richmond virginia or houston texas (winter, about, similar)

[tyrone37]

Hey guys. Im living in Houston now, and I'm from Richmond. Houston to me appears to be stuck in the past. The city appears very poor and broken down in the city limits, and one must go very far out to live nicely. The streets here are horrendous, and the summer heat is unbearable. The homeless population is unusually large, and public transit is in an enfant stage in comparrison with some cities a lot smaller.

Richmond has culture, as the city is well put together. Here in Houston, one of the first things I noticed was how the infrastructure is anything but normal. You can see a house sitting in the middle of an industrial area, etc.

The weather in Richmond is blessed with 4 seasons, and above all, the geographic location of Richmond puts Houston to SHAME. From Richmond, one could be in the mountains (2 hrs west) or the beach (2 hours east). Within a 5 to 6 hour radius, one could visit D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, New Jersey and New York, not to mention the Carolinas to the south.

The attitude of the people in Richmond is "Progressive", and there is a lot to do there with less hassle doing it. GO RICHMOND

[ronyusa]

Which area would you be working in? Depending on which side of the town you will work, you can either live in the West-End or The (far) Southside (near the intersection of Midlothian Turnpike and Interstate 288) !! Southside/Chesterfield County has great schools I hear but I am not a parent nor did I go to school in Virginia so can't comment on that!

In regards to some of your earlier questions, Virginia has a lot to do, especially the outdoors of Virginia are out-freaking-standing so if you are into outdoor activies (hiking, kayaking, fishing etc.) you will LOVE it here, and if you are not into those I am sure you will get hooked to those activities soon anyway !! The Shenandoah Mountains, VA Beach, DC all are only 2 hours drive away so Richmond is a nicely placed town with a Southern touch without the hustle and bustle and major traffic/crime problems of bigger cities!! Speaking of which, don't worry too much about the "crime rate" those are just statistics, there are few neighborhoods close to Downtown and the near-Southside which have issues, if you avoid those (which is pretty easy to do as "Iamnewhere" pointed out, you will never even notice!!!

The people are friendly here, I am a transplant myself and originally of South Asian origin (Indian sub-continent), I LOVE the people here they are friendly Southern folks, plus many transplants from up North for jobs/profession etc., and based on my experience no major problems in terms of cultural clash/racism etc. VA people are A++, nice and welcoming in my books!!

Either way best of luck in your move and if you pick Richmond, welcome to Richmond, good to have you here !!!

Thanks.

-ron-

P.S. - Props to "Iamnewhere" for the excellent posts !! Sent "positive" points your way...

Originally Posted by sundevil1

Thanks guys once again, could anyone also elaborate on the livable areas of richmond, the job growth, the school districts, etc.. I`ll be moving from Arizona.

[johnnysrules]

I've lived in the Richmond Va / Tri Cities area my whole entire life. I am looking at now relocating to Houston or SF Bay area in Ca. I really want to get away from Richmond.

Cost of Living here isnt bad. Suburban areas are good. Chesterfield County schools are some of the best the state of Va can offer. You are right, it is not as crowded and a very small city.

There plainly isnt much here to do. And the things there is to do cost an arm and a leg. The museums and things around this area are really not Kid friendly. They have maybe 1 children's museum. But because it is only 1 of them, it gets overcrowded very fast and almost unbearable to go into.

Racial tension here is always high. We are kinda mid way from the south and the north. I am entertaining two company job offers to relocate. I hope to be able to make a decision soon because i am tired of Va.

Houston has a very low cost of living and Ca. is extremely high. But, SF Bay area isnt as overcrowded, and the weather is much much bearable.

But Earthquakes. Which would you pick, Earthquakes? Or Hurricanes? lol.

[Yankeerose00]

I'd never tell someone not to move someplace because everyone is different and has different needs. But my aunt lives outside of Houston and is planning on leaving. She said that while there are things that she loves like her huge, cheap house, there are lots of things she never got used to. She said she's sick of every shade of brown and the overall flatness of Texas. Coming from the east coast where it's very lush and green and hilly, the flat, brown landscape is definitely something that you either love or hate. However, the flatness makes for gorgeous pink sunsets that we don't see here, that's for sure. Also, she has horses and told me that almost everyone has metal barns because the humidity is so bad that wood would rot. Now to me Virginia humidity is kind of bad. Not Florida bad, but bad enough. I cannot fathom anyplace so humid that you can't have a wooden barn.
Just some things to consider when making a move.
I've never dealt with an earthquake but after being through 4 hurricanes, I'd rather take on the earthquake at this point! lol.
Best of luck wherever you go.
For me, I cannot wait to get back to Virginia.

