Movin' to Austin (San Antonio, Spring, Kerrville: rental, mobile home, transfer to)

[MovintoTexas]

Planning to move around Austin in the early summer of 2008...bringin' my wife and 2 young sons from Ohio (a state with the worst humidity I've ever encountered)...hot is not a problem with us, 90 percent humidity on a 80 degree day (typical Ohio summer) felt like 95 degrees when i was in Kerrville last...

We live in the country here and would like a similar place to live down there...will be down in August to look around. I will be working at the Austin-Bergstrom Airport, my wife is an elementry school teacher who will be lookin' for a new job and my Aunt lives in Kerrville, who is recently widowed, and we would like to be close to my work and be able to visit her often.

Any helpful hints or suggestions?

[Trainwreck20]

Well, your wife can probably work just about anywhere, so that won't be a problem. If you want to live somewhat out in the country AND have a reasonable commute to the airport, that narrows it down to E, SE, or S of Austin. The most obvious answer is Bastrop (and surrounding area) - the traffic is bad during peak hours, but a new toll road will go in eventually (probably faster, but will cost in toll fees). Other options would include Buda/Kyle direction (south of Austin), or Manor/Elgin East of Austin. There are pluses and minus to all of them.

Now, there are two things that can make a difference, also - budget and definition of 'reasonable commute'. If you have the budget, you might want to look further west, toward dripping springs or Henley. The land is VERY nice out there - much more like the hill country, as opposed to the flat farm land of Bastrop/Elgin area. The drive is much longer, however, to the airport, but the completiong of 71 East is REALLY speeding up that section. There will also be a toll road extending along 290 West, with the same issues above (better speed, but tolls). In any case, you would have to decide if that is too far out that way. The schools out there are very good, for the most part, too.

[MovintoTexas]

That's the type of info i need...

Now, you asked about money...first of all we plan on renting until we find the exact place we wish to live (so rent should be in the $600 a month range). We pay much less then that here but, would expect to pay a little more when we move. Would very much like a small farm house or mobile home on some land (enough so my boy and i could still hunt varmits and shoot guns) as to not have neighbors very close...

Don't know the demographics of the area...where my boys go to school is 98 percent white and 2 percent other...the area we move to should be simaliar...

The commute should be around 30 minutes to the Austin-Bergstrom airport...would prefer the west side but money might be an issue....posssibly south?

Anymore suggestions would be greatly appreciated

[Trainwreck20]

Between the 30 minute commute and the $600, the west side gets a little less likely. 30 minutes mean no further than Dripping Springs (and that is pushing it mightily) and the prices in DS are going up pretty fast these days. Because of property taxes, you won't get anything on any significant acreage (unless you maintain an Ag. exemption) for $600 on the West side. I could be wrong, I have not looked there myself, but the odds are much longer.

As for South, Buda and Kyle are still possibilities. I am not terribly familiar with that area, but there might be some land 30 minutes from the airport with mobile homes that meet your pricing requirement. You might also look down hwy 183 (toward Mustang Ridge and beyond to Lockhart). This is a very rural area and you might find some very affordable arrangements. They will require some internet searching (and Austin American Statesman online).

Bastrop/Smithville is a very nice area due to the piney woods and the proximity of the Colorado river. Also, probably a greater demand from teachers, but I am assuming your wife can commute 30 minutes or so, as well, which covers a huge area.

As for a 98/2 majority/minority split - it ain't gonna happen. It MIGHT occur in N, NW, or W Austin, but not in Austin proper or anyting NE, E, SE, or S. There is a large hispanic population in the area (this IS Texas) and I would guess that most schools are between a 70/30 ratio and 50/50. I would say that race relations, at least between hispanic and anglo are about as good as anywhere that I have been to, with the possible exception of San Antonio.

Edit:
Oh, btw, when looking at rental cost, remember that the state makes it money through propery tax, not state income tax. So, if your family earned 40,000/yr in Ohio, you would pay 4.457% (minus unknown deductions), or $1,780 in tax. That is the equivalent to $150 a month. If you assume some deductions, you would expect the rent to be ~$100 month higher so the state could make its revenue up that it is not getting from income tax.

[brattpowered]

I don't mean to be a gloomy gus, but it will be near (if not totally) impossible to find a lily white school district for your sons if you expect to pay $600 in rent for a family of four.

[MovintoTexas]

A 'Lily White' school is not exactly what we are after, just explaining where we live now and wouldn't want to give my kids a complete culture shock...the only kids they have to play with here is each other considering the closest neighbor is a half mile away...we do expect to encounter mexicans in Texas, just trying to prepare for how many...

The most important thing is that we stay out in the country...and if possible have enough room to raise a few animals like we do here...having to sell the horses is getting hard to swallow, but will be easier if we could get a couple down there...being able to hunt and shoot close or onsite would be a big part of the attraction to a particular area...

The next question would be what kind of things to expect in the rural areas...here we have coons, possums, ground hogs and wolf/wood spiders...what kind of pests down there (i.e. rattlesnakes, scorpians, armadillos)???

Also, my wife is concerned with tornados...up here we have high winds that cause alot of damage along with ice storms in the winter...what to expect down there?

[Trainwreck20]

Do a search (on this site) on Tornados - has to be one of the most popular topics - but they really are not significant in the big picutre.

