Dating/Work life in Austin - Moving from CT (San Diego: rental, broker)

[UconnHusky]

Hello,

I'm in my late 20's and I currently commute to Manhattan from Connecticut for work. My occupation is an investment banker for a prestigious investment firm.

Even though I love my job & the money, I hate the commute and the fast paced lifestyle here in the northeast. So, after talking with friends, I narrowed my choices down to Austin, Scottsdale, Tampa Bay (Clearwater), & San Diego.

Can someone please tell me how the dating scene is in Austin? I'm not talking about the average college girl, but how is dating in regards to professional single females?

Also, what types of financial service positions are available in Austin? Other than Dell, Does Austin have any Fortune 100 companies headquartered in the city?

Thanks!

[gigi927]

I can't speak to the dating scene or financial services opportunities in Austin, but I can speak a bit to Scottsdale, having just moved to Austin from there. I lived in Scottsdale for 4 years.

As far as dating - you are going to get a lot of L.A. types in Scottsdale. Lots of fake blondes, extreme plastic surgery, Juicy Couture sweatsuits, emphasis on looks and what kind of car you drive. If that's what you like, you should focus your search on there v. Austin. There is a good financial services sector in Phoenix metro. My husband was a stockbroker there for many years and we still have many friends doing very well in all sectors of both wholesale and retail banking.

Personally, while I love Austin for myself, I'd say check out San Diego first and foremost of your choices. While expensive, it's more laid back than the rest of southern California, the weather is fantastic, you are less than 2 hours to both beaches and mountains, it's a large enough city to have great career opportunities, and the women are slightly less plastic than in LA/OC. Plus, you have the Gaslamp district for nightlife which is really fun, tons of outdoor activities and getaways like Las Vegas are within a short drive.

Austin's downtown is very cool and fun also, and you have the influence of the UT. But I think you will have a much more target rich environment in San Diego in terms of sheer numbers. Good luck!

[deeptrance]

If you're in the market for a male in the 25 to 40 age range, then Austin is GREAT for being a single woman. Males in that age bracket outnumber females. It helps if you're very active and able to mingle. For me, as a 50 year old eccentric ex-Californian, I find Austin horrible for dating. But my situation is different from yours. Austin has ranked in the top ten cities for young singles for many years, so if you're young and have an active lifestyle then you'll do well here, especially as a female.

Oh, one thing you should know, when a guy tells you "I'm a musician" it means "I'll be your server tonight, would you like to see our wine list?" Same as Los Angeles, except in LA they say "I'm in the movie industry."

I have a friend who has toured as a drummer with well-known rock bands, but in between tours he works at a small local video rental store. That's very typical. If you go into a store or restaurant and the workers look like rock musicians, it's usually because they ARE. So it helps if you can deal with that lifestyle. This is a very youthful city.

[gigi927]

Hm...maybe I was confused. I thought the poster was a male, not a female. Oops! Well, my opinons on Scottsdale stand, even if you're a female looking for male. And my opinions on San Diego stand, too!

[deeptrance]

Originally Posted by gigi927

Hm...maybe I was confused. I thought the poster was a male, not a female. Oops!

Don't "Oops" your assumption. Maybe I'm the one who made the mistake. Here is the comment in the opening post:

"how is dating in regards to professional single females?"

"...in regards to..." - does that mean you ARE a PSF or you're looking for one? I hadn't even thought about the fact that you can interpret that either way.

Odds favor young women moving here because of the lopsided male dominance of the youth scene. But that doesn't mean there aren't thousands of single professional females as well, they're just a bit outnumbered so the competition is tougher. I got all these stats from the city-data Austin web page:
www dot city-data.com/housing/houses-Austin-Texas.html

The graphic at the top of that page shows that this is a very young city and in the 25 to 40 age bracket males outnumber females. But it's a big enough city that anyone can move here and find the type of people they want to spend time with, including a life partner or just someone to date occasionally.

[gmagg]

I'd say stay with Conn. thats where the $$ is. The other places you mentioned are nice to visit for a week but they are for play! They're actually big resort destinations and second home places for the over 55 group. A laid back slacka, or rich *****?

[Trainwreck20]

Not sure on the dating, but a couple of reasonably big companies (not sure if they are F100) with HQ here are National Instruments and Freescale.

[Spookmeister]

TW, Are you forgetting Applied Materials and Pervasive? I doubt that young singles have much trouble with the available social scene in Austin. There are so many options and peers to go with.

[Trainwreck20]

Yeah, I am forgetting a lot these days . Oh, and it is 'Spansion' now, not Applied Materials.

[artichoke63]

If you are in banking, why not try north carolina? i think raleigh or charlotte is where all the banks are headquartered.