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Moving to BCS- Bryan or CS?

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CM_92
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2:58p, 7/29/24
I plan to move from the Caldwell countryside to BCS very soon. My wife and I are in BCS at least 2-3 times a week and we are starting our family. Target areas at the moment are Memorial Forest/Briarcrest vs Southwood valley. I've done a fair enough of research in both communities and school districts but would love locals perspective.

-Schools are a big factor.
(Is CS ISD really far more superior? Schools like Johnson and Bowen in Bryan are nationally recognized).

-Community to raise a family.

-I plan to stay in my new house a long time.
(1. A&M Consolidated vs Bryan HS,
2. developments in community
3. crime)

Anything would help.
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CS78
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4:08p, 7/29/24
No offense but if those are your top priorities, I wouldn't be looking at Bryan or Southwood Valley. If family, crime, and schools are absolutely top priorities, then go with something south of Rock Prairie.

What grades are your kids? Can't say enough good things about Greens Prairie Elementary. Not as much about Pecan Trail for 5th-6th but no place better than GP for K-4th.
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Rex Racer
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4:12p, 7/29/24
AG
Memorial Forest is a great neighborhood. My wife and I just sold our house there 2 years ago after living there for 19 years. It was quiet on our street, though. It was almost exclusively retired folks on my street. I loved it.
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nthomas99
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In reply to CS78 • 4:58p, 7/29/24
AG
CS78 said:
No offense but if those are your top priorities, I wouldn't be looking at Bryan or Southwood Valley. If family, crime, and schools are absolutely top priorities, then go with something south of Rock Prairie.

What grades are your kids? Can't say enough good things about Greens Prairie Elementary. Not as much about Pecan Trail for 5th-6th but no place better than GP for K-4th.

Southwood Valley is hit or miss. Road closer to Deacon are generally better. I lived on Van Horn beside it until 7 years ago and always seemed fine, but the other side of Rio Grande and closer to 2818 were certainly rougher.

That said, we moved to South CS as the kids grew, partly because we we needed more room, partly because Southwood Valley Elementary was lacking (we liked Pebble Creek Elementary, a lot smaller with generally more experienced teachers).
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woodiewood
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In reply to CS78 • 5:04p, 7/29/24
CS78 said:
No offense but if those are your top priorities, I wouldn't be looking at Bryan or Southwood Valley. If family, crime, and schools are absolutely top priorities, then go with something south of Rock Prairie.

What grades are your kids? Can't say enough good things about Greens Prairie Elementary. Not as much about Pecan Trail for 5th-6th but no place better than GP for K-4th.
Deacon Drive and all of the cross streets from Rio Grande to Wellborn are very nice and safe areas to live. We lived there for about 15 years and loved it there on one of the dead-end side streets. We really like the large trees and large lots. I didn't want to wait 15 years to have shade from a tree.

There are no bad schools in College Station.



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bushytailed
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5:27p, 7/29/24
AG
The named streets between Deacon and Ponderosa are nice and quiet. I live here. There is no HOA, so you have some people who don't take care of their yards, but that's not a big deal to me. I can't speak to the neighborhood schools though, as I don't have kids.
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halibut sinclair
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5:41p, 7/29/24
All schools have good and bad students, teachers, administration, etc. Lots of great programs at various Bryan schools. Pick the area you like best and go with it. Your kids will be fine.

BTW, Bryan was recently named the 4th safest city in the US:

https://texags.com/forums/35/topics/3473528
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halibut sinclair
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In reply to CS78 • 6:19p, 7/29/24
[You know how to post your opinion on this board. -Staff]
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trouble
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6:46p, 7/29/24
AG
I prefer Bryan. CoCS govt is most of my reason.
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woodiewood
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In reply to halibut sinclair • 6:58p, 7/29/24
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JP76
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8:39p, 7/29/24
I went to Bryan high and no way in h&ll would I send my kids there today. Search up the fights where the principal had their ribs broken. Just curious why you are leaving Caldwell ? I have friends who moved there just to escape the chaos of schools in bigger cities.
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AgResearch
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9:31p, 7/29/24
AG
Stay in the countryside! City living is terrible.
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MS08
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10:15p, 7/29/24
AG
Would not recommend [If you are going to make a statement about not recommending an area you must give reasons on this forum. -Staff]
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FILO505
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In reply to MS08 • 11:06p, 7/29/24
AG
MS08 said:
Would not recommend Southwood Valley. I think The Oaks in Bryan is a great spot/neighborhood - sold a number of homes in there. If you are looking to stay in this home for a while and schools is a big deal, then Emerald Forest is another solid College Station option. Would not suggest Raintree. Shenandoah is sprawling but offers some good options. Reatta Meadows area off of Barron has good options and close to CSHS and a park


I bought in SWV, had my kid go through SWV Elementary, and all the follow-on schools (to include AMCHS), and I've yet to experience crime. And my kid got into A&M. Maybe your experience is an outlier? Or biased?

