Where Richardson ISD’s top-rated schools, the trails of White Rock Lake, and established neighborhoods with real yards give Dallas families everything they’re looking for, without the Park Cities price tag.
Lake Highlands is a Northeast Dallas community, usually defined by Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands attendance area north of White Rock Lake. Redfin’s median was about $600,000 in October 2025, with original 1950s ranches and $1.5 million rebuilds on the same streets. Here are 10 areas, including the Dallas ISD pockets by the lake, with dated context.
Median about $579K (Nov. 2025)
The original “Lake Highlands”, a triangle of older homes and rebuilds against White Rock Lake’s north and east shore.
Redfin’s median was $578,500 in November 2025 on 20 sales; August 2026 listings ran from $649,000 to $2.4 million, asking prices rather than sales. This pocket is in Dallas ISD, and lake-side lots need a flood-map check.
About 700 homes
About 700 homes from around 1954 on a former pecan orchard, mostly 1950s ranches and mid-century moderns.
Lots typically run about 0.17 to 0.31 acre. A 2025 report said about a third of the homes had changed hands in recent years, while most remain original rather than rebuilt. It sits near DART’s White Rock Station and is served by Dallas ISD.
Mid-century homes
Built in phases from 1952 through 2003, noted for its mid-century modern homes.
A neighborhood association dates to 2006. School districts vary within the neighborhood, split between Dallas ISD and Richardson ISD, so check by address. Bounding streets weren’t confirmed.
Ranches near $510K; rebuilds to $1.7M
Late-1940s and 1950s ranches in the postwar core, with growing rebuild activity.
A 1,428-square-foot Livenshire Dr. ranch sold in December 2025 after listing at $510,000, while rebuilt homes were listed at $1.55 million to $1.7 million in March 2026. Served by Richardson ISD.
Remodels often $1M+ (2020)
A mix of ranches, mid-century moderns and 1970s contemporaries just north of Flag Pole Hill Park.
A 2020 report noted remodeled homes here often topped $1 million; that’s dated, so check current comps. Flag Pole Hill and the White Rock Creek Trail are close by.
1970s homes
Larger 1970s floor plans along White Rock Creek near Harry S. Moss Park, on land once part of a 19th-century stock farm.
Creek-side lots need a FEMA flood-map check. Bounding streets weren’t confirmed. Served by Richardson ISD.
Agent-reported median about $757K
Mostly 1970s homes of about 3,000 square feet on lots near a quarter acre.
An agent dataset reported a $757,000 median across 95 sales, with a 1974 median build year; its date range wasn’t stated, so treat it as context. Served by Richardson ISD.
Platted 1967–1978
Suburban additions platted from 1967 to 1978 on land once part of an early family survey.
Mostly late-1960s and 1970s single-story homes. Pull current comps for pricing. Served by Richardson ISD.
1960s–1980s homes
Single-family homes from the 1960s through the 1980s, with some rebuilds.
An agent guide dates the neighborhood to 1958, and its location and boundaries weren’t confirmed; check with the neighborhood association. Served by Richardson ISD.
Apartments & townhomes
A 70-acre master-planned center started in 2007, with apartments, townhomes, a Sprouts-anchored retail center and DART’s Lake Highlands Station.
New trail connectors are linking the White Rock Creek Trail to Walnut Hill and Skillman, and 85 gated townhomes nearby broke ground in March 2026. Newer buildings may carry mandatory HOAs.
Swipe or drag sideways to see them all.
Redfin’s Lake Highlands median was $599,990 in October 2025, up 13.2 percent, at $277 a square foot; a later Redfin figure was reported near $630,000 for the three months ending September 2026.
Original ranches and $1.5 million rebuilds sit on the same streets.
The nominal 2026 rate runs about $2.40 per $100 in Richardson ISD and $2.25 in Dallas ISD, before exemptions.
Richardson ISD’s $1.1319 is the largest piece. Dallas County’s rate goes to voters November 3.
Lake Highlands is part of the City of Dallas, usually defined by Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands attendance area.
Pockets near the lake are in Dallas ISD, so check the school district on every listing.
Trail links are connecting the White Rock Creek Trail to Walnut Hill Lane and Skillman Street.
A new park opened at Forest and Audelia in April 2026, with a community center expected in 2027.
Lake Highlands is a community of the City of Dallas in Dallas County, not a separate city. Most of it was farmland before World War II, and postwar builders began homes there in 1946. There’s no official boundary. This page uses the most common definition, Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands attendance area north of White Rock Lake, roughly from Northwest Highway to LBJ Freeway between White Rock Creek and the Garland and Jupiter Road edge; the west edge is disputed, and broader definitions reach Greenville Avenue or US-75. Old Lake Highlands, Merriman Park and University Manor and parts of Highland Meadows are in Dallas ISD. No official population exists for the area, so none is given. Prices are Redfin’s October 2025 and November 2025 figures, a later Redfin figure reported secondhand, dated sales and 2026 listings, and an agent dataset; asking prices are not sales. They are context, not values. Bounding streets for some areas, HOA status and flood exposure by lot weren’t verified; check FEMA maps for any creek-side or lake-side parcel. The combined rates use 2026 rates for the City of Dallas ($0.6978, adopted September 16, 2026), Richardson ISD ($1.1319) or Dallas ISD ($0.985735), Dallas County ($0.24865, subject to a November 3, 2026, tax-rate election; totals fall about 2.4 cents if it fails), Parkland Hospital District ($0.212) and Dallas College ($0.106575), before exemptions. The Lake Highlands and North Lake Highlands public improvement districts ($0.13 and $0.12 per $100) and the Skillman Corridor TIF mainly cover commercial corridors; check the appraisal record for any district line. Both school districts offer the $140,000 state homestead exemption plus a 10 percent local exemption. School districts are listed at the district level only. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Lake Highlands’ dining clusters on Audelia Road, where a taco shop won a Michelin Bib Gourmand in October 2026, at Lake Highlands Town Center on Skillman and at Northview Plaza, where new pizza and pub spots opened in 2026. Here’s a 2026-checked list of 18.
9661 Audelia Rd., #112
A chef-driven taco shop with rotating specials, open since 2015.
Named a Michelin Bib Gourmand on October 8, 2026.
9660 Audelia Rd., #123
Fresh pasta, focaccia and an espresso counter at Lakeridge Village, open since August 2026.
9660 Audelia Rd., #117
Chinese, Korean and Japanese noodles and clay pots, opened in December 2024.
10725 Audelia Rd., #102
Korean fried chicken with a long sauce list, reported open since early 2026; closed Sundays.
9655 Audelia Rd.
A frozen custard stand on Audelia Road.
9850 Walnut Hill Ln., #305
A nostalgia-themed bar and kitchen that opened in spring 2024.
9850 Walnut Hill Ln., #405
A neighborhood brewery and taproom.
7170 Skillman St., #100
Gulf-style seafood at Lake Highlands Town Center.
7150 Skillman St., #190
Neapolitan-style pizza with a weekday happy hour.
7215 Skillman St., #328
A Tex-Mex location of the Dallas-based group.
7215 Skillman St., #312
A Latin American market with a grill and coffee bar, reported as its first U.S. location, opened in January 2026.
7110 Skillman St.
The grocery anchor at Lake Highlands Town Center, open daily.
10675 E. Northwest Hwy., #1635
Pizza built on a 1949 family recipe, opened in May 2026.
10677 E. Northwest Hwy., #400
A neighborhood pub with live music and game nights, opened in June 2026.
10105 E. Northwest Hwy.
The flagship café of a local coffee roaster.
6770 Abrams Rd.
A small-batch winery with bistro plates, relocated in May 2026.
9049 Vantage Point Dr.
Cajun-style seafood boils and po’ boys, opened in October 2025.
10233 E. Northwest Hwy., #401
Handmade soap and bath goods; reopened in September 2026 after repairs. Call ahead.
