Uptown News

Uptown Dallas dwellers get a new grocery store option at prime location

The supermarket crawl keeps creeping ever closer to downtown Dallas, with the latest news being that a Tom Thumb will open in a new mixed-use project coming in 2017. According to an announcement from RED Development, Tom Thumb will be the first major retail tenant for Union Dallas, an office, residential and retail project at Field Street and Cedar Springs Road.

RED Development, which first announced The Union in May 2014, is leading the design and construction. The site is southeast of American Airlines Center and within walking distance of the Ritz-Carlton, Katy Trail, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, and Klyde Warren Park. That intersection sits at a nexus between downtown, Uptown, the Arts District and Victory Park.

"Tom Thumb is a high-quality grocery favorite in the Dallas area that will be a superior amenity, not only for the people who will live and work at The Union, but also for the nearby burgeoning residential districts," says RED managing partner Mike Ebert in a statement.

Tom Thumb president Scott Hays touts the vibrancy of the location. "The Union is a premier location for our new Tom Thumb store, at the heart of many nearby neighborhoods and the city's top attractions," he says.

Plans for The Union call for a 22-story office tower, a 20-floor residential high-rise featuring 300 apartments with balconies and views, a 25,000-square-foot shared amenity deck, 11 levels of parking, and an open-air central plaza. The Union will also include sit-down and fast-casual restaurants, as well as retail.

Tom Thumb was acquired by Albertsons in March 2014 and operates 58 Tom Thumb stores throughout North Texas and 49 Albertsons stores. Part of that acquisition deal involved some Albertsons stores being sold off to Minyard's, which includes the nearby store at McKinney and Lemmon avenues, which recently became a Minyard Sun Fresh Market.

A Kroger store opened at CityPlace in 2012. A Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market has been open on the frontage road of 75 near Hall Street since 2005. In 2015, a Whole Foods Market will open at McKinney Avenue and Routh Street, and a Trader Joe's is opening near Knox Street.

Tom Thumb: Coming to Uptown in 2017.

Courtesy photo

Tom Thumb: Coming to Uptown in 2017.

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bang for your buck

These are the 10 most affordable ZIP codes for Dallas-area renters

Photo by Jenifer McNeil Baker for Greystar

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Buying a home in Dallas is difficult enough to afford these days, and doubly so if you're already paying high rent on an apartment or a house. But there are 10 Dallas-Fort Worth ZIP codes where renters can get the most bang for their buck, according to a new study by financial services company CashNetUSA.

To find the most affordable ZIP codes to rent in the U.S., analysts compared median household incomes by ZIP code to the average annual rent costs using the Zillow Observed Rent Index. ZIP codes where the average annual rental costs required the lowest percentage of median household income were considered the "most affordable."

Two Dallas suburbs and their ZIP codes specifically stood out in CashNetUSA's ranking of the most affordable ZIPs for renters across the Metroplex: 75013 in Allen (No. 1) and 75033 in Frisco (No. 2).

According to the study's findings, the average monthly cost of a rental in Allen comes out to $1,716.45, and the median annual income of an Allen household is $145,220. Analysts then calculated that the annual rent of a home in the Allen ZIP code only takes up 14.18 percent of a household's median income, which is the No. 1 lowest in Dallas-Fort Worth.

Allen was recently named one of the best small cities to live in, with a scorching hot real estate market to match its thriving popularity and growth.

In Frisco's 75033 ZIP, annual rent costs only represent 14.89 percent of a household's median annual income. The area – which encompasses the Meadow Hill Estates, Preston Highlands North, Christie Ranch, Newman Village, Shaddock Creek Estates, and Collin neighborhoods – has a median household income of $149,525, and average rent costs add up to $1,855.49, according to the study.

Meanwhile, Dallas' own 75214 ZIP code ranked No. 8 in the metro-wide ranking of most affordable ZIPs for renters. This area consists of several established Dallas neighborhoods, including Northeast Dallas, Wilshire Heights, Lakewood, Lakewood Hills, Junius Heights, and Munger Place.

The median annual income for a household in 75214 comes out to $104,583, and the average rental costs $1,669.40 per month. That means annual rent payments account for 19.15 percent of a household's median income, according to the study.

The seven other ZIPs that make up the top 10 most affordable ZIP codes for renters in Dallas-Fort Worth include:

No. 3 – 76248 in Keller
No. 4 – 76085 in Weatherford
No. 5 – 76262 in Roanoke
No. 6 – 75078 in Prosper
No. 7 – 75048 in Sachse
No. 9 – 75077 in Highland Village
No. 10 – 75093 in Plano

Top ZIP codes for renters in the U.S.
CashNetUSA found the No. 1 most affordable ZIP code for renters nationwide is 66224 in Leawood, Kansas, where annual rent only takes a 10.57 percent cut out of a household's median annual income.

Elsewhere in Texas, San Antonio's 78248 ZIP ranked as the No. 4 most affordable ZIP code for renters in the U.S., and the No. 1 most affordable ZIP code statewide.

Two Houston-area ZIP codes – 77401 and 77094 – ranked No. 9 and No. 12 nationally, while Allen's 75013 ZIP code fell two spots behind to claim the No. 14 spot.

frisco suburbs zip codes rent