5 Reasons to live/move to Dallas (Houston, Austin: best cities, transplants, crimes)

[loves2read]

because it is in TEXAS
and this is from someone who has no faith in our legislature to plan for the future so I don't think our state is going to do well environmentally in the next decades and our taxes are going to get worse because the policy of deferring to business vs the public is really not cost-effective in the long run to me...

[GABMER]

Originally Posted by Cupcake77

Homes are cheap

There are jobs here

can't think of anything other reason for living here.

Well, in your case what are the 5 top reasons why not to live/move to Dallas?

[Cupcake77]

Originally Posted by GABMER

Well, in your case what are the 5 top reasons why not to live/move to Dallas?

I don't mind the heat, the people are nice, great tex mex

I think what bothers me is the poor placement of many of the housing developments here in Dallas. I don't mind at all being next to a horse or ranch a field of cows, but railroad tracks, hotels, industiral? I see this a lot in many areas. It seems like the city is poorly planned.
The lack of trees and green! They do very little about making it pretty here. if that wasn't bad enough it's hard to get people to water their lawns. I realize it's hot here and it gets expensive watering all the time. but it makes a neighbourhood look bad when you have a bunch of people who refuse to water. I have been in southlake, beautful homes, terrible yards.
The only way to get around is via the highway, very few side streets here in Dallas. This might be because it's so populated.

It's probably because it's very different than what I am used to, Dallas was a big culture shock for me. I am still trying to adjust. I like outdoor trails for walking and biking, lots of trees. I also miss cool crisp mornings and evenings.

I think it depends where you are from. I can think of cities that are a lot worse than Dallas, so for some people Dallas might be a paradise, others not so much. No where is perfect, we all have a different idea what quality of life is.

Overall Dallas is not bad, just over populated.. I think that's what hurting Dallas more than anything.

[GABMER]

No where is perfect, we all have a different idea what quality of life is.

You got that right!, we have been looking into moving out of FLorida (which to many its paradise) We dont like it here, and after researching several cities I found exactly that...no perfect location.
I have got to admit, we were in Dallas last April and I fell in love with the city but I do agree that I didn't see much "nature" which is one of the few things I like about Florida. Thank you very much for your honest opinion any information is appreciated.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by GABMER

Well, in your case what are the 5 top reasons why not to live/move to Dallas?

5 top reasons not to live in Dallas
1. Bad weather - Dallas has hot humid summers and cold windy icy winters. It's one of the few cities like OKC that has bad summers and winters.

2. Evangelical and conservative people: Dallas is in the heart of the Bible Belt so they tend to have very conservative values and are not tolerant toward other races or faiths. This lack of tolerance isn't obvious. It's not like the Deep South in which those feelings are expressed openly. But there was definitely a sense that you were being judged particularly with religion, it was a big deal to Dallas residents that I chose to not to go to church on Sundays. Whatever diversity I saw there was segregated. I didn't see hate toward other groups or anything like that but it was like nothing the west coast in which Asians and Hispanics are a part of the mainstream. I didn't see a lot of interracial relationships particularly between Black and White. It was an unwritten rule there.

3. Boredom - There isn't a lot to do there. The city is flat and lacks mountains and natural terrain relatively speaking. There are no fun cities a drive away, unless you consider Houston, Austin and San Antonio to be fun cities which I don't. A fun city to me is NY, LA, Las Vegas or San Diego. Aside from shopping and sports, there isn't a lot to do there.

4. Southern Quality - Mentally and culturally, Dallas is still very southern. It's one of those things that you either hate or love. The men all thend to embrace this macho confident good ole boy persona regardless of their education and status. Some people find that cocksure persona to be endearing and humorous, but I found it to be annoying. Men are willing to get into fist fights in bars over nothing. The Women are extremely nice and cheerful albeit passive aggressive and judgemental.

5. Suburbia - like Phoenix and some cities, there is no real urban presence in Dallas and the city seems to spread out and grow horizontally than address developing and building a thriving downtown. People work in downtown Dallas and then drive to their home in the suburbs

5 top reasons to live in Dallas
1. Great Schools - like another poster said, the high schools are great. Their colleges are substandard. Sorry but SMU and TCU are fine schools but nothing compared to Rice or the University of Texas at Austin. Dallas has so many nationally ranked top public schools. Many of the public schools in Dallas equivalent if not better than private schools in other cities

2. Pro Business environment and Jobs - no income tax, great environment that lures companies. Dallas has always had this going for them and they have consistently grown and developed as a result of this. Dallas is one of those cities that if you were concerned with job security, you could probably get a job here and not worry about company downsizing or closing down

3 Low cost of living and Safe - And by low cost of living, it should be reworded to say "You can buy a mansion for very little" because I saw some amazing homes that would be considered steals any where else. And many of their homes are brick and not the cheap stucco you find out west I love the southern style antebellum homes with the modern midwestern twist. Safe - Dallas is one of those cities in which you don't really find a bad part of the city. Sure there is South Dallas but it's nothing compared to some parts of LA or even Houston. There isn't really a part of Dallas that would be afraid to drive through at night. I'm not saying I would get out of the car but there are neighborhoods or areas in other cities in which I wouldn't even drive through at night.

4. Sports - all 4 major sports teams and championship teams at that. The Cowboys and Stars are dominant teams. The Mavericks went to the NBA Finals. The OU-Texas game or the Red River Rivalry is played here each year. Lots of great golf courses

5. Great Place to Raise a Family - With the combination of safety, great school, jobs, economically stable environment, Dallas is an ideal place to a raise a family. With other cities, to get the kind of lifestyle you can get in Dallas, you would have to live their more expensive areas and it would cost you 3 times as much (Los Angelas, San Diego) thankfully I make enough that I can do that.

[Cupcake77]

I agree with all of those except number 1. icy cold winters??

I have never worn a jacket since I lived here in Dallas, I have tired to wear a wool sweater on the coldest winter days and ended up sweating. Dallas has very mild winters. Once every 2 years there is an ice storm. big woop. lasts a day or 2 at most.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by Cupcake77

I agree with all of those except number 1. icy cold winters??

I have never worn a jacket since I lived here in Dallas, I have tired to wear a wool sweater on the coldest winter days and ended up sweating. Dallas has very mild winters. Once every 2 years there is an ice storm. big woop. lasts a day or 2 at most.

I've been there when it's snowed in Dallas. Usually it doesn't get cold enough to make snow and thus ice or hail will result. The roads can get icy in the winter in Dallas for sure. I've had several flights delayed at DFW because they had to address the ice on the runways. It's not consistent by any means and yes there nice days during your winter but you will have cold days too. Everything is relative. Relative to Boston, Chicago Milwaukee, you have a mild winter, relative to Houston, Phoenix, LA, Miami, Las Vegas and San Diego, you have a real winter.

[Cupcake77]

Dallas is not known for having seasons. So I would say there is no real winter here in Dallas.

[GABMER]

Thank you guys!

[aceplace]

It's odd that no one mentioned the enormous cultural opportunities that Dallas has. The Arts district performance halls and theatres (present and future) are close to Lincoln Center in New York in terms of scope and number... Dallas has a dozen good art museums, many galleries, etc. The range of restaurants the metro has is stunning, and can only be bettered by New York, Chicago and LA. Dallas has interesting urban neighborhoods, not as much as many as, say, New Orleans or Boston, but much more than 95% of the metros in America.

A megacity such as DFW has many desirable things that correlate with sheer population size and that you just will not find in smaller metros.