Moving in December =) (Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth: hardwood floors, rentals, countertops)

[FourFiftyFour]

I posted a similar question in the Dallas part, but I wanted to ask this part of the forum since I am looking kind of in both Dallas and Fort Worth... so please bear with me if you have seen me post before!

I am graduating in December and have a job already lined up to start the Monday after I graduate. I will be working off of Mountain Creek on the edge of Grand Prairie and Dallas. I do NOT want to live in that area though.

I want to live in a very very quiet and SAFE suburb area. I can not stand living in noisy places. I am not much on night life or any of that kind of social things..I am an outdoorsy person who wants to have a nice place to come home to. I do not have kids and will not be having kids so I am not worried about schools or being around a bunch of young kids playing in the streets. I will be working rotating shifts so part of the time I will be having to sleep during the day time so that is why I emphasize on quiet..

I am originally from south of Houston where I grew up in a more rural area- so that is what I am used to. I would have to drive anywhere from 50-70 miles on way for work sometimes down there. I do not have to live only 5 minutes away from work.

I have to be at work by 6 am on my day shifts, and on my night shifts I will have to be there by 6 pm, just a heads up for my commuting hours.

I am very big into my hobbies and I have dogs that I show in agility (very competitively). The places that have facilities for my training the dogs are in Burleson, Murphy, Prosper, McKinney, Addison, Wylie, and possibly Midlothian. If I do not get a place super close to any of these facilities..I would need to be able to find a rental with a lot big enough that I can put the equipment in the backyard.

I plan on coming up in the next 2-3 weeks to look at places available for rent that will be good with me, one other person, and having my pets and that will be a great area for me to start getting my feet underneath me. I am trying to pin point the certain areas I would prefer before going to look. I will be making decent money for a person starting out so I am not looking for super cheap, but of course I am looking within somewhat a reasonable price for a rental.

Any suggestions for me? Like I said I am looking at both Dallas and Fort Worth areas... I was considering Murphy and Wylie the most, but was getting bashed for being insane about the commute..so I am trying to consider all of my options...I know the southern side of DFW would be more logical, but I am not seeing as many suburbs that are what I really like as when I stayed in Grand Prairie and Arlington I was just very unhappy with those areas, but let me know what you think!

Thanks a bunch =)

[ChristieP]

Why did you start another post? We had given you lots of advice in the previous post.
//www.city-data.com/forum/dalla...ouse-pets.html

Those northern suburbs would be the commute from hell to GP. Take them off your list. Midlothian isn't perfect, but it will be a much easier commute.

[FourFiftyFour]

I was trying to get more options..I have looked into Irving, Euless, and Bedford (lots are not even close to being big enough) and still do not want to go there. I want to stay away from Desoto, Grand Prairie, Arlington, and am trying to get maybe the Fort Worth side of things just to see what they think of the suburbs on that side of things. Midlothian is not offering a whole lot and I am not finding many rentals there..I need OPTIONS that I actually want- not just people telling me I have to live in areas I do not want to even look at. I need SAFE (underline SAFE) and RURAL and QUIET.

I am trying to ask about southern suburbs that are not the ones that people kept pushing no matter what on the other thread.

I got bashed and called INSANE in the other post FOR POSTING WHAT I WAS HOPING FOR which were just suburbs on the north side, and was wanting to start fresh since people were so hell bent on one set of options...sheesh is everyone from DFW so uptight and its their way or the highway?

[ChristieP]

No, but the problem is that you are looking for things that don't exist here. We don't have big lots in town as you have discovered. And we keep telling you that an hour commute each way to work is going to seriously affect your quality of life and your budget. I don't know why you want to stay away from those areas. Yes, there are bad parts, but there are also good parts.

As you are discovering, rentals here are a really tight market. There are many people moving to the area, and they mostly want to rent first.

If you want rural, look at Cedar Hill, Mansfield, etc. to the south of the DFW metro. Waxahachie and Midlothian are both good options. You might consider contacting a Realtor to help with your search.

[Squirl]

Drive to the other side of Joe Pooole Lake and look around. Some beautiful areas. I just visited a couple -- he's a doctor --- at their lovely home in Cedar Hill. Some of that area is Cedar Hill, some is Dallas, some is Grand Prairie. Also look in Flower Mound if you want North. That is bad traffic, but a bit of a reverse commute. Look in Pantego, tho you probably win't find a rental there.


The way our cities' boundary lines are set, it's impossible to really profile a city in this area. You have to look at the actual communities and ignore the address. Especially as a tenant. The rental market here is tight. You have alreaded stereotyped Grand Prairie and Arlington but in each of those cities you will find communities well above your pay grade. I have long ago learned that you really just have to look. If you become aware of a rental house with a decent yard go look and ignore if it is in GP, ARL, Euless or any of the other places you have nixed. One of my friends lives on an acre lot right off 7th Street in Irving and has long ago gotten over people's reaction. It's an area that has a reputation of being rough, but it's really just modest homes -- some kind of neglected but most very tidy and many of the houses are downright charming. They have lived there 11 years and never have had a single incident of crime. I have always lived in pretty upscale areas and twice have had cars in my driveway broken into. I own five rent houses in very modest "starter" communities -- one that you would turn your nose up at -- each has outdoor motion lights, security window stickers, and locks on gates. Inside granite countertops and all new hard surface flooring. When I advertise my properties for rent I get so many inquiries in the first week, I have to kill my postings on zillow. Last time my one house in the Jackson Terrace section of Irving (which you would never find acceptable) posted, I had 184 inquiries in less than 3 days. It is a 1400 sq ft house with a 1/4 acre backyard with all new kitchen and baths with all hardwood floors in your budget....they signed a 2 year lease and were really wanting a 3 year lease. A "blue collar" neighborhood of 50 year old houses that you would hate.....just telling you all this so you are aware of the tight market.

Since you are willing to drive, just look North if that is what you find appealing. Most of us put such a premium on our off time, we don't want to be spending it driving...especially at the price of fuel and vehicle maintenance.

I am going to DM you some listings for rent that I believe might be a good compromise as far as your budget, neighborhood concerns and reasonable commute to the Mountain Creek area. I love looking thru listings and I know the area well. They might not be active for a December move in but will give you food for thought!

[FourFiftyFour]

Got the DM and I appreciate the new places to look at! This will help a lot!

[stanwood]

Originally Posted by FourFiftyFour

I got bashed and called INSANE in the other post FOR POSTING WHAT I WAS HOPING FOR which were just suburbs on the north side, and was wanting to start fresh since people were so hell bent on one set of options...sheesh is everyone from DFW so uptight and its their way or the highway?

Folks around here aren't anymore uptight that anywhere else. They're trying to help you. I just read the other post in the Dallas forum and you might be coming off sounding a little like a kid that's not listening to her parents and you're going to do what you want to do anyway.

You don't want a 50 mile 2 hour commute don't live in Wylie or Murphy. Period. You want a suburb/rural area then look south - Waxahachie, Midlothian, Burleson, etc. Suburban - Cedar Hill is nice. Parts of Grand Prairie and a lot of Arlington is nice. There are nice areas in all these towns but you're going to have to get out and look.

You just graduated. You're not entitled to your dream home. You have to work your way up like the rest of us. Sorry for sounding harsh.

[loves2read]

And there are times when what you want is not going to happen, for love nor money...

educate yourself and revise accordingly...