[Skratch]

If your young i'd chose Houston if your Old then Richmond, Houston = Big City, Night Life

[Anders15]

Originally Posted by johnnysrules

I've lived in the Richmond Va / Tri Cities area my whole entire life. I am looking at now relocating to Houston or SF Bay area in Ca. I really want to get away from Richmond.

Cost of Living here isnt bad. Suburban areas are good. Chesterfield County schools are some of the best the state of Va can offer. You are right, it is not as crowded and a very small city.

There plainly isnt much here to do. And the things there is to do cost an arm and a leg. The museums and things around this area are really not Kid friendly. They have maybe 1 children's museum. But because it is only 1 of them, it gets overcrowded very fast and almost unbearable to go into.

Racial tension here is always high. We are kinda mid way from the south and the north. I am entertaining two company job offers to relocate. I hope to be able to make a decision soon because i am tired of Va.

Houston has a very low cost of living and Ca. is extremely high. But, SF Bay area isnt as overcrowded, and the weather is much much bearable.

But Earthquakes. Which would you pick, Earthquakes? Or Hurricanes? lol.

Richmond also gets earthquakes although no where near as strong, and it is possible for Cali to get a typhoon also.

[bstump05]

If you can afford to live in San Francisco, I would move there instead of to Houston. Yes, Houston has a MUCH lower cost of living compared to SF, but it is just not as exciting and pleasurable as SF. The weather here is the worst part. Some people like hot, humid weather patterns, but I like cool nights, occasional cold days, 60's and 70's weather-- those are things you will get in the Bay Area (I've been out there numerous times-- my family lives out there).

There is so much to do out there and so much originality. In Houston you tend to see a lot of the same stores and coffee shops. I love it when I see character. You would need to live in the Heights, River Oaks, Memorial area, etc. (higher cost of living) to get some of those cute areas.

I've lived here almost my whole life. I'm always on this website looking for somewhere to move to because I don't want to raise my children here. lol.

Just follow your heart and pray that God would show you where to go.

[Mtaylo24]

Originally Posted by Skratch

If your young i'd chose Houston if your Old then Richmond, Houston = Big City, Night Life

This x 1000

[PaliBoy20]

Originally Posted by sundevil1

Thanks guys once again, could anyone also elaborate on the livable areas of richmond, the job growth, the school districts, etc.. I`ll be moving from Arizona.

If you do not want to live in the city itself, check out Short Pump or Midlothian. Short Pump is in Henrico County and Midlothian is in Chesterfield County. Both have second-to-none schools. Chesterfield I'd say are a little better than Henrico because East Henrico is trash. Midlothian High, James River High, Cosby High, Clover Hill High all have been nationally recognized before (all in Chesterfield). I live in Midlothian, spend a lot of time in Short Pump, worked in the city. There is a lot to do in the city but a lot of trashy areas you want to avoid (and you probably will as long as you don't make the wrong turn). The commute from Short Pump and/or Midlothian is no more than 20 minutes to the city. IN the city, if you were to live, it would depend what kind of person you are. The Fan, Shockoe Bottom are all geared towards the "younger, college" crowd as there are ton of bars and clubs in that area. The city public schools are questionable, very few are worth talking about I'd say if any (just my opinion).

Here's a music video we made in an effort to show that Richmond is a great place to work and play (
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl3hbXRPOA0)
It's only 5 minutes long but shows a lot of great areas here. A LOT of history here if you are a history/war buff. There are a ton of museums for art and history.

VCU Medical Center is nationally recognized as one of the top medical schools/facilities in the country.

Richmond is wonderfully located in my opinion. It is within 1 hour of 2 theme parks (Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens), it is 45 minutes from an outlet mall (Williamsburg) and 1 1/2 hours from another outlet mall (Potomic Mills), Virginia Beach is 2 hours away, DC is 2 hours away, Baltimore is 3 1/2 - 4 hours away. You have the beach 2 hours east, mountains 3 hours NW/West, NC 2 hours away (Outer Banks). I love it personally.

[royalcaribbean]

don't listen to the weather post, it has not snowed a tenth of an inch here all winter long, has not gone lower than 30s, winter temps are mild, similar to houston