killbilly
Vocals, Lyrics, Triangle, Washboard, Kittens
So I don't know the Southlake area except that it has a great reputation for schools and athletics and yes, pricey housing because it's highly desirable. I believe, but not sure, that it's in Tarrant county, which means your taxes are going to be slightly lower. Your car insurance will definitely be lower.
White Rock, I do know that area and I really like it. It's a much older section of town. You can find really affordable homes there, particularly if you have a little bit of imagination and you're flexible about DIY stuff and/or willing to learn. A nice bonus is that many of the houses there are considerably older and don't have a lot of the issues that the new construction tends to have in N. Dallas with foundation problems and shoddy materials. They were generally built better in the 1950s.
Near (or in, depending on how you interpret the map) White Rock is an area called Lakewood, and it's probably the only neighborhood I'd like to live in if I had to move back to Dallas. It's got lots of mature old trees, it's at least partially walkable (compared to the rest of the city) and it has much more of a "local" feeling than a lot of Dallas. There are some GREAT places to eat (Legal Grounds is a coffee shop/law library with outstanding whole-grain banana pancakes, for example) and the Lakewood Theater gets a lot of acts that bigger stages won't carry. I've seen Richard Thompson there a couple times.
The taxes are a little higher, and depending on where in that area you are (again, it's kinda large) you could be in the Lake Highlands area (which puts you in Richardson schools, which is a plus) or Garland (N. Garland schools are pretty solid) or possibly in Dallas schools (hit and miss.) I'd suggest looking into options for the Magnet schools if your son is eligible - the Arts Magnets and Science/Tech Magnet schools are both pretty good programs - my ex had her son in the Sci/Tech Magnet schools for a while and he was doing very well there.
PM me if you want a bunch more details or have questions (if you don't want to post them in this thread) - Dallas is one of a couple cities I know intimately.
White Rock, I do know that area and I really like it. It's a much older section of town. You can find really affordable homes there, particularly if you have a little bit of imagination and you're flexible about DIY stuff and/or willing to learn. A nice bonus is that many of the houses there are considerably older and don't have a lot of the issues that the new construction tends to have in N. Dallas with foundation problems and shoddy materials. They were generally built better in the 1950s.
Near (or in, depending on how you interpret the map) White Rock is an area called Lakewood, and it's probably the only neighborhood I'd like to live in if I had to move back to Dallas. It's got lots of mature old trees, it's at least partially walkable (compared to the rest of the city) and it has much more of a "local" feeling than a lot of Dallas. There are some GREAT places to eat (Legal Grounds is a coffee shop/law library with outstanding whole-grain banana pancakes, for example) and the Lakewood Theater gets a lot of acts that bigger stages won't carry. I've seen Richard Thompson there a couple times.
The taxes are a little higher, and depending on where in that area you are (again, it's kinda large) you could be in the Lake Highlands area (which puts you in Richardson schools, which is a plus) or Garland (N. Garland schools are pretty solid) or possibly in Dallas schools (hit and miss.) I'd suggest looking into options for the Magnet schools if your son is eligible - the Arts Magnets and Science/Tech Magnet schools are both pretty good programs - my ex had her son in the Sci/Tech Magnet schools for a while and he was doing very well there.
PM me if you want a bunch more details or have questions (if you don't want to post them in this thread) - Dallas is one of a couple cities I know intimately.
