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first of all, sorry for any incorrect grammar or if I misspells. English is not my native language.
Like many other people here, I'm looking for "the perfect place" in the US for my family and me.
We're living in the Netherlands at the moment, but my Husband is from Texas. After more than 20 years in Europe he wants to go back home and settle down. Home doesn't actually has to be Texas, but I think he would really like to live there again. Especially in the Dallas area.
But.... I can't stand extreme heat and humidity. I'm afraid of snakes and (big) spiders. I need different seasons, love cold winters with lots of snow, deep dark woods and green nature around me. Plus I'm not religious, more of a liberal. He, on the other hand, prefers long, warm and sunny summers, not much snow and a good selection of mexican food.
I voted for moving up North, preferably to the East Coast. Living in a not to small and not to big town( +/- 100.000), in driving distance to some bigger Cities, "near" the ocean, good schools, low crime, open minded and warm hearted people, a combination of many colors, cosmovisions, etc.
We are a mixed couple with 2 sons (1y old). He's hispanic and I'm white.
He's working in the IT Sector and also with government+military. So he's getting many Job Offers right now. Mostly Maryland, St. Louis, the DC Area, but also Colorado Springs and from some other military bases.
I'm trying to do research, compare cost of living statistics, taxes, crime rates, prices for houses and school ratings. But it's just to difficult. I've travelled a lot, lived in different countries but never been to the US, so it's only crude theory. And we don't have the time to travel all over the place to see where we would like to live. The decision has to be made in the next few months.
Given where the job offers are coming from I'd recommend Maryland. It would offer pretty much everything you're looking for in terms of criteria. Cities like Rockville, Germantown and Olney are near the I-270 Tech Corridor, and offer excellent public schools as well.
Look possibly into the Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown area of NY. West Point(aka the U.S. Military Academy) is in that area. Orange county is the second fastest growing county in the state of NY and is in that metro area. It is close to NYC(about an hour to an hour and a half), but isn't as expensive and would open up options for work, as there are commuter trains that go into NYC. It is an integrated metro area in terms of different racial/ethnic groups and has some of the smallest pay gaps between different racial/ethnic groups. The schools are largely good, serious crime is pretty much relegated to the cities and even that can vary, you are close to mountains and the coast as well. Here are some jobs that may be relevant in the area as well: Information Technology Jobs, Employment in Poughkeepsie, NY | Indeed.com
If you are looking for communities to live in, you may like Highland Falls(many of the people affiliated with West Point live there), Cornwall, the Monroe-Woodbury area/school district, Goshen, Spackenkill, the Arlington area/school district, Montgomery(Valley Central SD) and Warwick, among others. It is not uncommon for schools to have at least a notable amount of kids from 3 or 4 racial groups within high quality schools. For instance, here are some elementary schools in that area: Cornwall Elementary School - Cornwall, New York - NY - School overview Student Teacher Ratio Cornwall Elementary School - Cornwall, New York - NY
I would choose Colorado Springs and here's why. Like your husband, I am a native Texan, from Dallas to be exact, so I might be able to see it from his perspective. While you may not get just tons of deep snow all winter that you may want, it will provide way more snow than you would get in Dallas or anywhere else in Texas. You could still have your winter, but at the same time he can have the long warm sunny summer days he wants. I think they get about 300+ days of sunshine a year. You would still be close to national forests and winter ski areas which are beautiful. It's a semi arid climate so it won't be as humid as Dallas and it doesn't get as hot as Texas in the summer, but he would still get long sunny days, even in the winter. You would be only an hour or so from Denver, so a much larger city for you. Also, in Colorado, while it does not feel like Texas, it is more spread out like Texas. Lots of wide open spaces like Texas. I can't personally speak about the Mexican food in Colorado, but I'm sure he could get plenty there.
While I love the East Coast, it just doesn't feel the same as the West/Southwest, and if he wants to feel like he's back home, he would feel much more so in Colorado than in the East somewhere.
If your hubs wants good Mexican food, I suggest you stay on the West coast. Best Mexican food is in California, in San Diego and Los Angeles. Quality declines the further north you go, but it is still pretty darn good all the way up into Washington state.
Also, you can buy any of the ingredients you need to make Mexican food and it is not difficult to cook wonderful Mexican food if you can get the ingredients.
Humidity on the west coast is low. If you can't stand humidity, stay away from the East coast.
Thank you soooo much for all the replies. Now I have more detailed informations and it's easier to do the researches.
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He, on the other hand, prefers long, warm and sunny summers, not much snow and a good selection of mexican food.
