Moving family from Phoenix to Austin (renting, buying, live in)

[A-Tex]

Originally Posted by Cathy4017

Yes it is! It is SWELTERING. Why would you compare Austin's humidity to the other cities you mentioned?

Have you EVER lived in a truly dry climate like that of Phoenix? With the statement you made, I'd guess not.

Whenever I drive to Austin from West Texas, the FIRST thing I notice is the humidity, and I have been there every month of the year, since I have a lot of family in the area.

And West Texas dryness is not as dry as Phoenix. Go live in a truly arid place, and then tell me that Austin is not humid.

Having lived in both Phoenix (twice!) and Austin, I can tell you that this is spot on. Moving from Phoenix to Austin for a "cooler" climate is trading the frying pan for the fire.

And as far as a place where bikes can be left out and doors left unlocked --- I'd suggest Mayberry circa 1955? I will never cease to be amazed at how people idealize places based on things they've read on the internet.

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by Cathy4017

Yes it is! It is SWELTERING. Why would you compare Austin's humidity to the other cities you mentioned?

Have you EVER lived in a truly dry climate like that of Phoenix? With the statement you made, I'd guess not.

Whenever I drive to Austin from West Texas, the FIRST thing I notice is the humidity, and I have been there every month of the year, since I have a lot of family in the area.

And West Texas dryness is not as dry as Phoenix. Go live in a truly arid place, and then tell me that Austin is not humid.

Have you lived In a truly humid place like Houston? Where your eyeglasses fog up when you walk out of a building in summer?

Austin is humid, especially in the morning. But by afternoon it is reasonably dry and NOT SAUNA LIKE.

But it is OK if we disagree.

[Cathy4017]

Originally Posted by hoffdano

Have you lived In a truly humid place like Houston? Where your eyeglasses fog up when you walk out of a building in summer?

Austin is humid, especially in the morning. But by afternoon it is reasonably dry and NOT SAUNA LIKE.

But it is OK if we disagree.

Yes. MUCH worse, outside of Jackson, MS. Fogged-up sunglasses, frizzy hair, constant sweat that doesn't evaporate, etc.....longest 6 months of my life, at the worst time of the year, starting in April. I also spent several of those weekends in NO--God forbid I ever have to go back to either place.

It's OK to disagree. I say Austin is like a sauna--and you say it isn't. It's always relative to where you have lived and with what you are comfortable.

Believe me, the family coming from Phoenix will notice the big difference.

[scm53]

Originally Posted by Idlewile

Curious HOW HOT 'summer' is in Austin? Spend some time looking at the numbers….

Summer 2013

Unless you have a way back machine, and spend every summer in 2013 - or the movie Groundhog Day becomes real - what happens in one year has ZERO to do with what the typical summer is like here.

[camelian]

No one has mentioned the evening/night time temp difference.
I've lived in Austin for the last 10 years and have been going to Phoenix for several weekends this past year while my girlfriend was doing an internship.

I would say that the 2-5pm afternoon heat felt about the same when Austin's humidity is considered. (No, Austin's weather overall isn't super humid but anything compared to Phoenix's 5% humidity will feel like a sauna when its hot). The BIG difference for me was that even at 8-10pm, it was STILL 95-100 degrees!! At least here in Austin, starting around 7pm it's actually quite comfortable outside if you're in the shade.

[TexasHorseLady]

Originally Posted by TonyMacaroni

Looking to get away from the insane nonstop heat and get a nice change of scenery.

We have two kids, a 5 year old and a 6 month old. We like living here but the weather is miserable 6-7 months out of the year, and I'm tired of fighting off scorpions crawling around. The desert is no place for me. We like the town we're in now, but could use a change of people and living conditions. We live in one of those communities where the houses are nice, but there are no yards and every house is about 6-7 feet apart from each other, we need some space.

Basically, looking for that good old place where everyone is friendly, you can leave some bikes laying out outside and not worry about someone coming along and taking them, and you can leave your door unlocked and not have to worry about anything. It's very crowded here and there are some shady people that are sometimes lurking about, but all in all it's not too bad. So basically I am just wondering what towns in And around Austin would be a great fit for a family? We're pretty laid back and relaxed. Enjoy some fishing and movies and meeting new people. Any info at all would be great, thanks everyone!

Okay, getting back on topic (you think you stirred up something with this, just try starting a thread on BBQ! ).

