Need help- thinking of moving to Dallas area

[mjbsn2006]

Hi everyone!

I am thinking of moving to the Dallas area very soon. I have been looking at the Mesquite area? How is the housing, crime, schools, after school care programs Any suggestions?

I am currently applying at Baylor (Dallas). I have heard that the commute from Mesquite to there is not bad. What are your experiences at this hospital- are the nurses really treated well? Could you give me an estimate of payrate for RN-BSN-2 yrs experience. Are they open to alternative shifts ( 8 hr shifts (7-3), instead of the traditional 12 (7a-7p)?

I will be coming from a small rural Texas town with my daughter( 6y.o), so I expect the cost of living to be higher, but I just want to make sure that we will be able to live off my salary in an area that is nice with low crime rates.

Thanks,

MJ:wink2:

[svanek]

Garland is large so it really depends on which part he will be working in. If north Garland, then Sachse, Wylie, Richardson and Murphy would be good areas to look at. The housing market is really good for buyers right now. If interested in a good deal, I would even suggest looking at the foreclosures at hud.gov. Would not suggest living around the south garland/mesquite/dallas area. If you choose to live in Lewisville, Carrollton, Frisco, it would be an easy drive to north Garland on the 190 President George Bush Turnpike.

[chelsea2184]

I registered on the site just to be able to stick up for Garland! I have lived in DFW all my life and have close family in every area (Richardson, Dallas, Lancaster, Garland, Mesquite, Plano, Lewisville, McKinney, ALL OVER). I personally would not want to live in Mesquite either (as many of you have said). And there are some parts of Garland that aren't wonderful (still not as bad as Dallas though). BUT... like someone else said... it is a big city and there are some GREAT neighborhoods and some great schools. I went to Garland, Richardson and Lewisville schools and my husband went to Garland and Rowlett. Though all of those other cities are more expensive and therefore considered nicer, we both chose to live in Garland because we preferred the neighborhoods, schools and the prices. (FYI Rowlett is Garland ISD). So don't rule it out just because a few people said so.

I think that DFW neighborhoods are very tricky because the good neighborhoods and the bad ones can be very close in proximity. It is difficult to make generalizations about such large cities.

Also, though some of the other posters named some lovely cities... I know that we probably couldn't afford to live in some of them.

My suggestion would be to get a realtor who really knows all of the areas and can help you decide which one would suit you best. Also MAPQUEST is your friend.

[2bnursesteph2010]

chako:

I know you don't have children and schools aren't important to you now...but for resale purposes,,,it's VERY improtant (used to be a realtor with Re/Max in the metroplex). A lot of buyers who don't have children don't want to purchase in a city/district with high school taxes, but it would behoove you once you decide to sell, b/c if you purchase in a less desirable school district, that will be a major factor for potential buyers who are seeking a strong district.

[chako]

I did not think that way. You are right. I will keep it in mind.

Thank you.

Chako

[chelsea2184]

i found this 2006 article in usa today listing the safest cities in the country: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-10-30-city-crime-list_x.htm

the ones around here include:

41. plano

61. richardson

64. mckinney

69. lewisville

83. carrolton

97. garland

all of these have crime rates well below the national average (i think garland was 30-something percent below)

d magazine said this about 63 total suburbs in 2006:

the big boys

you can't compare a tiny village like parker to a major city like irving. here's how the cities with 80,000 people or more measure up.

1. frisco (15)

2. plano (18)

3. mckinney (22)

4. richardson (33)

5. lewisville (35)

6. carrollton (37)

7. garland (48)

8. mesquite (51)

9. grand prairie (52)

10. arlington (56)

11. irving (59)

also this forum (http://www.city-data.com/forum/) seems very active with people discussing all sorts of neighborhoods in great detail. you can browse or do a specific search. i even saw people discussing hospitals, so i guess some doctors and nurses have been discussing neighborhoods as well.