Possibly relocating from Long Island - Any advice would be appreciated (Houston: sales, real estate)

[Michael_L]

Hello fellow forum members. I have lived in Nassau County, Long Island, NY for my entire life (thirty-three years). My wife and I currently own a co-op in a nice area of LI, but we have been exploring the idea of relocating, mostly for quality of life purposes. We like Long Island for certain reasons (being close to New York City is great, and being fifteen minutes from our families is very important and helpful), but we have reached a point where we feel like we are working ourselves ragged for very little reward. Real estate here is very expensive, and taxes are downright brutal. We have been looking for homes up to $500K, and are astonished to see just how little that kind of money can get you around here. My wife is a Physician Assistant (PA), I am a high school English teacher, and together we make a fairly decent income. However, when you put how hard we work up against what we can afford, it is just plain nauseating. We have discussed it, and we decided that if we could find an area that met our needs in terms of the kind of home we'd like to own, as well as availability of jobs, then we would strongly consider moving. Not really knowing how to start this kind of search, I just did a few online searches using phrases like "best U.S. cities," and "highest U.S. quality of life." Out of all the locations that I found in the results, one that consistently landed at or near the top of these lists is Austin. When I began to search for information on Austin, I realized that this was a huge task, and I should really get the counsel of people who know about what I am looking into. So I guess my basic questions would be:

1. Why does Austin show up near the top of those "most desirable areas" lists? What makes it such a great place to live?

2. How is the job market for Physician Assistants and high school English teachers there?

3. What is the housing market like? Can you find a really nice house in a really nice location for $500K or less?

4. Is Austin the kind of place that is a city with a smaller town feeling to it? Are there suburbs of Austin? What are they like?

5. If I wanted a commute to work that was no more than 30 minutes, is that very possible to come by, or not at all?

6. What are considered the "best" areas or neighborhoods in the Austin area? By "best" I mean safe, good schools, well-maintained properties, conveniently located grocery shopping, etc.

7. How is the school system divided up there? Where I live, nearly each town has it's own school district, but I know it is different in other parts of the country?

To anyone and everyone who is willing to reply to this post: I thank you in advance for your help. I realize I have written quite a bit here, and those questions are not all easily answered, but any information would be helpful. Thanks again.

[LI2Texas]

Hi Michael

I moved from Long Island (I am from bethpage) 3 years ago and absolutely love it here. It is relatively inexpensive, it is warm and sunny (OK, hot and sunny!) lots of live music and things to do outdoors. We just bought a house for around 300K in a great neighborhood with great schools around 12 miles from the heart of downtown which is where I work. It takes from 20-40 minutes to get to work depending on traffic, weather etc. Usually around 30 mins. Since there are schools and doctors offices all over Austin, I would imagine that you could live fairly close to where you work to minimize commute. One thing to consider is the salary differences between Austin and Long Island. I have a friend who is a PA for an OB/GYN and she works around 30 hours a week and makes around 90K (I think). Teacher's salaries seems to be quite a bit lower than my friends in NY - there aren't teachers unions here (I dont think). The market for teachers seems to be slow, although not nearly as slow as long island.

If you choose not to move, I have a lovely home in West Babylon that I bought in 2005 that I would love to unload, haha

[Visceral]

$500k? Even in Austin you'll be astonished what that can get you compared to your current location. One thing, the heat is brutal. BRUTAL, in the summer, just prepare for that first summer, it's a right of passage around here. Austin is a lot like places in California in some ways, mainly, people who visit instantly want to live here.

Did I mention no state income tax?

[hoffdano]

A few quick responses for you:

1. Austin shows up on these lists over and over because the economy is (relatively) solid, the cost of living is attractive, and Austin has a lively scene yet is family friendly. There is a lot to do here indoors and out, day or night for a city our size. What we don't have (pro sports, museums) are reachable in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, or Fort Worth in three hours or so by car.

2. Teaching jobs are under pressure here just like they are all over the US due to budget pressure. There is some uncertainty all over Texas about education funding. There are some state-level legislative issues at play to settle how the state contributes to education spending, primarily for the purpose of equity. I do not know what the market is for PAs. But Austin continues to grow and medical facilities are sprouting everywhere including brand new full size hospitals.

3. $500K goes a long way here. You can live nicely with that budget.

4. Some may argue this point - but I don't think Austin has a small city feel. The metro is over 1M. But it does not feel huge in any way. It is not like Houston or LA or NYC.

5. "It depends" of course on where you work and live. 30 minutes is very possible, especially with your housing budget.

