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I can't believe I read all the pages. I was born and raised in Brooklyn NY and been going on my 6th year of my three year plan. The only reason I would want to move closer to home would be to be closer to family, friends, Yankees, and Giants.
Do I love Houston?? No, but I do like it. Houston has been great to my career and my family. It will allow me to give opportunities to my kids that I wouldn't be able to give/afford my kids back home.
While Houston is no where near the city that Chicago, NYC are it still has its own redeeming qualities. Has great food and entertainment.
Also any NYC "native" that complains about crime and public school is most likely a transplant and not born in the City.
I moved to Houston from Brookyln in 2007. My opinion of Houston is just that and I do not want try to discourage anyone from making a move in their lives to better themselves. My experiences in Houston have been slightly tilted to the negative side. I liked it my first year, but after about 18 months I really started to miss the northeast. I am currently in the process on trying to move back to Brooklyn or Connecticut.
Here are my negatives.
1. Weather. Kiss having four distinct seasons goodbye. It's hot and hotter and it is arguably the most humid and sticky part of the country. I find it very difficult to enjoy the outdoors from mid April to mid November. During the summer months (May through October) it is usually 100 degrees EVERYDAY and 80-85 at night. It is just brutal.
2, Lack of outdoor diversity. Houston is flat and boring. The gulf is bath water and the water is dirty brown. It is not very pleasant. There really is nothing to do outside in that part of Texas. No hiking, no rivers, no nice beaches. Nothing. Memorial Park is not bad for running when the weather allows it.
3, Lots of crime. You really cannot go anywhere without a strong possibilty of your car being broken into. Lots of drunk driving - most in the country. Lots of gangs and Houston is slowly be swallowed by illegal aliens. There are also a ton of bad areas with many burglaries even in the nicer areas. With the exception of the Memorial Drive area, anything outside the inner loop gets pretty gheto. If you live in an apt complex, your own neighbors will steal your stuff.
4, No mass transit. You have to drive anywhere. Houston is more like a suburb than what most people consider a city. It is the least pedestrian friendly place on the plant.
5, People. I find the people to be rude and for the most part, lack education. Not the brightest. The Medical Center and NASA obviously attract a smart bunch, but other than that I have noticed that customer service and overall kindness is horrible compared to the Northeast. My wife is from Portland, Oregon. She works for Continental and travels all over the country and globe every week. She too says that Houston is by far the rudest place she has been to with possibly the exception of China.
Bottom line is Houston is a working city in a bad location. It lacks history, character and identity It is not the type of place you go to live it up for social and leisure reasons. It is also not the place you move to if you like a mix of nature and the big city life.
POSITIVES
1, Food, the food there is amazing. It as good, if not better than NYC. Very diverse. You can get everything there.
2, Cool sports town, Houston Texans are great.
3, Cheaper cost of living.
Again, this is strictly my opinion. With the exception of the weather, it's all subjective. Just keep in my mind, the Northeast has everything and it is easy to take it for granted. After a few years in Houston, I got a rude awakening as to how nice and attractive the Northeast is from D.C. to Maine. There really is no comparrison.
Feel free to ask me any specific questions.
Does Houston look like these...? Can anybody be honest to verify?
Does Houston look like these...? Can anybody be honest to verify?
Depends what's your other options and budget. Do you have 5 offers around the world in top cities?
What is he saying is somehow true for 1-4, but on the other hand it's extremely cheap here and people can afford lifestyle of higher class then they would do in other cities or countries.
I don't agree with his assessment of people. It solely depends on circles you chose to socialize with. Nobody is forcing you to go to hillbilly fest or interact with plebs if it's not your thing. Socialize around NASA, Med center, Midtown, Monstrose and you won't find many boring conversations...
I am somehow glad he is here, because since Grunn(disgruntled yuppie poster from UK) left, this forum become super boring :-)
Last edited by meet4; 04-11-2012 at 12:08 PM..
Reason: grammar
jpimus said: "No, Dave the non Texans are not snobs. We are just far more educated and civil."
