Hola friends. My family and I are moving back to OKC in about ~6 months after having been gone for 1.5 years. So much has changed in that amount of time and I’m wondering what areas we should be looking at to buy?

We are looking for 3 beds and have a decent budget. We want to ideally be in the core. We’ve looked into Wheeler and I just don’t think it’s going to work out like we were hoping.

What areas should we focus on?

You’ll want a family friendly area with the potential of a mega highway stack interchange to be built nearby while an over zealous white police keep “those people” out... I’d recommend far north Edmond(to stay away from the ghetto the is central and west Edmond) and let’s not forget deer creek.

Anyways here are some good spots to check out. Mesta Park, Edgemere Park, Crown and Heritage Heights. There are good homes all along the eastern edges of western through Nichols hills on Glenwood, Hemstead, Tedford, ect. Lincoln Terrace has had a resurgence over the past few years. Most of these sacrifice space but are close to everything. Personally I'd stay away from Plaza area right now. Prices just seem to be bordering unsustainable given then spottiness of the area. Although there are some nice remodels going on.

If you want some more space but still want to be close to core check out Wilemans Belle Isle (just west of Penn Sq) and the area on the west sides of OKC Golf and CC. Northern Nichols Hills just NE of Christ the King too.

Do you want a more established neighborhood or do you want to be in something that is more "up and coming"?

Lemme ask about budget. Stuff mentioned on this thread are ranging from $90 to $200 plus per square foot.

Welcome back (almost), AP!

Another question to consider is whether you have school-age children. If so, will they be attending public or private school? That could factor into your choices as well.

Venice has a nice mix of houses, from big to small, with appropriate prices, not "in" the core, but very close and we find it super-easy to get anywhere from where we live (NW 35th/Venice). Not sure about schools, we have no kids, but I think the elementary near here (Sequoyah) is going to be closing.

I think top of our, what I would consider, decent budget is 300k. We have one kid, but not school aged yet. Very interested in OKC public schools.

I would like a mature neighborhood, and I’m grateful for worthy cook’s suggestions, but I think those neighborhoods are mostly out of our budget. Before we left we live at 42nd and classen in a nice little starter home, so I’m ok with being in an area that has a little room to mature.

I know a lot about OKC and neighborhoods seeing as I’ve spent the better part of 7 years actively participating here. I feel like real estate changes so quickly and 1.5 years is enough time for me to feel like I have no clue what’s going on anymore haha.

The Paseo just got re-zoned so that the area now feeds into Wilson Elementary (one of the best OKCPS elementaries). Same with Jefferson Park, Central Park, Crown Heights, Edgmere Park, Harn Park, etc. You're old house on 42nd and Classen probably even feeds there now (not 100% positive and may depend on the particulars of the final plan). So what I am saying is that a huge part of north central OKC will be sending their kids to Wilson, not just the insanely expensive Mesta Park/Heritage Hills area as is currently the case. So if a quality public school is what you are interested in, your area of interest just got a lot larger.

I will say something similar happened with Cleveland Elementary (another really good school). Their feeder area also is expanding, providing another set of neighborhoods to consider if schools are a high ranking qualification for you.

I think top of our, what I would consider, decent budget is 300k. We have one kid, but not school aged yet. Very interested in OKC public schools.

I would like a mature neighborhood, and I’m grateful for worthy cook’s suggestions, but I think those neighborhoods are mostly out of our budget. Before we left we live at 42nd and classen in a nice little starter home, so I’m ok with being in an area that has a little room to mature.

I know a lot about OKC and neighborhoods seeing as I’ve spent the better part of 7 years actively participating here. I feel like real estate changes so quickly and 1.5 years is enough time for me to feel like I have no clue what’s going on anymore haha.

Honestly, of the last 5/6 years, the last 1.5 has been the "slowest" in terms have change. It seems like most areas have really steadied the pace because more areas are involved than ever. The only area I would say has ramped up significantly is the Paseo, but I'm not sure that has dramatically upped pricing in that area for homes. Worthycook would know better than I would, but it seems in the I-44/I-235/I-40 loop, prices have basically risen by something like 15% across the board, give or take a bit based on the quality of the home.

