Moving to Austin or Dallas (San Antonio, Round Rock: real estate, apartments, for rent)

[gcrissman]

We are moving to Texas this summer and if things go as planned I will be taking a govt job and will have to decide rather to live in Austin or Dallas. We will be in Texas this Feb to check out both cities but we are leaning toward Austin at this time.

Looks like the office in Austin will be around the 183 and 1 interchange. I have a couple questions in that regards
- what is traffic like in that area?
- where are the best communities/areas to commute from to get to the that area?
- my wife is in the IT/network field she may be working at the Univ or Dell, whats a central location so that each of our commute is acceptable? ( we are moving from the DC/NOVA area and an hour commute is normal)

TIA

[gcrissman]

Just to clarify I have the opportunity take a job that will allow me to work in either Dallas and Austin (in reality about 12 different location in the country), we are leaning toward Austin.

Anyone here live between Austin and San Antonio? My wife may be able to get Govt position with the AF Cyber Command and to allow her to get hired as a Govt emplyee we were thinking it would be worth the headaches of commuting to different cities until she gets through her probationary period.

[SickOfCalifornia]

Austin and Dallas are night and day different. One is a major metropolis, one is a funky college town. One is flat as a pancake, the other is hilly and scenic. One places a premium on fashion, one has no dress code anywhere. One you will be frowned upon if you wear white after Labor Day, one you will be frowned upon if you aren't wearing Longhorns gear on Saturdays after Labor Day. I could go on and on, but don't be fooled by the fact that both are in Texas. I'd say most of the similarities end there.

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by gcrissman

Just to clarify I have the opportunity take a job that will allow me to work in either Dallas and Austin (in reality about 12 different location in the country), we are leaning toward Austin.

Anyone here live between Austin and San Antonio? My wife may be able to get Govt position with the AF Cyber Command and to allow her to get hired as a Govt emplyee we were thinking it would be worth the headaches of commuting to different cities until she gets through her probationary period.

Well...

If your wife is going to be working in SA (Is that where AF cyber command is?) then Dallas is out of the question. Dallas is 3 to 4 hours from Austin, and about 5 to 6 hours from San Antonio.

You could live in places like San Marcos. San Marcos is inbetween Austin and San Antonio, not equidistant, but many people live there and commute to both cities every day. Traffic will be a bear, there is no way around it. The address you listed for Austin is in North Austin. You will have to dirve thru the center of town to get there from San Marcos, and that is some bad traffic.

Your wife may fare better if she will be working on the north side of SA, but it's still a LONG commute to deal with 5 days a week.

San Marcos is a pretty big town, the biggest you will find between the 2 cities. Pretty much any need you have can be met there.

If your wife is only going to be temporarily working in SA, then I would recommend an apartment in San Marcos for however many months you need, then move to North Austin for your job if possible. Traffic can really be a heavy cross to bear in Austin. Live as close to your work as possible. The area you list, around 183 and Loop 1 is nice, has good houses and apartments. I don't know your budget. If your wife is working for dell, livining in that area will be an easy commute for her to Round Rock, especially if she is not averse to using toll roads.

On the flip side, you both could wind up in Round Rock of Pflugerville, both of which will be a great commute to Dell, and not to bad for you at 183, especially if you take toll roads and go the back way.

You need to peg down your wifes work situation first. Your living situation and your plans depend on where she is going to be, in San Antonio, or working at Dell.

Or you could move to Dallas, lol. It's a nice city. Nothing wrong with San Antonio, Dallas, OR Austin. Different flavors I guess, but they are all basically cities, and you can find whatever you need in any of them.

[gcrissman]

Just to clarify a little as my post are all over the place.

We are moving to Texas and leaning toward Austin, we will be visiting in Feb and checking out San Antonio, Austin and Dallas. We have friends in all 3 cities and they all believe we will like Austin more. The question about my wife working in SA came up because one of our friends there thinks he can get her a GS (govt employee) position at Randolph AFB. I'd say its a 10% chance that she gets the job, I have to be in Austin or Dallas because of my job. We are not keen on the commute to 2 cities as we did that for a year here but if it means she gets into the Govt then we will sacrifice for a year or so.

We are sort of active, my wife runs and does the 3Day Breast Cancer walk. I am a off-roading type, we have a Jeep and I had an ATV at one point. We like good restaurants and by good I mean good food not fancy, we enjoy alot of places that some of out friends think are dumps. I am a beer guy and love BBQ, I even have a smoker to make my own.

