Where (not?) to live

Dallas deemed one of America's worst places to rent right now

Renters have better options than Big D.

ejs9/Getty Images

Dallas may not be "home sweet home" for renters, according to a new study. WalletHub recently revealed America's best and worst places to rent, ranking Dallas all the way down at No. 106, one of the worst in the country.

The personal finance website measured 182 U.S. cities based on 23 factors before boiling them down to two major metrics: rental market and affordability and quality of life. Dallas ranks a poor 144th in the former and 72nd in the latter.

A closer look, though, shows Dallas’ performance in the study is spottier than just saying it’s one of the best or worst places to rent.

WalletHub breaks down Dallas’ rental market and affordability by gauging the city’s rental vacancy rate (No. 63), average home size (No. 102), affordability (No. 105), cost of living (No. 114), rent-to-price ratio (No. 128), and other factors. The median gross rent in Dallas, WalletHub says, is $937 a month.

The quality of life ranking takes into account the local job market, for which Dallas ranks an impressive No. 12, but also factors in driver friendliness (No. 64), quality of public schools (No. 73), weather (No. 138), and more.

Those looking to rent in North Texas have better options than Big D, according to the study, with Plano (No. 19), Grand Prairie (No. 40), Arlington (No. 54), and Fort Worth (No. 58) faring far better. Even Irving (No. 93) and Garland (No. 103) outrank Dallas.

Elsewhere in Texas, San Antonio (No. 92) and Houston (No. 135) are in Dallas' neck of the woods, whereas Austin lands on the opposite end of the spectrum, at No. 33.

El Paso is the highest ranking Texas city on the list at No. 9, not far behind Scottsdale, Arizona, the best place in the country to rent. New Haven (No. 181) and Bridgeport (No. 182), Connecticut, though, take the two worst spots on the list.

rent

GP News

Grand Prairie expands to the south with new master-planned community

Rendering courtesy of Provident

Goodland Grand Prairie

The City of Grand Prairie is growing fast and expanding to make way for a new master-planned development south of US Highway 287 and along Tollway 360, in Ellis and Johnson counties.

The community development, called Goodland, is the result of Grand Prairie’s recent 1,500-acre annexation extending its southern border toward Mansfield. Overall, with the added land, Goodland will be a 5,000-acre site featuring 15,000 residences including townhomes, custom homes, and gated communities for 50,000 residents.

According to a release, it will be a “city within a city” and a 45-minute drive from Dallas-Fort Worth. Beyond housing, there will be shops, restaurants, schools, public and private event venues, regional sports fields and complexes, dance halls, churches, trail systems, city parks, ponds, and preserved green spaces.

“This is a significant step in our city’s development,” says Grand Prairie Mayor Ron Jensen in a statement. “Unlike many of our neighboring cities, we have the unique advantage of new development opportunities to our south that will drive the growth and prosperity of our city. We recognized the opportunity and took decisive action.”

Leading the development is Provident, a Dallas-based real estate firm that has created other master-planned communities across Dallas-Fort Worth, such as Preston Hollow Village and Hillstead in Collin County. Provident has plans to work nature into the space design with more than 1,600 acres of creek corridors and floodplain land.

Plans are ongoing for a centralized mixed-use walkable Town Center, complete with civic buildings and other commercial development. Further south on the property near Highway 67, light industrial uses and other private employment campuses are already underway, projects that will contribute vital tax dollars for city growth and future expansions.

“This level of placemaking is quite rare, and certainly not easy to execute, especially in a brand-new community," says Provident Managing Director Rylan Yowell in a statement. "We are committed to a long-term vision with a desire to be good stewards of the land."

A new four-lane road called Goodland Parkway will link Goodland to Grand Prairie at Tollway 360 and US Highway 287. It's set to open by December 2025.

openings