Funny, jpimus, I lived in BK, NYC for almost three years and the majority of the people there were anything but civil. Try rude, arrogant and pretentious, to name a few less than redeeming qualities I encountered on daily basis.
I ran from that place back to Houston, where I am originally from and will never look back. NYC is an over-hyped, over-priced cesspool that is great to visit but hell to live in, if you are not at least a millionaire. Public transit? I thought it would be great to not have to "worry about having a car" but that wore off very quick after being forced to ride packed subways and buses with at many times rude and obnoxious people.
I hope you enjoy your trip back home. All of the above and more is waiting for you when you get back...
Does Houston look like these...? Can anybody be honest to verify?
See Response in Red. At the end of the day do your homework before you make your decision.
Here are my negatives.
1. Weather. Kiss having four distinct seasons goodbye. It's hot and hotter and it is arguably the most humid and sticky part of the country. I find it very difficult to enjoy the outdoors from mid April to mid November. During the summer months (May through October) it is usually 100 degrees EVERYDAY and 80-85 at night. It is just brutal.
Yes during May through October is can be brutal, but we have central AC.
2, Lack of outdoor diversity. Houston is flat and boring. The gulf is bath water and the water is dirty brown. It is not very pleasant. There really is nothing to do outside in that part of Texas. No hiking, no rivers, no nice beaches. Nothing. Memorial Park is not bad for running when the weather allows it.
While houston is flat it is far from boring, just have to pick the right times of the day to do things. There are hiking trails. The beaches are no different from Long Beach, Manhattan Beach, Jones Beach.
3, Lots of crime. You really cannot go anywhere without a strong possibilty of your car being broken into. Lots of drunk driving - most in the country. Lots of gangs and Houston is slowly be swallowed by illegal aliens. There are also a ton of bad areas with many burglaries even in the nicer areas. With the exception of the Memorial Drive area, anything outside the inner loop gets pretty gheto. If you live in an apt complex, your own neighbors will steal your stuff.
Crime is not any different than other cities.
4, No mass transit. You have to drive anywhere. Houston is more like a suburb than what most people consider a city. It is the least pedestrian friendly place on the plant. Pretty on point about this, however I hate dealing with being over crowded with people
5, People. I find the people to be rude and for the most part, lack education. Not the brightest. The Medical Center and NASA obviously attract a smart bunch, but other than that I have noticed that customer service and overall kindness is horrible compared to the Northeast. My wife is from Portland, Oregon. She works for Continental and travels all over the country and globe every week. She too says that Houston is by far the rudest place she has been to with possibly the exception of China.
There are some folks that are rude but you cant be from NYC and complain about rudeness, there are some dumb folks but that is pretty much every where you go.
I can't believe I read all the pages. I was born and raised in Brooklyn NY and been going on my 6th year of my three year plan. The only reason I would want to move closer to home would be to be closer to family, friends, Yankees, and Giants.
Do I love Houston?? No, but I do like it. Houston has been great to my career and my family. It will allow me to give opportunities to my kids that I wouldn't be able to give/afford my kids back home.
While Houston is no where near the city that Chicago, NYC are it still has its own redeeming qualities. Has great food and entertainment.
Also any NYC "native" that complains about crime and public school is most likely a transplant and not born in the City.
Thaks for your reply,
I agree with you when you stated "any NYC "native" that complains about crime and public school is most likely a transplant and not born in the City". .
jpimus said: "No, Dave the non Texans are not snobs. We are just far more educated and civil."
Funny, jpimus, I lived in BK, NYC for almost three years and the majority of the people there were anything but civil. Try rude, arrogant and pretentious, to name a few less than redeeming qualities I encountered on daily basis.
I ran from that place back to Houston, where I am originally from and will never look back. NYC is an over-hyped, over-priced cesspool that is great to visit but hell to live in, if you are not at least a millionaire. Public transit? I thought it would be great to not have to "worry about having a car" but that wore off very quick after being forced to ride packed subways and buses with at many times rude and obnoxious people.
