Thinking of moving from Orange County CA to Dallas **please help** (Plano: insurance, houses)

[BstYet2Be]

Originally Posted by AKgirlinCA

**Would appreciate any input**

Here are the only things preventing me that I need some enlightening on:
1) the awful hot summers - are they really really miserable?
2) snakes and creepy crawlies - how prevalent are they?
3) crime , although we would be living in Plano or Allen most likely
4) tornadoes - ??? how often
5) are there a lot of RV dealers in the Dallas area?

To answer your questions:

1. It's all relative... we moved here in the 80's when there were like 50-60 days over 100 nonstop (our welcome to Texas!). But, we've never been "stopped" by the heat or been made miserable by it. Everything is A/C, and you quickly learn to do all outside physical activities, i.e., yardwork, jogging, etc., in the early morning hours, not the afternoon/early evening hours. And, I always laugh when people mention the humidity here, because when we moved here, it was so much dryer than where we came from, it actually hurt all of our eyes (my whole company of people!) and we all had to use moisture eye drops until we became acclimated. Some summers are like the first one we experienced ('though none so far as severe) and then again, we'll turn around and have a mild one like this past one, sometimes wet and sometimes dry. So, don't worry, you'll get to experience it all if given the time!

2. Never have seen more than red ants (mean little boogers!) and tree roaches.

3. Crime - pull up the stats (search this Dallas forum as this has been discussed in detail before).

4. Tornadoes - you can pull up all the weather info on a previous site posted, i.e.,
Texas Storm Events

5. Google "RV dealers Dallas"

As a young couple, I would recommend you looking in the Uptown/Lakewood areas of Dallas as that seems to be the most popular with your age group (again, do a search on the Dallas forum for info on these areas).

Overall, I don't believe you'll find a better area for anything/everything you could ever want or ask for in a quality way of life! Welcome to Texas!

[AKgirlinCA]

Wow, I'm pleasantly surprised by all of the feedback. Thank you all. I am not a native Californian and in no way boast about it, in fact I don't have tons of nice things to say about California. I am a proud Alaska girl though born and raised. Looks like I have a few things to consider and I really appreciate everyones feedback. I guess I will have to come out there and see for myself. I do realize that no place is perfect but we just want to be able to afford a mortgage on a decent house , nothing fancy, in a decent area, with a decent wage. This is all too much to ask for in SoCal. It doesn't seem to be too much to ask for in Dallas. We'll see I'll keep checking back for more feedback.

[ItsBrittney]

Hi!

We are admist relocating from Long Beach CA (so relatively same area) and thought I'd toss in my input - I've lived in Plano before and we're now headed back to McKinney.

Property taxes are higher in TX and home insurance is more costly, but it doesn't make it a wash by far. I believe property taxes in CA are about 1% and about 3% in TX. So if you have a $450k home in California (which is almost impossible, homes in OC are roughly $600k and up) it isn't the same thing as a $180k home in TX.

Compared to So Calif, gas itself is a smidge cheaper. When gas was about $2.89 in McKinney, it was about $3.40 in Los Angeles. You run your a/c a lot in TX, but if you've experienced So Calif the last several years, it isn't exactly cool here either. We've had 80-90% humidity summers recently with 90-100 temperatures. Thank global warming for preparing you for TX summers!

To help compare, think of Collin County (north Plano, Allen, Frisco, McKinney) as the slightly more rual versions of Irvine Calif. Except more affordable. Coming from Calif, it feels almost free, while if you're a native to the Dallas area, its the more ritzy overpriced sector.

Other basic general items, such as tv/internet/food/etc, are the same almost anywhere you go. That won't change. And from my experience so far, car insurance is MUCH cheaper in TX than in CA. Someone mentioned it being more costly in TX, not sure who they were using.

In Calif, we pay about $250 a monthy for insurance for just two cars. In TX, its about $175.

[ladysrodgers]

Originally Posted by _Charles_

Oh I forgot to mention - RE tornadoes in DFW. The relative risk is lower than what you currently face with earthquakes in the OC.
You are much more likely to be affected by famous Texas hail - sometimes the size of golf balls. I'll yield to other posters here to tell you about that.

Trust me......I'd take my chances with an earthquake any day! They are few and far between. There are tornadoes here every year without exception.

Yes, the hail wreaks havoc. That's why I rented a garage with my apartment.

[ladysrodgers]

Originally Posted by texasorbust

Hopefully if you move to Texas please leave your CA baggage in CA just as we did. Start new and don't bring that So. CA attitude to Texas. <smile>

She said she was a Alaska native newly transplanted in CA.

[TrueDat]

[quote=ladysrodgers;2031439]
I would say the Dallas area on the whole is not much different than you're used to as far as a city goes. Dallas doesn't have as many skyscrapers nor the glitz that Orange County has. I think Dallas may be a bit cleaner. It's still a concrete jungle though - the cities all run together until you're much farther north of Dallas.
QUOTE]

I'm a Southern California native, worked in OC for 12 years, and I don't quite understand the skyscraper comment here. The skyline in Orange County is indistinct and relatively flat; there's nothing like downtown Dallas in Orange County. According to this site: Tallest Buildings in Orange County
the tallest building in OC is 21 stories. According to this site: Dallas' Tallest Buildings
Dallas has many, many buildings much taller than that and the skyline itself, with Reunion Tower, is much more recognizable.

And, in comparison to OC (as a distinct entity from LA), I'd say Dallas has a much more urban feel overall.

[BstYet2Be]

Originally Posted by ladysrodgers

Trust me......I'd take my chances with an earthquake any day!

Obviously, if you're here, you aren't.

[texasorbust]

Originally Posted by ladysrodgers

She said she was a Alaska native newly transplanted in CA.

Thank you, My bad

[nativeDallasite]

Originally Posted by ItsBrittney

To help compare, think of Collin County (north Plano, Allen, Frisco, McKinney) as the slightly more rual versions of Irvine Calif. Except more affordable. Coming from Calif, it feels almost free, while if you're a native to the Dallas area, its the more ritzy overpriced sector.

Allen and McKinney, ritzy??? LOL...no. The ritzy overpriced sectors are HP, Lakewood,and north Dallas.

[ladysrodgers]

[quote=TrueDat;2034829]

Originally Posted by ladysrodgers

I would say the Dallas area on the whole is not much different than you're used to as far as a city goes. Dallas doesn't have as many skyscrapers nor the glitz that Orange County has. I think Dallas may be a bit cleaner. It's still a concrete jungle though - the cities all run together until you're much farther north of Dallas.
QUOTE]

I'm a Southern California native, worked in OC for 12 years, and I don't quite understand the skyscraper comment here. The skyline in Orange County is indistinct and relatively flat; there's nothing like downtown Dallas in Orange County. According to this site: Tallest Buildings in Orange County
the tallest building in OC is 21 stories. According to this site: Dallas' Tallest Buildings
Dallas has many, many buildings much taller than that and the skyline itself, with Reunion Tower, is much more recognizable.

And, in comparison to OC (as a distinct entity from LA), I'd say Dallas has a much more urban feel overall.

Yes you're right......I was thinking more about LA as far as skyscrapers. I dunno about the urban feel. When I go downtown, it seems like any other large city I've been to.