Relocating to Fort Worth (Keller, Watauga: for sale, real estate, foreclosure)

[RJParker]

I got a job in Fort Worth and will be relocating to Fort Worth from out of state around late September.

I'm looking to buy a starter home. I heard Keller is a good place and some of the homes are really affordable. We have a school age kid (7 years old).

Does anyone have any advice about buying a home in Keller or north Fort Worth?

Any part of the town I should avoid?

I really appreciate if anyone from the area can give me some pointers.

[SafetyGuy]

Where will your job be located? Traffic will be a big factor, especially how long you are willing to commute...

[RJParker]

Thanks for your reply.
My work will be close to 35W but north of 820. So I figured Keller wouldn't be that bad in terms of commuting (wife doesn't work).

[ChristieP]

What's your budget for that "starter" home?

If your job is north of 820, then Keller, Watauga, Saginaw, and north Fort Worth will be great locations.

[RJParker]

Somewhere around between 100-150k for a three bedroom house.
I don't want to have to deal with old houses with problems. Hopefully it will be within 10 years old.

Neighborhood is more important than size of the house given the budget.

[ChristieP]

Your budget is likely too low unless you want an older home or a "fixer upper" that needs work. If you want a newer move-in ready house in a nice neghborhood, I would look at spending at least $175.

[RJParker]

Thank you. From Zillow, it looks like zip code 76244 has lots of 3-BR homes for sale between 100k to 150k. Most of them are around 1500 sqft and 1-story. Do you know if that part of town (76244) is safe?

[loves2read]

Zillow has no clout in TX
Zillow gets its info from PUBLIC sales data in other states where buyers are legally required to turn over documentation of the purchase price of the home to the taxing entities affected---

that info is considered private in TX by state law and real estate agents/buyers are not required to turn over any purchase price info
what Zillow is using is worthless because there is no telling where the data come from...

[loves2read]

Real Estate Property Data

This house is listed on Realtor.com as in that zip code--note that realtor.com has the address as KELLER--but if you check the TAD.org data you see that the house is in FTW city limits and Keller ISD--

exactly the situation I referred to in that PM I sent you yesterday
it is also a foreclosure--
if you look at the neighborhood/subdivision info on TAD for that area you can see the homeowners of record
note how many are still owned by the developer/builder vs an individual
there are over 300 homes/lots in that neighborhood--with many vacant lots to build--
not some place I would recommend anyone look for a home really because I see no upside for home values to increase and lots of room for downside problems

http://www.tad.org/Datasearch/geo.cfm

According to Realtor.com 264 homes in that zip code are showing a "reduced" MLS price--out of the 500 or so listed for sale--
not all of those are in your price range of course--but just giving you perspective about what is going on in that area

76244 Real Estate - 76244 Homes for Sale in Keller, TX - Realtor.com®

I would say you are better served by looking in 76248 zip or town like Roanoke
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...265?source=web
that house is supposedly in "old town" Roanoke which is seeing lot of growth with new restaurants in the historic area--I would think with the growth of Alliance Center in that area that a home in Roanoke with have more upside than the FTW side of Keller

basically what you need to do is find a LOCAL real estate agent who knows the area and can give you some sound advice--

rental homes are kind of hit/miss right now with school coming up--finding one in right area, right price point can be difficult because good ones go quickly
lot of people in your situation--moving to this area with new job from out of state often are looking to rent for 6 mo to year to see what they like/don't like and buy accordingly
with the market so screwed up lately have no idea what interest rates might be in a year though so waiting/not waiting--that is definitely up to you

[Tigerlily64]

We moved to the 76244 zip code area 5 months ago as I was relocated by my company from the UK to Downtown Fort Worth. We chose to rent first to see what the area in general was like. Heritage is a great location although house prices a little more than you want to spend right now, Crawford Farms also has some nice homes and cheaper. The Alliance Town Center shopping area is very handy and overall we like this area a lot. It is quiet, friendly, seems to be very safe and the schools are apparently very good. Zip code 76244 comes under Keller although the services etc are actually north Fort Worth and some people seem to think that there is a stigma attached to it being north Fort Worth rather than Keller and will go to great lengths to tell you that if you want Keller "proper" then you need to look at 76248 zip. Personally having now lived here and with friends in both zips I really don't know what all the fuss is about when it comes to whether you live in the "real" Keller or not! What matters to us is a nice home, good safe neighborhood, access to shopping and travel routes and not the zip code that letters are addressed to - but that is us!