Owasso, Skiatook, Collinsville, Claremore or other northern suburb? (Tulsa, Broken Arrow: houses, neighborhood)

[jstrahn]

My wife is getting relocated to Tulsa for her job with Verizon so we're considering moving. Her office has a Tulsa address but is actually north just off of I-75...much closer to Owasso than Tulsa proper.

In looking at houses, Owasso looks to be a pretty nice area but we prefer to be out in the country if possible. If you were to pick an area north of Tulsa, where would you pick? Houses near Skiatook seem like they're just a tad cheaper. Is there a reason for that? Distance from Tulsa perhaps?

How is traffic north of Tulsa around Owasso? We've also looked at houses in Broken Arrow, Jenks and Bixby but it seems like traffic might be an issue since she would have to drive from the south or east side of Tulsa up through to the North.

In addition, we love boating and golf. What are some of the more affordable golf courses to acquire membership at? We're not looking for a country club, just a decent course with no need for pools or exercise rooms, etc.

For boating, I've heard Grand lake is pretty nice but how are some of the other lakes around for pleasure boating? Skiatook? Keystone? Oologah?

Any info/advice is appreciated. We're planning to make a trip down in the next couple weeks just to check things out and get a feel for the area.

[Goodpasture]

I would choose Owasso. Modern city with all the big box stores and restaurants, easy commute to Tulsa for concerts and casinos, easy access to Oolagah, Skiatook, and Keystone lakes. Moderate commutes to Hudson, Grand and Ft Gibson lakes. There are several courses that are pretty new in the area.....I don't do golf so I have no idea as to quality, but I can't imagine someone designing and building a pos in a competitive market. If you want woodlands and hills, Osage County by Skiatook would be best.

[flyingcat2k]

I would second Owasso. The school district is pretty decent and the golfing is too. Grand Lake is overrun with flashy Nuevo-riche. Fort Gibson or Keysone are better to me but I think that's because the crowds are more for the average person. The swankier golf courses are around BA and Bixby but you can always drive to them if need be.

[Bass&Catfish2008]

Of the towns you listed I'd go with Owasso (pronounced as "Oh-Wass-uh" by the Old Timers) and then Claremore. Beautiful areas with incredible lakes.

Welcome to the Great STATE of Oklahoma!

[Wyllyam]

We live in Owasso, but noting what you said about being in a more rural area, also consider Collinsville. We know a lot of people who wanted more property who have moved there recently. It's adjacent to Owasso to the north, and is right next to Oolagah on the east. It's kind of tough to get space in the Owasso city limits right now from what I found, but a good realtor may be able to prove me quite incorrect.

[Wyllyam]

Oh, I forgot to answer your other questions. All, and I mean ALL of the traffic in Owasso is centered on the retail district from 96th to 76th North and South and 169 on the east, and Garnett road on the west. Also, 169 has not been widened yet all the way into Tulsa, so it's a bit of a plug during rush hours.
Now, the good news if you don't like traffic, the 76th street run out to highway 75 where her office will be is almost traffic-free most of the time. So, if you're headed from Owasso out to her work, it's not too bad. Don't do like I did however and make this exact drive at 8 each morning in front of the High School! Doh!

I grew up on these lakes, but haven't had the time or money to go boating since I moved back. I'll let someone with more recent knowledge comment.

Check out Hillcrest in Bartlesville if you get the chance. Not a bad drive, and one of the prettiest golf courses in the state.

[19hsm]

You didn't mention kids so im assuming schools aren't a huge issue, skiatook is a smaller school district so its also cheaper. It also depends on what your looking for in a house and neighborhood too (I.e. HOA). Land is hard to come by here in owasso. I just moved back to the Tulsa area but now I have kids. So schools are a consideration for us therefore many areas in creek county are out just because the better school districts for what we need are jenks, owasso, bixby, etc. Jenks would not be a bad commute but BA I would say would be out. Also, commute is relative. I'm from back east so I used to drive 10 miles to work and it take me well over 30 mins. Our tolerance for commute is about 45 mins with a nice house and land. Also depends on her working hours so if he would work earlier than less traffic, etc.

Best of luck in your search. You have lots of options.

[jstrahn]

Thank you all for the helpful information. Just to reply to my own thread and update a bit...

Wife accepted an offer and we're moving to the Tulsa area by end of October. We drove down this weekend and went house hunting and checked out the area.

We fell in love with the Osage Hills area around Skiatook Lake. Reminds me of the Ozarks...just beautiful. We didn't find the drive through Skiatook on 20 and down I75 to be that bad at all. I'm sure 20 gets a bit congested in the mornings and afternoons but there may even be some country roads south of 20 that get you out to 75 we don't know about.

We've found a couple houses and will be putting an offer in soon. Now the big thing is finding a golf course. Holy crap it's a lot harder than we thought it would be. Finding one that is semi-private that allows personal carts and is within 30 minutes of Skiatook is not easy. If anyone has suggestions, I'm all ears.

[swake]

If you don't find what you want in Owasso, did you Tulsa Country Club just west of downtown?