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My husband and I are newlyweds and young professionals and want to start our lives off in a place where we can actually afford to buy a home. I have been given the green light to relocate with my job and my husband will be in the job market soon as well (he was in the Army and then went to college) so we are actually pretty open as far as areas we can live.
My mom's side of the family is all from the North Central Texas area (Wichita Falls) and my mom will be retiring in Texas soon so we are considering Dallas to be near my family but still live in a nice big city. My husband's father also lives in St. Louis so it will be nice to be closer to him as well.
I know that there are significant differences in weather from California to Dallas but what other things are quite different? We would prefer to live in Dallas proper but places like Plano have such amazing homes. Would we be better off in the city?
Also, my husband is (half) Asian and I am Caucasian. Are there any areas where we could experience a larger amount of discrimination? I am assuming that because it's the 21st century, we'll be fine.
We are looking to find a nice place to raise a family and have a yard so we can have a dog or two.
Given that I haven't done much searching through the other threads, please point me to another thread if you feel it will be helpful.
I am super new to TX research...there is a lot to read and I have tons of questions, naturally! I will follow your posts. Im sure we will have many of the same questions. =) Wish I could be of help, but I just started research this week.
Last edited by BstYet2Be; 02-27-2012 at 04:07 AM..
While I realize that there may be a lot of similar posts, I have a few specific questions. I have been looking around but I think that every situation is unique.
Yes, it is the 21st Century in Texas as well. We only lynch people on Fridays now and wearing white sheets are optional every other Tuesday.
Seriously -- just because you saw a fictional movie set in 1880's Texas doesn't mean were ever or are that way. Leaders of Dallas government are gay, straight, black, white, asian, african, russian. There are hundreds of thousands of people who have interracial relationships. People really couldn't care less. But it is annoying that people assume were prejudiced. Seems just a tad ironic that Californians have a stereotype that Texans are prejudiced.
I would suggest living in Dallas. Outside of downtown, the city is very suburban. Dallas will give you the most access to the amenities of a real city. The suburbs are very spread out and are only accessible by car and very long drives. Ironically, it feels much more congested in the suburbs because everyone has to travel by car.
These are some photos of my part of town, Lakewood. The main zip code is 75214.
HOAPresident, do I sense a bit of sarcasm here? Do you always treat new people to the forum like this? I'm trying to honestly gather information and I just wanted to ask the question. I understand that Texas is full of diversity. I've been there many times. However, I normally visit my family and have not interacted with many people beyond my extended family members and their neighbors. I also have not been back since I started dating my husband and since we have been married. I've read in other posts on this same forum that there is some discrimination so I figured it would be good to ask.
It's amazing how much people stereotype Californians and expect that all of us feel the same way about your state. If we are considering moving there, we are expecting that it could offer us a better opportunity and may not just be considering the cheap housing. In California, I have never experienced a sense of community at all. People do not talk to their neighbors and tend to be very clique-ish. Based on some of the responses I've received on this thread, I'm not sure that Texas will be much different because as soon as I say that I'm from California, people will jump to the conclusion that I think I'm so much better because I'm from California. However, I'm HOPING that it will be different. That my husband and I will be able to start a family and provide a good life for both us and our children. That we will be able to be close to my mother who will be retiring to Texas (her home state, mind you). We are not the jerks that you play us out to be, so I appreciate anyone that doesn't want to stereotype us and wants to provide me with good advice.
My husband and I are newlyweds and young professionals and want to start our lives off in a place where we can actually afford to buy a home. I have been given the green light to relocate with my job and my husband will be in the job market soon as well (he was in the Army and then went to college) so we are actually pretty open as far as areas we can live.
My mom's side of the family is all from the North Central Texas area (Wichita Falls) and my mom will be retiring in Texas soon so we are considering Dallas to be near my family but still live in a nice big city. My husband's father also lives in St. Louis so it will be nice to be closer to him as well.
I know that there are significant differences in weather from California to Dallas but what other things are quite different? We would prefer to live in Dallas proper but places like Plano have such amazing homes. Would we be better off in the city?
Also, my husband is (half) Asian and I am Caucasian. Are there any areas where we could experience a larger amount of discrimination? I am assuming that because it's the 21st century, we'll be fine.
We are looking to find a nice place to raise a family and have a yard so we can have a dog or two.
Given that I haven't done much searching through the other threads, please point me to another thread if you feel it will be helpful.
Thank you so much!!!
Ok, I'm less grumpy today. Sometimes I feel like we answer all the same questions over and over and over.
First.....no one can help you without knowing a few things:
1. Housing budget and if you want to buy/rent
2. Job locations- DFW metroplex is bigger than all of Rhode Island. No sense in point you towards one place if your job is 60 miles away.
3. What kind of home do you want- new, historic, mid-century, ranch, McMansion? What size? What sized lot?
You need to get jobs first, then worry about a place to live. Finding good jobs is battle #1. The economy is better here than California (for now), but the proverbial sh*t is hitting the fan as Austin (our state capital) wrestles with a $30,000,000,000 budget shortage for our next 2-year budget. Texas was shielded from much of Cali & IL's pain from the last 2 years because we have a 2-year budget cycle and were already in a passed & funded budget when the recession began. Austin ISD is expected to "pink slip" thousands of teachers today- 2 per grade in EVERY SINGLE SCHOOL. The rest of the districts will follow suit over the next 2 months. Texas was at a 8% unemployment rate before the public sector job losses projected for this year (approx 100,000 jobs).