Lake Highlands eats and shops in clusters: Audelia Road, home to a 2026 Bib Gourmand taco shop, Lake Highlands Town Center on Skillman, and Northview Plaza on Northwest Highway. Most of the rest is residential.
Spots marked “Reported” rely on secondary coverage.
Compiled October 2026. Listings are from business websites, the Lake Highlands Advocate, CultureMap, the Dallas Observer, the Dallas Morning News, Hoodline and listing sites, and were not confirmed with owners; call ahead to confirm hours and that a business is still open. Hotsome Chicken and Unimarket rely partly on agent blogs; Goldie’s, Andy’s, Fish City Grill and Sprouts rely on listing sites; Waters Edge’s suite number differs by source; White Rock Soap Gallery may have closed again temporarily. Recently closed spots, including Taco Diner at the Town Center, SoCo Coffee House, Bo Bo China and Tailgater’s at Kingsley Square, were left out. Lake Highlands has no official boundary; East Dallas spots south of White Rock Lake aren’t included. Before November 2010, Lake Highlands was dry for retail sales, and restaurants served alcohol through private-club permits; Dallas voters then approved citywide beer and wine sales. Businesses listed are for general local reference and are not endorsements; I receive no compensation from any business named. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
From Cotton Ground and White Rock Lake to a Northeast Dallas Community
Before settlement, the White Rock Creek valley was prairie and woodland that Native peoples moved through and settled.
The Lake Highlands Advocate’s 2016 history summary, drawn from a Harry Moss Park tour, says Native peoples began moving toward the area as early as the 1600s, that tribes were settled in the neighborhood by the 1800s and that most had relocated to Oklahoma by the 1900s. Sources reviewed don’t name specific nations for this ground, so this history describes Native peoples at the regional level.
The land explains much of what came later. White Rock Creek runs about 23 miles from near Frisco into White Rock Lake and on to the Trinity River, and its banks remain wooded with cedar elm, pecan and ash, according to a 2014 watershed report drawing on the Handbook of Texas. The creek valley, rolling hills and changes in elevation shaped farms, roads, parks and later subdivisions.
Mid-1800s settlers, beginning with the Houx family, turned the creek bottoms and prairie into farms.
James and Amanda Houx followed the Shawnee Trail into the area, and the Advocate calls them the first settlers here. Amanda died in 1847 and James by 1850, after buying land near White Rock Creek that is now Moss Farm, including a 306-acre tract. A state land patent issued to his estate was signed by Gov. Elisha M. Pease on February 28, 1855, according to secondary sources.
Their son Nicholas T. Houx farmed the family tracts as an adult and, from 1883, he and his wife began selling parcels. McCree Cemetery, founded in 1866 at what is now Audelia Road and Estate Lane, holds early colonists and settlers, according to the cemetery association as quoted by the Advocate in 2022. The origins of the Audelia, Abrams, Skillman and Kingsley road names weren’t confirmed in the sources reviewed.
After the Civil War, a freedmen’s community called Little Egypt took root among the cotton farms that dominated the land.
Freed slaves Jeff and Hannah Hill acquired land in 1865 near today’s Northwest Highway and Ferndale Road and built the Little Egypt Baptist Church, according to the Advocate’s 2017 That Happened Here feature. The community kept dirt roads and had no running water or sewer service even as postwar Lake Highlands grew around it. A 2001 Advocate history story describes Little Egypt as founded by freed slaves and later erased by development.
Around Little Egypt, the land was worked as farms. Church Goforth lived with his family on land at today’s Flag Pole Hill from 1888 to 1911, per the park’s historical marker, and a 1997 Advocate oral history says the Goforth farm covered about 900 acres between the lake’s northern half and Plano, Church and Audelia roads. One descendant told the Advocate it was good cotton ground.
Dallas dammed White Rock Creek in 1910 and 1911, creating the reservoir that defines the community’s southern edge.
Facing water shortages, Dallas began acquiring 2,292 acres along White Rock Creek in 1909, including 464 acres bought from Church Goforth, according to Texas Historical Commission markers. Construction started in January 1910, and the dam and pump house were finished in 1911; a Texas Water Development Board survey dates the dam’s completion to June 24, 1911. Because of drought, the lake didn’t fill until April 1914.
The Handbook of Texas records an original capacity of 18,160 acre-feet and a surface area of 1,254 acres, and notes that homebuilding around the lake picked up after 1911. City Commissioner William Doran negotiated the land purchases, which is why Doran’s Point and Doran Circle carry his name. The land around the lake became a city park in December 1929, the same year Dallas dates Flag Pole Hill’s establishment.
Developers first used the Lake Highlands name in the 1920s, and New Deal crews gave Flag Pole Hill its name in the late 1930s.
The Lake Highlands name predates the modern community. A neighborhood guide citing period sources says a 1927 advertisement by a Lake Highlands Company offered a 117-acre tract on White Rock Lake. The Advocate notes the original Lake Highland neighborhood sat south of Northwest Highway, in what is now Old Lake Highlands, an area that includes The Peninsula and the former Lake Terrace and Bel Aire Estates sections.
The hill north of the lake was first called Doran’s Point Lookout. Between 1935 and 1939, the Civilian Conservation Corps, working with the city, built a picnic pavilion, a combination building and an overlook dominated by a flagpole, which gave Flag Pole Hill Park its name, per its historical marker. Radio station WRR broadcast from a transmitter on the hill from 1941 to 1971, and the pavilion still stands.
After World War II, cotton fields gave way to subdivisions, and Dallas annexed the area piece by piece while Richardson ISD built the first schools.
Before the war, a builder told the Advocate in 1997, the area was mostly cotton fields, scattered farmhouses and dirt roads. Subdivisions followed quickly; D Magazine dates Merriman Park and University Manor to around 1954, built on a former pecan orchard. A former Dallas city archivist wrote in the Advocate in 2024 that subdivisions along Audelia Road were annexed into Dallas from the mid-to-late 1950s into the early 1960s.
Schools came from the north. A Texas Historical Commission marker says the area’s Rogers School became part of Richardson ISD in 1929, decades before most annexation, which helps explain why Richardson ISD still serves most of Lake Highlands. Secondary sources say parts of the area moved to Dallas ISD in 1949. Richardson ISD opened its first Lake Highlands elementary school on October 3, 1955.
Lake Highlands gained its own high school and a city park, Little Egypt’s residents departed, and the Dallas Cowboys arrived.
Lake Highlands Junior-Senior High School held its first classes in fall 1960 at today’s junior high campus, and its first class graduated in 1964, per the Advocate. Sources differ on the Church Road campus: the Advocate says it opened in fall 1965, and it and the Dallas Morning News name the Class of 1966 as the first to graduate there, while another account gives 1970. The city created Skyline Park in June 1961.
On May 15, 1962, the Little Egypt community, about 200 people, moved out in a single day, per the Dallas County Historical Commission and the Advocate; a shopping center later occupied the land. In June 1967 the Dallas Cowboys secured 3.5 acres near Forest Lane and Abrams Road for practice fields and a field house, the Dallas Morning News reported, and the team trained there through 1985.
Farms north of the first subdivisions, including Harry S. Moss’s stock farm, became neighborhoods as LBJ Freeway, a library and a college arrived.
Oilman Harry S. Moss, born in 1888 and founder of Moss Petroleum Company, developed the Moss Haven Stock Farm in Lake Highlands, at first to keep a bull, per the Advocate; his house, featured in Architectural Digest in the 1950s, still stands in Moss Farm. Harry S. Moss Park was given to the city in 1978. Forest Meadow additions were platted on former Houx land from 1967 through the mid-1970s.
In the late 1960s, Skillman and Audelia still crossed farmland where the planned LBJ Freeway would thread a single bridge over both roads, the Advocate recalled. The Audelia Road Branch Library opened on its current site in 1971, and Richland College was founded in 1972, according to secondary sources. Town Creek, Forest Meadow and other 1970s additions filled in the land north toward the freeway during these years.
