Moving to Arlington for job, with 3 kids. looking for suburban area to live with great schools (Bedford: rentals, houses)

[AfWifeMovingSucks]

Hi! We will be moving to Arlington in 5 months & I need as much info as possible since we have never even been to Texas! Most importantly, I am looking for a family friendly, safe area to live. But since ive heard that traffic is horrible we would like to live as close as possible to my husbands job (on Matlock Rd, right across from Vandergriff Park) I have read other forums and learned that the best area would be the SW or NW of Arlington but im not sure which area would be best as far as traffic and my husbands commute. Also, a Great school distric is very important. We have one child going into 2nd grade and another that will be starting K while we are there. We will only be here for 3-4 years so High school is not an issue for us.
We will be renting a house and our budget is $1500/month max. ideally we would like a 4 bedroom and we have 2 dogs so pet friendly is a must.
Any other info would be great appreciated!

Thanks!

[WorldKlas]

Look in zip code 76016 or 76017 for homes that use Martin High School. It's a fine area with good schools. Make sure the high school is Martin because there are some areas within 76017 that are not served by Martin. All the elementary schools in the Martin attendance zone are good.

[ChristieP]

$1500 for a 3 bedroom house is going to be tough; 4 bedrooms even more so. How flexible is your budget?

[AfWifeMovingSucks]

we could go a little but higher with the budget but I have found a ton of 4 bedrooms all around Arlington for $1400-$1500 a month. Maybe these aren't great areas?

[AfWifeMovingSucks]

Originally Posted by WorldKlas

Look in zip code 76016 or 76017 for homes that use Martin High School. It's a fine area with good schools. Make sure the high school is Martin because there are some areas within 76017 that are not served by Martin. All the elementary schools in the Martin attendance zone are good.

how is the drive time from this area into Arlington?

[ChristieP]

Those areas are all in Arlington.
Be careful because many parts of Arlington are pretty sketchy, especially in the north and east sides. I'm betting that's where those inexpensive houses are...

You might also look in Euless. That's the town just north of Arlington. It's an easy drive down 157/Collins to your husband's job. The schools in that area are HEB ISD, which is generally better than Arlington ISD.

[AfWifeMovingSucks]

what is HEB isd?

& thank you, I will look into Euless. are there any other small towns outside of Arlington, that would a quick commute to his office?

[jbb303]

I would be interested in hearing where these sketchy areas of North Arlington are located? I consider north of I-30 "North Arlington" and there's very little in that area that I would call "sketchy". At least no sketchier than Euless. And you won't find any more rentals in Euless for that $1500 monthly budget than you will in Arlington.

[4Movingeast]

I think Butler and Ditto are often referenced as being desireable elementaries.

[naterator]

So 1500/mo may be tough in other parts of the metro, but as previously mentioned, 76016 and 76017 would definitely fit the bill. And it's a nice area. We lived in the area for 10 years, moved to Bedford, and liked it so much we moved back. Mature trees, wide streets, big lots, and safe. New mayor focusing on beautification, parks and infrastructure. Already yielding impressive results. May also check parts of old Mansfield, maybe 10-15 min away. Miller is also a decent elementary school that feeds Martin. Don't be fooled by those greatschools.com "reviews"...those results can be skewed by a few people, much like reviews on Yelp.