CSHS and AMCHS have different programs. Care more about that and your kids' future than whatever somebody says about neighborhoods they never lived in
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Red Pear Luke (BCS)
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In reply to CM_92 • 2:30a, 7/30/24
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AG
I would also ask for what your considerations in a home are? Typically are gonna see older homes in Bryan and really house by house in terms of well maintained. With pockets of good areas (I really like the older estate like homes in Bryan nead/off Villa Maria and up around Carter Creek. There are quite a few newer builds popping up as well but that means smaller lot sizes.

College station will have newer homes - with a decent mix of somewhat older home but on a bigger lot size. But also the new builds (hello Midtown and Southern Point). There are some great older houses around Holleman that are 4/2d with 1800-2100sf on 1/3 acre lot sizes at $275-300K range. Those are great deals IMO

That being said, you'd also need to factor in the school district boundaries. We live behind Pebble Creek and are zoned up to A&M consolidated. Which is a farther school vs CSHS or CHMS. But my oldest is almost 4 so I imagine there it'll get redrawn more given the growth by the time we get to those schooling stages.

If you have any questions or want some help running the traps on a house, feel free to reach out!

Sponsor Message: We Split Commissions. Full Service Agents in Austin, Bryan-College Station, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Red Pear Realty
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halibut sinclair
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In reply to JP76 • 6:34a, 7/30/24
JP76 said:
I went to Bryan high and no way in h&ll would I send my kids there today. Search up the fights where the principal had their ribs broken.
I also went to BHS as did our kids (10 years ago). We know many people with kids there now. It is what you make of it as with most other schools - if you're involved with extracurricular activities, band, athletics, honors classes, etc. you will most likely have no issues.
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StewRo
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7:04a, 7/30/24
AG
We moved to King Oaks in Iola a year ago. After 30 years in Cy Fair/Tomball area, we absolutely love the quiet, peacefulness while only being 15 mins from College Station. Have a soon to be 14 year old and school is great. Very small class sizes and teachers that care about the success of their students. He can play all sports which he would not have been able to do in either Col Station or Bryan based on his size.
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AggiePhil
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9:13a, 7/30/24
AG
This one's a no-brainer. College Station, hands down.
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JMac03
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9:29a, 7/30/24
AG
I would rather CS high schools over Bryan high schools.

While I live in South CS, I agree with looking at Iola as well.
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FamousAgg
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In reply to CM_92 • 9:34a, 7/30/24
Care to trade places, I'm in the Bryan Countryside and would love to be near Caldwell
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BryanTexan
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9:35a, 7/30/24
Moved here from out of town and chose Bryan. I have three kids enrolled in Bryan schools. Our experience has been outstanding and I wouldn't have wanted to do it anywhere else. I know many great families that live in the Memorial Forest/Briarcrest neighborhoods. I believe those neighborhoods will continue to thrive and see continued reinvestment from new and existing homeowners.
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MyNameIsJeff
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9:35a, 7/30/24
AG
We're a few years out on our kids entering school, so this was a huge factor for us when we sold our house in CS last year. While there are concerning stories out of both CS and Bryan schools, I think both still have a lot to offer if you get plugged into the right programs.

That said, we wound up doing the opposite of you, and we moved to Franklin. Franklin, Anderson, and Iola districts were the overwhelming majority of recommendations we got. We settled on Franklin above the others simply due to finding the right piece of property that way.
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tb9665
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10:43a, 7/30/24
Bryan High is a IB school. For people that do not know what that means, it is International Baccalaureate. There are only about 181 total in Texas. This is from 1st-12th grade.
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agnerd
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10:52a, 7/30/24
AG
If you or your wife got an academic scholarship for college, pick CS schools.
If neither did, go to Bryan.
Path to get your kids into the top 10% and automatic A&M admission is much easier at Bryan. If academic scholarships run in the family, CS schools will do more to make your kids more competitive against other kids in the state.
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Civil04
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In reply to CM_92 • 1:24p, 7/30/24
AG
Howdy CM,

Good luck with the move. I have an FSBO listing (TexAgs link below) in Emerald Forest in College Station. Emerald Forest is a good, family neighborhood. Raintree is connected to it and is also a family-friendly neighborhood to check out as well. Let me know if you want more info on my FSBO.


https://texags.com/forums/59/topics/3476701/replies/68138812
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ShinerBlonde
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2:01p, 7/30/24
AG
We live in the area near Rock Prairie elementary. Two kids currently at Consol and very happy with the school and the neighborhood.
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BluHorseShu
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In reply to CM_92 • 4:41p, 7/30/24
AG
Carlos Martinez said:
I plan to move from the Caldwell countryside to BCS very soon. My wife and I are in BCS at least 2-3 times a week and we are starting our family. Target areas at the moment are Memorial Forest/Briarcrest vs Southwood valley. I've done a fair enough of research in both communities and school districts but would love locals perspective.

