Relocation NYC -> DFW, Seeking diverse community

Posted by Square-Toe-8617@reddit | askdfw | View on Reddit | 49 comments

Hi! Native NYCer thinking of a relocation to the Dallas area. My family is composed of me and my husband (mid 30s/40s) and we have one 4 year old son and another on the way this summer. We both work in the medical field so proximity to clinics/hospitals are important too.

I’ve never been to Texas! We know of many people who have made the move and loved it. We eliminated Austin (due to lack of diversity) and Houston (don’t think I can handle hot muggy weather/hurricanes). Our most important factor is diversity and excellent schools. We are a Black family raising boys and don’t want to be the “token” family in the neighborhood, nor do I want to live in an all Black neighborhood as well. Coming from nyc my sons class has kids from all over the globe which I love. I’ve been reading good things about Irving but definitely want to explore other neighborhoods.

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goodjuju123@reddit

Every major city in Texas is diverse but the public schools generally are poor and getting poorer. If you can't handle hot weather, you will hate it everywhere not just Houston. Also, don't move there while pregnant. Best of luck.

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

Love hot weather! More apprehensive of the natural disasters. And definitely plan to deliver in NY! But want to check out the area before

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clueless3434@reddit

I moved to Dallas from NYC. This is not the kind of heat you will enjoy. You haven’t experienced it until you get a whole summer in here.

Another rec for North Oak Cliff.

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

How do you like it now? How long have you been in Tx?

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clueless3434@reddit

I hate living in a red state but love the community in oak cliff! And we bought a house which we couldn’t afford before. Feel free to DM me with questions

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xsnyder@reddit

What most people consider hot isn't close to Texas in July and August. Between 30 and 60 days straight of 100 to 112 degree heat and humidity between 70% and 95%.

While we don't directly get hurricanes in DFW, we get lots of severe storms with tornadoes and hail that ranges from quarter to grapefruit size.

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CholeyCat@reddit

Would you say that humidity is accurate in DFW though? That hasn't been my experience...

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Texas22@reddit

Yep. Texas isn’t “hot”. During the summer it’s actually hell. Like, you won’t want to be outside at all between 8am and 8pm. And if you are, be in a pool. Briefly. With lots of hydration and sun cover.

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xsnyder@reddit

I often tell people that Texas is like the north, but flipped. We stay inside as much as possible in the summer and go outside in the fall and winter :D

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CatsNSquirrels@reddit

Meh pools don't even help much at that time of year. They just feel like lukewarm bathwater. And I would argue you won't want to be outside between 7am and 9pm. :)

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CatsNSquirrels@reddit

Exactly this.

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xxwaydy@reddit

We are a black family with a 2-year-old. My husband is also from Brooklyn, NY, and we chose Richardson due to its location and mix of people. However, you may like Frisco's true melting pot, primarily Asian Indians and some great black families as well.

Mckinney has a little more black family, but the school district isn't the best.

Plano is an okay option, too, but some pockets aren't OK.

If you want to look into Richardson, stick to 75080. Also, 75248 in Dallas is Richardson ISD, which has great homes.

Mansfield has nicer houses and great black professionals if you want more black people.

If try to stay within a decent proximity to Dallas or the airport because lots of families complain about it when they are in far our suburbs

Feel free to message me if you have questions

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

Thank you so much for commenting, see I never heard of Richardson before this thread. I will definitely message you given you’re from BK!

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Consistent_Reward@reddit

You definitely want inner ring suburbs, inside and near LBJ/635. Freeway access is important here, because practically everyone drives and public transport is not good. A lot will depend on where your employers are.

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

We drive so that’s not an issue. Any specific areas to recommend looking into? No idea what lbj/635 is, lol.

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VirgoTex@reddit

I’m a DFW native but lived in NYC and Philly for 20+ years, been back here in FW for about three years now. Granted, I am an older single and childless white woman, so my experience is nothing like yours! ☺️ I wanted to say that the lack of diversity and the hot weather have been the hardest adjustments for me since moving back.

Tbh, I may never be able to replicate the experience of shooting the shit with my neighbors in Harlem after work, picking up tamales from a lady outside the train station in Jackson Heights, or spontaneous Broadway sing-a-longs with strangers on the subway. It has taken some time to come to terms with that! But you are wise to do your research and I love to see folks chiming in on your thread. I will say that the places I feel most at home as an ex-NYer are art museums, theaters, indy movie houses, and mom ‘n pop international cuisine. Culture is not a replacement for true diversity, but we do have our share of arts and culture in DFW and it is well worth venturing out to find it.

As for the heat: If you have a garage or some way to keep your car out of the sun when you aren’t using it, that provides a lot of relief during the heat waves (and protection during hail season). I’m a renter and I can barely tolerate getting into my car during the day in the summer. 😆

I hope you find the perfect place to put down some roots!!!