I hope you enjoy your trip back home. All of the above and more is waiting for you when you get back...
Wow, thanks for your reply....
I live in Queens but have lived in BK, but ran back to Queens. I am talking about another borough and is still better than BK for me =)
You have live here and am glad that you have seen both perspective, gives me some trust that I can atleast try Houston out for a change.
See Response in Red. At the end of the day do your homework before you make your decision.
Here are my negatives.
1. Weather. Kiss having four distinct seasons goodbye. It's hot and hotter and it is arguably the most humid and sticky part of the country. I find it very difficult to enjoy the outdoors from mid April to mid November. During the summer months (May through October) it is usually 100 degrees EVERYDAY and 80-85 at night. It is just brutal.
Yes during May through October is can be brutal, but we have central AC.
2, Lack of outdoor diversity. Houston is flat and boring. The gulf is bath water and the water is dirty brown. It is not very pleasant. There really is nothing to do outside in that part of Texas. No hiking, no rivers, no nice beaches. Nothing. Memorial Park is not bad for running when the weather allows it.
While houston is flat it is far from boring, just have to pick the right times of the day to do things. There are hiking trails. The beaches are no different from Long Beach, Manhattan Beach, Jones Beach.
3, Lots of crime. You really cannot go anywhere without a strong possibilty of your car being broken into. Lots of drunk driving - most in the country. Lots of gangs and Houston is slowly be swallowed by illegal aliens. There are also a ton of bad areas with many burglaries even in the nicer areas. With the exception of the Memorial Drive area, anything outside the inner loop gets pretty gheto. If you live in an apt complex, your own neighbors will steal your stuff.
Crime is not any different than other cities.
4, No mass transit. You have to drive anywhere. Houston is more like a suburb than what most people consider a city. It is the least pedestrian friendly place on the plant. Pretty on point about this, however I hate dealing with being over crowded with people
5, People. I find the people to be rude and for the most part, lack education. Not the brightest. The Medical Center and NASA obviously attract a smart bunch, but other than that I have noticed that customer service and overall kindness is horrible compared to the Northeast. My wife is from Portland, Oregon. She works for Continental and travels all over the country and globe every week. She too says that Houston is by far the rudest place she has been to with possibly the exception of China.
There are some folks that are rude but you cant be from NYC and complain about rudeness, there are some dumb folks but that is pretty much every where you go.
I do like your point of view, and thanks alot for clarifying some of these points
"Yes during May through October is can be brutal, but we have central AC". I agree I think I can deal with AC better than dealing with the shivering cold, not wanting to do any thing else than be tucked in my bed under my sheets =( (I'm actually kind of tired of that)
I don't mind Houston being Flat ( Really all I like to do is work, movies, shopping, parks, and being home spending quality time with the family.....oh I do like to have company in my house and having fun in a family oriented environment. I do love to go out to eat
Crime........I Do care, but hey I live in a city that is not so safe either. I believe when something is going to happen to someone, it will no matter how, what time or where.
About transit I am pretty tired of them!!
I wouldn't mind to have to drive whenever I need to go out
Like I mentioned before I'm glad I will be visiting soon and hopefully like it
I agree with you when you stated "any NYC "native" that complains about crime and public school is most likely a transplant and not born in the City". .
I am glad that Houston has worked great for you
Do you live in the inner loop or the suburbs?
I live just outside the loop but still in Houston proper, I have access to 610 which gets me to Meyerland Plaza, Galleria and downtown within a matter of 10-15 mins without traffic.
I live in the willowbend area which is pretty much middle class.
I agree I think I can deal with AC better than dealing with the shivering cold, not wanting to do any thing else than be tucked in my bed under my sheets =( (I'm actually kind of tired of that) --- Is there no heating in your house during winter?
Crime........I Do care, but hey I live in a city that is not so safe either. I believe when something is going to happen to someone, it will no matter how, what time or where. --- NYC crime rate is lower than Houston. http://os.cqpress.com/citycrime/2011/City_Lo-Hi_2011.pdf
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(I'm actually kind of tired of that)
