Posted on 09/09/2012 1:27:37 PM PDT by Cementjungle
A year ago my MIL passed away in Los Angeles, and my wife and I have been here in LA dealing with the estate issues. Our home in WA is leased out, and we're about to put my MIL's Los Angeles house on the market.
We want to get out of L.A., and since my wife never adjusted to the rain of the Pacific Northwest, we're looking for a new place to live that doesn't have 9 months a year of dreary rain. Texas seems to fit the bill for weather (we plan to have a pool), and is more our style politically.
We have a trip planned in a couple of weeks to visit Dallas and do some house hunting.
It looks like the Carrollton/Frisco/Richardson areas of Dallas might fit the bill... nice homes in our price range, near the DFW airport (we like to travel). We're empty-nesters, so we're not concerned with school issues.
Does anyone in that area have any comments on living there? Are there plenty of good restaurants, shopping, etc.?
Any feedback would be appreciated!!!
When the SHTF and it will very soon, L.A. is the last place you want to live.
The area you mention is a good one. Be sure and stay out of Dallas City Limits. Garland, next to Richardson, is also nice and I lived there at one time years ago.
But if your coming to Texas please leave your West Coast ways behind. And you'd better get used to the heat (our 4 seasons consist of Almost-Summer, Summer, Still-Summer and Hunt’n) and to driving 40 to 60 miles just to get to where you want go for just about anything.
btw, I am a Los Angeles refugee — came here a year ago next month.
I love it — the hear is a little tough but that is why God made A/C.
I meant “heat” not “hear.”
Nobody has mentioned dangerous mosquitoes nor in which areas they exist. And best sites to avoid.
Of the ones you mention, Frisco is your best bet. A good rule of thumb is to stay between US75 Central and the Dallas North Tollway. You can find decent housing all the way from downtown Dallas to US 380 doing that. Sam Rayburn tollway and George Bush Tollway give good access from the far north suburbs to DFW. The Dallas North Tollway will get you to Love.
Someone upthread mentioned the Park Cities - great if you are looking in the $1-4 million range; otherwise, go to Collin County.
And if you work downtown, Plano might be your best bet - you can ride the train in if you don’t want to drive. But Plano’s better neighborhoods tend to be in the newer areas away from the rail line.
Someone suggested Cedar Hill - they must have been pulling your leg. Stay away from the area south of the river - even if you are of an appropriate minority for the area. As for Richardson - large chunks of the area are Asian, but as they move upscale, they are migrating to Plano. So if you are looking for Asian food, you might as well move up one ring of suburbs.
As most of the posters have mentioned, Dallas itself is not really a good choice. North/northeast is a much better option. I’ve been in Murphy (east of Plano) for about 13 years now. Not a bad town, very quiet. Wylie (bit farther northeast) is also a good city. I have also heard some pretty good stuff about Rockwall from the couple friends I know there. If you look at Plano, definitely look more at west then east Plano. Much Nicer. Going farther north, Frisco/McKinney/Allen aren’t too bad, all relatively young cities that have been booming recently.
DFW Airport is currently undergoing some major construction on the north entrance/635/121/114/etc, and can be VERY confusing for some people. I don’t have much trouble with it, but the signage is pretty terrible, especially if you don’t know the current area. Construction is supposed to go through 2014. Just so you’re aware.
635 is undergoing a ton of construction from 75 to 35 for the next several years. It is a terrible route, especially during rush hours. If you’re in Garland/Richardson areas, your commute to DFW isn’t gonna be fun. Once you hit Plano/Wylie/NE areas, you have an easy route via G Bush, although it is a toll road. Additionally, Frisco/Allen/Northern cities have 121/Dallas North Tollway giving easy access, but also tolls. Its not too bad, but if you drive it alot/don’t like toll roads, you may want to stick to something closer to the airport, like Grapevine/Lewisville/Grand Prairie/west of DFW.
For good dining, every city has a couple good places (and when you move here I can give you a good long list of places to try all over), but the biggest restaurant area is easily Addison. This is basically the Tollway and Belt Line, so it has pretty easy access from most of the N/NE area.
Any further/more specific questions?
I have lived in the north Garland area. Yes, there are tons of restaurants and shopping. But, if I were you I would consider Eastern WA, (Tri Cities) which has the lowest car and homeowners insurance I have ever seen, (Tex, LA, PA, WA, NH), and among the lowest property tax bills outside of Louisiana. Never rains here and there are tons of conservatives. No income tax and you can do your tax free shopping in nearby Oregon.
>>Nobody has mentioned dangerous mosquitoes nor in which areas they exist. And best sites to avoid.<<
A Texas mosquito can be usually be taken out with a single shotgun blast. Rarely have I needed 2.
