Returning to East Texas with family (Houston, Dallas: for sale, real estate, broker)

[RedRi9htHand]

Hi. After seventeen years living in suburbia outside of Austin, we are ready for a new chapter in life and have chosen the Tyler area for our new home. Having grown up in Nacogdoches and lived in Dallas, Houston, and Austin, I strongly believe it would be healthy for our two school-age children to experience small town/country living. Indeed, I've been wishing for a long time to find my Mayberry, USA where my family can slow down and enjoy a more peaceful- dare I say, Traditional- way of life.

The idea is that we find a small town near enough to Tyler to commute 20 or 30 minutes at the most. We have just started shopping for a home with small acreage where we can have a nice big garden, a few animals, and ample space so that kids can find things to do outdoors. (I am giddy with excitement at the prospect of being able to fish, hunt, and camp again, too)!

Our children have been fortunate to have attended an Exemplary-rated elementary school where they both have been enrolled in the "gifted" program (TAG). They are doing great, and I've promised my wife that this plan for the future won't be at the expense of our kids' formal education, and we cannot afford private school at this time. From what I gather from online reviews, the best schools are in Lindale and Whitehouse.

We recently explored all around Tyler and were particularly charmed by Mineola. To anybody who can share advice or personal experiences, I would ask the following:

1. How far outside of Tyler could one live and have a 30 minute or less commute? Is Mineola too far?

2. Has anyone found a way to send their children to Lindale ISD even though they live in another district? I emailed the school a couple days ago and have not received a response.

Thanks in advance!

[Metro Matt]

Originally Posted by RedRi9htHand

Hi. After seventeen years living in suburbia outside of Austin, we are ready for a new chapter in life and have chosen the Tyler area for our new home. Having grown up in Nacogdoches and lived in Dallas, Houston, and Austin, I strongly believe it would be healthy for our two school-age children to experience small town/country living. Indeed, I've been wishing for a long time to find my Mayberry, USA where my family can slow down and enjoy a more peaceful- dare I say, Traditional- way of life.

The idea is that we find a small town near enough to Tyler to commute 20 or 30 minutes at the most. We have just started shopping for a home with small acreage where we can have a nice big garden, a few animals, and ample space so that kids can find things to do outdoors. (I am giddy with excitement at the prospect of being able to fish, hunt, and camp again, too)!

Our children have been fortunate to have attended an Exemplary-rated elementary school where they both have been enrolled in the "gifted" program (TAG). They are doing great, and I've promised my wife that this plan for the future won't be at the expense of our kids' formal education, and we cannot afford private school at this time. From what I gather from online reviews, the best schools are in Lindale and Whitehouse.

We recently explored all around Tyler and were particularly charmed by Mineola. To anybody who can share advice or personal experiences, I would ask the following:

1. How far outside of Tyler could one live and have a 30 minute or less commute? Is Mineola too far?

2. Has anyone found a way to send their children to Lindale ISD even though they live in another district? I emailed the school a couple days ago and have not received a response.

Thanks in advance!

Yes

How about Lindale? Its kinda between both & growing like crazy. Easy access to Dallas & Shreveport on I-20.

Mineola is 30 minutes from Tyler (downtown not South Tyler) but it feels like its twice that far because its nothing but stop lights & country road separating them.

[RedRi9htHand]

Thanks for the reply and yes, we are probably going to need to focus on Lindale mainly because of its schools' good reputation. We just liked the town of Mineola better and there seem to be more properties outside subdivisions for sale there at this time.

I wonder if there will be road improvements into Tyler with Lindale's growth. Does the Tollway help? Country roads sound far more appealing than sitting in Austin traffic with nothing outside the window but generic shopping centers, parking lots, and production housing.

[An0nym0us88]

Originally Posted by RedRi9htHand

I wonder if there will be road improvements into Tyler with Lindale's growth. Does the Tollway help? Country roads sound far more appealing than sitting in Austin traffic with nothing outside the window but generic shopping centers, parking lots, and production housing.

If you live around Hideway then Toll 49 will be very helpful, if you're heading for Tyler. Other than that, it's a straight shot to Tyler on U.S. 69. However, there are a lot of traffic on that road. As far as I know, there probably won't be any road improvements into Tyler from Lindale right now.

[Metro Matt]

Originally Posted by RedRi9htHand

Thanks for the reply and yes, we are probably going to need to focus on Lindale mainly because of its schools' good reputation. We just liked the town of Mineola better and there seem to be more properties outside subdivisions for sale there at this time.

I wonder if there will be road improvements into Tyler with Lindale's growth. Does the Tollway help? Country roads sound far more appealing than sitting in Austin traffic with nothing outside the window but generic shopping centers, parking lots, and production housing.