Texans come in every shape, race, color, language, religion, political belife, etc. We are predominately white & Hispanic, but 3 million blacks, nearly 1 million Asians, nearly 600,000 "other/mixed" race people call Texas home. 3.5 million Texans were not born in the US. 8 million speak a language other than English at home (and no, it's not all Spanish either). We still vote red, but most of the core cities (Dallas, Austin, Houston city- not suburbs) vote solidly blue.
We also have a lot of challenges- nearly 20% of the state lives under the poverty level, considerably more than the US average. We lag behind the US average in terms of % of residents with a high school diploma (75% vs US 81%). Whatever your thoughts on illegal immigration, we have the very real problem that a considerable % of our population is undocumented and untaxed, yet strains our healthcare & educational resources. Many city elementary schools have classes with 60-90% of students with Limited English Proficiency- one of the highest rates in the US.
It is a great state for many reasons- friendly people, relatively low COL, good business environment (low tax, no personal income tax)- but I fear that like the California Gold Rush of the 1800's, many people want to come here based on dreams/hopes that may not materialize.
A few more things to note about my current situation:
We are not from San Francisco. I am from San Jose and my husband is from Fremont. Though San Jose is a large city, it does not have the big city feel at all. It's not cosmopolitan and we cannot keep a symphony or a theater company alive in this city at all. The highlights for us in San Jose are festivals which are crowded and poorly designed, movie theaters, bars, etc. There is not much difference between San Jose and any other midwest city that is more suburban sprawl than actual city. In fact, San Jose does not have any shopping in the downtown area and is regulated like a police state starting at about 1 am. There is no late night here, nor am I a late night person. My husband and I are not drinkers and are perfectly fine with living in a dry county.
Fremont, where my husband grew up, is nothing but suburbia, so much so, in fact, that it does not actually have a movie theater within city limits even though its population is over 200,000 people. The supermarkets are spread out and you likely have to drive several miles to reach a store. Fremont does have a BART station but it takes over an hour to get into San Francisco using BART when you can drive in about 45 minutes.
Both San Jose and Fremont are places where you drive. We don't have good public transportation. Both are places that are full of shopping centers and chain restaurants. Yes, we are close to San Francisco but my husband and I likely go there twice or three times a year. The hassle of getting to the city and driving around or trying to figure out public transportation every time I'm interested in going makes me prefer not to go. When I was a child, we took long driving trips including driving from California to Texas at least once or twice a year. I am not averse to driving places nor am I trying to get away from all traffic. California is beyond congested and does not have the resources to help alleviate that.
I do not love California or think that it is superior to any other state. I'm anxious to get OUT of this state, in fact, because even though I have a great job (which I will be moving with), and can have a savings account and can consider buying a house here, what I get will be much less than EVERYTHING that Texas can offer. The people, the food, the surroundings, the community, the proximity to my sister and my niece and nephew, the closeness to my mother and to my husbands family, the ability to have children and be able to send them to quality schools. All of those things are being considered.
First.....no one can help you without knowing a few things:
1. Housing budget and if you want to buy/rent
2. Job locations- DFW metroplex is bigger than all of Rhode Island. No sense in point you towards one place if your job is 60 miles away.
3. What kind of home do you want- new, historic, mid-century, ranch, McMansion? What size? What sized lot?
Not a problem, I understand that there are a lot of people that are doing the same thing we are. Being in our late 20s (with 30 approaching in a month for me), the opportunities found elsewhere are just far greater than we can find in California.
First off, I will have a job. I'll be transferring with my current job and salary. My manager's manager works out of the Texas office so I will actually have leadership in the area and can keep my current position intact. My husband will be looking for a job in the area.
So let me answer your questions now:
1) We are looking to spend no more than $400,000 for a house. We'd like a decent sized house. Here for $400K, we would get a 2 bedroom condo. We would be renting for a year so we could check out neighborhoods leisurely. Our apartment management company has several properties in Dallas and I can get locations of those also.
2) My job would be located in northern Richardson, though I could work remotely. I would prefer to be able to go into the office at least 3 days a week without a brutal commute (so about 30 - 45 minutes at most). Given that my husband would be looking for a job also, the perfect location could change, I realize.
3) When we purchase, we'll be looking for a reasonably sized 3 or 4 bedroom/2.5 or 3 bathroom home. I have no preference between single story and multi-story nor do I need a home with 3,000 square feet. Given that I currently live in a 728 sq ft. apartment that I pay more than $1,400 per month for, I think I could possibly live anywhere bigger. We'd like an extra bedroom for an office. I am not afraid of suburbia and love an area with a good shopping center and good access to restaurants. It does not have to be in the middle of the city at all. As far as lot goes, a large yard would be nice. Again, I presently have no yard and I think my mother's house here in San Jose has a yard that is about 15 ft. by 30 ft. When I say large, if it was 3 times the size of that, I would probably be in heaven.
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