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Addison Information
Addison is a town in Dallas County, Texas. The population was 14,166 at the
2000 census. Addison is a northern suburb of Dallas, Texas.
There were 7,621 households out of which 17.2% had children under the age of 18
living with them, 28.9% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 59.6% were non-families. 49.2% of all
households were made up of individuals and 3.1% had someone living alone who was
65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.86 and the average
family size was 2.74.
In the town the population was spread out with 16.0% under the age of 18, 12.3%
from 18 to 24, 47.8% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 4.7% who were 65
years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there
were 109.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $48,566, and the median income
for a family was $53,386. Males had a median income of $36,977 versus $32,452
for females. The per capita income for the town was $38,606. 7.7% of the
population and 6.2% of families were below the poverty line. 9.3% of those under
the age of 18 and 10.7% of those 65 and older are living in poverty. The median
house price has steadily increased in recent years. In 2005, the median price
for a home was $139,220.
The land occupied by Addison was settled as early as 1846, when Preston Witt
built a house near White Rock Creek. In 1902 the community named itself Addison,
after Addison Robertson, who served as postmaster from 1908 to 1916. The first
industry was a cotton gin, opening in 1902 on Addison Road. The City
of Addison was incorporated on June 15, 1953. In 1982 the name was changed to
"Town of Addison."
Most residents are served by the Dallas Independent School District while some
are served by the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District, though
no public schools operate within the town limits. The DISD portion of
Addison south of Belt Line Road is served by Anne Frank Elementary School
(Dallas), while the portion north of Belt Line Road is served by Junkins
Elementary School (Carrollton).
All of the DISD portion of Addison is served by Walker Middle School (Dallas)
and W.T. White High School (Dallas). The C-FBISD portion is served by
Stark Elementary School in Farmers Branch, Field Middle School in Farmers
Branch, and R. L. Turner High School in Carrollton. The Addison School
Building was opened in 1914. In 1954 the school became a part of the Dallas ISD,
and the school closed in 1962. The school building is now the "Magic Time
Machine Restaurant".
Addison is the home of a notable private school, Greenhill School, which is a
co-educational private school. Greenhill enrolls over 1,200 students from
preschool to high school and is one of the most selective schools in the Dallas
area. In addition, Trinity Christian Academy is within the town's borders.
What Addison is today is the result of explosive growth of business since the
1980s. Though Addison only has 14,166 residents, daytime population is estimated
at over 100,000. With more than 170 restaurants, there is a restaurant for every
83 Addison residents. Addison's restaurants are especially busy because of
ordinances allowing the sale of alcoholic beverages by the drink (not easy to do
in Dallas and neighboring suburbs). Addison has 22 hotels with at least 4,000
hotel rooms and meeting facilities. Addison's airport consumes roughly half of
the city's 11.5 square kilometers (4.4 square miles), and is one of the busiest
general aviation airports in the nation. Addison's major employers include MBNA,
CompUSA, Mary Kay Cosmetics, and Pizza Hut.
Because of Addison's overwhelmingly commercial atmosphere, residents of Addison
enjoy a unique lifestyle not common in other suburbs. Addison's rush hour is
often between 12-2 p.m. on weekdays and 6-9 p.m. on weekends due to the
concentration of restaurants. Adequate streets and short distances minimize
transportation inconveniences.
In 2005, the Town of Addison introduced a wireless internet network covering the
entire town. Though use costs a nominal fee, the network works to drive
businesses and serves its residents.
Residents and visitors can enjoy many Addison attractions, such as the Cavanaugh
Flight museum, housing a collection of aircraft since World War I. Addison
Circle Park, built in the early 2000s, is a venue for several seasonal outdoor
events, such as UNT's North Texas Jazz Fest, "Addison Artfest", Oktoberfest, and
the food exposition "Taste Addison." The Dallas Galleria provides shoppers with
over 200 stores inside an impressive mall. The Addison Improv Comedy Club and
Restaurant brings in some of the most acclaimed comedic talent in the region.
Some Things to Consider When Looking for a Place...
When searching for a new apartment make sure to take your time to think
through what are the most important things to you in an apartment and plan your
search based on those priorities. Here are some things to consider when planning
your move:
1. Consider the areas where you would like to live
* What is the crime rate?
* If you have children - what rating does the local school system have?
* Is there area convenient shopping, health and recreation services in the area?
2. Make a list of your housing priorities
* Do you have pets?
* Do you need parking?
* Do you need to be on the ground floor?
* What amenities are important to you - swimming pool, fitness room, in unit
laundry?
3. Evaluate the building
* What is the condition of the unit and building?
* Are the grounds maintained?
* Are windows, steps, and railings in good condition?
* View the property at night. Is it safe and well lit?
4. The security of the property
* Are there security service? When is the guard on duty?
* Does the building have controlled access?
* Does each unit have secure door and window locks?