Very much so.

I don't foresee 69 through Tyler being upgraded anytime soon even though it needs to be. This is where Tyler really messed up. It developed too far south of the interstate instead of right on the interstate like Lindale & Longview.

[RedRi9htHand]

This is the stuff we need to know- thanks guys.

Anyone had experience with the school system in Lindale, Whitehouse, or others surrounding Tyler?

[Mark Senior]

Myabe too late to put in my "two cents worth". The country road referred to here is the four lane divided Hi.69 except in Lindale itself it is four lanes, not divided, most of the lights are in Lindale.No lights North out of Lindale until you get Mineola, and only one from I20 South to the Loop in Tyler.

Many highly rated private schools in Tyler: All Saints, T.K. Gorman, Grace Community, Cumberland Academy, several others.

You may want to consider farther down into South Tyler, huge development just North of Toll 49 for specialty type and smaller box stores, being developed by a Dallas, Corp. very similar to something in Arlington. This can be found in one of the threads on Tyler. Also, much development South of Loop 323 on Old Jacksonville Highway, actually being called by some as the ""New South Broadway" because of the extensive development, there you can find Fresh Grocery, which compares favorably to Central Market in DFW and another, can't remember the name, comparison shared with me by several folks from DFW Area. Good Luck, whatever you do.

[RedRi9htHand]

Thank you for replying, Mark. We are still in the research phase and after reading everything on this forum that relates to our search, I am more unsure than before about what we should do. I now understand that Mineola is going to be too far of a commute, should I find employment in Tyler, so we are indeed looking at areas south of the city.

Unfortunately, we are unable to consider private schools at this point, so our main consideration is getting our 5 and 10 year olds in good schools with "gifted" programs. Since I want to live in the country on a few acres of land, it appears that we are limited to looking at Lindale and Whitehouse. If anyone has any other towns to suggest, we would be eager to hear.

I've heard that Van, Tx has very good schools. Would living there and working in Tyler be feasable?

Again, we are hoping to find a new home in a quiet, "Mayberry, USA" type town. We've lived in Round Rock, TX for the past 16 years and have had our fill of big box stores, chain restaurants and production housing. I do like the sound of Fresh Grocery, though. In fact, we drive 20 minutes into Austin every Sunday to shop at Central Market and are fine with paying an extra $50 for better quality meat and produce.

Finally, I've read that you (Mark) were a real estate broker in Tyler. Would you be able to recommend us a broker who will be eager to help us? I'm not impressed with the one agency that bothered to return my call. Feel free to PM me.

[KathrynAragon]

My husband and I are moving back to Tyler from the Longview area. Now - we don't have kids in school, but we do want good schools in the area for resale value.

We found a home in Chandler and we're under contract now. Chandler Elementary School has EXCELLENT ratings. The Brownsboro school district has above state average ratings. The town of Chandler is ten minutes from Tyler's southwest loop, where tons of development is happening. It's a beautiful bedroom community. It's also about ten minutes from Tyler's airport if that means anything to you (it does for us).

I had never even considered Chandler till we finally drove out there one day and were totally charmed. Like Mark Senior pointed out, south Tyler (and I will add west Tyler to that) is growing like crazy.

Chandler has a quiet, rural feel to it - literally one red light in the town - but like I said, it's ten minutes from Tyler. So I like that. It's also FIVE MINUTES from Lake Palestine, and a boat ramp! My husband REALLY likes that. Lake Palestine is a beautiful, huge lake. It's also close to Edom - one of my favorite little Texas towns (Edom is an artist enclave, and it is also home to Blue Moon Nursery, which is a fabulous place for plants and landscaping ideas). Oh, and it's close to I-20 and easy access to Dallas and Canton and all sorts of fun stuff.

I absolutely LOVE the Fresh market in Tyler. It's as nice as Central Market or Whole Foods and I have been driving there to do my shopping since it opened (a forty minute drive), so it will be nice to only drive fifteen minutes now! I can't wait!

Chandler Elementary School - Chandler, Texas - TX - School overview

Brownsboro Independent School District in Brownsboro, TX | GreatSchools

Food for thought. Oh - another positive - average housing prices are $5-10 less per square foot than in Tyler's more desirable neighborhoods, and there are several beautiful neighborhoods in Chandler to choose from, in several price ranges. And the surrounding countryside is BEAUTIFUL.

[RedRi9htHand]

Thank you for the tip, Kathryn. We had overlooked Chandler and Brownsboro and they definitely fit the bill for us and I LOVE the location right on Lake Palastine. (I am a fisherman, too).

Not seeing a property match atm, but I can't wait to take the familyl and check out Chandler when something does get listed. Cheers!