As apartment complexes and strip centers aged, the city and property owners brought in DART rail, a tax increment district and a public improvement district.
Rail reached the area at the turn of the century: DART’s White Rock Station opened on September 24, 2001, and the Blue Line extended to LBJ and Skillman in May 2002, according to secondary sources. On October 26, 2005, the Dallas City Council created the 882-acre Skillman Corridor TIF District to encourage redevelopment of what it called structurally obsolete apartment complexes and retail centers along the corridor.
In 2006, a petition effort to hold a wet-dry election in Lake Highlands and North Dallas failed when the Texas Supreme Court ruled it used the wrong precinct boundaries; the area had been dry since 1877, the Advocate reported. Dallas established the Lake Highlands Public Improvement District on June 25, 2008, per city records, and redevelopment of the Lake Highlands Town Center site at Skillman and Walnut Hill began in this period.
Since 2010, a new rail station, citywide beer and wine sales, a tornado, a record school bond and a Michelin nod have reshaped the community.
Lake Highlands Station opened on the Blue Line at Skillman and Walnut Hill on December 6, 2010, per DART. A month earlier, on November 2, 2010, Dallas voters approved citywide retail beer and wine sales and ended the private-club requirement for restaurants in dry areas, opening previously dry Lake Highlands. The Exchange Club’s Oktoberfest, begun at the Town Center, moved to Flag Pole Hill in 2016.
The city renewed the Lake Highlands PID in 2015 and 2022 and created a North Lake Highlands PID in 2017. On October 20, 2019, an EF3 tornado crossed into Lake Highlands near I-635 and Forest Lane, per the National Weather Service. Voters approved Richardson ISD’s $1.4 billion Bond 2025 on November 4, 2025; Walne Park was renamed April 9, 2026; and Resident Taqueria earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand on October 8, 2026.
Compiled from the Lake Highlands Advocate’s history features and oral histories, the Texas State Historical Association Handbook of Texas (White Rock Lake), Texas Historical Commission markers for White Rock Lake, Flag Pole Hill and the Rogers School, the Texas Water Development Board, Dallas Park and Recreation, D Magazine, the Dallas Morning News, the Dallas County Historical Commission, City of Dallas economic development and council records, DART, the National Weather Service and Richardson ISD. Sources differ on several points: when the Church Road high school campus opened and graduated its first class (1966 or 1970), the North Lake Highlands PID’s start (2016 or 2017) and Oktoberfest’s first year. Annexation into Dallas came in pieces from the mid-1950s to the early 1960s, and no single year is given. The 1927 Lake Highlands Company advertisement, the 1949 school district change, the rail opening dates for 2001 and 2002, and the library and college dates rely on secondary sources. The origins of local road names weren’t confirmed. Lake Highlands has no official boundary; this history uses Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands attendance area and notes Old Lake Highlands to the south. School information is otherwise at the district level only. Native peoples are described at the regional level. No current officials or private residents are named. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
A July 4 Parade on Church Road, Oktoberfest on Flag Pole Hill and a Tree at the Town Center
The Exchange Club of Lake Highlands parade steps off at 9 a.m. at Church Road and Green Oaks Drive and heads west to Walne Park, followed by a free carnival at the Lake Highlands North Recreation Center, 9344 Church Rd.
Held July 4, 2026, with an America 250 theme, and July 4, 2025, with earlier editions in 2018 and 2021. Line-up starts at 8 a.m., with kids’ wagon, bike and scooter judging at 8:30.
When July 4 fell on a Sunday in 2021, the parade ran Saturday, July 3. July 4, 2027, is also a Sunday, so confirm the date with the club.
The Exchange Club’s largest fundraiser: a day of German food, beer and live music at Flag Pole Hill Park on Doran Circle, supporting senior scholarships and local nonprofits.
Held Saturday, September 27, 2025, and Saturday, October 24, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; the 2026 edition moved to October to avoid the heat. Listed 2026 prices were $30 for adults before 6 p.m. and $15 for ages 4 to 17.
The club has said rising costs have it weighing the event’s future; the 2027 date hadn’t been announced.
The Lake Highlands Junior Women’s League lights a 22-foot tree at Lake Highlands Town Center, with a holiday market and a reverse food truck collecting donations.
Held November 27, 2022, November 26, 2023, December 1, 2024, and November 30, 2025, from 4 to 6 p.m. Parking is at DART’s Lake Highlands Station.
The league lists the 2026 edition for Sunday, November 29, 4 to 6 p.m.
A volunteer-run calendar. Each anchor event is run by a local nonprofit. Oktoberfest moved from September to October in 2026 and its future is under review, and the July 4 parade now ends at the renamed Walne Park.
One year of dates so far: the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s free Memorial Day concert at Flag Pole Hill (May 25, 2026), the Run the Highlands 5K (April 25, 2026), the Women’s League Holiday in the Highlands Home Tour (December 5, 2025) and homecoming events. Each describes itself as annual but needs a second dated year here.
Missing: no spring or year-round event with two dated years, no confirmed farmers market and no neighborhood National Night Out listings. Several traditions, from White Rock Lake events to the Dallas Arboretum, sit just south in East Dallas.
Timing shown is the usual pattern for each event; exact dates, times, prices and locations change from year to year, and organizers’ own sites are the authoritative source. Event details are from the Exchange Club of Lake Highlands, Oktoberfest Dallas, the Lake Highlands Junior Women’s League, the Lake Highlands Advocate, the Dallas Observer, CW33, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and listing sites; each event in the seasonal groups was found in at least two years. The 2025 parade date rests on a community post. Oktoberfest prices come from a listing site, and its address appears as both 8100 and 8015 Doran Circle; whether the October 2026 festival went ahead as planned wasn’t confirmed. Sources differ on when Light Up the Highlands began (2014 or 2015). Lake Highlands has no official boundary. Listing an event isn’t an endorsement of its organizer. Statements that something is missing mean no reliable source was found, not that it doesn’t exist. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
What to know about Lake Highlands schools:
The ratings: Check TXschools.gov for the current status.
Nearby: Several private schools sit in and around the area, and Richardson ISD began accepting some out-of-district students through open enrollment in 2025.
Want the full breakdown? Read our complete Lake Highlands schools guide →
Most of Lake Highlands sits in Richardson ISD, a district of about 36,000 students that earned a B (83) for 2026 after three straight C’s, while pockets near the lake are in Dallas ISD. On a $620,000 homestead, the school tax runs about $4,730 in Richardson ISD. Confirm the district and campus by address.
By address
Even though Lake Highlands is inside Dallas city limits, most of it is in Richardson ISD. Dallas ISD serves Old Lake Highlands near the lake and Merriman Park/University Manor, and parts of Highland Meadows may be in either.
Boundaries are irregular, so don’t rely on ZIP codes. Check the appraisal record for the taxing district and each district’s attendance-zone tool for the campus.
District-wide
Richardson ISD earned a B (83) in TEA’s 2026 ratings, released August 14, 2026, after three straight C’s: 75 for 2023, 78 for 2024 and 79 for 2025.
TEA treats August ratings as preliminary until final ratings post in December. The district’s last pre-pandemic rating was a B (88) in 2019. It also earned an A on the state’s 2026 financial accountability rating.
Richardson ISD
TEA counted 36,142 students on 51 campuses in 2025–26, down from a 2019 peak. The district’s demographer projects continued decline over the next decade.
District offices are at 400 S. Greenville Ave., Richardson; the phone is 469-593-0000. Enrollment counts vary by date and source.
Richardson ISD
Most of the area feeds Lake Highlands High School (9–12) through Lake Highlands and Forest Meadow middle schools (6–8), which became the district’s first middle schools in August 2024, and about 11 elementaries serving pre-K through fifth grade.
