Need to know the REAL deal (El Paso, Portland: fit in, real estate, health insurance)

[thompson84606]

Ok, so we're on a relocation site which means that most people on here have issues with where they're living and are contemplating a move. But El Paso is intriguing to me. The ridiculously low crime rate (even property crime is some of the lowest in the western US), a city of 600,000 with only 14 murders? You have to be crazy! The extremely low cost of living, the proximity to the culture of Mexico, and the fact that there aren't any hate organizations within 200 miles (I am a white male married to a Jamaican woman). So I am asking for a sincere introspective to El Paso. I know there's going to be some drugs, I know there's going to be some run down neighborhoods, but I am fluent in spanish, enjoy other cultures and don't consider immigration a serious problem. I've lived in Chicago, Phoenix, Portland, OR, San Diego, Utah and Puerto Rico and just want a safe, affordable, and different place to raise my family. Could El Paso be that place for someone like me?

[lipbalm]

Yes, if you can fin a good paying job. That's going to be the problem.

[Muhnay]

Originally Posted by thompson84606

Ok, so we're on a relocation site which means that most people on here have issues with where they're living and are contemplating a move. But El Paso is intriguing to me. The ridiculously low crime rate (even property crime is some of the lowest in the western US), a city of 600,000 with only 14 murders? You have to be crazy! The extremely low cost of living, the proximity to the culture of Mexico, and the fact that there aren't any hate organizations within 200 miles (I am a white male married to a Jamaican woman). So I am asking for a sincere introspective to El Paso. I know there's going to be some drugs, I know there's going to be some run down neighborhoods, but I am fluent in spanish, enjoy other cultures and don't consider immigration a serious problem. I've lived in Chicago, Phoenix, Portland, OR, San Diego, Utah and Puerto Rico and just want a safe, affordable, and different place to raise my family. Could El Paso be that place for someone like me?

The real Deal.. ok I will try to be fair..

I want to address one thing first.. no hate organizations within 200 miles. That is not true. There is MEChA, and Aztlan orgs in El Paso, and there is one other, I forget its name.. they wear brown shirts and scream anti white slurs. ( http://www.utep.edu/mecha/ ). So there is in fact hate groups with in the city. And Chapperal N.M. has a Nazi group out there.. And there is also a small Black Panther movement on the East Side of El Paso.. but it is just mainly kids with nothing better to do, and not really organized. Just as an eye opener for you.. nothing to worry about much.. As for the crime rate stats, those are doctored, living there for as long as I did, I can tell you that the stats are cleaned up to make the city look good. Also you have to worry about south side El paso, near downtown, the real gang in the city is the fatherless.. a no BS gang, that kill ya as look at ya.

House cost are on the rise as are rents, due to the large number of Military moving to the area. since Fort Bliss will not be able to house the majority of them.. the City is expected to house them. And its no secret that the taxes on homes has been rising each year, and being a poor city, the pay is just not there.. there are no high end jobs there, unless your in the medical field and you get paid far less in El Paso, than you do any where else.

Just some stuff to think about.. the city can be pretty.. but it can suck you in and keep you down.

But I think with everything you said in your post.. El Paso maybe looking into.. you may fit right in there, and be able to make a comfortable life.. I hope so anyways.. I tried to warn you about El Paso.. I no longer live there, and found a place I can be happy.. maybe El Paso is yours. good luck!

[lipbalm]

I do worry that more military will mean more crime in El Paso.

[eplifestyle]

Originally Posted by Muhnay

The real Deal.. ok I will try to be fair..

I want to address one thing first.. no hate organizations within 200 miles. That is not true. There is MEChA, and Aztlan orgs in El Paso, and there is one other, I forget its name.. they wear brown shirts and scream anti white slurs. ( http://www.utep.edu/mecha/ ). So there is in fact hate groups with in the city. And Chapperal N.M. has a Nazi group out there.. And there is also a small Black Panther movement on the East Side of El Paso.. but it is just mainly kids with nothing better to do, and not really organized. Just as an eye opener for you.. nothing to worry about much.. As for the crime rate stats, those are doctored, living there for as long as I did, I can tell you that the stats are cleaned up to make the city look good. Also you have to worry about south side El paso, near downtown, the real gang in the city is the fatherless.. a no BS gang, that kill ya as look at ya.

First of all "Hello" to Thompson and welcome to the El Paso threads.

Muhnay disagree about 90% of the time, so I feel the need to give my take on things.

Mecha is not a "hate" group. I do not defend their political positions, but hate isn't one of them. For more on Mecha, see Muhnay's thread, and my response.

Crime stats for El Paso are not "doctored" any more than for any other city. Sure, some crimes go unreported (like anywhere in the country). But the ones that do get reported are tracked by the FBI. Generally speaking, crime has been going down in El Paso since 2000. Exceptions center around car theft, and (I'm sad to say) rape.

The FBI has released its preliminary reports for 2006:
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/prelim06/t4ok_wi.htm (broken link)

The city has a slightly different set of numbers:
http://www.ci.el-paso.tx.us/police/5year.asp

and from Morgan Quitno:
http://www.morganquitno.com/cit07pop.htm#500,000+

Real estate prices and taxes are rising. But in Texas, there is an annual cap on how much property taxes can be increased. For now (generally speaking) property values are rising more quickly than the maximum cap. That is a good thing if you want to buy land here. You probably have until 2010 or 2011 before market prices form a bubble. It may be longer depending on Fort Bliss and a few other factors. Research by the Local Market Monitor indicates El Paso home are undervalued:
http://money.cnn.com/2006/07/25/real...lues/index.htm

The job market is not great, but some subsectors do just fine. Healthcare and education workers are always needed. I would say that this is your biggest challenge if you want to move here. Research the market for your skillset to see about your prospects.

Contrary to what you may read in these forums, race and ethnicity are not a big issue here. The majority of people here are of Mexican descent. Anglos (caucasian, if you prefer) and other ethnicities are in the minority. If you don't have a problem with that, you should be fine. As I always say, most El Pasoans are too laid back to care about skin color.

-eplifestyle

[eptex]

Originally Posted by thompson84606

Ok, so we're on a relocation site which means that most people on here have issues with where they're living and are contemplating a move. But El Paso is intriguing to me. The ridiculously low crime rate (even property crime is some of the lowest in the western US), a city of 600,000 with only 14 murders? You have to be crazy! The extremely low cost of living, the proximity to the culture of Mexico, and the fact that there aren't any hate organizations within 200 miles (I am a white male married to a Jamaican woman). So I am asking for a sincere introspective to El Paso. I know there's going to be some drugs, I know there's going to be some run down neighborhoods, but I am fluent in spanish, enjoy other cultures and don't consider immigration a serious problem. I've lived in Chicago, Phoenix, Portland, OR, San Diego, Utah and Puerto Rico and just want a safe, affordable, and different place to raise my family. Could El Paso be that place for someone like me?

Hi! If you would fit in is something only you can figure out in time. Just because your wife is jamaican I really can't see any problems. I am nice to all my nice neighbors and I don't check their passport first, being a european foreigner myself

Now the job situation is completely different. It helps to get a job in El Paso if you are currently not in El Paso but you are willing to move to El Paso to do your employer a BIG favor, most likely a big company

A lot of small companies in EP have no health insurance, 401K etc, in fact they act like they have never heard of it, hit the bigger companies only!

[malamute]

There are hate groups here -- and it's like living in a fairly big city of Mexico that has some American expats living in it. If you live near other military then it would be fine I think -- more toleration for mixed marriages because many military families are mixed.

There are race riots in some of the high schools -- it's not a completely perfect paradise --- but it depends a lot on the neighborhood.