[txman210]

How about schools? Plano had very good schools at one time. I don't know if they still do, but I would guess so... I keep reading bad things about Vegas schools.

[WorldKlas]

Clark County schools have a bad reputation. It covers all of the valley up to Mesquite, NV. Probably one of the largest school districts in America. However local pockets have been reputed to be very good. Example Del Webb Middle school is considered highly desirable as well as some of the elementary schools in Green Valley, Seven Hills and Anthem, and some in Summerlin as well. In general, public schools have a pretty bad reputation here, with some notable exceptions. If planning on moving here with kids who will attend public schools, you need to be selective about which areas you live in. But kids here who were good students still graduate high school and are accepted into top colleges.

[moguldreamer]

Originally Posted by txman210

To clarify, I don't think the traffic would be too bad in Vegas, but maybe, I'm wrong. My understanding is it's mostly around the strip and rush hour.

Traffic is much much worse now than 5 years ago. All major streets to get anywhere are saturated.

[moguldreamer]

Originally Posted by txman210

How about schools? Plano had very good schools at one time. I don't know if they still do, but I would guess so... I keep reading bad things about Vegas schools.

You'll probably want to consider a few of the very good private schools.

***

Sorry - the following is a bit long, but I hope it is worth reading. We moved here from Silicon Valley after our daughter was off to college - but the following anecdote may give you some insight for a framework to think about the issue - much of which comes down to values.



As parents, we are our children's most important role-models. That's one of the reasons I kept working until our daughter went off to college rather than retire earlier than I did: I knew I was a role model of what a man does - a man gets up in the morning & goes to work; he doesn't sit around the house in his underwear. (Clearly, this was pre-remote work.)

Discussing the importance of education & careers & leading a life of purpose & contributing to society each day at home helps, as does leading by example. Young children absorb more than we give them credit for. If other families in the neighborhood similarly are focused on education & careers & leading a life of purpose, that is a big plus.

Our daughter grew up in Silicon Valley. When she would get together with her school friends - even early in elementary school -- I would ask the kids in an age appropriate way "what do you want to be when you grow up?" The girls would say things that reflected their role models: "I want to be an Engineer," "I want to be a Chemist," "I want to be a Venture Capitalist," "I want to work at Google" or Apple or Facebook or wherever mom or dad worked, along with the ubiquitous "Doctor" or occaisional "President."

"The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Their own moms & dads were their most important role models, and it was reflected in their aspirations. Their moms and dads had advanced degrees - frequently PhDs in solid state physics, ChemE, EE, ME, Photolithography, CS, software engineering, data science, materials science, even IE, and worked at startups or household name tech companies. The next important role models are the moms and dads of their friends.

Our daughter went on to University at an Ivy League school (Columbia), and I still remember taking her suite of freshmen women out to dinner when I would visit. Most of these bright women hailed from NYC or Long Island or Connecticut or New Jersey. I'd ask them in an age appropriate way "what do you want to do when you grow up?" Their answers shocked me. "Do? What do I want to do???" There were puzzled expressions as if I were stringing together words that made no sense.

Ultimately I would get answers indicating they would graduate, marry a Columbia man who would work on Wall Street, and they would live in the City, and she would volunteer and maybe sit on the board of a charity, and they would start a family, and at some point they would decamp for the suburbs. That is, their vision of their future was based on their own most important role models - their own mothers and fathers. Their dads worked in finance in the city. Their moms volunteered and took pilates classes and tennis lessons and the like.

***
Getting back to schools & Las Vegas, it is not so much the schools themselves - it is the values of the families of the students that the students themselves learn and adopt. Where you live & the schools your kid(s) will attend determine the universe from which they will select their friends and determine their peers. If the values of the parents are expressed via lifted pick-up trucks, jet skis in the driveway and dreaming of being an MMA cage fighter, while academics are rarely discussed and relegated to the status of something through which to suffer, the kids will grow up one way. If the values of the parents are expressed via their occupations in, say, the food preparation business or construction business, the kids will grow up another way. If there values are expressed via numerous bookcases filled with great books, the kids will grow up another way. If the parents are in the performing arts (lots of live entertainment in Las Vegas), yet another way. If the parents have started and are running a family business, yet another way.

And, to be clear, there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of the above - the question is how they mesh or conflict with your own values, hopes, and dreams for your child.

