I've been trying to get out where I'm at for the last 10+ years.  Finally the wife is on board but last year the Covid bug squashed the job market.

I may have a job opportunity in OK by transferring with my current employer.  Although in it's complete infancy this could be our green light.  On the surface it seems like a good move.

My son is 12 and I want to make sure he'll be in a good environment because the transition will be challenging for him.  I'll be on the road a lot so I'm thinking someplace North of the city maybe around the Guthrie (North, East or West) area to find a home.

My office will be roughly 20 minutes South of Guthrie.  I won't have to go there every day but it will probably involve a few trips weekly.  So if I could keep the commute to 45 minutes or less that would be ideal.  Also, I'm sure I'll have to venture into Oklahoma City and surrounding areas some what regularly.  

I'm grateful for any help, thoughts and guidance.  Getting out of the area were in is a priority for us but we don't want to be stuck in a miserable situation in OK either.

It looks like the population and economy are growing a bit there.

Good luck I’m closer to Arkansas than OKC. But the state has a lot to offer as for outdoor activities.

Thanks.  It seems like the state has a lot of things going for it.

I'm not too knowledgeable about that area. I'm sure someone that knows more will be along.

The area between Edmond and Guthrie is an interesting place.  It's rural but populated.  You'll see multi-million dollar homes, then down the street you'll find a family living in a shotgun house with a dirt floor.

The Oklahoma City Gun Club is east of Edmond and it is fantastic.

I grew up in Edmond.  Fantastic town in the 1980's.  Now the population is 3x greater and traffic out the wazoo.  It's the affluent suburb of OKC for now, until Fake President Potato starts relocating people there in the name of diversity.

I live east of Oklahoma City before Shawnee.  I like it here.  It's still very rural but getting in or out of town is a breeze.

Thanks for the great Intel.  I really appreciate it.  

Now if I can just get a call from my company's supervisor in the OK market place I can get the wheels turning.

I don't know why they are dragging their feet.  They did this in another state that was on my relocation radar.  I'm starting to get a complex.  

I've been with the company almost 5 years.  Great performance reviews (top performer).  No "write ups" and my current supervisor is supportive of the transfer.

20 minutes south of Guthrie puts your office into Edmond. Wanting a 45 minute commute makes anywhere in the metro accessible. You could go rural with Choctaw/ Jones (for small town charm) or over into Mustang/Yukon territory. Better schools on the west side of the city. Piedmont/Deer Creek probably being the best school districts. My kids only 18 months old, so I'm speaking about schools just from second hand experience.

You can pretty much just plop down anywhere in the area you are talking about and be ok.  The more you spend on a house the better the neighborhood. But crime is very low in the whole N OKC suburban area.  OKC has some, but is it easy to know when you are in that area.  There really aren't any hidden bad areas in OKC.

All the schools in that area are ok and some are good (great if you compare them to what you see on the news).  Private schools are available if you want to go that route.  

As someone mentioned earlier, the best gun club in the state is within minutes.