Texas - Moving to Dallas/Ft. Worth area & need advice on areas to live

Hi All,

I’m being relocated to the Dallas/Ft. Worth Area, closer to Ft. Worth though, and will need to find a nice area to stay. I’m looking at an apartment for about a year till I get settled in, and then buy a home. I know a lot of you fellow AA FTers are from or know the area quite well so I thought I’d ask some of you as a resource to get a general idea of where to start.

Some info about me I’m a 24 yr. old male, no family, likes quieter areas but not somewhere where there is nothing to do :p, hates super long drive times. My boss told me areas like Burleson or Arlington are good starting points?

Any help, tips, hints, suggestions are really appreciated.

Thanks again

Only place you should look is between 75 and the Tollway, north of downtown, but south of 635. That's the best area. Considering you're 24, look in Uptown.

Err you said closer to Ft. Worth...can't really help you there.

Those are good areas, but you can try Grapevine...

I would agree with above poster--only if you are working in the Dallas area (not FW)

This summer I did an internship with a Big4 accounting firm. I am 22. I lived Uptown and had a great time. Close to bars, restaurants, anything really. A short drive into downtown. Go a few blocks off McKinney Ave or up toward the West Village (ex: Blackburn and McKinney..where I lived) and it gets quiet.

I am actually moving back to Dallas upon graduation from grad school as I accepted the job offer. I plan to live in approx the same area as I did this last summer since I enjoyed it so much.

Since not related to AA, a candidate for a Destination thread?

I would agree with above poster--only if you are working in the Dallas area (not FW)

This summer I did an internship with a Big4 accounting firm. I am 22. I lived Uptown and had a great time. Close to bars, restaurants, anything really. A short drive into downtown. Go a few blocks off McKinney Ave or up toward the West Village (ex: Blackburn and McKinney..where I lived) and it gets quiet.

I am actually moving back to Dallas upon graduation from grad school as I accepted the job offer. I plan to live in approx the same area as I did this last summer since I enjoyed it so much.

+1...Dallas and Ft. Worth are vastly different areas separated by a couple dozen miles. Ft. Worth is a lot slower paced, especially out in bedroom communities (Burleson, Arlington, etc., even though Arlington has got some great entertainment venues.) I'm 26 myself and couldn't imagine ever living in Ft. Worth, and I've lived in the DFW area nearly my entire life. Anyone that I've ever known living in Ft. Worth in our age range tries to get to Dallas as quick as they can, especially if you like to go out to restaurants and bars during free time.

I live in Downtown Dallas (close to Uptown, right by Love Field) but do the drive to Fort Worth every day. I prefer the drive versus actually living in the Fort Worth area. It is worth it since living in Dallas is just a different experience.

For someone your age, unless you have an aversion to a commute I would encourage you look in the areas of Dallas mentioned above. If you have a better idea on where in FW you will be working, some of us should be able to give you commuting times. I can tell you, driving to FW in the morning is against traffic 95% of the way, as is driving home to Dallas at night :)

Hi All,

I’m being relocated to the Dallas/Ft. Worth Area, closer to Ft. Worth though, and will need to find a nice area to stay. I’m looking at an apartment for about a year till I get settled in, and then buy a home. I know a lot of you fellow AA FTers are from or know the area quite well so I thought I’d ask some of you as a resource to get a general idea of where to start.

Some info about me I’m a 24 yr. old male, no family, likes quieter areas but not somewhere where there is nothing to do :p, hates super long drive times. My boss told me areas like Burleson or Arlington are good starting points?

Any help, tips, hints, suggestions are really appreciated.

Thanks again


Since this thread is not specific to AA or the AAdvantage program, we'll be shipping this off to the appropriate geographic forum momentarily. Thanks for your cooperation. :) /Moderator

a dallas commute is your first consideration. you live in plano and work in downtown dallas, your life is on the tollway. it's not a big league commute like DC, but it's easy to waste an hour a day on the roads. the tolls can rack up also.

Besides the Uptown area, some other areas on the Dallas side of town to consider are the M Streets near Greenvile Ave, and Addison.

