# Moving to Dallas from California: the honest 2026 guide

> Source: Realust (realust.com) · https://realust.com/moving-to-dallas-from-california/ · Published October 10, 2026 · Updated October 12, 2026

Moving to Dallas from California? Compare taxes, home prices, insurance and summer heat, plus the North Texas cities that fit former Californians best.

Roughly 100,000 Californians move to Texas every year, more than from any other state. Plenty of them land in Dallas-Fort Worth. The reasons are no secret: no state income tax, homes that cost less than half as much, and a job market that keeps adding big employers.

What gets talked about less is the fine print. Property tax rates are about 50% higher. Home insurance costs more. July is hot in a way that’s hard to explain until you’ve lived it. None of that is a reason not to come, but you should run the real numbers before you sign anything. Here’s the honest version, using Realust data for 84 North Texas cities and official sources.

Home prices **$395K vs $888K**

DFW metro median vs California’s statewide median single-family price.

Income tax **0% vs up to 13.3%**

Texas has no state income tax. California also takes 1.3% of every paycheck for SDI.

Property tax **About 1.5x**

Around 1.7% a year in cities like Frisco and Plano, vs about 1.1% of purchase price under Prop 13.

## The numbers that make people move

Start with the house. The California Association of Realtors put the statewide median single-family price at $887,680 in July 2026. The Dallas-Fort Worth metro median is about $395,000, according to the Zillow Home Value Index. Even premium suburbs come in well under the California median: Frisco’s typical home is $638,512 and Prosper’s is $757,804, and both come with new schools, new roads and Realust Scores of 90 and 93.

Then the paycheck. California’s top income tax rate is 13.3%, and since 2024 the 1.3% State Disability Insurance payroll tax applies to every dollar of wages, with no cap. As a rough example, a married couple earning $200,000 in wages pays somewhere around $10,000 a year in California income tax plus about $2,600 in SDI. In Texas, that line is zero. That’s real money: on many budgets it covers the higher property tax and insurance with room to spare.

The catch is that Texas collects its money in other ways. The state sales tax is 6.25%, and with local taxes most DFW cities charge 8.25%, which is similar to much of California. And then there’s property tax.

## The catch: property taxes

In California, Prop 13 caps the base property tax at 1% of what you paid, plus local bonds and assessments, so most buyers pay a little over 1% a year and it barely rises. Texas has no income tax, so cities, counties and especially school districts lean on property tax. In Frisco and Plano, the city, school district, county and college rates add up to about 1.7% a year. On Frisco’s typical $638,512 home, that’s roughly $10,700 a year before exemptions; on Plano’s $493,092 home, about $8,400.

Here’s the surprising part: those dollar amounts are about what you’d pay on California’s median home. A Californian buying at $888,000 pays roughly $9,500 to $11,000 a year. So in Texas you’re often paying similar property tax on a house that costs 30% to 45% less. The rate stings; the bill is often a wash.

Three things soften it:

- **The homestead exemption.** Texas voters raised it in 2025: $140,000 of your home’s value is now exempt from school district taxes, the biggest piece of most bills. It only applies to your primary residence, and you have to file for it with your county appraisal district.
- **The 10% cap.** Once you have a homestead exemption, the taxable value of your home can’t rise more than 10% a year, even if the market jumps.
- **Protests are normal.** Texans routinely protest their appraisal every spring, and many win a lower value. Nobody will think less of you.

One thing makes it worse: in many brand-new subdivisions, especially in fast-growing places like Celina and Prosper, there’s an extra Public Improvement District (PID) or Municipal Utility District (MUD) assessment on top of the regular rate. Always ask for the total tax rate on the specific address, not the city average.

## Insurance and utilities

This one surprises people. Insurance.com’s 2026 analysis puts the average homeowners policy at $4,085 a year in Texas, compared with $1,616 in California, for the same $300,000 of dwelling coverage. The reason is hail. North Texas sits in one of the most hail-prone parts of the country, and roof claims drive premiums. To be fair, the California number hides a different problem: in wildfire areas, many people can’t get a regular policy at all.