[txman210]

Thank you so much for the reply. I guess if I'm looking for what you described, where would best ensure that for our child (outside California, which is far too expensive. )

[BabyBoomers2]

Some of the replies you've received here are very, very true. Hot, dry, windy and lots and lots of people and traffic. This week we (Henderson, just south of Vegas) will be in the mid-to-high 90's. There are plenty of folks that live in the Vegas metro that absolutely love it and think of it as Utopia. IOW, "no place on earth as nice as Vegas!". Then, there are others, but not many, that have seen the entire Vegas/Henderson metro change and don't like it. For us, in our mid 70's, we'd like to see the way it was in 2001, but that just isn't going to happen. So, after only 8 months, we are making plans of moving. The heat is just too much for us.

But, the OP knows what they want and don't want. Good Luck!!

[txman210]

Anyone with experience elsewhere too? Mrs. Txman would prefer Vegas, but I'm not sure if it's the best option for our child, given my constraints...

[movin1]

You could send your child to the best school in America and not end up with what you hoped for. There are ways to help guide your child be a good student. My parents worked with me and helped me with math and science. My dad studied engineering before he became a Marine in WWII (I'm 70). My mom liked art and played piano, she worked as a secretary. I did well with both engineering and music and ended up being a professional recording and live sound engineer for 34 years. My parents said I should do whatever I wanted to do, but be good at it. They encouraged me to go to college after high school so I went, but I didn't know what I wanted to do for a living yet. A guy who lived next door to me in the dorm my freshman year got to know me. He knew I was good with math and science and heard me play guitar in bands. He suggested I become a recording engineer. I dropped out of college for a year to save money and moved to New York to study at the Institute of Audio Research. I moved back to IL and went to the U of IL where I studied music and electrical engineering.

I think your child will do well in any reasonably good location. I was born and raised in a Central IL town that had two Universities. My parents valued education and instilled the desire to learn in me. Towns/cities with Universities have a lot to offer, UNLV is a good school. Think beyond grade school and high school.

Your child will find things they are good at and enjoy with your help and guidance. It might be a trade, like being a carpenter, electrician, or a plumber. You might want them to be be a doctor, an accountant, or a lawyer - it might happen or it might not. They might be a musician, artist, or an actor.

Personally, I would stay away from small towns that don't have culture and higher education opportunities, but I'm biased. They used to say Vegas had no culture, now it has The Smith Center. https://thesmithcenter.com/

Vegas has a lot of interesting things to offer, you have to find them. Casinos are businesses with well paid executives that have MBA degrees. Shows need musicians and technicians of all types (sound, lighting, stage hands, rigging, etc). You don't find opportunities like that many places.

[CalWorth]

You mentioned Clark County, WA. That area is very family-oriented, Camas & Vancouver have grown & so have the housing prices. If you can afford it, move there. I believe the Camas schools have a ggod rep. Prepare to pay the big bucks for housing.

Someone mentioned Temecula/Murietta. The schools are good & it's "almost" San Diego. House prices are not as insane as San Diego. If you don't have to make a soul-crushing commute into San Diego for work, move there.

I spent most of my adult life in San Diego County & raised my child there. They are a successful adult, but I started them in private school. I wouldn't do it now. Among the top reasons that I left San Diego were the crowding & traffic & now housing is disproportionally expensive.

I don't know where you live on the eastside. I don't care for the Tri-Cities area. Walla Walla & Spokane aren't bad. There are worse places to raise a kid. Are you way out in the boonies like Ritzville or Moses Lake?

I would not raise a child in Las Vegas because I grew up in that climate & hated it, also, crime & crowding have increased dramatically & the public school system is terrible. If you end up paying tuition for private school, at least do it in a better environment than Vegas.

[WorldKlas]

Originally Posted by CalWorth

You mentioned Clark County, WA. That area is very family-oriented, Camas & Vancouver have grown & so have the housing prices. If you can afford it, move there. I believe the Camas schools have a ggod rep. Prepare to pay the big bucks for housing.

Someone mentioned Temecula/Murietta. The schools are good & it's "almost" San Diego. House prices are not as insane as San Diego. If you don't have to make a soul-crushing commute into San Diego for work, move there.

I spent most of my adult life in San Diego County & raised my child there. They are a successful adult, but I started them in private school. I wouldn't do it now. Among the top reasons that I left San Diego were the crowding & traffic & now housing is disproportionally expensive.

I would not raise a child in Las Vegas because I grew up in that climate & hated it, also, crime & crowding have increased dramatically & the public school system is terrible. If you end up paying tuition for private school, at least do it in a better environment than Vegas.

I have to agree that both crime and traffic seem to be getting worse in the Las Vegas valley. I just did a Realtor.com search of houses in Temecula and was surprised that home prices seem to be pretty comparable to the nicer areas in Anthem, Seven Hills and Summerlin here in the LV area.