Why I'm leaving Austin: An 8th Generation Austinite's observations (Houston: how much, lawyers)

[CarnivalGal]

Originally Posted by FueledByBlueBell

I-35 is a mess and hasn't really been addressed

What do you mean it hasn't been addressed? That light rail and bike lanes should have the problem solved in no time.

[migol84]

Originally Posted by Austiniteararebreed

Costs: It's expensive for people 20-35 and single (I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT RR/CEDAR PARK/ANY SURROUNDING AREA). Because so many people want to move to Austin, apartment costs are God awful. Compare Gaslamp in SD or Venice Beach or Lincoln Park or parts of Manhattan and San Fran to downtown Austin...It's similar. Do it. Go to Aparment Finder and really do some research. You'll be surprised at what you find. $1300-1500 and up for a 1 bedroom in downtown Austin is a minimum at a decent place. Housing is a different monster, but this post isn't aimed at family housing. The gas prices are high as well. I just drove from Dallas this past week and found gas at 3.03/gal for reg. unleaded. Austin is ~$3.17 on average. Google it. Also, don't shop at Whole Foods if you want to save money. Don't do it. Central Market/Sprouts has similar quality yet at lower costs (not trying to hate, just cost-comparing).

That's just not entirely true. Austin's downtown prices do not in any shape or form rival San Francisco prices. San Francisco is just a whole other monster. $1300-$1500 range is what you would find to share an apartment with 3 or 4 other people. And this is if you're very very lucky as the tech boom has made it very competitive to find a decent place to live in San Francisco. $1800 - $2500 is more familiar if you found a 1 bedroom, especially in downtown SF.

You'd be lucky to find that price range you listed in any other part of San Francisco for a single bedroom... as a matter of fact, I don't think you'd be able to find anything like that. I've done an excessive amount of research that I'm just beginning to reconsider my move to San Francisco and have been thinking moving back to Austin as a 28 year old single male making around 30k a year. Life in Austin is still significantly much much easier, I can't even begin to tell you.

[zhugeliang1]

Same thing happened to San Antonio when word got out about all those "jobs" here and "affordable living" and "less traffic". When I returned to San Antonio after a two year absence, I was amazed at how everyone was moving into San Antonio and almost turned it into another Austin. They even want SXSW moved there too.

I was going to suggest moving to San Antonio but it would be deja vu, double vision, double whammy, etc for you.

[TCBTEX]

You left out property taxes and the fact that Austin residents never met a tax raising bond proposal they didn't like!

Grew up in San Antonio and moved to Austin 15 years ago after spending many years in California. By that point I had lived in 3 of the top ten largest U.S. cities and was attracted to Austin's smaller size and music scene. Austin's been pretty good to me. Bought an affordable home early on and have had little trouble finding good paying jobs over the years. Like you, I've pretty much fallen out of love with Austin which I attribute to its amazing growth rate. As you mentioned, we are currently the 13th largest city and doing everything we can to crack the top 10. Having moved here to escape that size range it is disappointing to see where things are headed but that's life. I had no real way of knowing this would occur 15 years ago but here we are.

Recently checked out Nashville as I had been there before and it reminds me of a smaller Austin. Decent weather, good music scene, visually very nice and much lower property taxes with affordable housing. It is still a very manageable size but you can see the growth. I could see the " revitalizing" of their downtown and that first large condo tower on the horizon with several more cranes nearby. To me it looked like Austin 8 to 10 years ago and I predict it may well become the next "hot" city to move to in the same manner Austin is now.

I attribute most of what bothers you to the rapid growth of the city. I frequently feel the same way but growth is here and will be with us for some time to come. You either fall into the "like it" or "hate it" camp. Either way, the growth doesn't care as it is going to occur. Like all upward trends it will level out one day but by that point this will be a fairly large city with all that encompasses. Make your peace with it or move on to another adventure. From my travels, I have found that there are nice places in every state if you look hard enough and have an open mind. Good luck to you.

[riaelise]

Originally Posted by migol84

That's just not entirely true. Austin's downtown prices do not in any shape or form rival San Francisco prices. San Francisco is just a whole other monster. $1300-$1500 range is what you would find to share an apartment with 3 or 4 other people. And this is if you're very very lucky as the tech boom has made it very competitive to find a decent place to live in San Francisco. $1800 - $2500 is more familiar if you found a 1 bedroom, especially in downtown SF.

You'd be lucky to find that price range you listed in any other part of San Francisco for a single bedroom... as a matter of fact, I don't think you'd be able to find anything like that. I've done an excessive amount of research that I'm just beginning to reconsider my move to San Francisco and have been thinking moving back to Austin as a 28 year old single male making around 30k a year. Life in Austin is still significantly much much easier, I can't even begin to tell you.

You also make quite a bit less in Austin, so it's all relative.

[Eastcoasting]

Originally Posted by riaelise

You also make quite a bit less in Austin, so it's all relative.

Not entirely true.

All those folks moving here on corp relocations aren't taking a pay cut, they are transporting their East or West coast salaries with them.

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by riaelise

You also make quite a bit less in Austin, so it's all relative.

An experienced software engineer in Austin doesn't make much less than one in Silicon Valley. Same with most skilled jobs.

[hoffdano]

The key problem with this thread is that it is a "drive by" post. The OP posted his/her view, his/her one and only post on C-D. The OP has not returned to engage in a dialog. So it amounts to graffiti on a wall. I have no doubt the post reflects the OP's beliefs and experience in Austin. But it really is just a rant. We don't even know where he/she is moving to.

[Eastcoasting]

Originally Posted by hoffdano

The key problem with this thread is that it is a "drive by" post. The OP posted his/her view, his/her one and only post on C-D. The OP has not returned to engage in a dialog. So it amounts to graffiti on a wall. I have no doubt the post reflects the OP's beliefs and experience in Austin. But it really is just a rant. We don't even know where he/she is moving to.

Agreed.

I find it to be rather cowardly to leave a steaming pile and then run away as the OP did.

[riaelise]

Eastcoasting and Hoffdano:

I have a "skilled job", and I took a paycut of at least 20K when I moved here from NYC 8 years ago. As for the corporate relos, many people relocate here without the benefits of a job transfer. There are those who move here for personal reasons (i.e. marriage), such as myself. Therefore, we did not have jobs queued up and hit the local market. I work for an international law firm, and I know for a fact that my position would pay significantly more in NYC. I would make 10K more in Houston or Dallas. Same firm with New York, Dallas, and Houston offices. It's the same with lawyers, New York attorneys make much more than Austin attorneys. That's fine and all, because I'm doing nicely (perhaps even nicer) on my reduced salary. My point was that rents of 1300-1500 aren't all that cheap when your salary is less.

I completely understand what you guys are saying, but please don't make it seem like what I say has no validity. The salaries here in Austin for many industries (ok, not if you're an experienced software engineer) are lower than New York, maybe DC, etc. That's not a knock against Austin, just what it is. Also, not everyone is in the tech industry, which as a whole, tends to not have such salary differences.