Moving advice Chicago vs Houston? (Lincoln, Washington: transplants, apartment, rent)

[55degrees]

I liked the quote in the video: "I'd rather be a lamppost in Chicago than a millionaire in any other city."

[Tyryztoll]

Want a cheap house? Go to Houston.
Want to be warm pretty much year 'round? Go to Houston.

Want absolutely everything else? Go to Chicago.

[MobileDave]

Originally Posted by glass_of_merlot

I cant stand Houston. Houston is not a city for city people. Its a 9-5 city with nothing going on down town. You have to drive everywhere. Im so glad we didn't end up living there.

No, there's really nothing going on in downtown proper where the buildings are at night time. But if you stay inside the loop in places like Uptown, Midtown, Rice Village, Washington Ave... there are several night spots to keep you busy. I take it when you lived in Houston you didn't get out much?

[SmartGXL]

Originally Posted by linicx

It is hard for me to understand how a city with a 2.1M population in an area smaller than Fulton County, lliinois is going to disappear in a puff of smoke at 5pm? I am more inclined to believe the business district which is often 9-5 M-F does just that. But a port city? I just don't believe it.

Well technically, Houston is not a port city; Houston proper is 45 miles inland.

However, other cities nearby (like Galveston) are ports cities.

To the OP: I would say that Houston is very much like South Floruda...weather wise, but with many more jobs in your field.

I just moved from Chicago to Dallas a month ago...and although I love it here, I loved it in Chicago more...but I came to dallas for my own specific reasons. For you - I would say that Chicago is going to offer more of what you want. The thing to ask yourself is, what is more important to you: having warm weather, or having an urban city vibe?

Houston wins on the hot weather front; Chicago wins on the city vibe front. Although, Houston does have a decent city vibe in the Inner Loop area, and I know that Houston (and dallas too) are both trying hard to try to catch up to Chicago on the urban living front.

One thing to keep in mind about Chicago though, is that even though there are a lot of latinas there, I found that you have to seek them out...a lot of the latin population lives concentrated in certain areas of the city and you have to really look to seek them out. But once you find a good one -

[MobileDave]

Originally Posted by The Northerner

Want a cheap house? Go to Houston.
Want to be warm pretty much year 'round? Go to Houston.

Want absolutely everything else? Go to Chicago.

This is a misleading statement.

Houston's art scene is not on par with Chicago's but it is still among the best in the nation. Houston also has a world class symphony and a food and a restaurant scene that gets national attention and is comparable to the 4th largest city.

I am also the exact opposite as some of the other posters. A car to me means independence. I don't know what I would do if I couldn't take off at any given time on my own and be back upon my own leisure and not have to deal with the lines, crime, and filth that come with most types of public transportation. When I get off work on Thursday or Friday, I can be in San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, or New Orleans in not much time at all. I also couldn't own a car in a city like this because all of the parking fees that would add up rather quickly for something as simple as going shopping.

Here is a good NYT article for the OP that shows a true picture of Houston. Another difference you will notice between the two is Houston is a lot more diverse and a hell of a lot less segregated.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/25/us...-the-part.html

[Vlajos]

I hate driving. One of my least favorite things to do.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by MobileDave

I am also the exact opposite as some of the other posters. A car to me means independence. I don't know what I would do if I couldn't take of at any given time on my own and be back upon my own leisure and not have to deal with the lines and filth that come with most types of public transportation. I also couldn't own a car in a city like this because all of the parking fees that would add up rather quickly for something as simple as going shopping.

Before moving to Chicago, I was pretty much with you on this. Hell, I remember in college a speech being made about how you don't actually need a car (made by someone from Chicago). I thought it was absolutely preposterous and so did everyone else. Then I moved here, and realized you don't really need one. In other places you do, obviously. Even places with some public transit set up, you still need it.

I used to drive everywhere, and used it to "get away" too when I was PO'd or what not. I actually do like driving (unless there's idiots on the road around me). The fact of the matter is that there's more to "independence" than being able to get into your car and go wherever.

When you say "filth that comes with most types of public transportation" --> I ride the train every single day..there's only filth where you look for it. It's not there all the time. You are being a bit dramatic with this. Unless you're riding public transit at 1am or you're in the line of a public transit line that's going to the hood, it's not going to be a big problem. I assume if you are actually from Chicago, that you've rode on certain lines past particular areas. There are many of these cases where "filth" don't ride with you. If you aren't from Chicago and ride public transit everyday, I don't think you have as much room to speak.


The other fact of the matter is that many, many people own cars in Chicago. Chicago still has tons of traffic everywhere. Where do you think these people are from? If you can afford a car or already own it, then go ahead. The zone parking outside of "downtown" can be pretty cheap. Being reliant on this though, you don't need to be.

I don't think many of us are saying Houston is bad. It's not, it's not a bad area. IMO, Chicago wins. For other people, Houston wins. Everybody has different priorities, likes, and dislikes. Not every city is right for everyone.

[SmartGXL]

One thing to remember though, is that Houston does have public transportation; they do have a train system. It is similar to the ones in dallas and portland:

METRORail - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[ForYourLungsOnly]

It's not like you're 'not allowed' to own a car in Chicago...MANYYY people do (I'm in the minority of my friends being the one who got rid of his car). The thing is, you have the OPTION of using it or not using it at any given time.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by ForYourLungsOnly

It's not like you're 'not allowed' to own a car in Chicago...MANYYY people do (I'm in the minority of my friends being the one who got rid of his car). The thing is, you have the OPTION of using it or not using it at any given time.

Yep exactly, and if you actually own the car, it's not bad. Get zone parking for $25/year basically. Lot of people do that. I know a number of people who never got rid of their cars, but they don't always use it. Only when they need to. They probably spend like $20/month on gas if even. Their biggest expense with the car is by far their insurance.