For me, Dallas was too windy. I prefer Houston.
Congrats. Texas is a great place to live. I live in West Texas but can understand the desire to move to Dallas area. My son lived in Grapevine. It is a nice area close to airport. Has a quaint downtown that makes you feel like it is small town USA but close to everything. If you are not dead set on Dallas, check Hill Country. Closest airport would be San Antonio or Austin. Texas is best place to live IMHO or Edmund,Ok
Since your wife and you are empty nesters, let me give you a consolidated view of the greater DFW metroplex (an area of 100 x 100 miles).
Overall, the further away you are from the core of Downtown Dallas, the nicer it is. East, West, North, South, you will find great communities like Weatherford, Justin, Argyle, Denton, Sherman, Prosper that are very nice and “country” and pure old fashioned Americana.
However, as I mentioned, the commute to DFW Airport will be atleast an hour each way.
So, now what about cities next to DFW Airport. You have Southlake, the Queen of DFW. The city is very wealthy, orderly, Republican and has an identity of its own, thanks to its downtown and its citizens who have created festivals and fairs etc. However, as another poster pointed out, it is also quite expensive and the homes are large, which any empty nester may want to avoid.
Let us then talk about Grapevine. Historical city with a downtown that goes back to the 1880s. Wineries in town. Main Street festivals that rock. Great public libraries. Lots of smaller homes near downtown that are affordable and easy to maintain and you are FIVE minutes.. yes FIVE.. from the Airport. What is the downside? They allow apartments in the city and thus do have some crappy apartment complexes on Mustang Road that should be avoided. So, dont buy a house anywhere on Mustang Road
Coppell is another wealthy community like Southlake. Also, only 10 minutes from the Airport. However, Coppell, unlike Southlake, does have smaller homes that are perfect for the empty nester. Worth considering
North Richland Hills, Euless, Hurst and Bedford. All bedroom communities within 10 minutes of the airport. Each has an “older” population base. Each of them have beautiful older homes and smaller homes. The downside is that each of them also have a few run down neighborhoods. Be careful.
Trophy Club. Probably a great fit for you. Just up the road from DFW on Hwy 114. This community has many smaller homes, a golf club and just is a great haven for retirees and downsizers. Physically adjacent to Southlake, so that you have an easy access to everything Southlake
Keller. Another city that bumps up to Southlake. Very historic with a nice downtown. Lots of smaller houses. Great community spirit. The only downside is that it is a good 25 minutes from the Airport as it has no real highway access from most of the town
Flower Mound. Nice City. Lakefront property available. Nice mix of residences and access to restaurants as well as Grapevine Mall. Unfortunately most of Flower Mound suffers from the same problem as Keller. Lack of access to Highways. From certain points in town, it takes 25 minutes to reach the Freeway
Colleyville. The hidden jewel. Often considered a twin of Southlake, it has a country feel and is very conservative. Lots of big impressive homes. However...however... unlike Southlake, you can still find some smaller homes that are perfect for empty nesters
Hope this helps!
God Bless!
And the most expensive real estate per square foot in all of North Texas (outside of Dallas proper). Wouldn't we all love to live there.
I'm more or less a native Angeleno (lived there nearly 50 years). I've been trying to tell my 31 year old son to keep a bug out bag packed, because L.A.'s going to melt down in the not-too-distant future.
I can't get him to consider moving to Texas (he loves L.A.). He's in San Pedro now, and won't budge. Kids....what are you going to do?
Gee, I’m in Washington State and we’ve had only 6.3 inches in the last 12 months — hardly 9 months of dreary rain.
let me give you a consolidated view of the greater DFW metroplex ...
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Good description of some of the area, SW Engr.!
I’ve lived in South Grapevine since ‘86, about 1/2 mile from Hwy. 121 and 1/2 mile from Colleyville. Tons of stores and restaurants within 5-20 minutes. ...Many of the pro golfers live in Colleyville and Southlake because of the easy access to DFW airport. I live about 4-5 miles due West of the airport and seldom hear any of the noise. .....Very low crime rate here and people keep their houses and yards in shape. Up near downtown Grapevine, the houses/neighborhoods are older.
We’re going to be house hunting around places like Allen, McKinney, Carrollton, etc.... anyone have any ideas on a good hotel anywhere around there that’s in a nice neighborhood (restaurants nearby, etc.)?
When we moved here during the boom it was considerably less expensive than Plano or Park Cities.
McKinney is the best place to live, IMO.
Allen is ok but no community feel. Plano has it’s good and bad. Personally, I like the far eastern end of Plano.
One area that gets overlooked is Lucas. (if you can afford it!) Would love to buy some property out there one day.
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