It Adds Up

How much Dallas-Fort Worth parents save by living in the suburbs

Seems like the suburbs are a sound investment.

Photo courtesy of Texas Health Resources

You already know it's wise to scout outside the metro borders of Dallas and Fort Worth if you're looking to stretch your housing dollar, but where should you settle if you have a family? Is living in the suburbs really the better plan?

Absolutely, says Zillow and Care.com. The two websites looked at housing (home values and property taxes) and child care costs for 30 metro areas and their surrounding suburbs, and it turns out it's not just a little more affordable to live in the DFW 'burbs — we actually share the top three with New York City and Chicago for the highest variance between urban and suburban living.

Nationally, the Cost of Living Report shows that families spend $9,073 more a year to live in the city compared to the suburbs. For DFW, that number is a staggering $14,128. It breaks down like this: Families living in the urban parts of the Dallas metro spend $44,843 a year on housing and child care. In the suburbs, they spend just $30,715. That’s an extra $1,177 urban families spend every month.

DFW city dwellers are shelling out roughly $10,000 a year more for homes that are about 250 median square feet smaller than their suburban counterparts. To rub salt in the wound, our urban commute time isn't that great: not even two median minutes shorter.

Suburban Austinites save $11,522 by not living in the city, while Houstonians can sock away $5,368 a year by settling in the 'burbs. San Antonio is the only Texas city in the study where it's cheaper to live in town: $2,474 can be saved annually.

But the study found that not all suburbs are coming out on top. Those surrounding Philadelphia will cost you $13,849 a year more to enjoy, while the urban parts of Baltimore, Cleveland, and Milwaukee are also significantly cheaper in which to raise a family.

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Police News

Fort Worth police officer fired for unjustified use of force

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A Fort Worth police officer has been terminated following his involvement in a use of force incident. According to a release, Officer Matthew Krueger was let go on December 18, following an investigation into an incident involving someone who was videotaping his actions while he was on duty.

On Sunday, June 23, Fort Worth police officers responded to a hit-and-run collision near 1000 Foch St. The incident involved a suspected intoxicated driver who crashed into another vehicle and a structure before fleeing the scene on foot.

While officers were investigating, a woman approached them and used her cell phone to record their actions. Krueger asked and advised her multiple times to move across the street. When she failed to comply, she was placed under arrest.

During the arrest, Krueger used force to take the woman into custody, resulting in injuries that required medical care at an area hospital.

After being treated, the woman was released from the hospital, booked into jail, and charged with interference with public duties, resisting arrest and/or detention, evading arrest, and making a false alarm or report.

Krueger had been with the department for just under eight years and was assigned to the Patrol Bureau at the time of the incident.

The Fort Worth Police Major Case and Internal Affairs Units began immediate and congruent investigations. Krueger was transferred from Patrol to a unit with no public interaction, pending the outcome of the investigation.

After a review of the Internal Affairs investigation, Krueger’s chain of command determined that the level of force used was unjustified and violated departmental policy. Police Chief Neil Noakes concurred and terminated Krueger’s employment.

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