6. Too hard to answer. Depends on #5 and more from you concerning what kind of lifestyle you want. It is easy to live in a safe neighborhood with good to excellent schools.

7. Texas (and Austin) schools are organized as Independent School Districts. The Austin area has many ISDs, including Austin ISD. Like most urban school districts in Texas, AISD has highly variable school performance, influenced mostly by the demographics of the people that attend each campus. The suburban ISDs such as Eanes, Lake Travis, Round Rock, and Leander all have more consistent school performance.

The item left out of the "top 25" lists is our weather.

And you probably already know that we have no income tax. Sales tax is 8.25% in most areas and property taxes in the Austin area range from 1.9% to 2.8%. It is pretty typical to pay 2.5% or so.

[EzPeterson]

1. There's a ton of reasons that make Austin a great place to live (Job Market, Housing Prices, General Vibe), is it entirely up to the level of the "Forbes Top 10" hype? Eh, likely not... I love this area, but it is not the end-all-be-all that some of those internet articles make it out to be. There are cats here, and streets are not paved with cheese! If Austin is on your "short list", I'd strongly recommend a week-long trip in August to see if the peak of the summer is too much to handle.

2. The PA job market is very solid, Two of my good friends are PA's and have had no issues at all finding jobs (and good paying ones). The HS English Teacher... might be a bit tougher!

3. Absolutely yes. Although, determining exact needs/neighborhoods will probably be a 5 page thread!

4. Somewhat yes. Austin is a city in transition, you can go from all-out country to inner city in a matter of 20-30 minutes. Many of the suburbs still have some small-town feel, as does the city itself, but it is rapidly out-growing some of that. You're going to find about 3-4 pages of responses on what the suburbs and ex-burbs of Austin are "like" - all of which will be based on the mentality and experiences of the contributor. In my opinion, there are some really nice suburbs (if you want a suburb-style life), and some really generic ones, along with some really small country towns!

5. Definitely is possible. Depending on work location it can make your home-search radius smaller, but it's very possible to find sub-30 minute commutes.

6. You'll find the "best" areas everywhere - it really depends on what kind of neighborhood vibe you're looking for and how that relates geographically to your question #5! With your price range, you're going to have options for sure.

7. There are a few major school districts that will land inside your likely area of interest. AISD (primarily just city of Austin), RRISD (Covers much of North-North Austin, Round Rock and Cedar Park), Eanes ISD (West Austin, and some of the "hill towns" inside the Austin ETJ), Leander ISD (covers the far west side of Austin ETJ all the way up to Leander, etc). Lake Travis ISD covers much of the Southwest part of the greater Austin area.

That would about scratch the surface of your questions - I imagine we'll have 4-5 pages of responses here shortly that may or may not have +/- 150 differing opinions on each topic! As I said earlier, definitely visit first in the middle of summer and see if you can handle that kind of heat, and get an idea if the general Austin "vibe" is what you might be looking for - it will certainly be VERY different from the Northeast!

[ImOnFiya]

Don't forget: Austin is in Texas which is not California or New York. You are moving to the South! Don't be surprised that Texans act Texan!

[10scoachrick]

Originally Posted by Visceral

$500k?
Did I mention no state income tax?

Did you mention the $12K in property tax? Nothing to sneeze at.

I'm guessing there's no 'need' to spend a half-mil on a house unless you just want to. Depending on the area, some 'burbs are in the $90-125/sq ft range for pretty darned nice homes. Naturally, the closer in you buy, the more you pay(generally)...up to $300+ per sq ft. No need to sink such a large percentage of your income into a house and end up with the same 'situation' you wish to leave. I'd expect the salaries to be lower overall and the teaching position may not be so easy to land.

I'd sure be looking to rent for a year unless the stars align and you both find jobs AND a house that suits the commute and school parameters

Good luck! Come on down in the next couple of months and see what you think of the weather! It's not to be taken lightly .

[Michael_L]

Wow. Thank you all for your quick and informative responses. I actually didn't know about the lack of income tax, but I have heard about the intense heat. If anyone else happens to view this thread, please keep the responses coming. Thanks again.

[chuck_steak]

If you like searing heat for half the year, then Austin is a good place. Since you're used to quite a cooler/colder climate it may be an issue. Just something to think about.

[GiannidaNewYORK]

Hi Michael, I moved here to San Antonio and it is really nice . There are beautiful suburbs , gated communities , malls and tons of things to do that are similar to long island life . I was born there too like you and I know you'll be happy in San Antonio . Austin is great. I think Austin is great, but it's more expensive than here. But if you like the suburbs and cheaper living . You should look into San Antonio . Gianni