Electricity works differently too. In most of DFW the market is deregulated: Oncor owns the wires, and you pick a retail electricity plan yourself, usually through the state’s Power to Choose website. Read the fine print on teaser rates. A few cities run their own utilities instead, including Garland and Denton, so there’s no shopping there. Budget for big summer bills: air conditioning runs nearly nonstop from June to September.

## The weather, honestly

If you’re coming from the coast, summer is the adjustment. Dallas-Fort Worth averages about 17 days a year at 100 degrees or hotter, and the first one usually shows up around July 1. In 2011 there were 71. It’s humid heat, not Palm Springs dry heat, and the nights don’t cool off much.

The rest of the year has real weather: spring thunderstorms with hail and the occasional tornado warning, and every few winters an ice storm that shuts the region down for a day or two. On the other hand, fall and spring are genuinely lovely, there are no earthquakes, and wildfire smoke isn’t part of life the way it is in much of California. Most transplants say the trade is worth it. Plan on a pool, a garage, and a good roof.

## Getting around

DFW is built for cars, more like the Inland Empire than San Francisco. Highways are wide and traffic is real but usually lighter than LA’s. Expect toll roads: the Dallas North Tollway, the President George Bush Turnpike and Sam Rayburn Tollway connect most of the northern suburbs, and a TollTag pays for them automatically. DART light rail reaches Plano, Richardson, Garland, Rowlett and Carrollton, among others, and it’s handy for getting downtown or to games, but few people live without a car.

That’s why Realust scores Commute separately. Dallas (83), Plano (83), Carrollton (82) and Richardson (81) score highest among the cities Californians often consider, while far-north suburbs like Prosper (66) trade a longer drive for newer everything.

## Where Californians tend to land

There’s no single “California suburb” in North Texas, but there are clear matches depending on what you’re leaving. Prices are typical home values (Zillow) and scores are out of 100.

- **Leaving Irvine or South Orange County?** Try [Frisco](https://realust.com/city/frisco/) (Score 90, $638,512) or [Prosper](https://realust.com/city/prosper/) (93, $757,804). Master-planned neighborhoods, Schools scores of 90 and lots of new construction.
- **Leaving the South Bay or Silicon Valley?** Try [Plano](https://realust.com/city/plano/) (82, $493,092) or [Richardson](https://realust.com/city/richardson/) (77, $438,611). Corporate campuses, established neighborhoods, DART rail and the best Commute scores in the suburbs.
- **Leaving Silver Lake, North Park or Oakland?** Look at neighborhoods inside [Dallas](https://realust.com/city/dallas/) itself (69, $305,765), like Bishop Arts, Lakewood or Lower Greenville. The citywide score is pulled down by Safety (49), so judge the specific neighborhood.
- **Leaving Pasadena or San Marino?** [University Park](https://realust.com/city/university-park/) (97, $2.47M) and Highland Park (93, $3.04M) are the old-money, tree-lined, walk-to-school enclaves. They’re priced like it.
- **Want the best value?** [Allen](https://realust.com/city/allen/) (86, $485,393) pairs a Schools score of 89 with an Affordability score of 83. [Wylie](https://realust.com/city/wylie/) (83, $412,915) and [Sachse](https://realust.com/city/sachse/) (82, $427,561, Safety 86) are close behind.
- **Missing the water?** [Rockwall](https://realust.com/city/rockwall/) (83, $474,989) and [Heath](https://realust.com/city/heath/) (94, $706,780) sit on Lake Ray Hubbard. Heath’s Safety score is 94.

| Realust Score | Frisco 89 | Plano 81 | Allen 85 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Prosperity | 90 | 79 | 85 |
| Schools | 90 | 84 | 89 |
| Safety | 83 | 76 | 84 |
| Lifestyle | 89 | 89 | 89 |
| Market | 75 | 79 | 76 |
| Affordability | 77 | 76 | 83 |
| Commute | 62 | 69 | 67 |
| Growth | 80 | 62 | 68 |

Not sure which bucket you’re in? [Take the 90-second city quiz](https://realust.com/find-your-city/): eight questions, and it matches you against all 84 cities using your own priorities.

