Plenty of people move to the Dallas area to escape high prices in Cali or New York or Chicago. When people move to the area and they want the cost even lower, Grand Prairie is a great option. Housing costs are low, rent or purchase, and while Dallas area prices have increased it remains low overall relative to both income and national averages. 

One other advantage is its central location. It’s in tight near Dallas, sits in between Dallas and Fort Worth, and is only about 14 minutes from the DFW airport. You could hardly pick a more convenient place for hopping to the various city options in the area and you need to get out of dodge for work.

Here's a note from a local about what Grand Prairie is like:
*It has a decent night life, there's some great bars in town, nothing too dance friendly or club like, aside from Madhatter's I guess. For live music, the place to go is Better Than Fred's, amazing food, the owner is great and he hires really great staff. As far as things to do, there's always things in the summer to do in Muskoseepi, it's a nice area to walk and just hang out in the grass.*

Cost Of Living

The Best Thing About Grand Prairie?

This evaluation is based entirely on your point of view. In something called the Hipster Index: https://www.movehub.com/blog/the-hipster-index/  Grand Prairie ranks last in the U.S.(and nearly last in the world) for things that Hipsters like - vegan food choices, coffee shops, tattoo studios, vintage boutiques and record stores. 

Now, many people might love the idea of a city missing any “cool” hipster hangouts. And that might be fair. On the other hand, many new home-hunters also say that they like good walk score commercial districts with boutique shopping, coffee shops and unique social energy that makes it an interesting place to live. Grand Prairie is a hard-core suburban city without that kind of vibe so if you’re looking for a tiny taste of Brooklyn in your suburb then steer clear of Grand Prairie. 

Here's a summary of life in Grand Prairie from a local:
*Depends on where you are coming from. I came from a large city and this place is wildly boring. If you're coming from a smaller place, this town has lots. There are a million kids here too. Food is expensive, the restaurants aren't anything to really write home about; any home chef could do better - youre just paying for the convenience really. There arent too many 'cool hang outs' unless you like the bar. Community centers offer lots for kids bit not much for adult things.*

No Hipsters?

The Worst Thing About Grand Prairie?

Without question Grand Prairie is suburban central. Many neighborhoods are filled with parks and tree-lined streets and big or modest homes. You can also live near Joe Pool Lake (or drive there in a few minutes) and enjoy the intense Texas lake recreation culture. There isn’t much of a downtown Grand Prairie scene but there are a couple interesting entertainment options. The Verizon Theater hosts major concerts, comedy shows and festivals and the much smaller Uptown Theater on Main Street is host to smaller music and theater events. On the regular,  if people go out they generally head into Dallas. It’s only 15 minutes away (when no traffic) so expect to head into the big city if you’re looking to head out for the night. People who live here either are looking for an inexpensive option to be near Dallas, or they are raising a family and enjoy the affordable housing and suburban experience. 

If you want to see what people do in Grand Prairie check out the calendar of events: https://www.gptx.org/Community-Calendar

Lifestyle Of Grand Prairie

There are two primary reasons to move to Grand Prairie: 1) an inexpensive option for being centrally located in the DFW area 2) an inexpensive place to raise a family. If either of those reasons are interesting to you then put GP on your shortlist. 

Additionally, Grand Prairie is tied for first among all U.S. sites for how black residents fare economically https://smartasset.com/financial-advisor/where-black-americans-fare-best-economically-2021 It has the fourth-highest black labor force participation rate and the lowest black poverty rate of all cities in the study. 

Save Those Dollars.

Why You Should Move Here Now?

The neighborhoods near Joe Pool Lake are popular with families. Some of the neighborhoods by the lake are in the Mansfield school district so you pay a bit more in taxes but you also get better rated schools. Start with the Grand Peninsula for low home prices and low taxes. Also put Westchester on your list; it sits between I20 and the lake, has low crime and great pricing for good homes. 
- Joe Pool Lake Area
- Grand Peninsula
- Westchester
- Historic Downtown


 Families

Joe Pool Lake Area

North Texas is a highly ranked area to retire with Grand Prairie ranking as high as the second best place to retire in the country in different studies. In addition to the relatively inexpensive traditional neighborhood options, there is a popular 55+ community, Mira Lagos, that has great homes, villas and apartment options, mixed with pools, hiking trails, recreation centers and all the other social amenities that make it a great option. If you want to avoid retirement communities then consider Historic Downtown. Great home and apartment options all within walking distance of restaurants, Farmer's Market and community events. 
- Mira Lagos
- The Lakes at Grand Prairie
- Historic Downtown


Retirees

Mira Lagos

Grand Prairie

**Grand Prairie?**


GP is a long, narrow city. It stretches from South of Joe Pool Lake almost to 183. Most of the higher rent new construction is south of Camp Wisdom.

From there, Old South GP is what I would call the area East of Lake Ridge, East of 161, up to about 303. I think this area is still decent middle class stuff, but I haven't been in ages.

West of Lake Ridge to 360 up to 303 is the part I grew up in. It's mostly cheaply built cookie-cutter houses, primarily middle class but slipping, and rougher the further north you go.

By the time you get to 303 and north, there isn't much nice to see. I assume most of the residential is pretty bad. There are lots of old small business parks and warehouses. This is also home to a lot of big aviation business, though. Lockheed, Bell/Textron, and Vought all have large campuses in this area. Outside of these companies, the Verizon Theater, Lone Star horse track, and being close to GM and Arlington theme parks is about all I can say about it.

In my opinion, it's about average for mid-city and Dallas-bordering suburbs in most aspects.

**Grand Prairie?**

I live here and I enjoy living here in my neighborhood. 360/great southwest. Its not a super rich area but I enjoy it. My neighbors are the best and we all know each other on the street (culdesac). I'll probably move in a couple of years but I've enjoyed my 8yrs here. Especially as a starter house.

**Thoughts on Grand Prairie?**

I've lived in GP for almost 4 years now. I live close to main street in the historic old downtown. I love my century house. Love my area. We can walk to the farmers market on Saturdays. We're in the middle of the metro, so we can go anywhere pretty quickly. The price was right for us when we were house hunting. Luckily we bought when we did; we wouldn't be able to afford it if we were buying these days.

**What is it like to live in Grand Prairie, TX?**

It’s fabulous, we live right on the edge of Grand Prairie and Arlington- near Joe Pool lake. We can get to Dallas or Fr. Worth in less than 30 min, along with the Cowboys Stadium and Arlington Ballpark to watch the Texas Rangers. How Pool lake is less than a mile, along with the camp grounds, then there is Lake Arlington about 15 min away. Close to the mall- Close to everything!! There’s even 3 close waterparks, including one that in enclosed in case you want to go in the winter. Well love it here, it’s been 11 years!



Grand Prairie, Texas

Dinosaur Roar!

Looklyloo Score: 75

Joe Pool Lake Area

Families

Mira Lagos

Retirees