OP, can you be a bit more specific on where your office will be?

Hi All,

I’m being relocated to the Dallas/Ft. Worth Area, closer to Ft. Worth though, and will need to find a nice area to stay. I’m looking at an apartment for about a year till I get settled in, and then buy a home. I know a lot of you fellow AA FTers are from or know the area quite well so I thought I’d ask some of you as a resource to get a general idea of where to start.

Some info about me I’m a 24 yr. old male, no family, likes quieter areas but not somewhere where there is nothing to do :p, hates super long drive times. My boss told me areas like Burleson or Arlington are good starting points?

Any help, tips, hints, suggestions are really appreciated.

Thanks again

Your post hints that your office is in the (Western) MidCities or even in Ft. Worth itself. With that in mind, especially due to your bass's suggestion of Burleson (a strange recommendation) or Arlington, implying that your work adress is South of IH30, I'd start my apartment search somewhere West of 360 along IH20. Much of SE Ft. Worth and chunks of Arlington feature concentrations of moderate/low income apartments in neighborhoods which you may find unattractive for a variety of reasons.

Without a better description of where you'll be working, I'm not really comfortable with any more specific suggestions.

+1...Dallas and Ft. Worth are vastly different areas separated by a couple dozen miles. Ft. Worth is a lot slower paced, especially out in bedroom communities (Burleson, Arlington, etc., even though Arlington has got some great entertainment venues.) I'm 26 myself and couldn't imagine ever living in Ft. Worth, and I've lived in the DFW area nearly my entire life. Anyone that I've ever known living in Ft. Worth in our age range tries to get to Dallas as quick as they can, especially if you like to go out to restaurants and bars during free time.

You apparently haven't been over in the last year around the W. 7th development (about a mile west of downtown) which has a very high concentration of folks in their 20s. Several brand-new apartment complexes there as well as lots of cool houses for rent. TCU is about two miles to the south and with both a law and medical school in that immediate vicinity, lots of folks in your age group.

I lived in Dallas from age 22 to 35 because Fort Worth once upon a time had NOTHING going on for young single professionals. That has radically changed in the last five years. The West 7th development has 25-30 restaurants, almost as many bars, and a good urban vibe. Downtown is only a mile away and unlike downtown Dallas, also has a great vibe.

If you are looking to rent a house, the 76107, 76109, and 76110 zip codes the ones I generally recommend to young professionals. Older homes in very well-kept established neighborhoods. 76109 and 76110 are south of I-30 and wrap around the university (TCU) as well as the hospital district. The Fairmont neighborhood is an emerging neighborhood with inexpensive housing but a very urban vibe (fun bars and restaurants). 76107 is north of I-30 and wraps the W 7th area I referenced above as well as the cultural district, medical school, and some of the oldest neighborhoods in town dating back to the 20s.

Traffic needs to be a consideration wherever you live - if you live in Dallas and commute to the Fort Worth area, you are looking at 40-60+ minutes in the car, each way, depending on the time of day.

Burleson was a sleepy country town but is now a bustling suburb. But I would be bored to tears if I were an educated single 20 something down there. Most everyone your age there will either be married or blue collar. I lived in Arlington for about six months straight out of college and hated it - because of how spread out things were, it was difficult to meet people.

I had a hard time meeting new people in Dallas outside of work colleagues (especially with travel) - people tend to congregate with friends from college or work. Fort Worth has been the exact opposite - the town is growing so rapidly that many people are transplants from elsewhere.

I've helped several friends locate rental houses here in Fort Worth so I know the "good" neighborhoods quite well and what you can find where for various price points. You are welcome to PM me if you want more specific advice.

I'd also advise you to not commit to an area to live in without a visit. See if you can get a relocation visit to come out and look at a few different areas. Take the drive time you will have on a weekend and factor 2-3 times that for what your commute will be. Check out the places you are likely to go (bar/restaurant areas) and what the people are like. As a generalization, people are "different" in various parts of the metroplex and there are some stereotypes that hold true even from neighborhood to neighborhood.