Elementaries include Aikin, Audelia Creek, Forest Lane Academy, Lake Highlands, Merriman Park, Moss Haven, Northlake, Skyview, Stults Road, Wallace and White Rock. Campus names are listed for organization only; confirm by address.
Richardson ISD
Voters approved a $1.4 billion bond on November 4, 2025, with Proposition A at 63.88 percent. In Lake Highlands it funds renovations and systems work rather than new campuses: HVAC, roofs and security at the high school, broad updates at Lake Highlands Elementary and technology everywhere.
Proposition C adds ADA seating, lighting and turf at Wildcat-Ram Stadium. The bond also converts the district’s remaining junior highs to middle schools.
Richardson ISD
In 2024–25 the district merged four elementary attendance zones into neighbors, including one in the Lake Highlands area. Starting teacher pay for 2026–27 is $63,500, and the district pays a small recapture amount, about $6 million budgeted for 2025–26.
The 2026–27 budget included about $25.7 million in reductions. The 2026–27 recapture amount wasn’t confirmed.
Dallas ISD
Old Lake Highlands feeds Victor H. Hexter Elementary, Robert T. Hill Middle School and Bryan Adams High School, per Dallas ISD. Dallas ISD earned a preliminary B (85) for 2026 and passed a $6.2 billion bond in May 2026.
Merriman Park/University Manor is also in Dallas ISD; its feeder pattern wasn’t confirmed. Campus names are listed for organization only.
After exemptions
On an illustrative $620,000 homestead, the $140,000 state and 10 percent local exemptions leave $418,000 taxable: about $4,730 a year in Richardson ISD or $4,120 in Dallas ISD.
Richardson ISD’s 2026 rate of $1.1319 rose 2.67 cents for bond debt, while its operating rate is its lowest in 42 years, per the district. Nearly 30 percent of its residential accounts have an over-65 tax freeze.
Dallas Central Appraisal District
Both districts exempt $140,000 plus 10 percent of a homestead. At 65 or with a disability, Richardson ISD adds the state’s $60,000, Dallas ISD lists $95,000, and both cap the school bill at the level of the year you qualify.
File Form 50-114 with the Dallas Central Appraisal District. City, county, hospital district and college exemptions are separate.
Lake Highlands area
Private schools nearby include St. Patrick Catholic School (9643 Ferndale Rd.), White Rock North School (9727 White Rock Trail) and Dallas Lutheran School (8494 Stults Rd.). Richardson ISD began an open-enrollment program in 2025 that accepts some out-of-district students.
Private school addresses weren’t reconfirmed this cycle. Admission is by application, and listing them isn’t a recommendation.
Most addresses are in Richardson ISD; Old Lake Highlands and Merriman Park/University Manor are in Dallas ISD.
Confirm the district and campus before you write an offer.
On a $620,000 homestead, the school line runs about $4,730 in Richardson ISD or $4,120 in Dallas ISD.
Owners 65 and older get more off and a school-tax ceiling.
Richardson ISD earned a B (83) for 2026, up from C (79); Dallas ISD earned a B (85).
Final ratings are due in December; check TXschools.gov.
Bond 2025 brings renovations to Lake Highlands campuses, and the district now runs 6–8 middle schools.
Enrollment is declining, and four elementary zones were merged in 2024–25.
Accountability ratings are shown at the district level only; campus ratings are intentionally not shown, and campuses are named only for organization. Ratings change every year, and TEA treats August 2026 ratings as preliminary until final ratings post in December; use TXschools.gov for current ratings. TEA notes 2023 and later scores aren’t comparable with earlier years. Richardson ISD ratings, enrollment, bond, budget, pay and consolidation details are from the district, TEA’s Texas School Report Cards, the Lake Highlands Advocate and Community Impact. Lake Highlands is a Dallas community with no official boundary; school districts follow their own lines, and Highland Meadows’ district by parcel wasn’t confirmed. The Old Lake Highlands feeder pattern is from Dallas ISD; Merriman Park/University Manor’s wasn’t confirmed. Dallas ISD figures are from earlier research and TEA. Grade bands reflect the 2024 middle-school conversion; a separate freshman center, Forestridge Elementary’s inclusion and the UIL classification weren’t confirmed. Dallas ISD’s $95,000 over-65 figure and Richardson ISD’s local over-65 amount weren’t confirmed. Private school addresses weren’t reconfirmed. No current officials are named. The school tax example uses the 10 percent local and $140,000 state homestead exemptions on an illustrative $620,000 home near recent median sale prices; it is an illustration, not a quote. Campus assignment is determined by address and must be confirmed with the district. School information is provided for general reference only and is not a recommendation regarding any school, district, neighborhood or property. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Median Sales Price
What Lake Highlands homes actually sold for each month. With 1960s ranch homes, renovated and rebuilt houses near White Rock Lake, townhomes and condos all trading in one area, the mix of what sold moves this line as much as the market does.
Lake Highlands’ median moves with which homes sold. In September 2026, Redfin’s ZIP-level medians were about $665,000 in 75238 but about $307,000 in 75243, where condos make up more of the sales. Same neighborhood name, very different homes. Read the trend, not one month.
An original 1960s ranch, a fully renovated home near the lake and a condo off Skillman can all land on this one line. The chart is not your comp. Your comps match your section of Lake Highlands, size, age, condition, lot and school district.
Texas is a non-disclosure state, so portal prices are models. This is MLS. Ask for the actual comparable sales, and confirm whether the address is in Richardson ISD or Dallas ISD and whether it sits inside a public improvement district.
Days on market describes how buyers behaved. Updated, well-priced homes in the single-family sections tend to go under contract faster than the area median, while condos and homes needing work usually take longer. Look for the direction over several months.
The first two weeks bring the most traffic a listing will ever get. If they pass without an offer, that is pricing information. Acting in week three beats acting in week ten.
When a home has waited a while, there’s usually room to negotiate on price, repairs or closing costs. Older homes deserve a thorough inspection, including foundation, sewer line, roof and electrical, and the findings are often where your negotiating room comes from.
Under 10 showings means buyers are deciding quickly. Rising counts mean people are walking through and walking away, which is a different problem from nobody looking at all.
This separates a pricing problem from a presentation problem. Plenty of showings and no offer usually means something specific is putting people off, and that is fixable without dropping the price.
High showings-to-pending means you can be selective without losing homes. Read it against days on market: low on both is a hot market, high on both means the leverage is yours.
Check how many homes closed before you read anything into the price or days-on-market charts. A month with more condo or townhome closings can move the median more than the market did.
Your competition includes renovated homes and new builds across Lake Highlands plus nearby Lakewood, Forest Hills and Richardson. Price against true comparables and have your permit, foundation and renovation records ready.
Inventory runs from condos to original ranches to rebuilt homes near the lake. Confirm the school district, any PID assessment, flood status near the creeks and the tax bill by address early, because they affect your monthly cost more than the price chart does.
Charts supplied by NTREIS via 10K Research and Marketing and update automatically. Data reflects residential activity reported to the MLS and may be revised as late-reported sales come in. Lake Highlands isn’t a separate city; it’s an area inside the City of Dallas, mostly in ZIP codes 75238 and 75243 with edges in neighboring ZIPs, and it is split between Richardson ISD and Dallas ISD, so MLS area boundaries may not match how the neighborhood is described. The ZIP-level medians are Redfin’s figures for September 2026; the 75243 figure includes a large share of condos. These charts do not separate single-family homes, townhomes and condos, school districts, or homes inside and outside a public improvement district. Market statistics describe the area as a whole and are not a substitute for a comparative market analysis on a specific property. Texas is a non-disclosure state, so publicly available sale prices elsewhere are estimates rather than recorded figures. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Pick a purchase year and the price fills in. If you own here, type over it with what you actually paid. This calculator runs on the Dallas County index, the federal repeat-sales measure for the county Lake Highlands sits in. A home bought in 2015 is worth about twice its price on the index, with the biggest jump in 2021 and 2022, then flat to slightly down in 2025.
