Houston or San Antonio??? (Sugar Land, The Woodlands: appointed, new home, employment)

[maddysammy]

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I posted this same question on the san antonio message board and I would like to hear opionions on both ends!! We were originally all set on Houston, but a good friend of ours who used to live in san antonio 6 years ago who now lives in San Diego told us to check out san antonio....

We are just going to pick up and move to Texas after my son graduates high school and goes off to college. It will be myself my husband and my 8 yr old daughter.. We cant choose between San Antonio or Houston. so HELP.. can you tell me the differences for these cities.. We would want to move to either Katy or the Woodlands in Texas and in San Antonio a friend of mine suggessted Stone Oak. Are the home price's about the same? Is the weather the same? Anything you can offer would be greatly appreciated!!

[Vicman]

So, what style of housing do you want?
* Urban?
* Suburban?
* Near the water?
* Wealthy?

[maddysammy]

Family.. master planned.. 2 story 4 bedroom home... recreational facilites.. good schools... under 400,000. We know we want to go to Texas but right now we r confused exactly where to go

[Vicman]

Originally Posted by maddysammy

Family.. master planned.. 2 story 4 bedroom home... recreational facilites.. good schools... under 400,000. We know we want to go to Texas but right now we r confused exactly where to go

Try to live close to where your breadwinners will work. Various masterplan communities are more convenient for specific places of employment.

[maddysammy]

My husband is semi retired so communting isnt as issue.. but I would like to know what the difference between Houston and San Antnio is? Home prices, education, weather, people??? TIA

[anenglishinamerica]

Home prices really seem to vary.

You can get one story houses in good planned communities starting from $180, and then for 2 stories maybe around $220 (this is for the 'nicer' communities). Katy is nice, and has the good schools.

Try HAR.com for house searching. This also has a very useful link to schools...
http://www.har.com/indexschoolfinder.cfm where you can search by school rating and zipcode.

Weather - seemingly hot and humid for half year, but everywhere has AC so its not that bad. The rest of the year is great.

People - lovely and friendly, typical southern attitude.

Hope this is helpful!

[AK123]

Houston is larger, has a bit of a faster pace, more big-city amenities and what would be considered world-class, more diversity, more shopping. It's closer to the coast for easier access to the beach, boating, fishing etc.

San Antonio is a bit smaller, more of a laid-back feel, but fewer amenities and less diversity. It is more inland and has easier access to the hill country. It is more of a tourist spot.

As far as weather, the two are similar though San Antonio is a little less humid.

In Houston, your type of community would be The Woodlands, Sugar Land, Cinco Ranch...

[Guerilla]

Originally Posted by maddysammy

My husband is semi retired so communting isnt as issue.. but I would like to know what the difference between Houston and San Antnio is? Home prices, education, weather, people??? TIA

Home prices are about the same for both cities. The Houston area has more (obviously) and better school districts than San Antonio. Houston is a bit more humid than San Antonio, but it is not even close to stepping into a sauna like some of the San Antonio posters have said. Houston is one of the most diverse cities in the U.S., and is the most diverse in Texas. It has the second (or third, can't remember which one) most international consulates in the U.S. That should tell you something.

A lot more big-city amenities here (it is an area of 5.4 million people). A lot more fast-paced, as well. San Antonio has a small-town feel and is more laid back. Some like it, and some don't.

You can choose from the woods and hills of the Woodlands - Conroe (yes, Conroe has hills). You can go to the grassy plains of Cinco Ranch. If you want to be near the water, check out Clear Lake or League City. The Bay Area of Houston is a real nice area. Atascosita is in northeast Houston, and is close to Lake Houston.

Want anything else, just ask.

[C2H (ComingtoHouston)]

Houston is much larger than San Antonio, in fact, Houston is the largest city in the state.

San Antonio is more of a place to visit. It caters primarily to the tourist. San Antonio is a pretty big city but the options are a little more limited. It has alot of nice areas. San Antonio has less traffic and its population is more sparse than Houston's, so you might not have as much traffic to deal with. San Antonio has a couple of big companies headquarters there like USAA and AT&T (i think).

Houston's employment base is stronger and more diverse. There are jobs in the oil and energy industry. Also many jobs in medical research and NASA. Houston's fashion industry is growing fast. Houston has live performance and arts scene, plenty of musuems, and access to the beach ( allthough not the best beach but its not bad either). Since you like master-planned areas, you'd probably want to check out Sugarland, Pearland, or the Woodlands. Bay area Houston is beautiful, but you might not like being that close to water. The Woodlands and Sugarland are probably my favorite Houston suburbs, only downside to The Woodlands- its too far away from the Center of Houston.

[kphin]

Last spring we visited both cities, as we were trying to figure out where to relocate to. I agree with most of what has been said so far about the differences. If you really liked the master planned communities in Houston and the number of ammenities, you may be a little disappointed with what you find in new home communities in San Antonio. Most of the ones we visited in San Antonio just had a lap pool area, the prices were a bit higher, and there was not much inventory (you pretty much had to wait for a house to be built). This was in April of last year, so things may be a little bit different now. We will be relocating to Houston in the next couple of months because we really liked the lifestyle offered in the master planned communities (like Sienna Plantation). We liked San Antonio, but for more of a get away area location.