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Information about living in Omaha? Help!

seaotter910seaotter910 member
First Comment
in Nebraska-Omaha
Hello Omaha knotties,

My fiancé may be accepting a job in Omaha and I just had a few questions.

1. What are some good suburbs/areas to live? Family oriented as my fiancé has a son.
2. What are good school districts in the area? I'm a teacher so I will be needing a job
3. Does anyone know teaching job prospects in the Omaha area? Here in Ohio it's so hard to find a teaching job so I'm kind of nervous!

Thanks for any input. I'm stressed now thinking about planning a wedding, moving, and job hunting now all this summer!
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Re: Information about living in Omaha? Help!

  • dazyabbeydazyabbey
    5 Love Its Name Dropper First Anniversary First Comment
    Although I do not know much about teaching jobs I believe they are pretty easy to come by. Hopefully someone else will comment on this as well.

    Omaha really is a great area to live in and is one of the best cities to raise your kids: http://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/real-estate/T006-S001-10-great-cities-to-raise-your-kids/index.html

    I would say depending on your budget and housing one of the best school districts is District 66. It is obviously a little more expensive in terms of housing. Also if you want to go across the river into Iowa they have some great schools as well. Specifically the Lewis Central School District. Taxes and everything else tends to be cheaper in Iowa. Where I live in Council Bluffs, IA I am about a 5 minute drive to downtown Omaha. It is very convenient and you can get more house for your money as well. Sometimes Nebraska/Omaha people treat Council Bluffs like a read headed step child though. Similar to other cities I have seen though (Minneapolis/St. Paul and Kansas City, KS and Kansas City, MO)

    Good luck! And I really hope he accepts it. Omaha really is a great area to live. :-)

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    06.09.2012

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  • crazeecatladeecrazeecatladee
    First Comment
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_nebraska-omaha_information-about-living-in-omaha-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:79Discussion:daed2edc-7afe-43ef-b0e7-3fa282e0e4d9Post:59395bb9-4e4c-4e72-a370-51d80d0ae859">Re: Information about living in Omaha? Help!</a>:
    [QUOTE] Sometimes Nebraska/Omaha people treat Council Bluffs like a read headed step child though. Similar to other cities I have seen though (Minneapolis/St. Paul and Kansas City, KS and Kansas City, MO)
    Posted by dazyabbey[/QUOTE]

    I agree with everything she said.  I reside in Iowa, yet work in Nebraska.  Just watch your taxes at the end of the year...you can be somewhat penalized for living in one but working in the other.  I also agree with the higher taxes and cost of living in Nebraska.
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  • seaotter910seaotter910 member
    First Comment
    Our housing budget is pretty high. What would you say houses in district 66 would run? Is that in Omaha or is that like a suburb? What are some good suburbs? We are used to about a 30 min commute now from our suburb to cleveland, so it could be in that radius.
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  • bluefish81bluefish81
    First Anniversary First Comment
    You can find houses in District 66 for as low as about $125K, but they go up to a million. If you go to CBShomes dot com and search for the Westside school district, you should be able to get an idea of what you can get for different money.  There won't be a ton of new construction in Westside aka. District 66.  It's a school district within Omaha that is not part of OPS.
    If you want newer construction, you'd be better off looking at...The Millard schools are good, as are Papillion-LaVista, and Elkhorn.

    I currently live in the Millard school district but will be moving to the Bellevue area soon,  my FI is in the Air Force. We don't have kids, so I can't speak to specifics with schools.

    Commutes in general are pretty short, you should be able to get from downtown to just about anywhere in town in half an hour - unless there's a bad accident or something.
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  • dazyabbeydazyabbey
    5 Love Its Name Dropper First Anniversary First Comment
    The nice thing about the Omaha area is that it is very affordable. You could easily find a job within 10-20 minute commute. I think a half hour is a long commute but that is just me. I work about 7 minutes from my home.

    I also saw your post on the Nebraska General forum. Those ladies seem very helpful in regards to teaching jobs. I would see where your husbands office is and start looking in that area.

    OPS or Omaha Public Schools is not horrible, but it isn't great. And North Omaha isn't as bad as they make it out to be. It has some gang violence but you aren't going to get shot at for driving in the neighborhood like some of them made it out to be. This is Omaha and the crime is relatively low.

    Good luck!

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    06.09.2012

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  • M&MJKM&MJK member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    The Omaha area has an interesting situation regarding school districts because of the state constitution which allows a larger community to annex a smaller one (Omaha has annexed the communities of Elkhorn, Millard, Florence, Dundee, and others over the years) but retain school district boundries.  As a result there are multiple school districts in the area including (but not limited to) Millard Public Schools and Elkhorn school district.  As far as your job hunt is concerned apply to as many as possible.  Ralston, LaVista, and Papillion are what you might call suburbs to the south.  Bellevue is also close by to the southeast.  All have their own school districts.  Teaching positions are not so easy to come by as some might have you think.  We have three universities with education programs within an hour's drive of the city limits and the Catholic schools in the eastern part of the city are reorganizing with some closing down.  If you are general elementary your job hunt could take a while.  If you are more specialized or teach at a higher level it may be easier to find something.  Don't get discouraged though.  Keep your chin up.

    The housing market is affordable and varied.  Omaha's money tends to move west so the more expensive areas tend to be that direction, but keep in mind Omaha's housing market is very reasonable even at the more expensive end.  If you are looking for a good neighborhood to raise a family, you will find many choices.  Talk to your realtor about your needs and wants, and they can give you some direction. Best of luck! And welcome to the area!
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  • M&MJKM&MJK member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    And I am in the same boat as you minus the move.  That was last summer! 
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  • lizmanningerlizmanninger member
    First Comment
    Honestly, all of the Omaha area school districts are good. Especially compared to the big cities in Ohio - no offense. :) Omaha North HS and Omaha South HS have the lowest income and probably more discipline problems, but are still good schools. It's a great city to raise your kids in. Good luck!!
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