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RhodyDerek...may I ask where in Texas did you moved to... so I can cross that one off the list.
I live(d) in a suburb outside of San Antonio. I also traveled within the state to Austin, Houston, etc. The only city that was halfway decent was Austin and it has a COL that rivals the northeast so go figure. lol
My husband is trying to get me to move to Texas...I have lived in RI all my life and I honestly don't think I can leave.
I'd suggest talking to the folks on the Texas forum. In and around San Antonio can be pretty tacky in places as another poster mentioned ... but, take into consideration how BIG Texas is and don't look at it through RI eyes. Austin is a great area. Houston has a lot going for it, jobs are plentiful. Investigate the "hill country" of Texas... around that area would be my choice, you will be very pleasantly surprised. Investigate Plano TX, beautiful area, great to raise a family or even retire there. So what if they don't have Chelo's, Greg's or Marchetti's! Sure RI is nice if you live in Wakefield or Cumberland and make over $100K a year. Imagine how much further your money will go in a progressive state such as TX. And... remember, if you want to relocate, there are so many other fabulous places to live and explore this great country with new experiences. It's all about attitude and having an open mind. Other people have different experiences everywhere, you have to remember they also have a different frame of reference of where they came from and where they went. TX can be very hot and dry, I particularly like the hill country because it is more like our RI frame of reference with lots of greenery and cooler weather. A 2500 sq. ft. or more, brick ranch all on one level in a nice neighborhood would be less than $200K .... and that is a lot of house.
The Hill Country begins just north of Austin, continues south to San Antonio, and sweeps west some 200 miles (322 kilometers) before the land begins to flatten out. There are many towns in the Hill Country.
I'd suggest talking to the folks on the Texas forum. In and around San Antonio can be pretty tacky in places as another poster mentioned ... but, take into consideration how BIG Texas is and don't look at it through RI eyes. Austin is a great area. Houston has a lot going for it, jobs are plentiful. Investigate the "hill country" of Texas... around that area would be my choice, you will be very pleasantly surprised. Investigate Plano TX, beautiful area, great to raise a family or even retire there. So what if they don't have Chelo's, Greg's or Marchetti's! Sure RI is nice if you live in Wakefield or Cumberland and make over $100K a year. Imagine how much further your money will go in a progressive state such as TX. And... remember, if you want to relocate, there are so many other fabulous places to live and explore this great country with new experiences. It's all about attitude and having an open mind. Other people have different experiences everywhere, you have to remember they also have a different frame of reference of where they came from and where they went. TX can be very hot and dry, I particularly like the hill country because it is more like our RI frame of reference with lots of greenery and cooler weather. A 2500 sq. ft. or more, brick ranch all on one level in a nice neighborhood would be less than $200K .... and that is a lot of house.
Not to continue my rant against Texas, but I disagree with QuilterChick on some of these points. I actually live in the Texas Hill Country (New Braunfels, TX). I gave SA as a frame of reference earlier, but I am about 45 mins outside of the city. The Hill Country may be nice for a retiree, but if you are in your working years, you will be commuting to SA or Austin which would be 1-1.5 hour commute each way. To say the weather is like RI is somewhat laughable. It hits 100+ every day from May-September and hasn't rained in 3 months. It does have rolling hills that are scenic, but it is far from green. Think more like burnt grass and lots of brown cedar trees. I also agree about the property taxes, from what I see they are roughly double the RI rates. In addition, trash pickup is private so that's an added cost. Aside from all of that, I think the biggest adjustment if you were to move would be cultural. It feels like a different country to me. Most social activities revolve around the churches down here. That's where people meet and it is very central to life down here. As soon as I got a job, the first question I was asked was "what church did you join?"
It certainly wasn't for me, but everyone is different. I'd suggest you visit for a few weeks before moving. Then rent for a year before buying just to make sure it's a good fit. Best of luck!
I did NOT say it was "like" RI. My description was from a "frame of reference" viewpoint. The entire country is in a drought in several areas currently, and TX is dry and hot. 95 degrees in TX is not like 95 degrees in Rhody. If your frame of reference was FL for example, where the humidity is high, it would feel a lot different.
I'm just saying people need to open their minds to different places. In a perfect world, I'd be living in San Diego CA where the weather is probably the best in the entire country. If I were going for weather. But weather is not the only reason to relocate. Most people do it for a better lifestyle and affordability, different experiences, different culture, including job relocation and retirement.
I'm glad to see you edited your description to clarify that you meant "frame of reference", although the whole sentence doesn't make sense any more. I fail to see how anything in Texas can give you any type of reference to RI. It must just be my small mind....
Well, then see if it makes sense now. Makes sense to someone else I just got a DM from who is also a RI lifer, relocating as we speak to a lower COL of living state.
Repeating, unedited: "It's all about attitude and having an open mind. Other people have different experiences everywhere, you have to remember they also have a different frame of reference of where they came from and where they went. TX can be very hot and dry, I particularly like the hill country because it is more like our RI frame of reference with lots of greenery and cooler weather."
Property taxes in Texas on that 200K house will be very high. If you don't believe me check the Austin forum.
yes, but no state income tax. Also, the state workers do not maintain as much power---and I believe, there may be no union. Also, a lax legislature in bed with the state workers unions. The legislature consists of many members who's family (pronounced familee) has a state job (pronounced jhaab) with a pension on the way, sometime multiple pensions.
I do all my shopping in Seekonk along route 6, and if I feel like going to the mall, I go to Emerald square. I couldn't care less about RI business.
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