Allen, TX
What Allen is actually like
Allen dates to 1870, established by a Houston and Texas Central Railway purchasing agent along the rail line, and was named in 1872 for Ebenezer Allen, a former Texas Attorney General who had chartered an earlier railroad that eventually became the H&TC. It stayed a small farm town — a few hundred residents into the 1950s — and didn't incorporate as a city until 1953. Real growth started in the late 1960s as Dallas's economy expanded and DFW Airport was built, and then genuinely took off along the US-75/Central Expressway corridor: Allen had just 1,940 residents in 1970, 43,554 by 2000, and over 113,000 today — more than a 50-fold increase in under sixty years, almost all of it newer suburban construction.
Allen's best-known landmark is Eagle Stadium, a $60 million, 18,000-seat home football stadium built for Allen High School in 2012 — it closed in 2014 after cracking was found in the concrete (the district played an entire season on the road, earning the nickname "Road Warriors") and reopened in 2015 after more than $10 million in builder-funded repairs. Allen ISD backs that stadium with genuine academic results too, earning an overall "A" rating in the 2025 Texas Education Agency accountability ratings. The city's other big draws are retail and mixed-use: Allen Premium Outlets (120-plus stores) and Watters Creek at Montgomery Farm, a roughly $333 million LEED-certified mixed-use development anchoring the northern part of town. Allen has real employer presence — including large campuses for Experian and Jack Henry & Associates — but neither of those, nor most other big names associated with the city, are actually headquartered here; treat "major employer" and "corporate headquarters" as different claims for Allen specifically.
Home values in Allen
The typical home value in Allen currently runs $485,393, per Zillow — down 5.4% year-over-year as of August 2026.
Getting around
Allen has no DART light rail — the nearest station is Parker Road in neighboring Plano. The city offers Collin County Rides, a demand-response paratransit service for residents 65+ or with a qualifying disability, but no general-public fixed-route bus; most residents drive, with US-75 as the main commute artery.
Allen FAQ
Is Allen's $60 million stadium really as big a deal as people say?
Yes — Eagle Stadium seats 18,000 and made national news twice: once for its $60 million original 2012 price tag, and again in 2014 when structural cracking forced a full closure and more than $10 million in builder-funded repairs before it reopened in 2015.
How fast has Allen actually grown?
Dramatically — from 1,940 residents in 1970 to over 113,000 today, more than a 50-fold increase in under 60 years, driven by the US-75 corridor and the broader DFW growth boom that followed DFW Airport's construction.
Can I take the train from Allen into Dallas?
Not directly — Allen has no DART light rail station; the nearest one is Parker Road in neighboring Plano. Allen itself only offers Collin County Rides, a paratransit service limited to seniors and residents with qualifying disabilities.
Are any big companies actually headquartered in Allen?
Fewer than the city's employer list might suggest — Experian and Jack Henry & Associates both run large campuses in Allen, but their actual global or national headquarters are elsewhere (Dublin, Ireland/Costa Mesa, CA for Experian; Monett, Missouri for Jack Henry). Allen ISD and the City of Allen itself are the city's largest genuine "headquartered here" employers.
Nearby alternatives*We're not ranking these — every neighborhood has real trade-offs, and which ones matter is up to you.
Richardson
About 12 miles south. Zillow puts Richardson's typical home value at $438,611, below Allen's $485,393, with the added benefit of DART Red Line rail access that Allen doesn't have.
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