Richardson

Richardson Cottonwood Park

Richardson is a “first-ring” suburb, located 12 miles north of downtown Dallas, just outside Interstate 635. Its strategic location near major freeways, affordable housing prices, excellent school districts, and bustling business community make it a popular place for young professionals, corporate executives, and families.

With a population around 105,000, Richardson was named the “fifth happiest mid-sized city in America” in 2014 by Movoto, a national real estate blog, based on things like low unemployment, low crime, and high income. That same year, 24/7 Wall St. named Richardson America’s 17th Best City to Live in based on crime, economy, education, housing, environment, leisure, and infrastructure.

This suburb offers a lot of opportunities in its 28 square miles. Many of DFW’s telecommunications/networking companies have settled there along the Telecom Corridor, including AT&T, Cisco Systems, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Texas Instruments, Samsung, and Verizon. The city offers more than 30 million square feet of office, flex, and industrial space, and has the highest concentration of technology workers in DFW.

Richardson offers a range of housing options in both new and well-established neighborhoods. Housing is more affordable than many areas of DFW—the average sales price of a house in 2013 was $209,900. One-bedroom apartments in Richardson average about $875 a month and two bedrooms average around $1,300 a month.

Several transit-oriented developments have been built in recent years and Richardson is served citywide by DART bus service and four DART light rail stations, more than any other Dallas suburb.

One of the biggest draws for families is the two highly recognized public school districts, Richardson ISD and Plano ISD. Both of them are rated "Recognized" by the Texas Education Agency and consistently rank near the top of all Texas school districts. Many individual school campuses have received the highly desired "Exemplary" rating. With 21 “Honor Roll” campuses, the most prestigious award for sustained academic excellence, RISD achieved the highest number in Texas.

J.J. Pearce and Richardson high schools were both named to the U.S. News & World Report's "Best U.S. High Schools." All RISD and PISD high schools rank among the top 3 percent in the country.

Richardson is also home to the University of Texas at Dallas, the most selective public university in Texas, as well as Richland College.

But life isn't all school and work: Richardson offers great entertainment for residents, with arts and music festivals throughout the year, plus first-class entertainment venues, like the Eisemann Center. The city has over 800 acres of parks and recreational facilities, golf courses, and 16 miles of hike-and-bike trails.

One of the most renowned events is the Cottonwood Art Festival, a semi-annual event that features works from the nation’s top visual artists. Located in scenic Cottonwood Park, this prestigious art show has been a part of Richardson life for over forty years and admission is free. Additionally, Huffhines Art Trails is an arts & crafts show produced by the city and the Wildflower! Festival is an award-winning, multi-day eclectic arts and music festival.

With great schools, affordable housing, and plenty of fun, Richardson is the kind of city you might want to call home.

 

Eisemann Center

University of Texas at Dallas

University of Texas at Dallas

Richardson Park

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