Nevada or Wylie areas to Greenville but the map I looked at, it looks like it would be an ok drive because the distance is the same it looks from Farmersville which is just directly north. I think east of Lake Lavon is going to go to Rockwall schools or Community? or possible some to Wylie. I sure would love confirmation from those that live near there about that. I know more on this side of town to Greenville than there. Those areas there are going to be more out. I think the best thing to do is like socketz suggested, you need to come here and go to those areas. Get a feel for and see what you like. Good luck

snipes · 02-16-2007, 03:15 PM

Thanks everyone, that's all great and useful info.

I'm just initiating my planning right now but won't be moving until Jul-Aug...

Another thing I failed to mention was that our stay in Greenville will be no more than 4 years, hence we are not planning on buying. We will be renting.

Commute is a big priority so it seems from above that Garland may be the best bet, but yes I will be checking all these places out when I get there later this year.

HockeyDadof2 · 02-16-2007, 05:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snipes

Thanks everyone, that's all great and useful info.

I'm just initiating my planning right now but won't be moving until Jul-Aug...

Another thing I failed to mention was that our stay in Greenville will be no more than 4 years, hence we are not planning on buying. We will be renting.

Commute is a big priority so it seems from above that Garland may be the best bet, but yes I will be checking all these places out when I get there later this year.

The projected opening of the George Bush extension to IH30 is 2011. So that will be of little help to you. McKinney via 380 is probably going to be an easiest commute.