Would you stay in Houston if you were independently wealthy? (Katy: condo, hotel)

[locotl]

To me it depends if I was young, single AND rich would definitely be in a Caribbean or Greek island.
But since most people that have money are >50. I would probably have to live in the states (quality healthcare is something that with age is extremely important) and since as you age you tend to favor warmer climates I would pick between San Diego (even though I hate earthquakes, u cant beat the weather there) , Houston, and Miami.

[eastontracks]

If people were more friendly and less high strung Id consider it but since that only qualifies for a small percentage of which account for most mostly houstonians and some outsiders, no way. Been here about 3 years and it still doesn't feel like home.

Would have a hill country home so that I can see family and where they can go without having to travel far. I do like texas fall weather.

Would have homes on the west coast, mostly so cal for my main residence and 4-5 other vacation spots. Kinda like one poster said, have those vacay homes to go on african safaris, scuba diving, and great views w isolation for peace and quiet.

[Jack Lance]

Originally Posted by 3shipguy

Jack, you are being a little sensitive over some criticism. No place is perfect. We know you love Houston. I do too--but not because of humidity or insects. It's because of the people and the relationships I forged. If you believe "sweeping out all the malcontents" will make Houston a better place, then I'll leave you with your opinion. It's ok if people want to live elsewhere due to newfound wealth. There's just other places, if money was not an issue, that are may be better for some.

I don't think so , perhaps you are being a "little sensitive" over my critique of Houston's critics lol.

People like to compare the times we are going through now with the 80's bust, I remember it well and one similarity is that the flame towards Houston was at a palpable level then like it is now. Of course there wasn't the internet then and most of the flame was on talk radio and at construction sites. The bust came and those people left, it was hard, but it lead to a more tolerable civic attitude by the 90's which was one of the best decades as far as quality of life goes in Houston's history. Flame does distract from the quality of life in any city or Metro and is one of the few reasons why I would chose to live somewhere where it was not so prevalent. So some dislike the bugs, and I dislike the flame, which is more likely to disappear?

Obviously I do not really want an economic bust to happen, but if it does there will be some pleasant side effects.

[Waytoodeep03]

Originally Posted by Jack Lance

Its threads like this that make me think the possible economic downturn some say is coming to Houston may be a blessing in disguise . If and when it comes hopefully it will sweep out all the malcontents first. Especially the people who whine about the bugs and humidity. $40 oil here we come !

To the people who say they do not live in Houston anymore, and those who say they have never lived in Houston. please explain why you find it necessary to keep up with the Houston forum ?

Calm down this is a hypothetical thread and not a knock on Houston.

People get too easily offended on this forum

[Htown2013]

If I were independently wealthy, I would still live in Sugar Land, probably just a few streets over from our current house in a slightly larger and nicer place with a pool. That is good enough. Wife's family is there, and that is huge for her. We would travel a heck of a lot more to unique, interesting, and exotic places, and go to professional sporting events and performing arts events and concerts (symphony, etc.) more.

If wife's family were not here, I'd be in Pacific North West, Fort Collins CO, or very nice suburb of Northern VA or maybe Pittsburgh for the seasons and proximity to the Appalachians.

[radiolibre99]

I actually had the opposite thing happen to me because I was hoping to move back to Houston from LA thinking I was missing out on something every one was cashing in on. I finally visited the city after three and a half years and was kinda disappointed. The way it was talked up by people back home made it seem like I was missing out on a cheap world class city. Houston is still practical and super corporate, industrial. I think I'm ok with a slightly lower standard of living in LA than keeping up with the joneses like I see my friends doing in the Houston burbs.

I'm thankful for Houston for providing my no college degree having family with ample work so they could live a solid middle class life but like everyone said in here, that's basically the bulk of the reason to live in Houston.

If money was no object I would buy a house in Malibu.

[Bike4Life]

Well, you don't have to be wealthy to move out. You can go anytime and live elsewhere but we chose to stay here in Houston. We have a very nice Mid-Century home, surrounding families, friends from from high school, our children go to one of the best schools, and we are well connected in the community. I don't like to think we need more materialistic things or better location to be happier. I have not seriously wished I was living elsewhere even though we like cosmopolitan cities like Los Angeles, Manhattan, Paris, Florence, etc. But those cities also have their own problems in a different way.

I really like Houston. If I was wealthier, I'd simply move a few miles down to River Oaks.

[radiolibre99]

Bike4life, that's a great outlook, and I'm sure there are plenty like you in Houston.

There's nothing wrong with Houston. Its a great place to raise a family and make a living. It's basically a secure option for people in a very shaky country. It's just different strokes for different folks. Some people are inspired by their natural surroundings. LA for me offered more in terms of the carefree attitude vs the pretty buttoned down world I knew in Houston.

There are people like you Bike that are genuinely happy and then there are those that I know that use Houston as a city to make their McMansion dreams come true. Some I know are downright miserable even after they've accumulated that stuff. I don't know why but maybe the lack of natural landscape and few outdoor activities make some people just focus on working as a means to an end to fund a show boating lifestyle.

[Scientific]

Would be tempted to leave if money wasn't an obstacle, but I'd never leave Texas.

Originally Posted by Jack Lance

I don't think so , perhaps you are being a "little sensitive" over my critique of Houston's critics lol.

Obviously I do not really want an economic bust to happen, but if it does there will be some pleasant side effects.

Born and raised here, but most people come here to earn a living. Get over it.

We have our moments, and we have things to do, but we're not a destination city and don't have much in the way of tourist attractions. So what. My only real complaint has always been how easy its been to wipe out our history and bulldoze it.

[Svensk08]

If I were independently wealthy, I would have Houston as my home base and share part of my wealth with local philanthropic organizations. One of life's great pleasures would be traveling to other parts of the U.S. as well as foreign countries and staying long enough to know my favorite places really well...Albuquerque/Santa Fe, NYC, New England, Mexico, UK, northern Italy.