Bought here? Tap the number and enter what you paid.
Federal house price index growth, indexed to the purchase year, where the purchase year equals 100.
From 2015 to 2025 the Dallas County index rose about 98 percent, with a jump of about 20 percent in 2022 alone.
It slipped 0.1 percent in 2025, its first annual dip since 2011.
Redfin’s Lake Highlands median was $599,990 in October 2025, and a later Redfin figure was reported near $630,000 for the three months ending September 2026.
At 20 percent down, the loan stays under the $832,750 conforming limit. Type over the prefilled price with what you paid.
Most homes are in Richardson ISD at $1.1319; pockets near the lake are in Dallas ISD at $0.985735.
On a $620,000 homestead, that’s about $611 a year apart. Dallas County’s Proposition A moves the bill another $119.
On a $620,000 homestead at 2026 rates, I estimate about $11,010 a year in Richardson ISD, or about $10,400 in Dallas ISD, if Proposition A passes.
The school line is the largest at about $4,730; the City of Dallas is about $3,460.
Growth rates are the FHFA All-Transactions House Price Index, annual values 2009 through 2025: Dallas County, Texas (FRED series ATNHPIUS48113A, base 2000 equals 100), the State of Texas (TXSTHPI) and the United States (USSTHPI). State and national figures are annual averages of published quarters. The Dallas County series recorded 128.42 in 2009, 155.22 in 2015, 283.86 in 2022, 307.02 in 2024 and 306.66 in 2025, as last updated March 31, 2026. FHFA describes county indices as developmental and subject to revision, and the annual series does not cover 2026. No neighborhood-specific index was used, and a countywide index may not track Lake Highlands’ own prices. The prefilled dollar figures are derived and illustrative, not published: they apply the Dallas County index to a $620,000 anchor within the range of recent Lake Highlands medians: Redfin’s $599,990 for October 2025, a Redfin figure of about $630,000 for the three months ending September 2026 reported secondhand, and Homes.com’s $609,950 trailing 12-month median. Lake Highlands has no official boundary, and medians vary by source and map area. The index is built from conforming loans and excludes jumbo lending and all-cash purchases. Equity figures assume a 30-year fixed mortgage at that year’s Freddie Mac annual average rate (2025 approximately 6.6 percent), held to today, with no refinancing, no extra principal and no additional borrowing; Freddie Mac’s weekly 30-year average was 7.32 percent on October 22, 2026. They exclude closing costs, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, improvements and selling costs. Tax examples use an illustrative $620,000 appraised homestead, owner under 65, at 2026 rates: City of Dallas $0.6978 after a 20 percent homestead exemption; Richardson ISD $1.1319 or Dallas ISD $0.985735 after 10 percent and $140,000 exemptions; Dallas County $0.24865 (or $0.22465 if Proposition A fails), Parkland Hospital District $0.212 and Dallas College $0.106575, each after a 20 percent homestead exemption. Owners 65 and older receive a further $175,000 city and $100,000 county, Parkland and Dallas College exemption, plus $60,000 in Richardson ISD, and a school tax ceiling; Dallas ISD’s over-65 amount and any city or county ceiling weren’t confirmed. The Lake Highlands and North Lake Highlands public improvement districts assess mainly commercial and condominium property; check the appraisal record for any district line. Dallas also bills water, sewer, sanitation and stormwater monthly. It is an illustration, not a quote; actual bills depend on certified values, the homestead appraisal cap and each owner’s exemptions. The homestead appraisal cap limits increases in a homestead’s taxable appraised value to 10 percent a year and ends on sale. This is an illustration for general reference, not an appraisal, a comparative market analysis, a valuation or investment advice. Past appreciation does not predict future appreciation. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Lake Highlands is a City of Dallas community north of White Rock Lake, served mostly by Richardson ISD, with a median sale price near $630,000, about 40 percent above the citywide median. The trade-offs are real: about $11,010 a year in taxes on a $620,000 homestead on the Richardson ISD side, creek floodplains and a Skillman corridor that has been slow to redevelop.
Estimated Off-Peak Drive Time from Skillman St. & Walnut Hill Ln.
Around Town and Beyond
Estimated minutes off-peak from Skillman Street and Walnut Hill Lane. These are planning estimates, so check a live map before relying on any of them.
The DART Blue Line stops at White Rock, Lake Highlands and LBJ/Skillman, and the ride from Lake Highlands Station to Pearl/Arts District runs about 15 minutes.
DART GoLink on-demand rides cover the Lake Highlands zone 5 a.m. to midnight daily.
Harry S. Moss Park covers 284.1 acres with a 5.46-mile mountain-bike trail, and Flag Pole Hill adds 107.1 acres and an all-inclusive playground.
Walne Park, renamed in 2026, has a recreation center, pool, sprayground and tennis courts.
The paved White Rock Creek Trail runs through Moss Park and Flag Pole Hill to White Rock Lake’s 9.33-mile loop.
It links to the Cottonwood Creek Trail and, over US-75, the Northaven Trail.
Mid-century ranches, full rebuilds and newer townhome infill share the same streets.
Mattamy Homes plans 85 gated townhomes at 9090 Skillman St., with sales expected to begin in June 2027.
Taxes run about $11,010 a year on a $620,000 homestead in Richardson ISD and about $10,400 in the Dallas ISD pockets.
Skillman, Abrams and LBJ back up at rush hour, and Town Center redevelopment has moved slowly since 2007.
City and county Propositions A are on the November 3 ballot, and the Texas Supreme Court hears the city’s short-term rental case December 3.
White Rock Creek and its branches carry FEMA floodplains, and the city is updating its floodplain study.
Drive times are planning estimates from Skillman Street and Walnut Hill Lane, not live traffic or measured routes; check a live map before you rely on them. Downtown, Love Field and DFW times are from a published neighborhood guide; the NorthPark, CityLine and UT Southwestern times and the around-town minutes weren’t verified. Rush-hour traffic on LBJ, US-75 and Skillman can stretch these times considerably. Lake Highlands is a community of the City of Dallas with no official boundary; this page generally follows Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands area north of White Rock Lake plus two Dallas ISD pockets near the lake. The median is Redfin’s three-month median ending September 2026 as reported by a secondary source, compared with the citywide figure for the same period. Rail times are from a published schedule snapshot. Park acreage is from Dallas Park and Recreation; published lengths for the White Rock Creek Trail range from 7.6 to 9.2 miles. Townhome plans are from the builder’s March 2026 announcement and may change. The tax estimate uses 2026 rates and standard homestead exemptions, assumes Dallas County’s Proposition A passes, and is an illustration, not a quote. Both propositions and the short-term rental case were pending when this was written. Flood zones vary by parcel; check FEMA maps by address. No crime, school ranking or flood zone claims are made. This information is provided for general reference and is not a representation about any specific property, commute or future development outcome. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Answered with verified specifics, from boundaries, ZIP codes, school districts, tax rates, exemptions and both November propositions to PID assessments, utilities, libraries, permits, HOAs, short-term rentals, floodplain, DART service and Skillman corridor redevelopment.
Lake Highlands is a community inside the City of Dallas, in Dallas County, with no separate city government. Mailing addresses read Dallas, TX, and the name is a neighborhood identity rather than a municipality.
Every city service comes from Dallas: Dallas Water Utilities, sanitation, police, Dallas Fire-Rescue, parks, libraries and permits, with requests through Dallas 311. That’s why “Lake Highlands” never appears as a taxing unit on an appraisal notice.
Instead, the notice lists the City of Dallas, the school district, Dallas County, Parkland Hospital and Dallas College, and some condo and commercial parcels also show a public improvement district line. Check the appraisal account for each address you compare.
