Is Dallas really significantly cheaper to live in? (Richardson, Lewisville: mortgage, daycare)

[Philip T]

The "cost" comparisons can get a little shaky because you are not only comparing different cities with different local economies -- the Denver area is partly hit with the real estate "bubble," much much more than the Dallas area. At least so far. Hit craigslist.org, click Denver, and look up apts/housing. That is where they list the house rentals.

In Denver there are GOBS of high dollar houses renting for less than what the payments would on the make-believe prices. That is a major sign of a bubble -- they cannot sell the house for what either think it is worth, or even worse, what they have sunk into it. So they are trying to rent them below their own costs, so as to not have a total loss.

You will not see that so much in Dallas (and surrounding areas), although there are some dense foreclosure areas in Dallas, that was driven more by bad loans rather than make-believe high prices.

Either way, I would only rent for a year or so in either local until you see what you really think of the areas.

[Lakewooder]

If you don't like cold weather, don't choose Denver. I have several friends up there and I visit regularly and even manage to go skiing once or twice per year. Most of my friends up there have lived in Texas and they say it's more expensive. One couple I know has to stay for 6 more years before they can return to Dallas and they are counting the days.

Also, Dallas is a more "Southern-friendly" and I think you might get along with the people here better. Colorado to me seems to be a strange mix of unfriendly Midwestern and California types..however, when I go out and knock back a few in Aspen, Denver or wherever, I don't have any problems talking to some strangers. But perhaps that is because as a Texan I was raised to be friendly.

However many of those conversations are about how it is getting too expensive to live in Colorado - especially in Aspen!

[CityYearMom]

Dallas is definitely a sports team city. You'll find games to interest you year-round.

But did you want to talk about the weather? (I guess I've been waiting years to use that one!)

As a Dallas native, I can speak with some authority on the subject. To be comfortable here, you have to reset your internal thermostat. Our lows during the summer are comparable to the highs in northeastern cities (acknowledging, though, that KY isn't vaguely northeastern!).

From May through September (at least for me; others rely on air conditioning for a longer period of time), it becomes a habit to stay within an air-conditioned environment -- even at night. (That's probably the easiest way to tell how you'll like Dallas; do you find yourself turning on your A/C at home when it's 80-85 degrees outside? I have a mental block against turning it on before it's 90, but I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority. Many people are inured to an A/C environment, although ceiling fans often make it comfortable at higher temps.)

If you enjoy walking or jogging, you have to do that before sunrise or after sundown. Summer days are typically brutal; this summer has been "mild." Then again, I've been in the Virginia Tidewater (coastal) where it's intolerable at 85 degrees. Maybe Louisville in the summer is hotter than I imagine.

I will say that on average, we are MUCH more often above and below the average. In other words, you'll be dealing with days that are upward of 85 degrees, or occasional 17-degree ice storms a lot more often than you will be with those "mild" winters. Here it's cold for a week or two, chilly for a couple of months, and hot/hotter the rest of the time.

A chart from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) showing a 30-year daily average of the high and low for July put Dallas at 85 degrees, Louisville at 78 degrees. The average for January for Dallas is 44 and Louisville is 33.

If your main loves are sports teams and hellishly hot weather, Dallas may be your place. But I would caution you; you'd have to really, really hate scraping ice to make that your deciding factor. Plus, again, you'll still occasionally do that here, although if you're smart you'll stay home on "ice" days, when people just don't know that you have to slow down on it a little and the major thoroughfares turn into parking lots filled with a series of wrecks.

Moderator cut: linking to competitors sites is not allowed

There, you can take a little quiz that gauges lifestyle values that are important or unimportant to you and then recommends cities you would like. (Gosh, I hope this thread didn't start out where you had already taken this quiz.)

Good luck!

[tbone65]

Dallas is a topographic, cultural wasteland.
What a nightmare

[socketz]

Originally Posted by tbone65

Dallas is a topographic, cultural wasteland.
What a nightmare

I just came back from 3 days in Austin, I have to admit that I had no idea how much I appreciated topography till it was gone. There were points in Austin where I sat in the car driving and just wanted to say wow....it was refreshing. And it's not like Austin is Salt Lake or Denver.

[hdb]

Topography is nice, but we do have big, beautiful skies and a little bit of prarie left. If earth's natural beauty does it for you, why not live in an affordable place and spend the money you saved travelling? Most of the best places are outside of the US, anyhow.

We are a cultural wasteland, but that's a disease that has spread far and wide, I'm afraid.

[KantLockeMeIn]

Maybe I didn't hit the right parts of Austin, but I was in North Austin and Round Rock and I didn't think it was all that pretty of an area. Is one part of the town nicer than the other?

[FarNorthDallas]

West of Austin is pretty.

[lh_newbie]

You mean Starbucks and The Gap don't have culture? HAHA!

Heck, I still really enjoy living in Dallas. Who cares if we don't have oceans or mountains. Believe it or not, I knew that before I moved here. Just looked at a map.

I'm not moving either.

[Victoire2002]

It depends on where you buy in Dallas, really. If you buy in the outer suburbs, you can get a house in the $275 range that will not have the appreciation values as a house within the beltline would. The closer you are to Highland Park, Univ Park and/or Lakewood, the more appreciation your house stands to have.

That being said, be prepared for large taxes. I think property tax here makes up for lack of state income tax, really. We have home valued at 800K and we pay almost 20k annually in taxes. AND, our local school is still not deemed to be more than "average" using Texas state standards. We have 3 children, so we're forced to use private schools. We do not live a life of affluenza, nor are we rich, so I tend to think Dallas is on the expensive side.

Problem with buying further out is that the city just keeps sprawling, so your house does not tend to grow in value, as there are always new ones being built. Perhaps this is a problem in many cities, but it's what I have experienced here.