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

Thank you!! And while I know there is no place like NY and not looking for a nyc replacement, I’m looking for the best move for our family. We want space and a good well balanced life. It’s just impossible to stay here in NY long term with costs

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Severe-Post3466@reddit

Haha, was going to talk about Irving until I read your last sentence. Don't have a ton to add, but I'd assume you'll generally want to stick to the older suburbs and suburbs closer to Dallas. As you get into the further, newer suburbs, (such as Frisco) they will tend to get progressively and significantly more homogenous in terms of both income and race. If you and your husband are doctors, you will likely face those type of suburbs to be the "norm"/"expectation" of where doctors choose to live in these days, but they may not be the best fit.

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

Definitely want to be close to the city but school district is #1! Someone else commented that public schools are poor? I definitely have to do research. Any specific neighborhoods you recommend I look into? I have Frisco on my list as well, Carrollton, Mansfield, Plano

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Express_Secretary_83@reddit

same. hardest is finding a decent school(for me) and your house has to be in the school zone. Not all the schools have great ratings. These posts dont really give a feel of the curriculum and what I do hear about it I dislike(forced religion, some schools teaching religion based science? may not be stating it correctly). lol I'm relocating from IL to Tx. My kids are in an excellent school here and this is the toughest aspect for me.

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

I’m struggling too after reading these responses. Mind you we are a Christian family but believe in a secular education. I had an amazing education growing up in NY and my son is in a free nyc 3K program now

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Express_Secretary_83@reddit

I think thats fair. I want schools that teach kids to be critical thinkers and formulate opinions versus mindless drones. Each place touts a great school district and then on reddit, we read the comments opposing that.

feel free to keep in touch. I'm looking in many of the same areas as you. seeking nearly the same things minus being near the hospital/clinics.

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Severe-Post3466@reddit

As long as you are sticking to public schools, religion/religious based science should not be a concern for most in the area. There are concerns, with ISDs down in the Houston area pushing that limit, and the TX lege working with bills right now, but it hasn't gotten here yet. When most people talk about "good schools" it's because they aren't like this.

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mzfnk4@reddit

I'm in Frisco and you'll want to look at the school level to really gauge diversity. For instance, there are some elementary schools that are more than 50% Indian. Frisco as a general is diverse, but that diversity isn't always evenly spread around.

I like looking through this site (and I assume it is accurate) as it lists out the racial makeup of individual schools. And you can look at any district and any school within that district. https://schools.texastribune.org/districts/frisco-isd/.

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Severe-Post3466@reddit

Those are all good schools!! In terms of schools, Coppell ISD is also very good. City is less diverse, but parts of Irving and the Cypress Water development zones to Coppell. I've heard very good things abt HEB ISD as well (Hurst, Euless, Bedford.

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Significant-Visit184@reddit

Irving City Council has been taken over by crazy right wing Catholics. They’re absolute nutjobs.

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Hembalaya@reddit

Considering you want to be close to a hospital and probably want good schools for the boys, I would check out North Oak Cliff and East Dallas area. North Oak Cliff has Methodist Hospital and several great public and magnet schools, and East Dallas has Lakewood elementary, one of the best schools in DISD, and is a short drive to Baylor Medical.

Within North Oak Cliff, check out Kessler Park and Winnetka Heights, and in East Dallas check out Lakewood (for Lakewood ISD), or Vickery Place, M Streets, and Forest Hills for great homes a short drive from the hospital.

As others have said, most neighborhoods in the city are going to be vibrant and diverse. It’s only as you get outside loop 12 that neighborhoods start to get more homogenous.

If you have any other questions feel free to DM me! I’m a realtor and love it when I can help folks move from out of town

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Positive-Knowledge18@reddit

Lakewood elem is literally 2% black

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singingamy123@reddit

How’s traffic around those areas?

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Hembalaya@reddit

Traffic is always going to be lively in a city neighborhood, but if you live in the neighborhoods I suggested, you’ll avoid the highways which will add YEARS to your life 🤗

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Montallas@reddit

What is this “Lakewood ISD” you speak of?

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Hembalaya@reddit

*homes zoned for Lakewood schools. Couldn’t think of how to phase it last night 🥴

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Montallas@reddit

What is this “Lakewood ISD” you speak of?

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TotesMcGotes13@reddit

Budget? Interests? Why Texas in general?

Dallas isn’t as muggy as Houston but it’s still hot as hell and humid in the Summers.

Other than that, the metroplex is pretty diverse overall. Especially if you stay closer to the core areas and avoid the 40 mile away suburbs. Even here in Flower Mound my neighborhood has multiple races and ethnicities all on my street alone, so I think you’ll be fine on that front. It might not be NYC diverse but few places are.

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Square-Toe-8617@reddit (OP)

This is helpful, thank you! Why Texas: Cost of living, my husband and I work in the medical field and salary is comparable in Texas vs other states, we want a nice sized home with space for our boys. Definitely worried about moving to a conservative pro gun/anti abortion state but many families seem happy here so I don’t want to block a blessing

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TotesMcGotes13@reddit

Got it. If you want suburban life in a good location, Coppell has great schools and is diverse. The diversity leans more Asian / South Asian just to be clear, but it’s a great safe district.