There’s no legal boundary. The most common definition follows Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands area north of White Rock Lake: roughly Northwest Highway on the south, LBJ Freeway on the north, White Rock Creek on the west and the Garland and Jupiter Road edge on the east.
Some maps and residents extend the name north of I-635. Two Dallas ISD pockets just north of the lake, Old Lake Highlands and Merriman Park/University Manor, also use it.
Landmarks inside the common definition include Flag Pole Hill, Harry S. Moss Park, Walne Park and Lake Highlands Town Center at Skillman Street and Walnut Hill Lane. Because the line is informal, confirm the school district, council district and any assessment by address, not by neighborhood name.
The core ZIP codes are 75238 and 75243. Parts of 75218, along the lake and Northwest Highway, and 75231, toward Greenville Avenue and White Rock Creek, are commonly included too.
ZIP codes don’t follow school or neighborhood lines. 75218 also covers East Dallas areas outside Lake Highlands, and 75231 reaches west of the creek. Walne Park and the Audelia Road Branch Library both sit in 75238, while the Lochwood Branch Library is in 75218.
When you search listings, filter by school district or a drawn map area as well as ZIP code, because two homes in the same ZIP can carry different school districts and different tax rates.
Texas school district lines are separate from city limits. Richardson ISD’s boundaries were in place before Dallas annexed the area, so most of Lake Highlands stayed in RISD after it became part of the city.
RISD serves about 36,100 students across parts of Dallas, Richardson and Garland. The Texas Education Agency gave the district a B, with a score of 83, in its 2026 ratings, and voters approved a $1.4 billion bond in 2025. The pockets near the lake are in Dallas ISD.
This page covers district-level information only; contact each district about individual campuses and programs. The district line can fall between neighboring streets, so confirm it for the specific address before you make an offer.
Use each district’s own address lookup rather than a listing feed, which can be wrong. Richardson ISD publishes a school boundary locator at risd.org, and Dallas ISD publishes one at dallasisd.org.
Enter the exact street address, because zones can split blocks and change after board-approved boundary updates, including those tied to bond programs. Then check the appraisal record: the school district listed as a taxing unit tells you which district the parcel belongs to.
Ask the district enrollment office about transfer, choice or magnet options and deadlines. Check the zone again close to closing, and save a screenshot of the lookup result for your records.
2026 rates per $100 of value: City of Dallas $0.6978, Dallas County $0.24865, Parkland Hospital $0.212 and Dallas College $0.106575, plus the school district. Richardson ISD is $1.1319 and Dallas ISD is $0.985735.
That brings the combined rate to about $2.3969 on the RISD side and $2.2508 on the DISD side. On an illustrative $620,000 homestead, owner under 65, I estimate about $11,010 a year in RISD and about $10,400 in DISD after standard exemptions.
If Dallas County’s Proposition A fails, the county rate drops to $0.22465. Bills are due by January 31. Actual bills depend on certified values, exemptions and the 10 percent homestead cap.
The combined rate runs about $0.1461 per $100 higher in Richardson ISD than in Dallas ISD. Nearly all of that gap is the school levy, $1.1319 against $0.985735, because city, county, Parkland and Dallas College rates are the same on both sides.
Both districts exempt $140,000 plus 10 percent of a homestead, so on a $620,000 homestead the difference in the yearly bill is about $600, roughly $11,010 against $10,400.
For owners 65 and older, school taxes are frozen at a ceiling, which narrows the long-run gap. When you compare two homes across the district line, run both through the appraisal district’s estimator with your expected exemptions rather than comparing rates alone.
The City of Dallas exempts 20 percent of a homestead and $175,000 more at 65 or with a disability. Richardson ISD exempts $140,000 plus 10 percent and adds $60,000 at 65, with a school-tax ceiling. Dallas ISD also exempts $140,000 plus 10 percent.
File Form 50-114 with the Dallas Central Appraisal District at dallascad.org, either online from your property’s account page or by mail, once you own and live in the home on January 1. Include a Texas driver’s license or ID showing the home’s address. Filing is free.
Over-65 benefits begin in the year you turn 65. The general deadline is April 30, and late applications are accepted for up to two years.
City of Dallas Proposition A asks voters to authorize $443 million in general obligation bonds. Dallas County Proposition A decides the county rate: $0.24865 per $100 if it passes and $0.22465 if it fails.
On a $620,000 home, the 2.4-cent county difference works out to roughly $150 a year before exemptions. Because of the vote, county bills are expected after the election.
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and early voting runs through Friday, October 30. Registered Dallas County voters can use any county vote center. Read the official ballot language and find locations at dallascountyvotes.org or call 469-627-8683.
Most detached homeowners don’t. The Lake Highlands PID assesses $0.13 per $100 and the North Lake Highlands PID $0.12 per $100, on commercial and multifamily property, including condominiums, inside their boundaries. Over-65 homestead owners are exempt.
The Lake Highlands district generally follows the Skillman Street corridor between Abrams Road and I-635. The districts pay for supplemental services, landscaping and public art, and they helped fund the Skillman Corridor Master Plan, median and gateway work near the Walnut Hill Lane bridge and a mural at Watercrest Park.
Condo buyers should look for a PID line on the appraisal account and ask the association whether the assessment is passed through in dues.
Dallas Water Utilities bills water, wastewater, stormwater and sanitation on one city statement. Start service at 214-651-1441 or online through the city.
The residential sanitation fee is $40.09 a month. Starting February 1, 2027, it changes to $37.76 for curbside collection and $45.22 for alley collection, so find out which your home has. The stormwater fee runs from $5.79 to $22.59 a month, based on the hard-surface area of the lot.
Bulk trash and brush are collected monthly on a set schedule; set items out only during your posted week. Report missed pickups through Dallas 311 or the OurDallas app. Dallas’s water system holds the state’s Superior rating.
Oncor owns the poles and wires, but Dallas is in Texas’s deregulated market, so you choose a retail electric provider; compare plans at powertochoose.org. Report outages to Oncor at 888-313-4747, or text OUT to 66267.
Atmos Energy supplies natural gas; customer service is 888-286-6700, weekdays 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. If you smell gas, leave right away, then call 911 and Atmos’s 24-hour line at 866-322-8667.
Internet options vary by street. Look up an address on the FCC National Broadband Map at broadbandmap.fcc.gov, and ask the seller which provider serves the home now, before you set up service.
Two branches serve the area. The Audelia Road Branch, 10045 Audelia Road, opened in 1971 and reopened after a 2004 renovation; it has classrooms, an auditorium and a pollinator garden. Call 214-670-1350.
The Lochwood Branch, 11221 Lochwood Boulevard, opened November 7, 2009, replacing the Casa View Branch; it has a black box theater and a seed library. Call 214-670-8403.
Both are generally open Monday and Tuesday 9 to 5, Wednesday and Thursday 9 to 8, Friday 9 to 5 and Saturday 9 to 4, and closed Sunday. A library card is free for City of Dallas residents, and programs are free. Hours change for holidays, so check dallaslibrary.org.
Building permits run through the City of Dallas DallasNow portal, 214-948-4480, for new homes, additions, roofs, fences and pools. Demolition needs its own permit and utility disconnects.
Article X of the Dallas Development Code governs tree preservation; removing protected trees on a lot being developed can require replacement planting or fees, so order a tree survey before you design. Check zoning, setbacks and any planned-development rules on the city’s zoning map, and expect floodplain review near the creeks.
Construction noise is allowed 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays and holidays. Pull the permit history of an existing home before you buy.
Most detached-home areas have voluntary neighborhood associations funded by optional dues rather than mandatory HOAs. They organize events and communication and speak for residents on city issues, but they can’t collect mandatory assessments.
Some newer townhome and gated communities do have mandatory HOAs with dues, rules and resale certificates; Mattamy Homes’ planned 85-home community at 9090 Skillman St. is one example. Condominiums always have owner associations, and some also carry PID assessments.
