chickenscratch Posted September 7, 2013 Report Share Posted September 7, 2013 We have been keeping this quiet until we were sure he got the job, but now I can share. My middle son, Brandon, went to Dallas to apply for a job with one of those car guy TV show garages. He just got back last night. They offered him a job and he has a week to decide whether to take it or not. They are offering him $650 a week to start, then a raise and benefits after 90 days. It's a great opportunity for him, but he is unsure about taking it because the cost of living is higher out there than here. So, for those of you in the Dallas area, we are looking for advice. Where is there a nice community with reasonable rents and excellent schools? He said he drove around and looked at some of the rental houses from the paper while he was there, but they were either in the ghetto or not nice neighborhoods. He has a wife and two girls, Breanna (6) and Nevaeh (8). Tiffany will be going to the university to finish her teaching degree. The girls need a good school, a gymnastics studio, karate studio, and soccer fields. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. The job is in Farmer's Branch. I had somebody where I work suggest Weatherford, but that is 45 minutes outside of the loop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primitive1 Posted September 7, 2013 Report Share Posted September 7, 2013 Hi Teresa, We just moved here and are waiting to close on our home in Sachse which is outside and a little east of Dallas proper. Most of the areas just run together and we are in an apt in Plano which nestles up to Allen, both good communities. I think the best thing to do is to find a good realtor that can steer you into the right neighborhoods. One area I was told that I would not enjoy would be the colony area north of town, but all else seems to be fine give or take a few small areas... If so it is only about 1/2 hour drive to there from here (Plano), McKinney is just north of the 121 loop and is very nice which would add another 20 mins or so to a downtown commute. However, because this is a big city, you should know that most of the schools will be big. Our kids are grown but my sister lives here and has moved up to Argyle because the schools are so much smaller there. Lots of people like the Lewisville area and most offer the extra curricular activities that you are looking for...but again, touch base with a realtor, they would give you the best information.... Now that I looked at a map, I see where Farmer's Branch is, maybe Flowermound would be a good place, north of town, he could commute down 35E and the schools are smaller and cost of living a little less outside of town. When you come to visit him (if he moves here) there are so many quilt shops you would not know where to start.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 7, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 7, 2013 Okay Vicki, let's go shopping Thanks for the information. I have passed it on to him. I really hope he takes the job, even though it means I won't get to see the kids very much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yankiequilter Posted September 7, 2013 Report Share Posted September 7, 2013 Teresa, I lived north of Weatherford for 11 years, and it is a very nice area, however I think that the commute to/from Dallas would be a nightmare. We moved to MO 7 years ago and so much can change in that time that I would not be able to recommend an area. Vickie gives good advice to talk with a realtor or others who live in and are familiar with the area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gypsyquilter Posted September 8, 2013 Report Share Posted September 8, 2013 i just moved out of north texas back to NH, we lived in Texas for 6 years, in Frisco. Frisco a great community and with TOP notch schools. if I had to live there again I'd pick Frisco in a minute, it is very family oriented. My real estate agent had our house sold in 4 hours - yup - 4 hours from the time it listed to the time we had an offer. Kreg Hall from Remax, we bought one house from him and sold two - all transactions were great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primitive1 Posted September 8, 2013 Report Share Posted September 8, 2013 Teresa, Christine is right , Frisco is nice too, I hear the Cowboys are building a new stadium up in that area too. We moved away from our 3 daughters and grandchildren and we do miss them. Thank goodness for facetime although that is not as good as holding them and seeing them in person. Looks like I'll be flying back every couple of months to see them! We are hoping to retire and move back to VA in about 3-5 years as we held on to our home there and rented it. But I am determined to enjoy living here for the time we are here and there are way more quilt shops here than in the entire days drive from us in VA! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gypsyquilter Posted September 8, 2013 Report Share Posted September 8, 2013 oh, Vicki, I wish I had known you moved to that area, it would have been great to have met you f2f. We left last week :-( I should add that Frisco is also home to the Texas professional soccer team FC DAllas, and they have a huge stadium there - along with many smaller fields for recreational and other kinds of soccer games for kids and adults alike. Although i can't say I was fond of living in texas since I am a cold weather and snow fan, and a New Englander by birth and blood, Frisco was a great place for us the 6 years we lived there. The local city officials know how to build a city right, taxes are relatively low, they leverage big names like the cowboys, FC dallas etc to help keep the residential tax rate reasonable and the city is thiriving. last year it was named one of the best cities to live in and it was also rated as the fastest growing city in the US. Tons to do with kids, a great community college, a great school system, low crime and reasonable places to rent/buy, lots of places to shop/eat/get involved. Frisco's school strategy is much different than plano/allen - those towns have fewer high schools and they are all 5A (very large schools). Frisco's strategy is "community' - pretty much every neighborhood has its own elementary and grade school and there were at last count about 6 high schools - they will all stay 4A, they do this so more kids have a chance to play on various teams and get involved in extra curricular activities. the difference is in Frisco the graduating senior class is about 400 kids - in 5A schools it can exceed 1,000. I'm very glad we picked that city to live in, our kids thrived there. no matter where you live traffic is terrible, I could get from Frisco to Downtown Dallas in 40 minutes in the am if I left before 7 each day. If I left after that, I was looking at 60-90 minutes. you just get used to it since everyone is dealing with the same issues. My two grown sons are still in Frisco and we recently helped them get settled in an apartment there while they attend college. if you want to PM me with any specific questions, please do. I might be delayed a bit in responding since we close on our house in NH tomorrow and will finish