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CatsNSquirrels@reddit

“Excellent schools” are not what you’re going to find in Texas unless perhaps you pay for private school (former TX teacher here). There are good schools around, but they are likely not going to be as good as schools in the northeast.

Also Dallas is VERY HOT. Take the hottest day in NYC that you can imagine, and it probably feels 3x hotter in Texas on any given summer day. Now that I live in the northeast, I find that people here have zero idea what Texas heat really is. They think it’s just a longer northeast summer but maybe slightly hotter. The heat in Texas is intense and oppressive and lasts for half the year.

Also I would 100% not choose to be pregnant in Texas right now. Strongly advise you visiting in July or August before even considering moving, to make sure you can handle the weather, and strongly advise you wait until after your baby is born.

And if you don’t like natural disasters, Texas is probably not the state for you. DFW gets tons of hail these days and lots of tornadoes, and the power grid is unreliable.

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singingamy123@reddit

What about the other areas of Texas? Like Houston, Waco, San Antonio etc? They get a lot of natural disasters too?

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TotesMcGotes13@reddit

Houston has hurricane and flooding threats. Waco and San Antonio would have some severe weather threats similar to DFW. Maybe a little less since they are more south though.

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txchiefsfan02@reddit

Diversity + excellent public schools = Plano or Richardson unless your budget for a home is over $1MM.

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singingamy123@reddit

Kinda similar boat esp since I also work in healthcare and need to be close to them! lol

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KIRAWRtheMIGHTY@reddit

DFW is wonderfully diverse - in the right areas. In my experience, the more affluent the suburb, the quicker the diversity washes out, unfortunately.

I've never lived in Dallas city proper or the north side of the metroplex, so I can't comment with much authority on those areas, but there is a string of suburbs that run along the east/west highways between Dallas and Forth Worth that may be worth investigating: Irving, Arlington, Euless, Bedford, Hurst, and North Richland Hills. There are some affluent areas in these cities (particularly Arlington and Irving), but for the most part they are modest to lower class neighborhoods. There is generally good diversity in these areas and I've certainly never felt unsafe in any of them, but there's not much wealth.

There are a few others more known for serving higher income families (Grapevine, Colleyville, Southlake, Trophy Club, Roanoke, and Keller), but you will lose some of the diversity, particularly depending on which neighborhood you live in. If you lean strongly left politically, you may find the general politics of these cities distasteful. Especially in the school districts.

But I wouldn't trust any of the public schools in this area for much longer. I've adored (almost) all of my children's teachers, but there's only so much teachers can do in overcrowded and underfunded schools overseen by legislators (and some administrators) that are actively trying to force religious doctrine into curriculum, limit inclusion of critical thinking skills, and remove support for children with disabilities.

I will also emphasize what a few others have said regarding transportation: everywhere in DFW is heavily car-dependent. There is public transportation in Dallas proper and it extends to some degree into the immediate suburbs, but it will NOT be what you're accustomed to in NYC. And any car-based commute from the suburbs into the city is going to be a headache. We have highways running every which direction, but they're ALL congested during morning and evening rush hours and it's only getting worse.

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DeepYogurtcloset3235@reddit

OP, do not under any circumstances move to Southlake. Look up the NBC podcast about racism in Southlake. It is not a safe place for your family and definitely does not meet your priorities.

Feel free to PM me about Dallas ISD schools - happy to help. If not interested in Dallas ISD, then I think Richardson ISD would be a good fit.

Don’t make any plans to move here without visiting first - in the summer. There are a lot of good things about DFW but the summers are absolutely brutal.

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RaWR_TX@reddit

3) Frisco - a northern suburb will have diversity but is very TX suburb

2) Richardson - good diversity & not as suburban

1) East Dallas - Lakewood & Lake Highlands near White Rock Lake

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RandomRageNet@reddit

What part of NYC are you coming from? If you've never visited DFW before, one thing you should know is that car dependency is a real thing here. We have public transit but not anywhere near a fraction of the scale of the MTA.

DFW is generally pretty blue but Texas government has been going off the rails lately so definitely beware what you're getting into. They're trying as hard as they can to make things like the ten commandments part of public school curriculum (and also starving public school funding with vouchers).

I'm a native and I used to love it here but I'm definitely cautioning everyone thinking of moving here from a blue state right now. Our government is a mess. Also it's true that dollar for dollar, your salary will go further here as far as COL goes, but watch out for property taxes which are some of the highest in the country, and our 8.25% sales tax.

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selfawarestardust@reddit

My first instinct was Richardson/Plano. My experience with far-flung suburbs is that (and I’m sure this is at least partly true everywhere, but I’d wager especially in the south) is that the further away you get from the metro core you get, the more resentment toward diversity (ethnicity, religion, hell even food) you’ll encounter. Honestly, a good way to ballpark this is to look at recent election results by county (or even neighborhood). Given what you’re looking for, I probably would rule out any areas that went a certain way by 30+ points. My kids school in Plano has a very diverse student population and is extremely well rated. While Dallas as a whole is diverse, if you look at the composition of the highest performing schools (Lakewood or Winnetka, as examples) they are very homogenous. Good luck, and if you make the move, Welcome!

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