-Schools are a big factor.
(Is CS ISD really far more superior? Schools like Johnson and Bowen in Bryan are nationally recognized).

-Community to raise a family.

-I plan to stay in my new house a long time.
(1. A&M Consolidated vs Bryan HS,
2. developments in community
3. crime)

Anything would help.
Either city is great. Both have good schools, good developments and crime exists in both but you'll likely never experience it.

LIfelong resident who lives in Memorial Forest and loves the neighborhood
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woodiewood
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In reply to FILO505 • 5:13p, 7/30/24
FILO505 said:
MS08 said:
Would not recommend Southwood Valley. I think The Oaks in Bryan is a great spot/neighborhood - sold a number of homes in there. If you are looking to stay in this home for a while and schools is a big deal, then Emerald Forest is another solid College Station option. Would not suggest Raintree. Shenandoah is sprawling but offers some good options. Reatta Meadows area off of Barron has good options and close to CSHS and a park


I bought in SWV, had my kid go through SWV Elementary, and all the follow-on schools (to include AMCHS), and I've yet to experience crime. And my kid got into A&M. Maybe your experience is an outlier? Or biased?

CSHS and AMCHS have different programs. Care more about that and your kids' future than whatever somebody says about neighborhoods they never lived in
All of CS including Southwood Valley are great places to live. The area on and off of Deacon from Brothers to Wellborn is very nice with no issues. I lived there for 15 years on one of the dead-end culdesac streets and loved it. I like the larger lots and mature trees in that area. Also no HOA which to me due to past experiences is a huge plus. Close to shopping, schools, A&M and many restaurants.

All of the residental areas of CS are very low crime and quiet. It's just a matter of your price point and what features you prefer.

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techno-ag
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In reply to StewRo • 5:15p, 7/30/24
AG
StewRo said:
We moved to King Oaks in Iola a year ago. After 30 years in Cy Fair/Tomball area, we absolutely love the quiet, peacefulness while only being 15 mins from College Station. Have a soon to be 14 year old and school is great. Very small class sizes and teachers that care about the success of their students. He can play all sports which he would not have been able to do in either Col Station or Bryan based on his size.

King Oaks gets you the best of both worlds. Small town Blue Ribbon school, live just minutes from Sam's & HEB.
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camra
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10:34p, 7/30/24
The Oaks and Tiffany Park are good neighborhoods with great elementary schools - we have been in Bryan a while and it's been a good time - lots of great places in BCS
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Stupe
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In reply to CS78 • 7:07a, 7/31/24
S
CS78 said:
No offense but if those are your top priorities, I wouldn't be looking at Bryan or Southwood Valley. If family, crime, and schools are absolutely top priorities, then go with something south of Rock Prairie.

What grades are your kids? Can't say enough good things about Greens Prairie Elementary. Not as much about Pecan Trail for 5th-6th but no place better than GP for K-4th.
That's a broad blanket to throw.

I lived in different houses in Southwood Valley as a student, newlywed, and young family.

The main differences between Southwood Valley and where I live in south College Station are the houses are bigger, there are less rentals, and the HOA enforces yard codes.

I never had my car broken into in Southwood Valley.
It happens in Pebble Creek, Emerald Forest, Castlegate, and other "rich" neighborhoods on a semi-regular basis.

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CM_92
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In reply to JP76 • 10:54a, 7/31/24
Amenities, I live 12 miles outside town. While it's only 15 mins away I'm going to have a newborn, and I don't want to be driving 30-60 mins a day for things like groceries or a doctor's visit.
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halibut sinclair
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In reply to CM_92 • 10:57a, 7/31/24
CM_92 said:
Amenities, I live 12 miles outside town. While it's only 15 mins away I'm going to have a newborn, and I don't want to be driving 30-60 mins a day for things like groceries or a doctor's visit.
What's your budget? Take a look at Austin's Colony - elementary, middle and high schools nearby. A nice park, 2 churches, Kroger, Walgreens, restaurants, movie theater, car repair, clinics and ER all within walking distance. And Nothern Tool coming soon!
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CM_92
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10:58a, 7/31/24
Thank you everyone. It's been helpful. As for crime or bad neighborhoods, how serious is it? Because I've lived in the some bad inner city neighborhoods in large cities, and Bryan/College Station seems to be a pretty idyllic town. I wonder how exaggerate thoughts on Byran are because I've heard similar things before but when I've driven through the neighborhoods it's mostly all beautiful suburbs.
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Rex Racer
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In reply to CM_92 • 10:59a, 7/31/24
AG
CM_92 said:
Amenities, I live 12 miles outside town. While it's only 15 mins away I'm going to have a newborn, and I don't want to be driving 30-60 mins a day for things like groceries or a doctor's visit.
Memorial Forest

You're right near both HEB and Kroger. You're blocks from St. Joseph's Hospital and lots of other clinical practices.

Oh, and 2 Walgreens and a Walmart.
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