Fast-growing city south of Fort Worth with a professional baseball team
About 30 miles south of Fort Worth sits Cleburne, the county seat of Johnson County and home to 36,000 residents. Cleburne has grown about 22 percent since 2015. "The city has a very strong and forward-thinking mayor and city council," says Ryan Studdard, the broker and owner of Oak + Ash Realty. "They have worked hard to maintain a great development team on city staff to facilitate the growth and bring in large employment opportunities like a massive Amazon distribution center, which is in the works to be built." The city is home to the Cleburne Railroaders, a baseball team that plays in the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball. For commuters, the city is the starting point for the Chisholm Trail Parkway, which provides quick access to Fort Worth. "Most people commute back to Dallas or Fort Worth for work," Studdard says. While many commute into the metroplex, Cleburne's top employers include Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Cleburne, Johnson County and the Cleburne Independent School District. Cleburne's plethora of quality parks, well-regarded school system and historic downtown also add to the city's appeal to new homebuyers.
Flags fly high at the Capitol building in Downtown Cleburne.
La Moderna Field in Cleburne hosts the local Railroaders baseball team.
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From early 20th-century ranch-style homes to new-traditional properties
Homes in Cleburne range from ranch-style and bungalows built in the early-to-mid 20th century to large new-traditional homes built in the last five years. The median home price in Cleburne is $290,000, lower than the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington area median price of $399,000, according to the Texas Real Estate Research Center. The median home sales price in the city has increased 8% year over year. "It is evenly balanced between a buyer's market and a seller's market right now, Studdard says. "This has meant more consistency for buyers and sellers to find a middle ground."
Brick ranch homes in Cleburne are easy to find and have robust vibrant yard spaces.
Newly construction homes are available mostly on the southwest side of Cleburne.
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From the John Warren Sports Complex to Cleburne State Park
Cleburne has a variety of parks and recreational facilities, including the John Warren Sports Complex, which sits on nearly 90 acres of land. The park includes baseball, softball, soccer and football fields, batting cages and playgrounds. During the summer, the city's Splash Station's slides, pool and spray pad are popular among children. Cleburne State Park offers nearly 13 miles of trails around the 116-acre Cedar Lake. Visitors can swim, fish and boat on the lake. The city is where the Cleburne Railroaders play as well. They play at the city's La Moderna Field, a 1,750-seat stadium with luxury suites. Golfers can tee off at the Cleburne Golf Links, an 18-hole course with a golf shop and clubhouse grill.
Cleburne locals score big at John Warren Sports Complex with soccer and baseball fields.
Residents can make a splash at Splash Station in Cleburne's Hulen Park.
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The Cleburne Independent School District
Students attend the Cleburne Independent School District, which earns a B grade from Niche and serves over 7,000 students across 12 schools. The district boasts a student-teacher ratio of about 14:1 and a 95% graduation rate.
Marti Elementary School in Cleburne, TX is highly rated by students and parents.
Cleburne High School boasts a 96 percent graduation rate.
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Shop and dine in Historic Downtown Cleburne
Historic Downtown Cleburne is home to a selection of boutique shops and restaurants. Big box stores and chain restaurants can be found along U.S. Route 67. Fans of the book "Gone With the Wind," can stop by the Gone With the Wind Remembered Museum. The Layland Museum of History provides visitors with a look at the town's history prior to the 20th century. Music performances can be enjoyed at Songbird Live!, while theatrical performances can be seen at the intimate Plaza Theatre Company.
Visitors and locals take a step back in time at the Gone With The Wind Museum in Cleburne, TX.
Cleburne's Layland Museum of History chronicles the past events of the area.
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Whistle Stop Christmas
"One of the neatest attractions is at Hulen Park at Christmas time," Studdard says. "The city sets up a large amount of Christmas light displays that draw a lot of visitors." The event, called Whistle Stop Christmas, runs from the last week of November through the first week of January and includes vendors, food trucks, carolers and train rides on the first night.
Chisolm Trail Tollway provides quick commutes to Fort Worth
U.S. Route 67 runs through the city and connects it to Dallas, 50 miles away. Chisolm Trail Parkway starts in Cleburne and runs to Fort Worth, 30 miles away. "You can get from Cleburne to Fort Worth in 20ish minutes now," Studdard says. The Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is about 55 miles from Cleburne.
Cleburne crime and weather
The Cleburne Police Department reported that crime numbers in several categories trended downward in 2023. Most notably, robberies dropped by 60%, burglaries by 38% and fraud by 7%.
Cleburne experiences extreme heat during the summer and mild winters and is prone to wildfires and tornados.
Thurman Schweitzer is a graduate of Texas A&M University, earning a degree in Geography, and has been a Fort Worth resident since 1986. Real estate runs in his family - his mother was a real estate agent in Illinois and his father is a commercial real estate appraiser for the Army Corp of Engineers.
Working for several Fortune 500 companies as an IT Director, he understands technology and uses it to help meet his client’s needs. Thurman has collected experience as not just a homeowner, but as an investor and will combine his IT background with the numbers sense of an investor to ensure his clients are comfortable with the process.
He is passionate about Fort Worth and blogs about the development and comings and goings of the West Side in his blog https://fwneighborhoods.com. Growing up in the Boy Scouts, Thurman was recently nominated to serve as the District Chairman of the district serving the West/Southwest Fort Worth.
He is married with one daughter entering 1st grade this coming year. His daughter is on the golf team at Ridglea, where she has a better handicap than her dad. Thurman is on his HOA board and attends First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth.
Disclaimer: Certain information contained herein is derived from information provided by parties other than Homes.com. Our sources include: Accuweather, Public Records and Neustar. All information provided is deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed to be accurate and should be independently verified.