our move all of next week. hope your son enjoys his new job at enjoys the texas area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharonarooni Posted September 8, 2013 Report Share Posted September 8, 2013 Teresa, I live in Lewisville which is just east of Flower Mound. They are both great communities and an easy drive to Farmer's Branch. Some of the neighborhoods in Lewisvile are not so nice, especially near I35, but north of main street they are wonderful. There is an area called the Valley in Lewisville with lovely homes for rent and decent prices. Also Denton is a terrific college town with lots of rentals at great prices. The drive can be a bear down i35 in commuter traffic however, but some people don't mind it. As Christine said, you just learn the best ways to deal with it. Highland Village is one of the lowest crime rates in Texas. Just north of Lewisville. Really nice and next to the lake and also terrific schools. And of course, like Vicki told you, more quilting shops than is good for the bank account. Vicki and I have met a couple of times and had a good time. ))) Feel free to message me, too. Sharon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primitive1 Posted September 8, 2013 Report Share Posted September 8, 2013 Christine, I wish that I had had the chance to meet you face to face too, Sharon and I had a fun day at both the quilt shop garage sale and the Plano quilt show. Love that Quilt country shop and the show was very nice! And like you I love fall and cold weather so it looks like I am out of luck here for a few years.... Sharon, I recently discovered the Blue Ribbon Quilt shop down in Wylie, it seems to be only about 10 mins from my new house, I signed up to go in and do a sit and sew on Wednesday - am so excited as they all seem so nice and the quilt shop is adorable! AND....they carry civil war repro fabrics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acesgame Posted September 9, 2013 Report Share Posted September 9, 2013 Teresa, I live in Murphy and love it, but it could be quite a drive. I don't know what you are used to but in Texas it takes 20-30 minutes just to drive across town. Looking at his salary I wouldn't think they would want to pay more than $1200 rent, so it will be hard to find something affordable in the nicer areas. Dallas schools stink. All places mentioned have better school districts. Interstate 35 and 635 traffic is always bad and should be avoided on a regular basis. If his Job in Farmers Branch is north of Beltline, He can jump on the George Bush Tollway and get to Richardson, Plano, Sachse, Wylie, Murphy, and North Garland and find affordable housing and decent neighborhoods. Richardson is the closest. If they want to buy a house, Wylie/Sachse/Murphy is the farthest from that location but he can get more house for his money and the school are good. I think Frisco, Carollton and far west Plano might be too pricey. Just my two cents. Stacey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2013 Thanks to all for your input. They are still discussing it and deciding what to do. He may turn it down because the pay doesn't match the cost of living there. It is such a great opportunity, but he has to do what's best for the whole family. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SueB2 Posted September 12, 2013 Report Share Posted September 12, 2013 vicki, Labor day weekend I was visiting my daughter in Plano, We googled quilt shops and found five in Plano so off we went. did not find what she was looking for but I found a shop that only sold batiks and had a great selection. So I will haunt the shops south of Houston when I am home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennlefore Posted September 14, 2013 Report Share Posted September 14, 2013 Theresa, I live in Keller which is N Ft Worth. We moved here from Omaha 10 years ago and started out in an apartment in Lewisville. Our kids were in HS and we weren't crazy about the busyness around there so we moved to an apartment on the edge of Carrollton and Lewisville and started looking for housing but found things were too high. Through a chain of events and our oldest son deciding to go to a new church (Gateway church) we decided to start looking around N Ft Worth. We were able to have a 4100 sq ft home built in Keller (just off I-35W) for the price that a used 3200 sq ft home would be in Lewisville or Carrollton (cities just north of Farmers Branch). My husband works in Denton and his commute is a 30 minute drive but we found this area to be more economical and not as crazy busy as the Dallas side. Ft Worth is more laid back - you can just "feel" a difference between the two cities. My kids were already graduated when we moved into our house but I've heard that Keller schools have a high rating of excellence. Your son's commute may take about 45 minutes from this area depending on what route he chooses. Many of the main highway systems are being worked on and widened right now so in a few years traffic may be a little less and his commute may be shorter then. I highly recommend that he get a Mapsco map book of the DFW area if he does move here. It was a lifesaver for us to get to know the area. If they decide to come, I would love to help them in getting to know the area or whatever they may need. Jenn Wilson Ult I owner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenscratch Posted September 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2013 Brandon has accepted the job in Farmer's Branch. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity and he just can't pass it up. They know money will be tight, but they will make it work out. He is starting work September 30th. He will be staying in motel until mid December, then moving into a house, if they can find one cheap enough. Tiffany graduates from college in Kentucky mid December, then she and the kids will join him. Can anybody suggest any affordable, by the week or by the month hotels in the area. He stayed at Motel 6 in Farmers Branch last time and I think it was pretty grungy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharonarooni Posted September 15, 2013 Report Share Posted September 15, 2013 Teresa, Are you familiar with airbnb? It is an online community of private people that rent rooms and homes all over the world. I have several friends that have used it to stay in different cities. It is huge in Austin. It might be worth a look to see if there are any hosts willing to rent long term to Brandon. Especially if he lets them know his situation. It might be safer than some of the longterm stay hotels and I am guessing much less expensive. Just a thought. It is: Airbnb.com Sharon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennlefore Posted September 18, 2013 Report Share Posted September 18, 2013 There's an InTownSuites at 1240 W Trinity Mills Rd. It's in Carrollton which is just a hop to Farmer's Branch. And this location is just off President George Bush Turnpike near I-35E. Here's the website: http://www.intownsuites.com/extended-stay-locations/texas/dallas-fort-worth/carrollton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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