Maybe moving to TX... where is the best place to live? (Houston: crime, how much)

[DWong]

Reason for moving, my wifes family is there and is very close to them...

So if anyone can tell me where in TX where is the best place to live? If I had to choose one... which would it be? (Keeping in mind my like and dislikes) Dallas, Austin, Houston? Are they anything like SoCal? Can they offer anything similar? I definitely live to play and try to work as little as possible to give my life a lot more fun and enjoyment (for the family as well) than just living anywhere....

From all I've read on the area please tell me if I'm misinformed or
just reading things from people who are completely biased. I'm tired of hearing people are rude or traffic is bad... that's just life. I want real details...

Oh and quick question.. living in SoCal my whole life I think we have it all or almost everything every close.... can someone name me something we don't? This way I can begin to think outside the box and maybe see what's out there.. I must say though.. TX does have better Mexican food...


Here's what
I've read from people who are from there or talked to.....

1. DFW is a sprawl city. Large sub developments and big houses are
what is the "cool" or more pleasant places to be? It's definitely the trend....

2. Weather is ok. Its cold in the winter and hot in the summer?

3. There are things to do ie nightlife, however nothing in comparison to say NY, Chicago, MIami or LA/SD

4. Crime is moderate, not horrible or bad, but not exactly safe.
Safer then houston I've been told and Dallas?

6. Electricty and property taxes are expensive?

7. Is traffic really that bad? In what major city isn't? But if
you've traveled throughout the US in comparison how bad it is?

8. Its not very scenic? Obviously no beaches or beautiful mountains? It has hills, but probably not the ones I'm used to seeing off the California coast?

10. I've been told the beaches in TX are nothing like those in CA or florida?

Now why I think DFW or TX is general is growing fast..

People move where??? Jobs and low cost of living.. question is though... all things being equal.. is it that great? Say my place here in SD 5 miles from the beach on a hill was the same price as DFW - would it be worth leaving or better said... will I feel like I have things to do and keep my plenty occupied?

Larger more advanced areas are losing population bc of cost of living... simply put they probably didn't have great jobs. Austin metro can grow as much as it wants... southern cali is land locked.. physically! Find an empty lot anywhere.. it doesn't exist. We live thousands to a sq mile only bc most of the land is unhabitable, or government owned (1/2 the land in CA if gov owned). And it's not the job per se, but lifestyle... will I be bored... is everything that I could want there?

now this Baffles me... TX being the 2nd largest state in terms of land and population... why in the top 20 places to visit in the US are there NO TX cities? Places like, LA, Chicago, NY, Boston, SF, SD, Miami are there, but for fun why isn't TX as big as I thought? Living in a tourist town like SD does make for a different feel.... Is it boring??? Or is it just mostly for native texans?

In TX or to say the least DFW what's the commute? People commute on average here probably 50 miles each way (those that live in the "burbs").... now in TX or DFW is that "normal"? Plenty of people that I know of live and work in any of these areas, SD, LA, OC, Riverside and San Bernardino.... a mega network of freeways and 20 million people.

I also guess that I'm very Anti-suburb! Big house away from the city... so what? People who live in the cities of SoCal, we have a very Anti-suburb feeling about those who move away to get the bigger home and cause us all more traffic. Ask anyone who lives in the "city" the largest growing part of SD is Riverside/San Bernardino but we have kinda a bad sterotype of them. In fact, there is more crime in the suburbs than in the city... yes the burbs in CA are less desirable... and guess what where do they go to have fun... go to the "city" as any other town....

I prefer urban areas. But urban to me might be different than urban in TX. And why is it housing is so cheap? Supply and Demand? Low demand and high supply = lower prices? Then if that's the case, the demand to move there isn't that great indeed? San Diego does have a small town feel to it which I love, however greater southern CA is nearly 20 million people (yes, 20million nearly the population of all of TX- and that's not adding up the God knows how many illegals we have)... and we all go from one place to another and commute here and there...

Putting money aside that yes SD is pricy, but you DO GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR, what's the big deal bout everyone moving to TX (again I try to leave low cost of housing and jobs out of it).

Ok here's my reasons why SD is tough to leave....

1. My wife is a elementary teacher and the pay in tx is horrible! The max
she'd make would be high 50's. I went to some local school
district site and checked it out. Whereas here in her max would be
95k (yes as a teacher!) Heck break it down... $3,000 more a month? That difference does get you the nice house w/ ocean view... well not quite..

2. Ok san diego now.... Weather is the best, year round it can't be beat.
75 high in the summer, 65 in the winter. Lows 50's and 60's. Never
hot, never cold. My electric bill mind you was 55 dollars this past
month. With 3 large tvs, 3 computers and everything else a house has.... I
thought that was a good price. Summers when electricity can be at a premium, we'll pay 150ish.

3. Now the scenery is just amazing. Beautiful beaches, mountains w snow
and plenty of things to do recreation ally. Guess ill put it this way,
if u start at the beach drive one hour east you'll hit a forest w
mountains and snow,then a sand dune desert all in an hours drive.... Where
else in the world is that possible?

