Moving from the DC Area to DFW (Dallas, Arlington: job market, transfer)

[DC2DFW]

Originally Posted by momof2dfw

See comments in Red below.






Since your moving here for the first time I HIGHLY ADVISE you to rent first. Sadly, these far out suburbs are seeing more of the slowdown in the real estate market than a lot of other areas. A lot of it has to do w/ the fact most are full of people that transfer job locations often and don't stay long. Throw in the fact that since housig is "so much cheaper" here they feel they can FINALLY buy a "brand new home" and so they tend to skip over the pre-existing homes. Therefore a lot of the pre-existing homes sit on the market a lot longer. Since the weather and everything else will be new to you........... rent first. This also gives you time to drive around and check out the ENTIRE metroplex and find an area that suits you as there are PLENTY of different areas.

Why, hello there Momof2DFW! Thanks for your post....I've come across some of your other posts in other DFW area threads. You seem very, very knowledgeable, and I THROUGHLY appreciate your weighing in and sharing your advice/tips. Yep, we definitely plan to rent first. We also don't have any issues with eventually buying an pre-existing home vs. a brand new one (my wife actually prefers the pre-existing homes then the newer stuff).

Again, thanks for your advice. I've enjoyed reading your posts elsewhere! This whole city-data.com thing has really been great and very helpful!

[DC2DFW]

Originally Posted by $DFW8$

We moved here from NYC 10 years ago and really like it here! Things are slower paced here and the people here actually will stop and say hello on the street instead of just storming by in a rush like what you will find on most NYC streets. But there is certain things that we do miss and of course our family and friends up there. We go back and visit a lot, and I am in NYC a lot for business trips, so it's not so bad.

Now one thing that is definitely going to throw you off when you move here is the weather! There is no consistency! One day it could be 40 degrees and windy and the next, it could be 75-80 degrees and sunny! That took us quite a while to get use to!

You would be surprised at how many people live here that are from the Northeast. We live in Frisco and our neighbors 2 houses down from us are from NYC, so that was neat.

I hope your move goes well and that you like it here as much as we do!

Thanks DFW8! And yes, I have noticed (via weather.com) how the weather in the DFW area has such wild fluctuations. The other way I try to look at it as how great it would have been to got at least ONE 65 degree day here in DC area this week!!! LOL!!!!

[DC2DFW]

Originally Posted by Big G

I agree on the advice to rent first, buy later.

In the Plano ISD, with some capacity limitations, and with a good excuse, you can send your kid to ANY of the schools in the district.

That means you could rent a house and get your son established in a school without being tied to that exact neighborhood.

When the time comes to buy, you could shop all over the school district, yet keep your boy in the same school. If your son doesn't deal with change well, that might be a good option.

We would prefer a single family home or a duplex to rent (because of the space), but some of the apts we've seen online are HUUUUUGE compared to the ones here in the DC area. I mean, 1500 sq ft or larger for an APARTMENT?? Some of your Apts even are 2 story levels! Plus, my wife seems to like some of the updated amenities/energy-efficient stuff in the Apts.

Can anyone recommend some nice apt communities in Plano? Especially any apts that are 2 story levels (townhomes) . . .

[DC2DFW]

Originally Posted by vseale

I just did a quick google search on autism dallas independent school district and was surprised to not get any good links. I did a search on richardson independent school district autism and found a couple good links. It may just mean DISD doesn't have a good website.
Hopefully, someone will jump on that's got firsthand info on autistic programs in the DISD and RISD.

I recommend looking at the following zip codes - 75214, 75218, 75231, 75225, 75238.

.

Thanks . . . the zip code info should come handy. Again, thanks!

[rondabart]

My husband and I may be transferred by Boeing to the area near the DFW airport, which we know nothing about. I think we would rather be headed toward the north east areas of Richardson and Plano! I have many relatives there and have liked those areas everytime I visited.

I would like to talk to a realtor about the DFW areas for good neighborhood recommendations, so put in a "friend request" to the one who responded in this chain.

[vseale]

Okay, now I have to admit I haven't taken advantage of a lot of the nifty extra features in this forum. What is a "friends request" and what are the instructions?

[loves2read]

rondabart--you don't need a realtor's advice to find out info about quality neighborhoods in DFW--just put a post out or do a search for some the towns/questions you have--
Frankly if your husband is going to be working near DFW (Tarrant/FTW side) I don't think you (he) would be happy with the commute each day from/to Richarson or Plano--while you might be going opposite of most traffic it would still be a long drive--probably 45 min at least each way--over some of the busiest roads in Metroplex...
close to DFW airport--and depending on your price point--check out Coppell, Grapevine, Colleyville, Southlake, Trophy Club, Flower Mound, Hurst, Bedford, North Richland Hills...the Las Colinas area might also be worth checking out
they have good schools for the most part, and a range of house prices--but some areas have older vs newer homes...
If you want a specific person to respond you don't need to make that person a friend request--just click on that member's name and send a PM--private message--or an email--
an email is forwarded to email address person gave and a PM is there for the next time that person visits the forum
Most people are happy to answer specific questions put to them...

[$DFW8$]

Originally Posted by rondabart

My husband and I may be transferred by Boeing to the area near the DFW airport, which we know nothing about. I think we would rather be headed toward the north east areas of Richardson and Plano! I have many relatives there and have liked those areas everytime I visited.

I would like to talk to a realtor about the DFW areas for good neighborhood recommendations, so put in a "friend request" to the one who responded in this chain.

I think Plano and Richardson would be perfect as these are both really good areas and plus, you would be right by relatives which is always good to have close by when you are moving to a new city.

What is your price range? Plano is one of the higher price range areas, but does also have just average homes with affordable prices. West Plano is the more upscale area of Plano. Plano and Richardson are both very nice areas that are well established and have very good schools. Plus they both have a ton of shopping and restaurants. Richardson is not as expensive as Plano and has very nice houses as well.

The commute from Richardson or Plano to DFW Airport would not be that bad. It would take around 35-40 minutes from each.

[loves2read]

think 40 min plus from Plano to DFW...and Richardson probably that much as well depending on how far you are from the freeway and what the traffic is like on a given day

I don't think many of these people actually drive the routes they are giving info for...
getting from Bedford to Galleria on 635 when it is not rush house will take 25-30 min easily...

[FarNorthDallas]

I am thinking commuting on George Bush to DFW woud be way faster (although more expensive) than commuting on 635/LBJ, when coming from Plano or Richardson.