CA native visiting Texas (asking why anyone would prefer TX) (Sacramento: felony, houses)

[Finper]

Originally Posted by goodie2shoes

According to this moving company, the states with the HIGHEST amount of being leaving isn't CA.

https://www.unitedvanlines.com/conta...014/index.html

The top outbound states for 2014 were:

1. New Jersey
2. New York
3. Illinois
4. North Dakota
5. West Virginia
6. Ohio
7. Kansas
8. New Mexico
9. Pennsylvania
10. Connecticut

The top inbound states of 2014 were:

1. Oregon
2. South Carolina
3. North Carolina
4. Vermont
5. Florida
6. Nevada
7. Texas
8. District of Columbia
9. Oklahoma
10. Ida

I just read in the Arizona forum that in 2016 Arizona was the #1 inbound state and Texas was 3rd. Arizonites were thrilled they love to have people move there

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by Mr5150

This thread asks the question of those who live in CA and can't wait to move to the great state of Texas. Been to Dallas and the traffic is horrid. Been to Austin and it is a big "so what" town at 50% off home prices compared to the urban areas of CA. Gas is 30 cents less per gallon and property taxes are 250% higher than CA. (My son's 204k house is in Killeen TX and he pays $5000 a year in property taxes. We pay $2100 on our $220,000 house in CA.)

Mediocre scenery and during our present visit the weather has been 70* with 70% humidity. Except for those days when it drops to the mid 20s and the wind chill takes it to 9*. Actual for last week. Son said when he moved to Killeen last August they had 105* days with 80% humidity. Austin has basically the same weather and slightly better countryside.

So why is Texas such a "desirable" place compared to CA? Besides cheaper housing and the conservative politics.

I don't think your housing stat is fair. Didn't you move a few years back when property prices were lower? I would imagine the value of your house might be 280 to 300K about the time your son bought his house. So in a sense his house was considerably cheaper. Your property tax would be if closer to $3300 a year. Still considerably less than your son.
But if you were both working for the same pay his net would be a bit higher with no state income tax to pay while you do. So the housing would be a wash.
I will say that you living in the sierra foothills is considerably prettier and more interesting than Killeen.
Dallas traffic is horrid, but so is the Bay area and LA.
In the end people have different values and budgets and pick what fits their needs.

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by goodie2shoes

According to this moving company, the states with the HIGHEST amount of being leaving isn't CA.

https://www.unitedvanlines.com/conta...014/index.html

The top outbound states for 2014 were:

1. New Jersey
2. New York
3. Illinois
4. North Dakota
5. West Virginia
6. Ohio
7. Kansas
8. New Mexico
9. Pennsylvania
10. Connecticut

The top inbound states of 2014 were:

1. Oregon
2. South Carolina
3. North Carolina
4. Vermont
5. Florida
6. Nevada
7. Texas
8. District of Columbia
9. Oklahoma
10. Ida

Ca had the most people moving out, but has a wee bit more moving in so the net is not negative. Actually if you look at it Ca had a net 1,780 increase in people due to them moving in over moving out. Texas had close to double moving in over those moving out with 3,051.

The chart you have here is 2014. They have a 2015 chart out that shows that Ca had a net 625 increase in people due to them moving in, not moving out.
Texas had 2,860.
Both states took a hit for people moving in, but Ca dropped to nearly 2/3 while Texas not as much-about 10%.
I would imagine this is not the most accurate way to measure as I am sure tons of people move around and never hire a moving service. Plus we don't know if this is just United Van Lines or all movers combined. While I'm sure it can show possible trends I think more data is needed

[Tulemutt]

I am completely sure I will never understand why anyone would be concerned with people leaving (except to cheer). Why anyone would think it is a benefit for the state to be swarming with homo sapiens is beyond comprehension. Enjoy your evening commutes.

[john-staten island]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

I don't think your housing stat is fair. Didn't you move a few years back when property prices were lower? I would imagine the value of your house might be 280 to 300K about the time your son bought his house. So in a sense his house was considerably cheaper. Your property tax would be if closer to $3300 a year. Still considerably less than your son.
But if you were both working for the same pay his net would be a bit higher with no state income tax to pay while you do. So the housing would be a wash.
I will say that you living in the sierra foothills is considerably prettier and more interesting than Killeen.
Dallas traffic is horrid, but so is the Bay area and LA.
In the end people have different values and budgets and pick what fits their needs.

Having scouted out Texas before finally choosing SE Florida 16 yrs ago this has been an interesting thread.After a recent trip to California I can definitely see the allure of the state. So Ca has the edge in weather but the Freeways are tough, cost of living whether you own or rent is high. Texas is a great state in many ways, the big cities aren't cheap though, the small rural towns are beautiful, people are great. I liked the area between Austin & San Antonio the best. New Braunfels Tx came in a close second to Boca Raton,Fl in my final decision. The charts on migration seem pretty accurate,baby boomers are on the move out of the NE, Rustbelt, etc. Warm weather, well managed states are going to boom.States that want to maintain Sanctuary cities and violate Immigration laws might be worth avoiding with a new President in office on 1/20/17.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by johnnyz

These California vs Texas threads are always entertaining..... I currently live in Austin but have also spent many years in Sacramento.... I love both CA and TX for different reasons and don't rule out relocating back to CA one day....

Here's an interesting article I found recently..

How many Californians are moving to Austin? Numbers will surprise you. - CultureMap Austin

I am not one to always believe these studies, but thanks for sharing. It was a good read; Maybe that has something to do with Austin becoming more liberal.

[johnnyz]

Originally Posted by nmnita

I am not one to always believe these studies, but thanks for sharing. It was a good read; Maybe that has something to do with Austin becoming more liberal.

Very true... Austin is often referred to as little California and is BY FAR the most liberal city in Texas.... I like Austin and it does have a lot to offer in terms of jobs and some scenery (compared to the rest of the state) but it's just getting WAY too crowded here.... Austin was / is meant to hold approximately 500,000 people yet our population is in the area of 1.5 million.... traffic has become horrendous here. I kinda missing my days living in Woodland (right next to Sacramento) where i lived in a small town with big city amenities just a 15 minute drive away...

[CosmicAries]

Austin is a great place to live, but as many will agree that the infrastructure in this city is well behind some 50 years. Metro Austin has over 2 million residence as of 2015 with nearly 60,000 more additional people moving in the area each year. The strain and the lack of public transportation is a complete joke in which I blame the city for not properly investing in public safety. Now Austin most of the time on I-35, MoPac, 183, & loop 360 is nothing but gridlock traffic.

[CosmicAries]

Our city council could learn lessons from other big cities similar to it's size such as Sacramento, Kansas City, and San Antonio. They have stated not to long ago that Austin population will double by 2040. Well I don't see it happening if Austin keeps getting held back. A 2 million metropolitan area shouldn't have traffic like LA, or Houston.

[EclecticEars]

One major thing in defense of Texas is that they don't have the plethora of stupid nanny state laws that we have here in California. For just one example, unenforceable firearms laws, with more to come in 2017.

That is an understandable appeal of Texas, indeed.