10 reasons why we LOVE Living in Plano

Why live in Plano? 15 years ago if you had asked me why I love or rather why I live in Plano – I would have given you just two reasons, good schools and easy to travel from. My Blog is called Outside Suburbia for a reason! We loved getting out of the suburbs…. it was mostly agricultural land around us and there was hardly anything to do in Plano back then. With Plano being located midway between two airports it was easy to get away for weekends and other trips…

We have lived here for 20 years, and watched this little Suburb of Dallas grow and have slowly but surely fallen in love with living in Plano! I was thrilled to hear last week that WalletHub declared Plano to be the Happiest Places to live in the US according to studies done based on three factors — emotional and physical well-being, income and employment, and community and environment. So I thought I will share my top 10 reasons why we love living in the Plano Suburbs and a little about our life in Plano, Texas.

Read on to discover some pros and cons of living in Plano, Texas.

Plano is the Happiest City in America – WalletHub

10 reasons why we Love Living in Plano, Texas

We have 300 days of sunshine! I know I can’t make scientific claims, but we do have more than our share of blue skies and a lot of sunny days compared to most other cities in the US. Apart from a few gray days in November, December and January, the Texas Sun in always shining bright.
We love the schools here, both our kids are in the public schools run by Plano Independent School District. Plano has one of the best school districts in the DFW Metroplex and in the Nation, which is probably a deciding factor for most people moving here. Kids have access to various sports, music, theatre and an impressive array of cultural activities.
With over 300,000 people living here, Plano is just the right size, not too big or too small. The Quality of living is great here and the housing is affordable, you do get more house for your money here compared to most cities. Texas is one of the seven states that forego Individual Income Tax, so you get to keep more of the more you earn.
A big reason we love living in Plano is because of the neighborhoods — we have a diverse, inclusive and friendly communities. One in four of the residents in Plano were born in a different country. There are churches, temples, mosques and so many different ethnic grocery stores, restaurants and shopping areas. This is one of my favorite part of life in Plano!Photo by GoldenLightCreative
Plano has the best of both worlds, there is a quaint historic downtown area in East Plano on 15th street East of Highway 75 and there is also urban districts like Shops at Willow Bend, Legacy West and Shops at Legacy in West Plano. Did I mention the city of Plano is a well-planned city, the road is laid North to South and East to West, making it easy to drive around.
You can literally travel the world without leaving Plano. Sometimes you don’t need plane tickets for a mini getaway, we just drive to an amazing International restaurant and let our taste-buds and senses be stimulated to transport to fun destinations. I have written about this for Plano Magazine a couple of times. From cute cafes to steak houses to some wonderful international cuisine we have it all.
There is a strong sense of community here in Plano where everyone is ready to give a helping hand for those in need – from Minnies Food Pantry and North Texas Food Bank that helps fight hunger and feed more than 150,000 meals each day for hungry children, seniors and families across a 13-county service area, Hope’s Door that helps survivors of domestic abuse, the community, and offenders — there so many opportunities to give back.
We have an educated population with 5 out of 10 adults who have college degrees and 9 out of 10 adults have graduated from high school and 54% of the population is highly skilled Labor force with management and technical professionals. This also means that there are a lot of jobs and the economy is flourishing in Plano with companies moving their offices and headquarters here.
While we have no beaches or mountains, we have abundant green spaces, parks and hiking trails in Plano. Oak Point Park and Nature Preserve Trail is where the yearly Balloon festival is hosted. Arbor Hills Nature Preserve has hike and bike trails under a canopy of trees and stunning views of the prairie and forest. The Chisholm Trail is a part of the City of Plano trail system runs South from Harrington Park, connects along the way to the Bluebonnet Trail, which by the way is one of the best places to see the Texas State Flower.
There are times I’m excited that I live in the Suburbs – September is one of those times when Hot Air Balloons float across the autumn skies of Plano. Plano hosts the biggest, brightest, finest Balloon festivals and its been a tradition to go see them!

Our dog loves all the off-leash Dog Park in Plano at Jack Carter Dog Park

So while I’m excited that Plano was featured as the Happiest Place in the US, I’m not surprised…. Plano is a vibrant, safe and thriving city with friendly neighborhoods, quaint and historic areas, some lively urban centers and lots of economic, educational and recreational opportunities. I’m happy to call it home and Love Living in Plano!