Anyone from the SFV in DFW? (Dallas, Howe: transplants, rent, mortgage)

[Susyq25]

How long have you been there? How many times did you visit before moving?
What do you like?hate? Was it what you thought?
Did you aleady buy a home?
How does the pay compare to your LA job?
Any words of wisdom for future transplants?

Thanks

[socketz]

How long have you been there? - 4 months
How many times did you visit before moving? - 2
What do you like? - Job, housing cost, friendly people
hate? Where's the beach ? Topography is lacking in most popular areas
Was it what you thought? - no. better, more upscale. Not as country as I'd thought.
Did you aleady buy a home? - Yes, but only after months of searching
How does the pay compare to your LA job? - 30% or more
Any words of wisdom for future transplants? - Move here first, rent an aprtment, learn all the areas as there are hundreds of sub-communities inside DFW. Keep your commute under 25 miles.

[GoPadge]

Originally Posted by socketz

How does the pay compare to your LA job? - 30% or more

Socketz,

I had a quick question or two. Is your pay 30% of your LA pay, or 30% more? And if it's 30% of the LA pay, how does the cost of living compare to LA?

Any words of wisdom for future transplants? - Move here first, rent an aprtment, learn all the areas as there are hundreds of sub-communities inside DFW. Keep your commute under 25 miles.

Very good advise.

[socketz]

For me, there was just alot more opportunity for me here within my specific area of expertise, so saying '30% across the board' would probably be incorrect. As in most big markets, certain fields are in demand and others may not be....it's on the person relocating to figure out if their line of work is in demand within the new location. However, as a whole the Dallas job market is pretty solid across multiple industries (IT, Engineering, Financing/Banking, Building, etc).

However, as a general word of advice I personally would not relocate for anything less than a 15-20% increase - unless - there is some form of upward mobility on the form of a title change and/or changes in responsibilities that may lead to upward mobility.

Again, relocating is a HUGE expense and adds alot of stress in your life.

That's why I keep saying that moving just to find a less expensive home is not the best reason to relocate.

[LastDallasNative]

Based on previous comments on this board, Californians who move here to save money are unhappy. Dallas is not the place for Californians to save money and be happy.

[GoPadge]

True, this is not the cheaper version of California. A paradigm shift is required to move from CA to TX. Treat it as if you were moving to a different country, and your chances to find happiness will be greatly improved.

[socketz]

I'm not sure if I'd move to a new area just to own my own home. Since I've never been in the position of being priced out of a market, I guess it's unfair for me to even comment on this at all. Who knows how I'd feel under similar circumstances.

I also think that home ownership is somewhat over played to some degree. Sure, it's desirable, but are all the benefits really worth it for the tradeoff in quality of life?

As a nation, we seem obsessed with home ownership. And ironicially, very few of us own much more than a big mortgage and a decent tax write off.

In places like CA, I think if I had children that were of an age where they could consider home ownership, I think I may find myself trying to talk them out of it. Seriously, 40-50% of all you after tax money going into a mortgage...think of what you give up from a lifestyle perspective.

In some instances, renting actually seems somewhat liberating.

[Susyq25]

Originally Posted by socketz

However, as a general word of advice I personally would not relocate for anything less than a 15-20% increase - unless - there is some form of upward mobility on the form of a title change and/or changes in responsibilities that may lead to upward mobility.

Again, relocating is a HUGE expense and adds alot of stress in your life.

That's why I keep saying that moving just to find a less expensive home is not the best reason to relocate.

Those are some excellent words of advice and have made us think really hard about this move. As a nurse I know that I would find a job but the pay is lower in TX. My husband, new to IT, would probably find a job but get paid a starting wage.

When people ask us why we're moving I say "because i'd like to be able to stay home with our children and still being able to own a home".

We could probably afford to buy a home in LA but we'd both have to work FT & the children would go to daycare. I'm originally from TX and have lots of friends/family who tell me how we'd have a better quality life in TX.

I'm afriad we'll both still need to work FT (due to lower pay) in order to own a home and I won't be able to stay at home or just work on the weekends (like i intent to b/c nurses have so much flexibility).

[Susyq25]

Originally Posted by GoPadge

True, this is not the cheaper version of California. A paradigm shift is required to move from CA to TX. Treat it as if you were moving to a different country, and your chances to find happiness will be greatly improved.

Did you move from CA or anywhere else?

[socketz]

"I'm originally from TX and have lots of friends/family who tell me how we'd have a better quality life in TX."

That alone is a pretty good reason to actually consider a move. Having some sort of support infrastructure in a new area goes a long way. Perhaps family can help with the children while you guys get n your feet ? Also, being a nurse, you have alot of options with regards to working non traditional hours.