What about buying a lot and building? It would likely bring you to the upper end of your budget and it will be a bit smaller, but when you can determine the exact layout you want, sacrificing 50 to 200 square feet can make a lot of sense.

I would check out Linwood place. Great historic neighborhood with some absolutely beautiful homes!

I think top of our, what I would consider, decent budget is 300k. We have one kid, but not school aged yet. Very interested in OKC public schools.

I would like a mature neighborhood, and I’m grateful for worthy cook’s suggestions, but I think those neighborhoods are mostly out of our budget. Before we left we live at 42nd and classen in a nice little starter home, so I’m ok with being in an area that has a little room to mature.

I know a lot about OKC and neighborhoods seeing as I’ve spent the better part of 7 years actively participating here. I feel like real estate changes so quickly and 1.5 years is enough time for me to feel like I have no clue what’s going on anymore haha.

This perfectly describes the situation my wife and I faced 2 years ago. We landed in Lincoln Terrace. Very mature home. We got a steal on our house for $99 a sq ft, less after seller paid closing costs.

There are still a few deals left in Lincoln Terrace. With the upcoming redistricting vote for OKCPS we will be in the Wilson Elementary district and we intend to send our 1.5 year old there when he is old enough. My wife and I come from a public school upbringing and hope our kids can experience the same.

We love it so far! Good luck!

The Village has always done an excellent job retaining value. Homes on the west side of May run 1700-2500 square feet (and beyond, if you want some of the newer Mulford built homes, though I think those are above your budget line) with generally big yards, and easy access to Hefner Parkway and the Lake. You'll be looking to spend $110/sqft if you want to do some work, and $140 or so per sqft if you don't.

The Village has always done an excellent job retaining value. Homes on the west side of May run 1700-2500 square feet (and beyond, if you want some of the newer Mulford built homes, though I think those are above your budget line) with generally big yards, and easy access to Hefner Parkway and the Lake. You'll be looking to spend $110/sqft if you want to do some work, and $140 or so per sqft if you don't.

The Village is great. But, it's 10 miles from the center of OKC.


Suggest you put a pin on the Devon tower and make a circle how far from the center you wanna live. Plenty of good neighborhoods within your budget.

Welcome back. Check out Cashions Wildewood.

Thank you everyone for the replies. This helps a ton!

Another consideration is seeing if the home is within the geographical boundaries for John Rex Elementary. They are doing some pretty amazing things there.

I'll echo other posters by mentioning Lincoln Terrace, Jefferson Park/Paseo, and then also Shepherd, Cleveland, and Linwood.

What are everyone's thoughts on the Old Military Park area? We are currently shopping and have a similar maximum budget we'd like to stick to as the OP. Problem is we don't necessarily want a project and are hoping this can be our "forever" (okay, probably medium-term) home so are looking at remodeled ~3B/2Br houses, which seemingly puts a decent amount of the Paseo/Central Park/etc. market just out of reach but OMP is about as far from the core as we'd hope to be. I've gotten conflicting impressions about how safe the area is and whether it is really booming or has a long way to go -- seems like there's a pretty wide range of homes selling in the area from those <$100K to over $300K in places and a similarly wide range in $/sqft which suggests flipping is beginning. Is there reason to believe that this area might be a good longer term play for those just moving into the core? Thanks for any advice!

^

I live just north.

It's very, very mixed. The biggest issue I have in such neighborhoods is not safety, but neighbors. You get people with really trashy houses that aren't going anywhere, and it's something you can't change and have to look at all the time.

That's the thing I'd be looking at once you find a house you like because it can turn into a huge headache.

100% agree. One of the reasons we settled on the house in Shepherd is because of the neighborhood. Wonderful neighbors. Our previous house was in an up-and-coming area and it was quite variable on our street with who cared about their house and who didn’t.

We live in Venice, and yeah, agree with the others about MP - just off and on within one block, much less between blocks. You should definitely check out Cleveland, Venice, and Shepherd, they're only a few blocks further and seem to be much more stable (Venice certainly is, not 100% sure about the others, but they seem better than MP).