dallas or austin (San Antonio, Round Rock, Leander: home, school districts, income)

[ssjjbb]

I teach in San Antonio, thinking of moving to Dallas or Austin, any suggestions? I know I will take a pay cut if I move to Austin, but do other things in the city make up for it? Outdoor activities for both cities? Cost of living for both? Which is better for things to do for aged 25 - 35 singles?

Which school districts are the best to work for in Dallas and Austin?

Thanks!

[tchrmom]

I currently live in Austin and am going to be moving to Dallas to teach. The schools in Austin ISD are horrible. If you teach in the Austin area, you will want to teach in the areas surrounding Austin, ie. Round Rock, Leander, Eanes ISD's. The cost of living in Austin is also pretty high, so the teacher income wouldn't suffice. That is why I am moving to Dallas--better pay and a lower cost of living. Austin is a great city, but Dallas has some wonderful aspects too: lots of lakes, shopping, and any amenity you could want.

[socketz]

I personally don't see the difference in home cost between the two, but I'm looking in the nicer areas of Dallas. There are some 150k areas as some have pointed out in Dallas, and I don't think Austin has many of those.

As for Outdoor activities, Lake Travis is pretty sweet and is the focal point of life in Asutin (most of my customers there have speedboats and jet skis). While Dallas has some recreation like that, I don't think all of our lakes combined can equal the beauty of Lake Travis. It's pretty nice. Austin is alot more liberal as well, so it is not nearly as uptight as Dallas as a whole. Although there are cool people in both places.