As for pests - almost none of the burrowing kind (groundhogs, et al) due to the rocky ground, I suspect. The biggest 'pest' is probably the deer. They are very small compared to most US deer, and can devour and entire yard of plants in a single night, it seems. Also, they tend to put big dents in the front of your vehicle.

If you live in the rural areas SE of Austin:
'Dangerous' pests:

• Water Moccasins - especially around water (doh!)
• Brown Recluse spider - rare but VERY bad.
• Black Widow Spider

Just Pests:

• Armadillos - dig up your yard for grubs
• Racoons - eat your chickens and the eggs
• Possum - eat chicken eggs and cat food
• non-poisonous snakes - eat your chickens
• deer - eat your plants
• coyotes - eat your cats
• Skunks - same as 'coons, but with more attitude
• feral pigs - root up the yard, can be hazardos if injured

(seems everything eats chickens - dont forget hawks, foxes, and owls, to name a few more)

Insests, etc.:

• Scorpioins - rare SE of Austin
• Wasps and Bees - some bees are Africanized
• Mosquitos
• Chiggers
• Tics
• Fire Ants - very common around Austin
• Termites - live in the ground, but eat fences/houses

Again, this is what I can think of of the top of my head. I am sure you are aware of rabies, so most of the 'Just Pests' could be dangerous, too. This is not all inclusive (there are a few copperheads and rattlesnakes, for example, but they are not nearly as common as the moccasins). I include scorpions even thought they are rare in SE of Austin because everyone wants to know about them. They are basically walking wasps (similar venom, about the same painfulness ).

If you do a site-search on many of these, you will turn up all sorts of information.

[MovintoTexas]

How about the outdoors stuff? Hunting, campfires, shooting varmits things of that nature? Is this commonplace down there? Up here if you partake in these activities you're called a redneck, sometimes in a deragatory tone...nonetheless these are things me and my boys enjoy quite a bit...how about horseback riding?

Are trailers on a chunk of land more common then a stick-built home? How about barns or a lean to for livestock (on a small scale)?

Another thing is restaraunts...some have said a lot of hispanics live around, which translates to me that there would be some good mexican food(which is a big plus to me)...last time is was there I noticed that Texas has replaced biscuits with tortillas and ketchup had become hot sauce or salsa...up here we drink Pabst Blue Ribbon but down there I took a liking to Lone Star...

I also understand that u don't pay a flat rate for license tags (i.e. my truck tags cost arond $60) is there a blue book percentage or something for tags in Texas?

[Trainwreck20]

Yes, if you partake in those things, you are sometimes called 'redneck'. On the other hand, there are a LOT of rednecks around here, and it is not nearly so derogatory as some people think. Yes, if you do that in the city, people will look at you funny. On the other hand, I could hook you up with some 'rednecks' that are high up in state government and in some big time corporations.

Hunting - people have their opinions, but Texas Parks and Wildlife (TP&W) will BEG you to shoot a few deer. They even let you set up feeders, so it is more of deer shooting than deer hunting, but, eh, it comes out the same for the deer. There are a lot of hunters around, and if you are in a rural area, many of your neighbors will probably be shooting coyotes and moccasins, along with most of the other 'pests' listed up there. Don't shoot the 'dillos, though, 'cause that is just weird! .
Fires - nothing beats a good bonfire (skip the campfire). Fires are fine, as long as a) you call the FD if it is going to be very big b) you know how to put it out and c) there often is a smoking ban, depending on the drought conditions. If you skip a), then the 'rednecks' in the VFD will come rushing over to see the fire .
Horseback riding - Now, I don't have a horse anymore (it has been years...), but a co-worker rides EVERY weekend with her husband. There is a place in Bandera (west of SA) where you can ride up to the saloon and tie up your horse out front still. I take it that there are some clubs that 'share' some riding land, and there is some public land, too.
Beer - You have to at last try the Shiner Bock (skip the premium - ugh). I think the most popular beer I see being drunk is Miller lt. My neighbor brews his own, and it is quite good (usually ), so I am set.
Mexican food - it is really Tex-mex, but there is a 'style' of it for just about everyone. In fact, I forgot what I used to eat before tex-mex .
Car Tags - I think it is based on year of the car, county you live in, and maybe weight class? Dunno, but it really isn't that different, usually between 50 and 90 dollars, I would guess.

[MovintoTexas]

Am extremely happy with the information being provided here...will have my wife chime in on this site...you will surely be able to tell the difference if only in her questions...

How big would you say the towns are outside Austin (i.e. Elroy, Bastrop, Driftwood, Red Rock or maybe Elgin)? We usually measure the size of towns by having either stop lights or stop signs, the latter being more our style...

My sons may never have met or even seen a hispanic and maybe only a handful of blacks...I'm somewhat interested in them encountering a more southwest culture like the hispanice one Texas obviously offers, although i would not want them to feel overwhelmed and or outnumbered...

Also, if anyone knows about the shipping industry. I currently work for ABX/DHL and am trying to transfer to the Austin/Bergstrom airport, will possibly have to change companies to Integrated to do so...I am in the shipping industry where i run a ground crew who unloads/loads frieght aircraft...but I also understand i may have to work with passenger aircraft as well...Any commentary on this subject would be very helpful as well