Before you make an offer, ask for the association’s name, dues, transfer fees and governing documents. Also search the Dallas County deed records, because recorded restrictions can apply even when no association is active.
Dallas zoning rules bar short-term rentals, stays under 30 days, in single-family districts, alongside a registration ordinance. A temporary injunction has kept the zoning ban from taking effect while the case is on appeal.
On October 23, 2026, the Texas Supreme Court agreed to hear City of Dallas v. Dallas Short-Term Rental Alliance. Oral argument is set for December 3, 2026, and a ruling is likely in early 2027.
Until the court rules and the city responds, plan as though short-term rentals won’t be allowed in single-family zones, and base any rental income on leases of 30 days or more. Condo and HOA documents may set their own rental limits whatever the outcome. Check the current status with the city before closing.
White Rock Creek and tributaries such as Jackson Branch and Audelia Branch have FEMA-mapped floodplains through Lake Highlands. Look up any address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center at msc.fema.gov.
Then call the City of Dallas floodplain management office at 214-671-2219 for local status and permit requirements. On September 23, 2026, the City Council approved engineering contracts of up to about $5 million for 19 drainage sites, including an update to the White Rock Creek Floodplain Management Study; those cover design, not construction.
Lenders require flood insurance in mapped high-risk zones, and it’s worth pricing near creeks even outside them. Ask sellers for flood disclosures, prior claims and any elevation certificate.
The DART Blue Line stops at White Rock, Lake Highlands and LBJ/Skillman. From Lake Highlands Station at Skillman and Walnut Hill, a published schedule shows Pearl/Arts District about 15 minutes away and Akard about 19, with trains about every 20 minutes.
The Lake Highlands GoLink zone provides on-demand rides within the zone and to rail, 5 a.m. to midnight daily; book in the GoPass app or at 214-515-7272. The nearest Red Line stop is Forest Lane, to the west, and riders reach DFW Airport by transferring to the Orange Line.
DART customer information is 214-979-1111, and service changes are posted at dart.org.
Most of Lake Highlands is in City Council District 10, and Old Lake Highlands near the lake is in District 9. Some edge areas may fall in District 13; Dallas Park and Recreation lists Harry S. Moss Park in Districts 10 and 13. Confirm any address on the city’s council district map. This page doesn’t name council members.
Dallas County uses countywide vote centers, so registered voters can vote at any Election Day vote center or any early voting site.
Dallas County Elections is at 1520 Round Table Drive, 469-627-8683, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and posts registration status, sample ballots and locations at dallascountyvotes.org. The county lists a December 12, 2026, runoff date.
Lake Highlands Town Center, at Skillman Street and Walnut Hill Lane next to the DART station, began in 2007 and has filled in slowly; Sprouts now anchors its retail at 7110 Skillman St. Older apartment communities along Skillman and Audelia are being redeveloped with help from the Skillman Corridor TIF.
Mattamy Homes plans 85 gated townhomes on just over 5.5 acres at 9090 Skillman St., about 1,800 to 2,100 square feet, with sales expected to begin in June 2027 and closings possible from September 2027.
An office and retail redevelopment at 9715 Walnut Hill Lane received a TIF recommendation of about $1.19 million, with construction possibly starting in March 2027. Timelines like these often shift.
Answers were verified as of October 28, 2026, from the City of Dallas, Dallas Water Utilities, Dallas Sanitation, Dallas Park and Recreation, the Dallas Public Library, DART, the Dallas Central Appraisal District, Dallas County Elections, Richardson ISD, Dallas ISD, the Texas Education Agency, Oncor, Atmos Energy, FEMA, Mattamy Homes, KERA, FOX 4, D Magazine, Community Impact, the Lake Highlands Advocate and the Dallas Morning News. Rates, fees, providers and hours change; verify anything you intend to rely on. Lake Highlands has no official boundary; this page generally follows Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands area north of White Rock Lake plus two Dallas ISD pockets near the lake. Both Propositions A and the short-term rental case were pending when this was written. Council district edges beyond Districts 10 and 9, internet providers, the Sprouts opening, the 9715 Walnut Hill timeline and the exemption filing deadline weren’t independently confirmed. Rail times come from a published schedule snapshot. The $620,000 tax example is an illustration, not a quote. School ratings are district-level 2026 ratings subject to TEA appeals; no campus ratings are given. This is general information, not legal, tax, lending, insurance, environmental or engineering advice. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Verified numbers and links for Lake Highlands, a community of the City of Dallas. Three things to check on every address: its school district, Richardson ISD or Dallas ISD, its floodplain status and whether your homestead exemption is filed. Start with the green first-week cards; county offices are in blue, health care in red and regional links in purple.
Start, stop or transfer water, sewer and sanitation service, then pay bills on DallasGo.
214-651-1441 City Hall, 1500 Marilla St. Do this firstHomestead and over-65 exemptions (Form 50-114), values and online protests.
214-631-0910 2949 N. Stemmons Fwy. Do this firstProperty tax bills for the city, school district, county, Parkland and Dallas College; 2026 county bills are expected after the November 3 vote.
214-653-7811 North Dallas branch, 6820 LBJ Fwy., Ste. 1300 Do this firstEmergency alerts by text, voice and email, targeted by address; text DALLAS to 67283.
DallasAlert.com Do this firstMost of Lake Highlands is in Richardson ISD; use the district’s boundary locator for the exact address.
469-593-0000 400 S. Greenville Ave., Richardson Do this firstFind your monthly brush and bulky week; curb and alley sanitation fees split on February 1, 2027.
311 311Report potholes, missed pickups and code issues online, in the OurDallas app or by phone; dial 311 inside the city.
214-670-3111 PermitsApply for building, remodel and demolition permits and schedule inspections online.
214-948-4480 320 E. Jefferson Blvd. TreesTree surveys, removal permits and replacement rules; plan for them before a teardown or addition.
214-948-4480 FloodFloodplain status and permits near White Rock Creek, Jackson Branch and Audelia Branch.
214-671-2219 2245 Irving Blvd. NoiseWork near homes is allowed 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturdays and holidays.
311 PoliceNon-emergency reports. Call 911 for emergencies.
214-744-4444 PoliceThe patrol division whose area includes Lake Highlands; community programs and walk-in questions.
214-670-4415 9915 E. Northwest Hwy. LibraryA free Dallas library card works at every branch; this one has classrooms, an auditorium and a pollinator garden.
214-670-1350 10045 Audelia Rd. LibraryOpened in 2009 with a black box theater and a seed library.
214-670-8403 11221 Lochwood Blvd. RecreationThe rec center at Walne Park, with a gym, fitness room and programs; still listed under its former name.
214-670-7794 9940 White Rock Trl. PoolA seasonal outdoor pool at Walne Park; the aquatics office answers year-round at 214-670-1926.
214-670-1346 9400 Church Rd. Parks284.1 acres of woods and creek, with a mountain-bike trail and a link to the White Rock Creek Trail.
311 ParksA 1,015-acre lake with a 9.33-mile hike-and-bike loop; open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
311 PetsAdoptions, lost pets, loose-dog reports and pet licensing.
214-670-6800 1818 N. Westmoreland Rd. ElectionsVote centers and sample ballots, including the city and county Propositions A on November 3, 2026.
469-627-8683 1520 Round Table Dr. DeedsFree email alerts when any document is recorded against your property.
214-653-7099 500 Elm St., Ste. 2100 Hazardous wasteFree drop-off for paint, chemicals and batteries from Dallas residents; confirm hours first.
214-553-1765 11234 Plano Rd. Power linesOutages and streetlights; you choose your own retail electric provider.
888-313-4747 Electric plansThe state’s site for comparing retail electric plans.
powertochoose.org GasNatural gas service at 888-286-6700. If you smell gas, leave and call 911 or the Atmos emergency line.