5. Talk to the neighbors
* Ask other residents whether they are satisfied with the building.
6. Amenities
* Who is allowed to use the amenities?
* When are they open?
* Are the fees charged to use those facilities included in rent?
7. Ask about Utilities
* Does the owner or tenant pay the utility bills?
* Are any utilities included with monthly rent?
* Do units have separate thermostats to control heat and air conditioning?
8. Review the lease
* How much notice must you give before moving out?
* Can the rent be increased? If so, by how much and how often?
* Are pets allowed?
* What is the security deposit and cleaning costs upon move out?
* What is the responsibility of tenants for damage to property?
* Is there a penalty for breaking a lease?
9. Information too bring to a lease signing
* Credit Report
* Pay stubs/tax returns
* Reference
* Application
More Apartment Information
An apartment (or flat in Britain and most other Commonwealth countries) is a
self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building. Apartments
may be owned (by an owner-occupier) or rented (by tenants).
Some apartment-dwellers own their apartments, either as co-ops, in which the
residents own shares of a corporation that owns the building or development; or
in condominiums, whose residents own their apartments and share ownership of the
public spaces. Most apartments are in buildings designed for the purpose, but
large older houses are sometimes divided into apartments. The word apartment
connotes a residential unit or section in a building. Apartment building owners,
lessors, or managers often use the more general word units to refer to
apartments. Units can be used to refer to rental business suites as well as
residential apartments. When there is no tenant occupying an apartment, the
lessor is said to have a vacancy. For apartment lessors, each vacancy represents
a loss of income from rent-paying tenants for the time the apartment is vacant
(i.e., unoccupied). Lessors' objectives are often to minimize the vacancy rate
for their units. The owner of the apartment typically transfers possession to
the occupant by giving him/her the key to the apartment entrance door and any
other keys need to live there, such as a common key to the building or any other
common areas, and an individual unit mailbox key. When the occupant move out,
these keys should typically be returned to the owner.
Apartments can be classified into several types. Studio, efficiency, bed-sit, or
bachelor apartments tend to be the smallest apartments with the cheapest rents
in a given area. These kinds of apartment usually consist mainly of a large room
which is the living, dining, and bedroom combined. There are usually kitchen
facilities as part of this central room, but the bathroom is its own smaller
separate room. Moving up from the efficiencies are one-bedroom apartments where
one bedroom is a separate room from the rest of the apartment. Then there are
two-bedroom, three-bedroom, etc. apartments. Small apartments often have only
one entrance/exit. Large apartments often have two entrances/exits, perhaps a
door in the front and another in the back. Depending on the building design, the
entrance/exit doors may be directly to the outside or to a common area inside,
such as a hallway. Depending on location, apartments may be available for rent
furnished with furniture or unfurnished into which a tenant usually moves in
with his/her own furniture. Permanent carpeting is often included in an
apartment.
Laundry facilities are usually kept in a separate area accessible to all the
tenants in the building. Depending on when the building was built and the design
of the building, utilities such as water, heating, and electric may be common
for all the apartments in the building or separate for each apartment and billed
separately to each tenant (however, many areas in the US have ruled it illegal
to split a water bill among all the tenants, especially if a pool is on the
premises). Outlets for connection to telephones are typically included in
apartments. Telephone service is optional and is practically always billed
separately from the rent payments. Cable television and similar amenities are
extra also. Parking space, air conditioner, and extra storage space may or may
not be included with an apartment. Rental leases often limit the maximum number
of people who can reside in each apartment. On or around the ground floor of the
apartment building, a series of mailboxes are typically kept in a location
accessible to the public and, thus, to the letter-carrier too. Every unit
typically gets its own mailbox with individual keys to it. Some very large
apartment buildings with a full-time staff may take mail from the mailman and
provide mail-sorting service. Near the mailboxes or some other location
accessible by outsiders, there may be a buzzer (equivalent to a doorbell) for
each individual unit. In smaller apartment buildings such as two- or
three-flats, or even four-flats, garbage is often disposed of in trash
containers similar to those used at houses. In larger buildings, garbage is
often collected in a common trash bin or dumpster. For cleanliness or minimizing
noise, many lessors will place restrictions on tenants regarding keeping pets in
an apartment.
In some parts of the world, the word apartment is used generally to refer to a
new purpose-built self-contained residential unit in a building, whereas the
word flat means a converted self-contained unit in an older building. An
industrial, warehouse, or commercial space converted to an apartment is commonly
called a loft.
When part of a house is converted for the ostensible use of a landlord's family
member, the unit may be known as an in-law apartment or granny flat, though
these (sometimes illegally) created units are often occupied by ordinary renters
rather than family members. In Canada these suites are commonly located in the
basements of houses and are therefore normally called basement suites.
Staying in privately owned apartments rather than in a hotel is quickly becoming
popular with travelers.