As for how much we can and want to spend, the answer is tricky. We both make a good living but we got caught in the Real Estate boom here in DC (Loudoun County Va) so we really want to underbuy. Our plan is to rent for a year or two to figure out if we like Austin and where we want to live. Then buy a place that we can pay off in 10 years. We are 40 and want to retire when we are 55~60 or at least semi-retire. Our budget for renting is $2k~2.5k but we want a house since we have a dog. When we buy we want to stay under $250k but want a single story home we can retire in. We need a 2 car garage at least since I am always tinkering with the Jeep.

Commute wise, the shorter the better but being from DC I am use to bad commutes. I use to commute 65miles/80 minutes one way and that was leaving at 5:30am for 6 years. Now I have an acceptable commute, 30 miles/50 minutes but some think that is still bad.

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by gcrissman

Just to clarify a little as my post are all over the place.

We are moving to Texas and leaning toward Austin, we will be visiting in Feb and checking out San Antonio, Austin and Dallas. We have friends in all 3 cities and they all believe we will like Austin more. The question about my wife working in SA came up because one of our friends there thinks he can get her a GS (govt employee) position at Randolph AFB. I'd say its a 10% chance that she gets the job, I have to be in Austin or Dallas because of my job. We are not keen on the commute to 2 cities as we did that for a year here but if it means she gets into the Govt then we will sacrifice for a year or so.

We are sort of active, my wife runs and does the 3Day Breast Cancer walk. I am a off-roading type, we have a Jeep and I had an ATV at one point. We like good restaurants and by good I mean good food not fancy, we enjoy alot of places that some of out friends think are dumps. I am a beer guy and love BBQ, I even have a smoker to make my own.

As for how much we can and want to spend, the answer is tricky. We both make a good living but we got caught in the Real Estate boom here in DC (Loudoun County Va) so we really want to underbuy. Our plan is to rent for a year or two to figure out if we like Austin and where we want to live. Then buy a place that we can pay off in 10 years. We are 40 and want to retire when we are 55~60 or at least semi-retire. Our budget for renting is $2k~2.5k but we want a house since we have a dog. When we buy we want to stay under $250k but want a single story home we can retire in. We need a 2 car garage at least since I am always tinkering with the Jeep.

Commute wise, the shorter the better but being from DC I am use to bad commutes. I use to commute 65miles/80 minutes one way and that was leaving at 5:30am for 6 years. Now I have an acceptable commute, 30 miles/50 minutes but some think that is still bad.

Well if your friends that actually KNOW you and are familiar with all 3 cities say Austin is for you, I would go with what they say. They will know better than internet strangers. Good luck.

[gcrissman]

Originally Posted by JayBrown80

Well if your friends that actually KNOW you and are familiar with all 3 cities say Austin is for you, I would go with what they say. They will know better than internet strangers. Good luck.

Good point.

What I really am trying to figure out is where to live in Austin. Once I get a better idea of where the office I may be working at is I'll post a thread looking for advice.

Thanks everyone!

[hoffdano]

Randolph AFB is on the eastern side of San Antonio - closer to Austin than other military bases.

So living in a west or south area of Austin might be a good thing to look at. I35 is a bear driving through Austin, but not so bad if you are well outside of the downtown areas.

You could live in San Marcos, Dripping Springs, Buda, New Braunfels, in addition to west or south Austin itself.

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by gcrissman

Good point.

What I really am trying to figure out is where to live in Austin. Once I get a better idea of where the office I may be working at is I'll post a thread looking for advice.

Thanks everyone!

Well, like I said. If your office is at the 183/Loop 1 interchange, then you want to stick to North Austin as much as possible. That is IF your wife is not commuting to SA.

If she is commuting to SA, I would stick to San Marcos. You will both have about an hour drive everyday (you maybe more depending on traffic and when you have to be at work), but like you said, it's only for a year.

I couldn't do it, but if you are used to it, more power to you.

BTW, when I say an hour drive, I mean there and back. An hour to get to work, and an hour to get home. It won't always be that bad, but it can be. Quite regularly.

[someguyatx]

I commute to the 183/Mopac (Loop 1) every day from Cedar Park (Northwest of Austin) and it takes from 20-30 minutes each way door to door. Some coworkers live in Kyle/Buda area (South of Austin) and it takes them an hour most days each way. Seems like you should look in this area or San Marcos based on a commute to San Antonio too.