866-322-8667 InternetCheck which internet providers serve a specific address.
broadbandmap.fcc.gov Before you digCall two business days before digging for fences, pools or landscaping.
811 SchoolsFor the Dallas ISD pockets near White Rock Lake: enrollment help and the address-based school finder.
972-925-5560 9400 N. Central Expy. SchoolsThe Texas Education Agency’s official site for district accountability reports.
txschools.gov Before you buyCheck the exact parcel, especially near White Rock Creek and its branches.
msc.fema.gov AssessmentsThe nonprofit managing the Lake Highlands and North Lake Highlands PIDs, assessed on commercial and multifamily property, including condos.
214-850-4399 8676 Skillman St. CollegeCredit, workforce and continuing education classes on the area’s north edge.
972-238-6100 12800 Abrams Rd. HospitalA full-service hospital with a 24/7 emergency department, west on Walnut Hill Lane.
214-345-6789 8200 Walnut Hill Ln. HospitalA full-service hospital at Forest Lane and US-75.
972-566-7000 7777 Forest Ln. HospitalDallas County’s public hospital; 24/7 nurse line 214-266-8777.
214-590-8000 5200 Harry Hines Blvd. Help linesPoison Control 1-800-222-1222; 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline; 211 for community services.
1-800-222-1222 TrailVolunteers behind trail upkeep and events along the creek to White Rock Lake.
whiterockcreektrail.org NeighborsThe club behind the July 4 parade on Church Road and Oktoberfest Dallas.
eclh.org NewsNeighborhood news, including zoning, development, schools and events.
advocatemag.com GardensA 66-acre garden on White Rock Lake’s southeast shore, open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
214-515-6615 8525 Garland Rd. TransitRail at White Rock, Lake Highlands and LBJ/Skillman, plus on-demand GoLink rides 5 a.m. to midnight; book GoLink at 214-515-7272.
214-979-1111Links, phone numbers and addresses compiled October 28, 2026. Confirmed this cycle on official pages: the appraisal district, the county tax office and its North Dallas branch, the Northeast Patrol Division, Dallas Animal Services, Richardson ISD, Dallas ISD enrollment, Dallas College Richland, Lake Highlands North Recreation Center and Aquatic Center, the Lake Highlands PID office, the county Home Chemical Collection Center, the Dallas Arboretum, and the three hospitals. Phone numbers and page addresses change; confirm before you rely on one. The 311, Dallas Water Utilities, permit, arborist, floodplain, noise, police non-emergency, library, park, election, utility, DART, TXschools.gov and association links and numbers were carried from city and agency pages used earlier this month and weren’t reopened this cycle; some city pages link to the city’s home page because direct links weren’t confirmed. The Walne Park recreation center and pool are still listed under the Lake Highlands North name. The curb and alley sanitation rates are scheduled to start February 1, 2027. Lake Highlands has no official boundary; this page generally follows Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands area north of White Rock Lake plus two Dallas ISD pockets near the lake. Listings are provided for general reference and are not endorsements; I receive no compensation from any organization named. Bobby Franklin, REALTOR®, TREC #0805459, Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team.
Dallas annexed Lake Highlands piece by piece in the 1950s and early 1960s, after Richardson ISD had already built its first schools, which is why most of the area still sits in RISD today. Now it’s a Dallas community with three Blue Line stations, creek parkland and a district line that changes the tax bill. I sort out the details that matter here, and the awkward parts are named.
It’s a community inside Dallas with no official boundary, and listings stretch the name across four ZIP codes. Before trusting a headline, confirm the parcel’s school district, floodplain status, council district and any PID line on the appraisal record. I check all four on every address.
Richardson ISD’s 2026 rate is $1.1319 per $100 and Dallas ISD’s is $0.985735, a gap of about $0.146. On an illustrative $620,000 homestead, I estimate about $11,010 a year on the RISD side and $10,400 on the DISD side. County Proposition A moves the bill roughly $120 to $150. I model your actual account.
Redfin’s September 2026 median was $664,805 in 75238, up 2.4 percent, and $307,410 in 75243, down 14.7 percent. That 75243 drop mostly reflects how many condos sold that month, not falling values. So I price every home against its own ZIP and property type, never a blended neighborhood number.
White Rock Creek, Jackson Branch and Audelia Branch carry FEMA floodplains, and on September 23, 2026, the City Council approved up to $4,997,569 in engineering contracts for 19 drainage sites, including a White Rock Creek study update. For rebuilds, Article X tree rules apply, so budget for a tree survey before you close.
The council approved a Skillman Corridor TIF subsidy of up to $1,188,662 to replace a car wash at 9715 Walnut Hill with a two-story retail and office building. Mattamy Homes plans 85 townhomes at 9090 Skillman, with sales expected in June 2027. Condo buyers should check for the PID assessment on the tax bill.
Dallas’s 2023 ordinance would bar rentals under 30 days in single-family zoning; an injunction has blocked enforcement. The Texas Supreme Court agreed October 23 to hear the city’s appeal and hears it December 3, 2026, with a ruling expected in 2027. I tell investors to underwrite long-term rents only and to read the HOA documents.
Lake Highlands has real trade-offs: a higher school tax on the RISD side, creek floodplain, rush-hour traffic on Skillman, Abrams and LBJ, a Town Center that has filled in slowly, and a 2019 tornado that still shapes insurance questions. Starting February 1, 2027, alley collection costs $45.22 a month. If any of that is a dealbreaker, you will hear it from me first.
Confirm the school district, Richardson ISD or Dallas ISD, with the district’s own locator. Second, check the floodplain, especially near White Rock Creek and its branches. Third, on condos, look for a PID line on the appraisal record. Fourth, get a tree survey before planning a rebuild. Fifth, file your homestead and over-65 exemptions with the Dallas Central Appraisal District. And sixth, sign up for the county’s property fraud alert after closing.
Lake Highlands-specific things to raise with all four. Freddie Mac’s 30-year average was 7.32 percent on October 22, 2026. Many homes here fall under the 2026 conforming limit of $832,750, so compare conventional, FHA and buydown options side by side. Make sure the payment estimate uses the right school district, about $2.40 per $100 on the Richardson ISD side and $2.25 on the Dallas ISD side before exemptions, plus the city water, sewer and sanitation bill. I recommend these lenders based on their expertise and service. I do not receive compensation for referrals.
Either is fine. I answer my own phone, and you will never be routed to a call center or handed to a junior agent. Send me an address and I will tell you which school district it’s in, whether a floodplain or PID applies, whether it has curb or alley collection and what the full tax bill and city utility costs look like.
Bobby Franklin, REALTOR® · Legacy Realty Group – Leslie Majors Team · 214-228-0003 · northtexasmarketinsider.com
Information on this page is provided for general reference and is not legal, tax, insurance, environmental, engineering or lending advice. The tax estimates are mine, for an illustrative $620,000 homestead, owner under 65, at 2026 rates: City of Dallas $0.6978 after a 20 percent exemption; Richardson ISD $1.1319 or Dallas ISD $0.985735, each after $140,000 and 10 percent exemptions; Dallas County $0.24865 (or $0.22465 if Proposition A fails), Parkland Hospital $0.212 and Dallas College $0.106575. Confirm exemptions on the appraisal record. Market figures are Redfin’s September 2026 ZIP code medians; other sources measure differently. Mortgage rates are Freddie Mac weekly averages; the conforming limit is FHFA’s. TIF, drainage and sanitation details are from City of Dallas council actions and pages; the sanitation rates are scheduled, not yet billed. Townhome plans are from the builder’s March 2026 announcement and may change. Short-term rental details are from KERA, FOX 4 and court orders; the ruling date is a forecast. Inspection items are general North Texas practice, not findings about specific homes. Lake Highlands has no official boundary, and the Lake Highlands search link may not match an MLS city field. School campus assignment is determined by address. All real estate services are provided through Legacy Realty Group. Equal Housing Opportunity.
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