4. My weekends I never spend doing nothing. I want to live life to the fullest and leave nothing behind. I'm not a surfer, but I can't pass up goin to the beach all summer. In the winter, snow boarding and skiing are just a few hours a way and if I wanted to, go offroading in the sand dunes on a dirt bike I could. LA is just an little more than an hours drive and orange county is 45 minutes away. I'm also very random and sporadic, but bc we're so close to everything sometimes ill just say let's go to las vegas (4 hours
away), or just go to disney land, sea world, or snorkeling, go to a
hollywood awards show, see a tv show being filmed live... Etc etc.

I'm not very much into the arts and SD isn't an art town, even though
they're trying to make it that way. SF is far better for that, but I
guess the city w the weather and recreation just isn't that into it. I
guess look at places w crappy weather, they tend to be more artsy,
southern cali isn't very artsy to say the least..


I guess I saw this ad in a magazine and it
made me think twice (looking through a window overlooking the pacific
ocean), most people have to go on vacation to get a view like this....
You merely go home....

[destin04]

You have so much to address.....it's going to be hard!
1. Forbes Magazine says that Austin, Houston and Dallas are 3 of the top 10 recession proof cities in the US.
2. Austin is in the middle of what we call "Texas Hill Country". We don't have mountains but we have some gorgous hills and cliffs.
3. We have beaches that are every bit as pretty as the California coast. I don't think they compare to FL....but neither does CA.
4. Home cost? Are you kidding me? Where can you get a 3/2/2 in a great neigborhood and still stay under 250,000.00?
5. Teachers salaries being lower? The cost of everything is lower in Texas.
6. You can't ski in Texas ....that's true.....
7. Texans are friendly people....not always so in So. CA.
8. Texas doesn't care who you are, how much money you make, what you do for a living, where you live, where your kids go to school, and most of all...how you did it where you came from!
The bumper sticker says it best...."I wasn't born in Texas, but I got here as fast as I could!"

[ccherich]

Greetings,

What are the pros and cons of living in Killeen and/or Amarillo? Trying to decide what is my best choice - open to suggestions - TX. Checa

[beowulf7]

You'd be better off posting this in the TX sub-forum instead of FW.

Based on how you described SD, you're probably best off staying there.

[Soccersupporter]

Originally Posted by beowulf7

You'd be better off posting this in the TX sub-forum instead of FW.

Based on how you described SD, you're probably best off staying there.

DWong already tried this in the TX general forum but nobody bit. I think DWong is really looking to argue about how much better CA is than TX. Dwong's posts are filled with opinions and little fact. I lived in a 2100 sq. ft. house in Irvine CA and my electric bill was never under $85 and I did not have HVAC. My normal bill was $100+.

I really don't know why DWong is posting this stuff but deciding to move to TX is not the reason.

Just a friendly tip from an ex-Californian to those who might be tempted to respond.

[beowulf7]

Originally Posted by Soccersupporter

DWong already tried this in the TX general forum but nobody bit. I think DWong is really looking to argue about how much better CA is than TX. Dwong's posts are filled with opinions and little fact. I lived in a 2100 sq. ft. house in Irvine CA and my electric bill was never under $85 and I did not have HVAC. My normal bill was $100+.

I really don't know why DWong is posting this stuff but deciding to move to TX is not the reason.

Just a friendly tip from an ex-Californian to those who might be tempted to respond.

He also didn't mention where in TX his wife lives. If that's the main motivation to move from CA to TX, he should move to that city (or one of its suburbs).

[DWong]

Originally Posted by beowulf7

He also didn't mention where in TX his wife lives. If that's the main motivation to move from CA to TX, he should move to that city (or one of its suburbs).

Just got my bill, $55 bucks.. I can email it to you if you want.
Her family is spread out, Dallas all the way to rio grande.

[beowulf7]

Originally Posted by DWong

Just got my bill, $55 bucks.. I can email it to you if you want.
Her family is spread out, Dallas all the way to rio grande.

I see, so they're all over TX. Judging by what you said about your preferences, I'd say stay in San D. Speaking of which, I'll be vacationing there shortly.

[DWong]

Originally Posted by beowulf7

I see, so they're all over TX. Judging by what you said about your preferences, I'd say stay in San D. Speaking of which, I'll be vacationing there shortly.

Hey great, let me know what you're into and I'd be more than happy to send you some pointers. Just want to give you the best experience possible. It's not easy to navigate around here unless you know it very well. Plus many good places to see and things to do, arn't easily found. See you here (you'll love it)

[beowulf7]

Originally Posted by DWong

Hey great, let me know what you're into and I'd be more than happy to send you some pointers. Just want to give you the best experience possible. It's not easy to navigate around here unless you know it very well. Plus many good places to see and things to do, arn't easily found. See you here (you'll love it)

Thanks for offering to give some pointers. I started this thread about my trip. 1 more week to go ... I can't wait.