From Dalton, GA to Baytown?? (Houston, Dallas: apartment, rental, home)

[lacasadora22]

Hello there!

I live in a small town in North Ga (carpet capital of the world) Dalton, GA. I practically grew up here, been here for 20+ yrs. My husband and I are thinking of moving to Tx maybe by the end of this year or early 2012. This is our situation:

My husband is blind, we both work from home and he is a singer. I am Mexican-American and my husband is Mexican (both here legal), unfortunately we depend on our music to live ($$). This means most of our gigs and money comes from the local bars, private parties and weddings. The problem is with all these new laws going around a lot of the people who are here ilegally are moving away!! Like I said from the begginning, Dalton is the Carpet Capital of the WORLD, therefore if you are not in the carpet industry there is no way you can make money here! We have considered Atlanta but these laws are all over Georgia.

Why Baytown?
I have a brother (and his family) living there. I have not talked to him yet because of course he's going to tell me it's a great place and come on down, you can stay with us and bla bla bla...(which it's a nice gesture but I can not accept that, we have to do this on our own).

My concerns:
1. My son is 9yrs old in 3rd grade, by the time we move he will be in 4th grade, how are the public schools in Baytown?

2. Where would be a nice place to live? We need a rental (apartment or house) 2+ bedrooms and 1+ baths, hopefully around $700-900s.

3. Being from a very small town I am not used to all the traffic, so I am worried about the traffic!!! BUT, I have done my fair share of driving in high traffic (NOT FUN)... guess I could get used to it.

4. Do you all think there's a lot of venues (nightclubs, bars) (mexican/hispanic) where my husband could work? Maybe in Houston if not in Baytown? I mean, we have traveled from Dalton to Florida, South Carolina, Virgina, Tennessee, Kentucky and Missiouri before for gigs so I'm guessing maybe even San Antonio and Dallas could be fair game?

This is a very big decision for us as you can see, because we really don't have stable jobs but some way or another we have managed to live on our own for 10 yrs now doing what we do.

Thanks for reading!

[texas7]

I think it will be very difficult for you to make a living in Houston. I do not think Baytown has good schools, but it might be an affordable area but that said, you will have a difficult time living anywhere in the Houston metro area w/o a good stable job with steady income.

[DanielWayne]

Yeah from what I've heard I'd be wary of Baytown schools. There are tons of venues you could play at in Houston, and I know Baytown and nearby Pasadena have large Mexican populations too. You really would not have to worry about traffic in Baytown, but if you regularly drove into Houston that would be a different story. There are actually more Mexican people in Houston than San Antonio due to Houston's size. But like texas7 said, that sounds like a difficult living.

[lacasadora22]

Well I do have a production contract with a radio station for 2yrs and that pretty much covers our $700-900 (apartment budget) which I can take with us as we do this work over the internet, our car is paid for, and at the time we make anywhere from $100-800 a week at the venues we have (this is his variable income), my variable income is around $300-500 a month for other productions.

So I guess now what worries me is your comments about the schools in Baytown... My son is in advanced classes here and I would not like for him to loose interest in that if his school doesn't challenge him... :-/

[Truglesmith]

I wouldn't think there would be a shortage of music gigs in the Houston area, especially if Hispanic-related (I'm guessing that's the case). As for traffic, Baytown would be easier to get around than central Houston, though the outskirts and suburbs of Houston might not be too bad, if you're from a small town.

The downsides to Baytown - in my opinion - would be lower standards for schooling and education, and all the pollution from the nearby Houston ship channel and the horrid chemical plants in the area. Due to the prevailing SW to NW winds, much of that pollution blows through Baytown.

[lacasadora22]

Thanks so much people for your help I really apreciate your input! I will take in consideration the pollution....we have lots more to consider!

[testmo]

baytown area you can easily rent a home between 700-900 dollars. it may be an older home but it will have everything. i know a family that lives in what i'd consider a really cool 3 bed 2 bath home for 850.

i have no idea about the music industry, but one thing i would consider is the level of competition your husband would have here. there will be lots of it.

a thing that would be in your favor is having family and local contacts here. the more people you know the more you can get jobs especially in a tight knit community

[lacasadora22]

I really appreciate all the input I am receiving. We now have a more stable income, I would like a place closer Laredo but not IN Laredo.

[HoustonRonnie]

Originally Posted by lacasadora22

I really appreciate all the input I am receiving. We now have a more stable income, I would like a place closer Laredo but not IN Laredo.

Well, good luck with that. Laredo's 325 Southwest of Houston.

Ronnie