FRISCO, ALLEN, McKinney TX..good Place to Raise Family?

I prefer Allen and McKinney, they are less congested than Frisco. All of them have a lot of traffic to contend with to get to and from Dallas. McKinney is the furthest, but I like that b/c it is farther from Dallas. They all have good school systems. You can contact the school district to find about the student/teacher ratio - it's different for certain grades. The dallas suburbs are populated mostly by families.

I grew up in Texas and lived in Grand Junction Co & Colorado Springs Co. after college. We moved back to Texas to be closer to family and have kids - BIGGEST MISTAKE WE EVER MADE!!!!!!!! The weather and people are so much nicer and match our environmental and political views much better than the ultra conservative area of DFW. However, if that fits your bill, you will love it here :) On another note, it is MUCH, MUCH cheaper to live in Texas than Colorado and there is no state tax, those are positive factors to move here.

We live in the Plano/Allen area. I have an Allen address and we are Plano schools.

We love this area. We've been here (in the same 3 mile area) since 1989. Our daughter will be 16 in December and is going through the Plano schools which are excellent. She has been challenged wonderfully through her education, she's now in 10th grade, all honors student, orchestra, cheer captian. We feel she is getting a good, well rounded education.

I've also been a substitute teacher at the same elementary school (exemplary and Blue Ribbon, many honors) for 10 yrs. I'd say there are 18-20 children per classroom and teacher aide readily available and around a lot.

The Allen schools are also very good. Allen is growing rapidly and I think the tax base for schools is a bit higher than Plano but Allen does have good schools as well.

As for neighborhood, our neighborhood is full of wonderful families. We have families from all walks of life here.. Many corporate executives, SAHM, WAHM, lot of children out playing. It is common to be outside on a beautiful evening or morning and see a group of people just hanging out, talking while children are at play.

Our street is very low traffic, we live on a large lot backing up to a large 85 acre wooded area that is Park and won't be developed. We love our privacy (can't look out one window and see in the neighbors window). We can be out back and no one see us :) We love the wildlife (bobcats, owls, etc). Of course, you are careful but we love this area.

If you are interested, let me know and I will PM the neighborhood website to you. As for price ranges, our area is around $300,000 -appx 1M -- of course, depending on the location and size of lot/home.

If you come here, I think you would love it. Many things to do, DFW is a great home airport with easy access to go anywhere. LOVE Field is great for all the short trips.

I've not personally experienced the ultra conservativeness I've read about in other posts in my area. We are quite open minded (moreso than many). Our specific area is more white collar area than blue collar areas. Most moms in our neighborhood are SAHM and active volunteers in the schools and city.

Best wishes on making the best choice for your family.

I was born in Louisiana but spent most of my life in Ohio, Michigan, Colorado, Mass and Texas. My husband lived in Ohio his entire life.

I live in Bedford Texas - they call this area the "Mid-cities" because you can live here and work in Dallas or Fort Worth. I like the DFW area in general for a lot of reasons - strong(er) economy, good schools, low cost of living, affordable/cheap housing. My husband is a programmer we bought our first house before he was even 30. 2100sq ft. I am now a SAHM and we live comfortably. I appreciate that part of the reason we have managed to do as well as we have is from the low cost of living and how much house you can get for your money around here while still living in a nice area. The other side is that Dallas has a strong market for programmers. So while the economy most places is hurting - Dallas has been pretty stable and has lower unemployment rates then the rest of the country. It's hard to leave that!

What I don't like... I am not Christian and we're in the Bible belt. (that may not apply to you so I won't dwell) Texas in general is more conservative and I consider myself more Liberal -- pro-choice, I get the NOW newsletter, etc -- so this is a point of dissatisfaction for me. It is HOT AS HECK here, I feel like I hide inside with the kids May through Sept. We don't have four seasons - I miss a leisurely time of trees changing color, I miss the snow.

Hope that helps a bit :)

My aunt lives there, and I have visited many times. It is a GREAT place to raise a family!

Personally, I avoid Frisco like the plague. It's very very congested and shows no sign of slowing down. There are so many businesses, it feels commercial. Driving in Frisco, drives me nuts!! I don't find Frisco welcoming, but I don't live there. I only go there for specific reasons. It might be different, if I lived there. Allen is nice, so it McKinney. I really love McKinney, It's close access to other big cities, but still a "small town" feel. Forbes just rated it in the Top 10 places to live in America. The Schools, in all of those cities are very good. Your kids would get a great education, in any of the three. There are lots of families in all three cities. McKinney, would probably have them smallest student to teacher ratio. (I could be wrong, you'd have to check!) In all three quality housing, is very affordable!

Have you ever been to Texas? The summers here are brutal!!

I live in Frisco and love it. Used to be in Plano but wanted to get rid of pool and perhaps a newer home. Frisco is like Plano was when we lived there at first, growing and growing and things have to catch. I love the schools in Frisco much more than Plano. Schools are smaller and the kids are not under as much pressure - Frisco is building schools so that we will not be a mega school size. I have a great realtor who works all over Collin who could give you information about the all parts of Collin if that would be of help. Please pm me and will send you her info. Thanks and good luck