What is the transition like moving from Phoenix, AZ to the DFW, TX? (Houston: appointed, best cities) - Dallas - Texas - City-Data Forum

phoeilbert · 10-10-2022, 11:42 PM

I'll soon be accepting a new job offer in the Dallas-Fort Worth, TX area. I currently live in Phoenix, AZ. What will the transition be like? I'm going into my 30s and beginning a new life in a new decade of age. I've heard amazing things about Dallas. I never heard anyone say anything negative about the area. It must be one of the best cities to live in.

rabbit33 · 10-11-2022, 07:18 AM

Keep in mind, Dallas is NOT in the desert, not even close. Try to run your house and yard like you're in the desert and you'll be dissatisfied with the results. Dallas and Ft. Worth are at the southern end of the Great Plains, a vast grassland stretching from Texas clear up into Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

tmtex · 10-11-2022, 07:30 AM

What amazing things have you heard ?

ChristieP · 10-11-2022, 08:02 AM

I agree with Rabbit33 that DFW is not the desert. The weather is significantly cooler here, too.

Where will your work be located? DFW is a HUGE metro area with over 7 million people, so you'll want to live fairly close to your work.

phoeilbert · 10-11-2022, 09:48 AM

I've heard that there are a lot of things to do, that it's huge, and that the people are very nice and friendly, and the social life is amazing there. I've heard that it's not as hot as it is in Phoenix. I'd be living in Addison. What is the daily commute in Dallas?

rabbit33 · 10-11-2022, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phoeilbert

I've heard that there are a lot of things to do, that it's huge, and that the people are very nice and friendly, and the social life is amazing there. I've heard that it's not as hot as it is in Phoenix. I'd be living in Addison. What is the daily commute in Dallas?

From very long to very short. You'll want to consult a map. Where is the job? Addison would be a REALLY BAD choice for commuting to an office in Seagoville or Midlothian: a great choice for commuting to an office at 635 and 75.

WorldKlas · 10-11-2022, 12:47 PM

So a few differences. No monsoons, but hail in early Spring through Summer. Try and get covered parking as much as possible. Sticky humidity and many mosquitos. Hiking is much better in Colorado or Arkansas and the local Sierra Club plans hiking trips there. Lots of runners and bike riders in the DFW area, and plenty of clubs through Meetup.com Great restaurants and a really good scene for young professionals. Traffic is a big heartburn. You will enjoy the green landscapes and miss desert beauty. Dallas is really a pretty clean city with great restaurants and shopping.

Pilsn3r · 10-11-2022, 01:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phoeilbert

I've heard that there are a lot of things to do, that it's huge, and that the people are very nice and friendly, and the social life is amazing there. I've heard that it's not as hot as it is in Phoenix. I'd be living in Addison. What is the daily commute in Dallas?

Umm...no. The social life is what you make of it. You could have a great social life in Phoenix and a great one in Dallas. It's up to you. The people aren't any better or worse than in AZ. As for "things to do" that depends on what you like to do.

It's a different hot than AZ. It's humid here for me, but then I lived a long time in CO which is semi-arid. People from Houston think Dallas is dry (e.g. wife thinks that). It's relative.

It could be 110 in AZ in the sun, but 95 in the shade (one thing I miss about the semi-arid environment is how much cooler it is in the shade), and at night 85, but in Dallas it could be 100, and only 98 in the shade, and 95 at night.

Addison can be nice, depends on where you live in Addison. The commute depends on what time you leave for work and what route you take, and where in Dallas your work is.

Wittgenstein's Ghost · 10-11-2022, 02:02 PM

I've spent quite a bit of time in Phoenix and Scottsdale and lived in DFW for years. On the spectrum of how different large metro areas can be, they are more alike than they are different. I always found it hard to believe Phoenix was as big as it is. It just never seemed that big to me. DFW does. It's a massive place with two very real downtowns (Dallas and Fort Worth) and many large, distinct suburbs. There is massive sprawl, and things that are in DFW can still be an hour or more away without traffic. Traffic can be bad depending on time and route.

You'll think DFW is extremely humid. It's really only moderately humid, but it's a very noticeable difference from the desert. I even notice it right away when coming from Colorado, and Colorado is only semi-arid.

There are lots of nice suburbs (nearly the entire northern half of the metro) that are a great plains version of Paradise Valley or Scottsdale maybe. Density feels higher in those DFW equivalents than in the Phoenix equivalents, though.

There are nearly zero natural terrain features to speak of aside from the lakes. I go to Scottsdale frequently in the winter to get in warm weather and do some hiking in shorts. I love it because you are never more than a few minutes from some sort of natural beauty. That isn't true in DFW. That might not matter to you, but if you are a nature person, you'll probably be disappointed.

DFW is very hot. Its temps of course don't get as high as Phoenix's, but the humidity is much higher. I don't know which feels worse. This past summer was abnormally hot in DFW, and my friends and relatives there basically didn't go outside for much of the summer. 105-110 plus humidity in DFW is insane. When I lived there, that would have been unusual, though.

Winter is more significant in DFW. There's only about six weeks of real winter, but it gets cold enough that you'll actually need a real coat. It also tends to be pretty cloudy in winter and feel colder than the thermometer indicates. Dry cold and wet cold are very different.

But, like I said originally, both metro areas have a lot in common. I would say both are thriving economically and are desirable places for a lot of people. There are plenty of people in DFW who would be right at home at Scottsdale Fashion Square (god, I actually hate that place).

I second the comment that says live near your work. Transplants seem to be allergic to doing this for some reason. Thirty minutes or more each way to work takes a lot of quality time away, and if you have the option to not do that, take advantage.

supfromthesite · 10-11-2022, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phoeilbert

I never heard anyone say anything negative about the area. It must be one of the best cities to live in.

It is not all peaches, but it is a nice place. The way Scottsdale is kind of pretentious and uppity is how a lot of Dallas is. Seems like more than Phoenix. People are still nice though.

Other people have made good comments. Watch out for traffic, and the relative humidity compared to Arizona.