Another Another Another California to Texas Question !!!! (Houston, Dallas: crimes, homes)

[trd1178]

Hello all,

Yes, I live in Orange County California, and yes, home prices are driving us out of here. We have visited Texas 2 times and are visiting again in December, this time for the purpose of finding the place we will relocate to. The area we have visited is in Southwest Fort Worth. WE are considering this area but would like to consider all area's of Texas. Everyone talks about Austin as the best place to live in Texas. Well, why is Austin so great compared to DFW, San Antonio, and Houston ? Isn't it true that having one of the largest universities in the US drives wages down? This seems to be a double edged sword because Austin is also the most expensive city to live in Texas. How does this make Austin so great? THere are so many factors to being a nice city besides beauty and liberalism. I am not trying to bash on Austin, I just would like someone to break down each area of Texas so that I can determine where I should consider relocating. ANy help would be appreciated. THanks

[musicman107]

Have lived in Texas all my life, including Rio Grande Valley, South Texas, Corpus Christi/Coastal Bend area, Austin area, Bryan/College Station.
Personally, South Texas is not for me, particularly the farther south you go from S.A....increasingly depressed economies, lower standards of living, and the Rio Grande Valley? Couldn't pay me enough to go back there...Hear of people in this forum getting offers for high-paying jobs, but there's a reason..they have to to entice anyone to live there....RGV is pretty impoverished, and you see people literally living in shacks...and my friends from the Valley are fleeing RGV like flies, citing increases in crimes, gangs, drugs, corrupt local government and law enforcement people.
Corpus Christi is worth considering, but it is quite humid.
Houston is too big and too humid for me...pretty bad traffic and very long commute times.
East Texas has some nice Piney Woods, but is a little too backwoodsy for me...w/at least one exception: The Woodlands, Tx.
Dallas/Ft. Worth would be okay, but not for me.
West Texas is too desert like and too remote from anything interesting.
Austin? Lived there in the 70's and fell in love with it.
First opportune I had (1981), I moved back to Central Texas, just a few miles NW of Austin, and love it!!
In my opinioin, Austin has lots of things to offer compared to other Texas cities: ample music scene, cultural attractions of all kinds..nice nearby lakes...beautiful Hill Country.
Folks who have lived in Austin complain about the humidity (summertime around 40%....nothing compared to Houston or Corpus/Coastal Bend area.
Austin: pretty higlhly educated people, laid back, very friendly.
Moving back to Austin area: I did take a very significant cut in pay, and higher cost of living compared to S. Texas, but do not regret it one little bit.
Yes, it's hot here, but everywhere in Texas is hot.
Homes in Austin proper are a bit overpriced, but there are LOTS of very nearby safe cities with lower priced homes, and MUCH better schools than Austin school district.
In my opinion, if you're gonna live in Texas, Central Texas is the place to be.

[Ellen K]

Originally Posted by trd1178

Hello all,

Yes, I live in Orange County California, and yes, home prices are driving us out of here. We have visited Texas 2 times and are visiting again in December, this time for the purpose of finding the place we will relocate to. The area we have visited is in Southwest Fort Worth. WE are considering this area but would like to consider all area's of Texas. Everyone talks about Austin as the best place to live in Texas. Well, why is Austin so great compared to DFW, San Antonio, and Houston ? Isn't it true that having one of the largest universities in the US drives wages down? This seems to be a double edged sword because Austin is also the most expensive city to live in Texas. How does this make Austin so great? THere are so many factors to being a nice city besides beauty and liberalism. I am not trying to bash on Austin, I just would like someone to break down each area of Texas so that I can determine where I should consider relocating. ANy help would be appreciated. THanks

Austin is expensive to live in, that is true. One thing people love about Austin is the live music and entertainment. Another thing that draws people here is the general attitude of people here. We are a very active and youthful place.
We also enjoy having lots of water around us besides Lake Austin and Lake Travis. I think many people prefer Austin to the Dallas Ft Forth area because of the greenery. Austin is usually very lush and pretty. The weather in the Dallas area can get very severe. San Antonio has a huge retired military community and many activities there are geared to that group, and they tend to be more conservative. If you have children Austin offers something fun to do for little or no money almost every weekend. We have so many parks here I could not even start to name them. I don't know what your faith is but Austin has every form of worship you could imagine. Austin Community College is also a wonderful resource for just about anything you would like to study or learn a new hobby. There are numerous places here to take lessons on everything from dancing to scuba diving. Austin is a networking city, and people here enjoy getting to know their neighbors. I sure hope this helps.