Dallas, Texas

msitarzewski
Living in Dallas
2y ago
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Here's the thing… "Dallas" is 1/2 of an area called D/FW (or FW/D if you live on the west side of the line :) ). DFW is 9,800 square miles. Dallas is the name of the county, and a city. The City of Dallas has about 1.3 million people, and is surrounded by a dozen suburbs (from Richardson, Garland, South Dallas (not to be confused with "Southern Dallas"), Cedar Hill, north to Addison, Plano and Frisco.

Each of those locations has a feel/vibe all its own. Some are working class neighborhoods, others incredibly wealthy, and of course some where people struggle to make ends meet.

Dallas is a place that offers a lot of practically anyone, but the experience will depend on how much you earn, and the distance between work, home, and play (if you can: bars, sports, concerts, etc.).

For example, if you're in the enterprise scale IT world, lots of those jobs exist in Plano/Frisco/Irving. If you live and work there, that's one experience; very suburban, big homes, malls, chain food, and shopping.

Some people choose to work in Frisco and live downtown. The pay is good in Frisco, but the lifestyle is very different downtown. If you do that, you'll spend 45 minutes to an hour in the car, and most likely on the tollway (adding expenses).

Public transit (DART) is hit or miss depending on where you choose to call home. If you live and work downtown or in a directly adjacent neighborhood, then it'll serve you well. The further you get from that generalization, the more effort you'll have to put into taking public transit.

We've chosen downtown (The Cedars, technically) because it's a mile to downtown proper and we were fortunate enough to find a townhouse with a yard and two car garage (no HOA!). I walk downtown or ride a bike, take the train, and every now and then the bus. This neighborhood feels like a small town.

I know a ton of people that live downtown and work remotely. Main Street has a 96 walk score, which very few people know or will acknowledge. There are parks, museums, music venues, theaters, grocery stores, and everything you need downtown. And you don't need a car - it's one of the only places in the region that this is the case. You can get to and from DFW airport from anywhere downtown via the Orange line (DART) and Love Field with either Orange or Green.

pasak1987 / Living in Dallas / Edited 6mo ago
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Pro:

Fairly diverse city (lots of specific 'ethnic enclave' sort of hubs scattered around the city)

Relatively cheaper housing, though it is not as affordable as it used to be.

Good job market

Solid steak and Texmax (and various other style of restaurants )

School systems in the area you are moving into are pretty solid. Fairly good place to raise a family, if you are looking for that type of neighborhood.

Con:

Outdoor activities, especially hiking is lacking. (before anybody mentions Cedar Hills and claim DFW has legitimate hiking….please don't)

Pretty boring suburbia….It basically is copy & paste of SFH communities + stripmalls with a slightly different flavor throughout the city.

Hot as fuck during the summer, you will be homebound for about 1/3~1/4 of the year due to 100~110 degree weather outside.

People drive like maniacs, and you can't avoid them since you have to drive everywhere.

Pros/cons of living in Dallas?
TheCheddarBay
Living in Dallas
Edited 3y ago
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Pro. Dallas is easy to get around. It's cleaner than say Austin or Houston. You avoid hurricanes. Decent music, sports, and entertainment scene. Above average outdoor recreation activities/options.(however, everything is privatized. Barely any public lands to go camping, hiking, whatever)

Cons: You're in Texas. You drive 3 hrs in any direction -- you're still in Texas. Dallas Traffic is rated some of the worst in the nation. Food costs are higher both at the grocery store and restaurants. Texas weed is absolute shit and you get the worst of other states exports. You can't buy booze from a store on Sunday. Lots of power outages (I lived in CA 2x and didn't have to deal with losing power this frequently). Something bad happens (like a hurricane or snowstorm), the state won't do anything to assist you unless you're wealthy or politically tied. Southern hospitality is code for passive gossip. Don't be fooled by the no state income tax b.s. you'll be paying for it in higher rent, tolls, insurance, electricity, etc. Your employment protections in NY will no longer apply in TX. This includes, extended FMLA, maternity/paternity leave, additional unemployment benefits, legal representation, etc.

But, Dallas is great.

Living in Dallas?
hokagetyson
Living in Dallas
3y ago
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Pros: Cheaper than Most cities,vsuper diverse. Dallas is the 4th most diverse city in the US. There's Chinatown, Koreatown, Little India, Little Ethiopia, Little Seoul, Little Saigon, Asia Times Square…I could go on.

There's plenty of Job opportunities here, infact DFW has the most job openings in the US. There's also plenty to do here.. six flags, Grandscape, Legoland, Hurricane Harbor, Dallas world Aquarium, Museum of Illusions, Japanese gardens ,Butterfly gardens, Dallas zoo..I could go on.

The homes here are great, and it's warm year around. It's a liberal city and there's over 8million people in DFW which is nearly the size of Chicago

The cons are the Weather and The Ragidy Roads. Cost of living is high but not as High as NYC, LA, Miami or Chicago. Occupancy rates are sky high and That doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon.

If anyone says DFW is flat, they probably live in the suburbs like Frisco or Plano and never leave.

I drive over and last Hills all the time..from Grand Prairie to CedarHill all the way to North East Dallas and Irving…there's hills.

The food here is amazing and in my opinion and by Facts…Dallas is the best city in Texas.

Pros and Cons of living in Dallas, Texas
I've been living in Dallas, TX for over 30 years so I thought I would share my personal pros & cons of living here! Hope you enjoy.