Inexpensive housing option--Avion Village, 800 Skyline Rd, Grand Prairie, monthly rent $450

(Caption for photos above: First 3 photos above show stand-alone small houses (mostly 1 or 2 BR, 1 BA); the interior shot is of the Avion Village office; the open field shot is an open, undeveloped park area; the 2 red brick shots are apartment buildings (~20 buildings, I didn't count them); the last photo is the retail area across Belt Line Rd. from the apartments.)

Yesterday, in the swimming pool at The Summit (active senior activity center in Grand Prairie), I met a friendly woman who told me that she has lived in an Avion Village apartment (1 BR, 1 BA) for the last 8 years. She said the apartments are not all that nice, but they're quiet and safe, no issues among tenants, and she likes living there). She said over 8 years, her rent has increased only from $325/month to $375/month!

So I went to check out the "Village" and to document my findings for any interested Ambassadors. They don't advertise at all and have a wait list and Amanda in the office wouldn't say "how long the typical wait is" but when I asked if it's "like 2 years?," she said, "Oh, not THAT long." No vacancies now. When I asked about crime, Amanda said "Extremely minimal. Everybody knows their neighbors here and looks after each other."

Here is a link to their website www.avionvillage.net/ and an online Application Form can be found here. If you complete an Application Form and take them a $75 non-refundable Application Fee, when a vacancy opens, the Office will call you to view the available unit. There is no obligation to accept the vacancy. If you decline it, you will remain on the wait list for the next vacancy.  Amanda said it's not like a typical lease agreement where you renew every year. Once you're in, you're in until you decide to leave (most of the vacancies are created by young people leaving to follow a job or to move to larger quarters due to growing family). When you want to leave, you provide 30 days' notice to the Office and that's it.

A bit more information can be found on their Facebook page at this link  https://bit.ly/2Iz10dv  

So here's the scoop.

Qualifications:

• At least 18 years old
• No co-signers
• Two tenant max per unit
• Two pets max per unit
• Minimum proven monthly net income $1,500.

Included in Apartments only:

• A/C & Heat (one unit located in living room, no central air)
• Stove (gas)
• Refrigerator/freezer

Fees:

• $75 non-refundable Application Fee
• $850 Membership Deposit*
• $500 Security Deposit*
• $150 Pet Deposit, per pet, non-refundable
• $450 Monthly Rent
• Water & Electric included. Tenant pays for natural gas.
  • *Fully refundable if unit is painted & cleaned.
• Rent on stand-alone houses is the same as apartments. Yard maintenance is responsibility of the tenant, but the facility takes care of roof/exterior maintenance. The is no additional homeowners association (HOA) fees, just the rent (so your expectations must be modest). Note: they don't have any model apartments so I wasn't able to see inside a house or apartment.

Note: this information is accurate and current as far as I know, but you should do your own research. Of course, rents and other factors are subject to change at the discretion of Avion Village.  This is not subsidized housing (Section 8), but is run by a non-profit corporation and residents make up the Board of Directors which is how they're able to keep the rents so low. Civilian employees of the North American Aviation Company were the first to live in the complex (hence the name "Avion Village") and I learned from their Facebook page that Grand Prairie's current mayor, Ron Jensen, once lived in Avion Village.