## The culture shock (the good kind, mostly)

- **Space.** The same budget buys a bigger house, a bigger yard and a two- or three-car garage. People really do use the extra room.
- **HOAs everywhere.** Most newer neighborhoods have one. Read the rules on fences, paint and parking before you buy.
- **Friendly strangers.** People wave, chat at the grocery store and say “y’all.” It stops feeling strange in about a month.
- **Tex-Mex is not Mexican food.** Both are great here. Adjust expectations accordingly, and expect a lot of queso.
- **Football is a calendar.** High school stadiums in some of these suburbs rival small colleges, and Friday nights are booked.
- **The politics are different.** The suburbs are more mixed than people assume, but Texas statewide politics lean differently from California. Worth knowing going in.

**Ask yourself**
- Have you priced insurance and the full tax rate on a real address, not just the sticker price?
- Can you handle a commute by car, or do you need to be near DART?
- Would you trade newer and bigger (Frisco, Prosper, Celina) for established and closer in (Plano, Richardson, Dallas)?
- Have you visited in July?

## Your first 90 days in Texas

1. **Register your car within 30 days.** Start with an emissions inspection (required in the DFW counties), then register with your county tax office. Texas dropped the separate safety inspection for most passenger cars in 2025.
2. **Get a Texas driver’s license within 90 days.** Book a DPS appointment early, because they fill up.
3. **File your homestead exemption** with your county appraisal district (Collin, Dallas, Denton or Rockwall) as soon as you’ve moved in.
4. **Pick an electricity plan** if you’re in a deregulated area, and set up water and trash with your city.
5. **Get a TollTag** before you discover the tollway mails bills with fees.
6. **Register to vote and update your address** with the IRS and the California Franchise Tax Board so your final California return is clean.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is Texas actually cheaper than California?

For most households, yes. Homes cost less than half as much at the median, and there’s no state income tax. Property taxes and home insurance are higher, so the savings are smaller than the sticker prices suggest, but most people moving from coastal California still come out well ahead.

### How much more is property tax in Texas?

The rate is roughly 50% higher: about 1.7% a year in cities like Frisco and Plano (city, school, county and college combined), compared with a little over 1% of the purchase price under Prop 13. Because Texas homes cost less, the yearly bill is often similar: roughly $8,400 on Plano’s typical home and $10,700 on Frisco’s, before the $140,000 school homestead exemption.

### Which Dallas suburb is most like Irvine?

Frisco and Prosper are the closest match: master-planned, newer homes, strong schools and plenty of shopping. They score 90 and 93 on Realust. Plano is the better match if you want established neighborhoods and a shorter commute.

### How hot does it get in Dallas?

Dallas-Fort Worth averages about 17 days a year at 100 degrees or above, mostly in July and August, and summers are humid. Spring and fall are mild and pleasant.

### Do I need a car in Dallas?

Almost certainly. DART light rail serves Dallas and several suburbs, but most errands, schools and jobs are easiest by car. If transit matters to you, focus on Plano, Richardson, Garland or neighborhoods in Dallas near a rail station.

**Sources:** California Association of Realtors median price for July 2026, as reported by The Norris Group; Zillow Home Value Index for Dallas-Fort Worth (May 2026), as reported by Opendoor; U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, as analyzed by StorageCafe (California-to-Texas moves); California income tax and SDI rates for 2026, as summarized by Teamed; Texas Proposition 13 (2025) homestead exemption results, as reported by FOX 4; Insurance.com and Quadrant Information Services state premium analysis (March 2026); National Weather Service Fort Worth and The Dallas Morning News (100-degree days). City home values (Zillow typical value) and scores are Realust data as of October 2026; tax rates are from the cities, school districts, Collin County and Collin College (via Community Impact). Tax examples are estimates; check with a tax professional for your situation.

Site guide for AI assistants: https://realust.com/llms.txt