Thinking of moving from Orange County CA to Dallas **please help**

[mrdaxmichaels]

So Cal is a state of mind. Sure, you can move to TX; but do you think you'll fit in there? Go to TX, drive around, explore! I did and I do not regret it for an instant! You see, I am a Californian by heart who loves to travel. When making your decision also remember when you move someplace, you become a member of that community and also have an effect on that community. YOU can help make this the community of your dreams.

[xen0blue]

Originally Posted by AKgirlinCA

**Would appreciate any input**

Well here's our story. My husband and I are a young couple pretty much just starting our life ( ie thinking about things like buying a house and starting a family eventually). We moved to Orange County, CA from Anchorage Alaska almost a year ago. We moved here because his work as an RV technician is more year round down here and my Mom also lives here. Plus, we just wanted a change in general. Unfortunately, I was not prepared for the outrageous cost of living in SoCal. The " perfect weather " is not worth it to me. In fact, I get bored by the weather being the same just about every day. I have a friend who just relocated to Allen from Anchorage also. I am very impressed with the cost of housing in Dallas. I do billing for a law firm and I know there are plenty of law firms in Dallas . Put it this way, we are paying $1400 per month for a 1 bedroom 600 sq ft condo!!!! I've also spoken to an RV dealer in Dallas and have discovered that they pay their technicians the same as in California. I believe my wages would be the same also. Also, work for RV technicians seems to be just as year round and in demand as it is here. We've heard that Plano,Allen, and Carrollton are all really nice areas. We're planning a trip out in April to check everything out as our lease is up in March.

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?

All in all, I've heard a lot of really good things about Dallas and I am very excited about our possible relocation. I have noticed from some previous posts that a lot of people from CA are heading to Texas. I really love the thought of being able to buy a nice house for 150k....Our 600 sq ft condo here goes for over 300k its RIDICULOUS.
ANY INPUT/SUGGESTIONS/ OR ANYTHING WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED!!
Thank you for your time!!!

Listen to me- I'm 24 and have lived here my entire life, and in different parts of DFW from north to south, I know my way around.

1) it's hot, but not near as hot as it could be in places such as houston, san antonio, new orleans, or miami. When I was in san antonio last time, I got so sick from the humidity I threw up a few hours after arriving there, and i've never turned back since (and san antonio is farther north than houston, so just imagine how bad it is in houston). Dallas is a nice mixture of dry and humid heat, but definately tolerable compared to those places I mentioned above.

2) only in the outskirts of town (exurbs and rural areas), except for mosquitos which are pretty common around most bodies of water

3) crime depends on where you are. generally the farther north you go, the less crime there is. If south dallas/oak cliff and it's suburbs are a crime infested hole (which it is), then north dallas is generally the opposite (allen, plano, frisco, richardson, etc included).

4) tornados generally tend to only hit the exurbs and rural areas, for reason unknown. their threat is also greatly exaggerated. i've lived here my entire life and never been in a tornado nor seen one. my theory is all the buildings (expecially the taller ones the closer you get into the city) disrupt the airflow and stop the cyclone from forming or gaining strength.

5) no idea

[Acntx]

Originally Posted by xen0blue

3) crime depends on where you are. generally the farther north you go, the less crime there is. If south dallas/oak cliff and it's suburbs are a crime infested hole (which it is), then north dallas is generally the opposite (allen, plano, frisco, richardson, etc included).

To AKgirlinCA: I am a lifelong resident of the area and have lived in the southern suburbs for many years. My community and the communities surrounding it are not "crime infested holes." I know that you are considering Plano and Allen, which are safe communities, but I just wanted to tell you that the southern suburbs aren't dangerous places to live. We are not accustomed to widespread crime and violence here and are completely separate entities from South Dallas and Oak Cliff. Practically every suburb in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, regardless of its location, has nice neighborhoods and a few that aren't as nice.

I wish you all the best in your pending move to our area. If you do decide on a place like Plano or Allen, don't let a negative statement like the one above stop you from visiting our part of the Metroplex some time! We are no different than anyone else.

Originally Posted by xen0blue

4) tornados generally tend to only hit the exurbs and rural areas, for reason unknown. their threat is also greatly exaggerated. i've lived here my entire life and never been in a tornado nor seen one. my theory is all the buildings (expecially the taller ones the closer you get into the city) disrupt the airflow and stop the cyclone from forming or gaining strength.

Living in a city does not mean that you are at less risk of being struck by a tornado. Tall buildings weren't enough to stop tornadoes from hitting Nashville in 1998, Salt Lake City in 1999, Fort Worth in 2000, and Atlanta last March. Suburbs aren't immune either - Lancaster was hit by one in 1994, a spin-up from the Fort Worth tornado in 2000 went through Arlington, and a residential neighborhood in Colleyville sustained damage from one on February 10th.

While we do live at the southern end of Tornado Alley, instances of truly violent tornadic activity are rare. We do get our fair share of severe thunderstorms, especially during the spring and early summer months, so I would suggest purchasing a weather radio when you get here. That way you can be alerted at any time of the day or night that there is severe weather in your particular area.

The area I currently live in was hit by an F4 tornado in April 1994 (when I was eight years old), but the number of injuries and deaths was very low due to a lot of advanced warning. The majority of confirmed tornadoes in our area are weak and produce only minor or scattered damage. While tornadoes are nothing to mess around with, it shouldn't deter you from moving here. Just monitor the weather forecasts and keep an eye on the TV when storms are in the area and you should be fine.