There are many suburbs of Dallas, but few of them are as well rounded as Irving, Texas. This self-contained city of 200,000 is located just 12 miles from Dallas, making it popular with commuters, but also has a thriving business community all its own. Irving is home to the headquarters offices of several major companies, including Kimberly Clarke, Exxon Mobil, and the Michaels chain of arts and crafts stores. This gives Irving residents the option of living and working in town. Founded in 1903 and named for famed author Washington Irving, the city of Irving is a great place to buy real estate, whether you're buying your very first home or you're thinking of setting up a new business venture.

One of the best things about the Irving housing market is that it is affordable without being downtrodden. Many cities boast of their cheap home prices but what are you getting for your money? A crumbling house in a troubled neighborhood. Here in Irving, the cost of living is slightly less than the national average and the home prices average out at around $135,000. This is about $15,000 above the state average for Texas, but significantly less than you might expect to pay in some of the other Metroplex cities.

The types of houses you'll find here vary widely. Irving is fairly typical of a Texas city when it comes to architectural styles, meaning you'll find a lot of one-storey ranch homes with Spanish Colonial influences, like stucco walls or tiled roofs. If you're lucky you may chance upon some historic homes built in the Victorian or Antibellum styles and Art Deco is a popular style for public buildings built during the boom in the 1920s. Irving is currently about 67 square miles and still has some room to grow, so you'll also find a lot of modern homes in planned subdivisions.

In fact, Irving has been well-known for its planned subdivisions for quite some time. In 1972, the subdivision of Los Colinas became one of the first of its kind in the country, spanning over 12,000 acres and incorporating everything from high-rise office towers to modern multi-story homes to country clubs. The neighborhoods within Los Colinas remain some of the city's most popular places to live. Currently tops on the neighborhood popularity list are Valley Ranch, Hackberry Creek, the Arts District, Quail Run condos, and the Bear Creek historic district.