Rate Dallas's climate (Houston, West: layoffs, neighborhood, high school)

[BSL63087]

Dallas is still at the top of my list on places I'd like to relocate to. I am looking for a city that is a big sports city and that has a generally warm climate.

I am from the Louisville, KY area. Our winters are definitly not the worst but they aren't pleasant either. I am not a fan of winter at all and want to go somewhere that has a very mild winter. Dallas and Phoenix are two of my top choices as of right now.

Anyways, I would like to see what you all think about the climate in Dallas. How would you rate the climate there on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being absolutely terrible and 10 being perfect? Try to be as honest and serious as you can because I am interested to hear your honest opinion.

[rb4browns]

I dunno where to rate it on 1 to 10. We came here from California and the weather here is not as nice as LA obviously. I think it is more your frame of mind. The summer is hot here. Not as hot as phoenix though. yes, there is a difference between 100 and 110. It's not as muggy as houston or florida but it's muggier than the arizona desert. I would visit both places in mid august to see for yourself.

[CMDallas]

based on what YOUR looking for maybe a 8 or 9, Phoenix probably gets more snow because its in the desert and temperature changes very rapidly in the desert. Dallas sounds more for you but if you dislike humidity, Dallas is not the place for you (Houston even less) Dallas can get very hot in the summer, but if you really don't mind 100 degree heat with a dew point in the 70's then you should be fine.
Phoenix is less humid but probably gets much hotter.
We get occasional snow, maybe once a year on average, our winters are definitely not you LA 70 degrees years round. it WILL get cold, but it will rain more then snow (more often sleet which can really impair driving).
we get many complaints from Californians about our weather, but if this is what you want Dallas would suit you.

[DodgerBlue]

I am from Phoenix and I have been living here for 7 years and I can tell you that I still can not get used to the summer heat. People who have lived here their whole lives also can not get used to the heat as well. Quite frankly I have found the desert scenery to be quire drab and ugly. That is why I myself am looking to relocated to Dallas. My Wife and I miss the change of seasons, which we don't have here in Phoenix.

Between the months of March and September most people are looking to do things indoors. There are only 5 months to enjoy the weather. Even then people begin to complain during the months of November and January that it is too cold when it drops below 50. Imagine that. The traffic is also terrible, which gets worse when the Snow Birds come flying into town.

As a consequence, there is not much really to do around here. As far as sports are concerned, the fans here are fair weather fans. Most Football fans are not AZ Cardinal fans (mostly Cowboy fans), and the only time people come to see the Diamondbacks is in the playoffs, if they ever get lucky enough to make it like they have this year. The only real fans are Phoenix Suns fans, but they can't seem to win an NBA Title despite nearly dominating the league the past 3 years.

I'm sorry I can not say much about Dallas. I have only been there a couple of times but to know enough that I want to live there. I did live in West Texas while in High School and College and I can tell you that it is a great state with great people and lots of diversity.

[davbetcoo]

It's of course all based on preferences.

Since you don't like the cold - you will find Dallas fairly pleasant in the winter months - though not generally warm enough to be "enjoyable" (i.e. not like So Calif or Florida), but not unpleasant - only a few cold spells and usually only one ice storm per winter. Can be cloudy and rainy, but sometimes sunny and pleasantly cool.

I find spring to be the nicest time. Warm but not hot, thunderstormy.

Fall is usually OK, but very few spectacular (bright, cool, crisp) days like you find in other parts of the country. Fall usually lasts well into December (though the cooler weather doesn't start until at least October).

Summer, IMO is just dreadful, and long. If you like it hot and muggy, you may enjoy summer. For me, it's difficult to enjoy being outside. Evening walks around the neighborhood leave me covered in sweat (but I still go - dumb I guess). Barbeques in the backyard are eaten in the air conditioned comfort of the house.

Overall, because I like cooler weather, and enjoy being outside as much as possible, I would give the weather in Dallas a 4. I've lived in a lot of places in the US, and for me, Dallas is almost the worst of the bunch (Houston is way worse).

I know lots of people who like the weather here however, so you may love it!

[DodgerBlue]

Snow in Phoenix!!! Noooo!!! It never snows in Phoenix. The 7 years I have been here it only snowed once ... about an inch, maybe.

And as for the heat. The hottest I remember was 118! But it was dry heat. Yep, hot enough and dry enough to melt the contact in my eyes.

[davbetcoo]

I remember back in the early '90's my boss was in Phoenix for a few days, and was delayed at the airport for several hours because it was too hot for the planes to take off (120+). Planes couldn't get enough lift with the air that hot. Now that's HOT.

[cdelena]

The hot and humid climate was a major factor in my leaving Dallas. An overall rating is not realistic since each have their own preferences but I was not comfortable in Texas.

[Embraer]

I was never comfortable in Texas weather despite being born and raised there. The summers are very oppresive.

On the other hand, if sports are your thing than you will love Dallas. Football, Hockey, Soccer, Basketball, Baseball all have pro teams in the city. Plus there is a NASCAR track if that is your thing. The D/FW area also has 3 Division 1 college teams: TCU, SMU, and UNT. None of them are ever any good unfortunantly

Plus H.S. football is pretty big down there and features prominently in many resident's Friday night plans.

If you like soccer there are plenty of leagues/teams you can get into, especially co-ed adult leagues.

But yeah, the heat is a major downer and many never get used to it. Its one thing to like warm weather, but Dallas' heat and humidity are a class of its own. If you either enjoy or don't mind oppresive heat and humidity then you will have no problem and be just fine. But definently visit Dallas between the months of May and September a couple of times before moving down.

Originally Posted by davbetcoo

I remember back in the early '90's my boss was in Phoenix for a few days, and was delayed at the airport for several hours because it was too hot for the planes to take off (120+). Planes couldn't get enough lift with the air that hot. Now that's HOT.

That is actually pretty common during the summer months. Before Denver built their new airport with their SUPER long runways planes would be delayed there every day during the summer months.

It comes down to the heat creating low density air. Low density air means aircraft can't generate the same amount of thrust or lift that it would on a standard day. So either the plane has to unload some weight ( passengers or cargo) or wait till the temps cool down a bit. That is why many planes taking off out of Phoenix during the summer are not fully loaded with pax.

Even though Dallas is pretty much sea level, roughly 600ft above sea level, planes many times are also delayed beause of the heat and humidity as humidity is another factor that affects aircraft performance. If you want to impress the people at the terminal next time you are flying tell them about the three Hs that determine if an aircraft can take off or not:

High Altitude (such as Denver)

High Temperature

High Humidity

Any one of those three but especially all 3 together will keep an aircraft on the ground for quite a while.

[SAtoDallas]

The here in Dallas is generally either hot and humid during the summer since you are in KY humidity will not be a problem, the winters are generally mild with some cold fronts thrown in from time to time overall not bad.

The thing you will miss is an actual four seasons, after having lived in VA for 3 years the wife and I sure miss the seasons.