This summer is more what 40+ years of living in Austin has taught me is "normal" (if there's such a thing as normal weather in Central Texas). It will be hot, yes, but the only unbearable month is August. We've just been through a hard several year drought and you can expect that in Texas occasionally (looking at the weather history Cabeza de Vaca in the 1500's exploring Texas for the first time encountered Indians near current day Presidio praying for rain because it had not rained in two years - this is not a new development here). I have clients who just moved here from Arizona who are delighted, for what that's worth.

We do have scorpions - I was stung by one as a child when running around barefooted stepping on it, in East Texas - but I've seen maybe 5 in this area in the past 40 years. However, we have always lived in existing construction; new developments disturb the habitat and scorpions and other critters will show up looking for the home that they know was here just yesterday! But that occurs anywhere that such creatures exist, not just Austin. It's part of the price for building more and more and more houses.

For the rest that you're looking for, you'd want to look into one of the smaller communities surrounding Austin. Which one would depend a lot on where you'd be commuting to for work and what your price range is likely to be. Georgetown is a possibility north, with Lake Georgetown right there, though Williamson County is one of the fastest growing counties in the country. Perhaps Dripping Springs south. There's lots of options, depending on your preferences and price range.

[A-Tex]

Originally Posted by camelian

No one has mentioned the evening/night time temp difference.
I've lived in Austin for the last 10 years and have been going to Phoenix for several weekends this past year while my girlfriend was doing an internship.

I would say that the 2-5pm afternoon heat felt about the same when Austin's humidity is considered. (No, Austin's weather overall isn't super humid but anything compared to Phoenix's 5% humidity will feel like a sauna when its hot). The BIG difference for me was that even at 8-10pm, it was STILL 95-100 degrees!! At least here in Austin, starting around 7pm it's actually quite comfortable outside if you're in the shade.

And the humidity never goes away in Austin, leaving you perspiring just taking the trash to the curb in the summer.

The other thing that hasn't been touched on is that it is significantly colder here in the winter. This will be a big adjustment. One gets very spoiled by those Phoenix winters. I never owned a coat there.

[Antny12]

Coming from Chicago Austins weather up to this point (almost July) has bee. A brease. I'm sure the next to months will get way hotter but I can live with it. Youre always gonna have a trade off with weather unless you live in California. Either super cold winters and short cooler summers, or longer hot summers but warmer winters. I'll take the few hot months all day.

[TonyMacaroni]

My wife and I both work from home, I can go anywhere but her job required her to either live in Arizona or Texas. We're not expecting a huge dramatic change in weather but like was mentioned a few times, the heat here is a constant. I'm kind of sick of having 90 degree Christmas mornings. And making a late night run to the grocery store at 11pm and it still being 100 degrees outside.

But, we're also hoping for a nice change in scenery. Yeah we have mountains, but they're grown mountains surrounded by dirt, weeds, and some cactus. About it. I am looking for a little color in the scenery and just a change of things. I've lived in the same area my whole life, looking to try a new place out for now.

We are looking to rent. Renting will provide us a nice year to try a new place out to see how we like it before we commit to buying a home. No way would we want to buy a home, move to Austin, and end up not liking it and being stuck there.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by TonyMacaroni

My wife and I both work from home, I can go anywhere but her job required her to either live in Arizona or Texas. We're not expecting a huge dramatic change in weather but like was mentioned a few times, the heat here is a constant. I'm kind of sick of having 90 degree Christmas mornings. And making a late night run to the grocery store at 11pm and it still being 100 degrees outside.

But, we're also hoping for a nice change in scenery. Yeah we have mountains, but they're grown mountains surrounded by dirt, weeds, and some cactus. About it. I am looking for a little color in the scenery and just a change of things. I've lived in the same area my whole life, looking to try a new place out for now.

We are looking to rent. Renting will provide us a nice year to try a new place out to see how we like it before we commit to buying a home. No way would we want to buy a home, move to Austin, and end up not liking it and being stuck there.

I think you will do ok. Right now it is really humid because of the rain. But after a few days it dries out and the humidity is in the 30-40% range.

We have a lot of green this year due to the more normal rains. There are a lot of small towns like lakeway, dripping springs, lago vista, jonestown where you will get hill country views and small towns where you can leave bikes out and doors unlocked (although I wouldnt).

have you thought about northern arizona like flagstaff where it is cooler and there are a lot more trees?