Hi All,

I’m being relocated to the Dallas/Ft. Worth Area, closer to Ft. Worth though, and will need to find a nice area to stay. I’m looking at an apartment for about a year till I get settled in, and then buy a home. I know a lot of you fellow AA FTers are from or know the area quite well so I thought I’d ask some of you as a resource to get a general idea of where to start.

Some info about me I’m a 24 yr. old male, no family, likes quieter areas but not somewhere where there is nothing to do :p, hates super long drive times. My boss told me areas like Burleson or Arlington are good starting points?

Any help, tips, hints, suggestions are really appreciated.

Thanks again

Downtown/uptown Dallas can be nice, but the commute to FW will kill you. Some Texans like to drive a lot (Most places in Texas require lots of driving), and don't see it as a big deal, but unless you are of the same mind, I suggest you take that advice with a grain of salt.

Living in the city of Fort Worth itself would give you more to do than the suburbs, not as much as Dallas, but you don't really want to commute all the way from Dallas everyday (if your work is closer to Dallas, then that changes things, of course), and living in Fort Worth is not too expensive. Living in Flower Mound or Grapevine will put you in the suburbs with a bunch of families, probably not that much fun for a 20-something single. In general, you probably don't want to live in any suburb of Fort Worth either, for the same reasons.

The other option I would see is Euless, which puts you striking distance of both FW and Dallas, but more importantly is right next to DFW, making it easy to fly pretty much anywhere in the continental US in 3-4 hours door-to-door, which you can probably appreciate as a FlyerTalker. Euless itself isn't very exciting, but you can probably fun something reasonably priced, and can then easily drive to exciting parts of Dallas, Fort Worth, and of course DFW.

Since it sounds like you might prefer to be in a suburb, you may want to check this out: http://www.dmagazine.com/Home/D_Magazine/2010/July/Rating_the_Best_Suburbs_in_Dallas.aspx

And just a note that you won't see all of the Fort Worth suburbs in that report. They list the ones to the west of Dallas (east of Fort Worth) but not some of the others you might think of like Crowley, Burleson, Aledo, Saginaw.

You really might want to look at some of the neighborhoods directly IN Fort Worth though that function much like suburbs. I live in Arlington Heights (and I know of at least one other FTer who does too... another lives in Fairmount nearby) and it has a very suburban feel directly in the neighborhood despite being geographically directly in the middle of the city. We have nice tree-boulevards, parks, sidewalks, and that small town feel.

Here are links to some of the neighborhoods where you'd be most likely to find rentals (either apartments, duplexes, or small homes) with people in their 20s:

http://arlingtonheightsna.com/Blog/

http://www.historicfairmount.com/

http://www.mistletoeheights.com/index.html

http://www.myppna.com/

http://www.nhmna.com/

http://www.universitywest.org/

http://www.paschal.biz/

I have friends in their 20s/early 30s who are single and live in every one of these neighborhoods. There are a few other good neighborhoods that don't have websites too.

I figure since you want a more suburban feel, these might be a good compromise to being "near" things but still having a "neighborhood".

And just a note that you won't see all of the Fort Worth suburbs in that report. They list the ones to the west of Dallas (east of Fort Worth) but not some of the others you might think of like Crowley, Burleson, Aledo, Saginaw.

You really might want to look at some of the neighborhoods directly IN Fort Worth though that function much like suburbs. I live in Arlington Heights (and I know of at least one other FTer who does too... another lives in Fairmount nearby) and it has a very suburban feel directly in the neighborhood despite being geographically directly in the middle of the city. We have nice tree-boulevards, parks, sidewalks, and that small town feel.

Here are links to some of the neighborhoods where you'd be most likely to find rentals (either apartments, duplexes, or small homes) with people in their 20s:

http://arlingtonheightsna.com/Blog/

http://www.historicfairmount.com/

http://www.mistletoeheights.com/index.html

http://www.myppna.com/

http://www.nhmna.com/

http://www.universitywest.org/

http://www.paschal.biz/

I have friends in their 20s/early 30s who are single and live in every one of these neighborhoods. There are a few other good neighborhoods that don't have websites too.

