Texas

Sharpster · Post by **Sharpster** » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:24 am

My girlfriend and I have been preparing to move out together and we both agree Maryland is not the state for us. The taxes already are outrageously high and are still going up, our political views are the opposite of the LARGE majority, and the reality is that crime is only getting worse especially in Baltimore (how can it, right?).

We have been throwing around a few places that seem interesting to us and that suit our needs and Texas was one of the few places we agreed on. More specifically the Dallas/FW area. My company has 5 offices in that area alone so I'm going to be checking into a transfer.

Can anyone give me some insight on a reasonably safe area to live, that isn't too pricy outside the Dallas/FW area where the commute into the city wouldn't be too terrible? Any other things you may want to add about the area that could be helpful as well is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Starmage21 · Post by **Starmage21** » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:08 am

Shame its not Houston!

Sharpster · Post by **Sharpster** » Thu Apr 11, 2013 10:24 am

Houston isn't completely ruled out. But I've heard it's alot more humid the further south you go.

Starmage21 · Post by **Starmage21** » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:29 pm

Sharpster wrote:Houston isn't completely ruled out. But I've heard it's alot more humid the further south you go.

Houston isnt bad, but I'm not going to waste my breath convincing you to come to Houston instead.

Let me know if you come out this way instead of Dallas. I'll point you to some of the better suburbs unless you want to live inside the city like I do

Post by **XMEN Gambit** » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:13 pm

You betcha! Lots of options here. Compared to Maryland, practically everything here would be "not too pricey" as we have some of the lowest housing prices in the country compared to average local salaries. (DC has the highest)

The two main counties are Tarrant and Dallas. Tarrant county will have the lower taxes. The north parts of the metroplex are more heavily populated than the south.

I lived in Houston for a couple of years. Moss grows on the north side of houses -- too humid for me. OTOH temps get hotter here.

Let me know where your offices are and budget and I will make some recommendations. You can PM if you like.

Sharpster · Post by **Sharpster** » Fri Apr 12, 2013 7:52 am

PM sent. I've browsed briefly some places in waxahachie and in Plano (Recommendations I've gotten from people who lived there).

XMEN Iceman · Post by **XMEN Iceman** » Mon Apr 15, 2013 6:54 am

We would love to help you, unfortunately I am still in Washington, DC, extended now to Sept.

But I am sure between Gambit, Porsche, and I we can help you with suggestions, etc.

Once you get settled in then we will have you over to my house for some real Texas BBQ.

David

XMENPorsche · Post by **XMENPorsche** » Sat Apr 20, 2013 7:30 am

First of all, understand that the DFW Metroplex is huge. It would be easier to make recommendations on locations to look for a house if I had a better idea of exactly where your office is located. For example, I live in Mansfield. Great area, fantastic schools, etc. If your office is in Plano, Mansfield would probably not be a good recommendation because your commute would probably be in the 2-hour range (during rush hour).

So.....
Where's the office? How far/long are you willing to drive? Define, "too pricey". A house that's pricey in DFW might be considered cheap in Maryland.

Sharpster · Post by **Sharpster** » Mon Apr 22, 2013 7:24 am

XMENPorsche wrote:First of all, understand that the DFW Metroplex is huge. It would be easier to make recommendations on locations to look for a house if I had a better idea of exactly where your office is located. For example, I live in Mansfield. Great area, fantastic schools, etc. If your office is in Plano, Mansfield would probably not be a good recommendation because your commute would probably be in the 2-hour range (during rush hour).

So.....
Where's the office? How far/long are you willing to drive? Define, "too pricey". A house that's pricey in DFW might be considered cheap in Maryland.

Offices:
In Dallas:
16000 Dallas Parkway, 3801 Herschel Avenue, 1401 Pacific Avenue.

In Fort Worth:
1200 Summit Avenue

At the most just a little over an hour for my commute wouldn't kill me. (What Im used to now). As far as pricing 200k would be the absolute top amount. But we've seen a few houses for about 140k that was more then what we needed. 3 bedrooms 2 full baths with medium sized yard (room for a bigger sized dog.) Something more rural is what Id tend to like but we'd both be happy in a suburb.

XMEN Iceman · Post by **XMEN Iceman** » Fri May 03, 2013 9:38 am

Which office are you going to be based at? Fort Worth or Dallas?

That address in Fort Worth is very close to my old accountants office.

If you are going to both offices then I would probably recommend Irving or Grapevine areas.

For less than $200k you can get a very nice custom house. I have a nice 2500sq ft modern ranch that I am remodeling that I got for $170k.

David

Sharpster · Post by **Sharpster** » Mon May 06, 2013 10:04 am

Nothing set in stone. The word from my office is most other regions are looking for hires within the company. So I still have to reach out to these offices to see if I'm what they may be looking for. At best case if everything goes how I'd like it would be between a year or two until I could move.