I figure since you want a more suburban feel, these might be a good compromise to being "near" things but still having a "neighborhood".

That would be me, techgirl is referring to. These are all great areas she's recommending, in the center of the city but with true neighborhood vibes.

I've lived in Arlington Heights for 15 years, and can't think of a single neighborhood in FW I'd rather be. The only real drawback, if it's important to the OP, is that this isn't much of a "walking" neighborhood, in terms of going to restaurants, bars, or shopping. You pretty much need to drive to anywhere from Arlington Heights, other than maybe going to a 7-11 or Walgreens/CVS for minor shopping.

www.city-data.com/forum/dallas

city-data.com is the Flyertalk of locations - they have active Dallas and Fort Worth forums that offer many opinions about exactly where to live

That would be me, techgirl is referring to. These are all great areas she's recommending, in the center of the city but with true neighborhood vibes.


:) And empedocles USED to live in Arlington Heights (in fact, right across the street from me) but he's in Fairmount now.

Let us know when you get to the area... sounds like a good excuse to throw a DFW FT gathering since we haven't had one in forever!

NotDuncan is right about the walking although it depends on what end of Heights you live on what you can walk to. I have friends on the eastern end of the neighborhood that always walk when we go out around W. 7th. But on my end (closer to the western part) I have a few restaurants (Luciles, The Original) that I can walk to... but I'm still lamenting the loss of my Starbucks.

And just a note that you won't see all of the Fort Worth suburbs in that report. They list the ones to the west of Dallas (east of Fort Worth) but not some of the others you might think of like Crowley, Burleson, Aledo, Saginaw.

You really might want to look at some of the neighborhoods directly IN Fort Worth though that function much like suburbs. I live in Arlington Heights (and I know of at least one other FTer who does too... another lives in Fairmount nearby).

Some excellent advice by techgirl in several posts. I think she works for the FW Chamber of Commerce ;)

Seriously, I'm back in Dallas :( after being away from Fort Worth for 15 years, and miss living in FW dearly. I'm long past 30, so this may not apply, but I like being outdoors and just love FW's bike paths and just the vibe in general.

One of the neighbourhoods left out in the discussion is Ryan Place (just south of Fairmont), though there are no apartments there and house rental may be more expensive.

One other thing, many of my co-wokers commute from the Mid Cities (yes, they are called that, and DFW as a whole is referred to as Metroplex) commute via Trinity Railway Express.org/ (http://www.trinityrailwayexpress.org/) - if there's a stop near your work, you could live in Dallas - methiks Uptown is very livable, and parts close to downtown are close to the TRE.

EmailKid,
still missing Fort Worth

Some excellent advice by techgirl in several posts. I think she works for the FW Chamber of Commerce ;)

No... my mom used to be a Realtor/relocation specialist so I think I picked it up by osmosis. And I just really love my hometown. ;)

One of the neighbourhoods left out in the discussion is Ryan Place (just south of Fairmont), though there are no apartments there and house rental may be more expensive.

I didn't mention Ryan Place or Park Hill or Crestline or Monticello because I thought all four might be out of price range for a new grad. Heck, they are out of price range for a lot of established professionals I know! ;) But all are gorgeous neighborhoods with stately homes, rolling lawns, and lots of old wonderful tree cover. The OP might be able to find a garage apartment or carriage house in one of those neighborhoods though. When I was looking at houses three years ago, everything I looked at in those neighborhoods came with a back "rental" property, many with their own waiting lists for likely tenants. Being networked definitely helps!

I can't say enough how glad I was that I chose to move back to Fort Worth three years ago. It has been one of the best decisions of my life.

I’m being relocated to the Dallas/Ft. Worth Area, closer to Ft. Worth though, and will need to find a nice area to stay. Any help, tips, hints, suggestions are really appreciated.



Seriously .... best bet is to live in Austin and commute.... think of all those segments and bonus miles!