Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > San Antonio
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 05-03-2013, 11:48 AM
 
Location: Kaitaia, New Zealand
29 posts, read 42,499 times
Reputation: 32

Advertisements

Hi All,

I am a New Zealander who has been offered a position in San Antonio and am looking to relocate ina couple of months.

Because I live so far away I am in need of some advice about various aspects of living in the US in general, and San Antonio specifically.

The job will be in the Monte Vista area (I think). Will it be possible for me to rent a 1 bedroom apartment in the $600-$800 range in this area. I won't have a car so will be relying on public transport -does this area have the necessary amenities for this?

I will be needing to set up a bank account, can anyone give me some bank names to look in to? Same goes for insurance companies?

On the topic of insurance which types will I require. In NZ I just have contents insurance, will I also need medical insurance? Anything else?

Cellular phone companies, electrical companies, water companies, garbage removal?

Any advice would be great.

Thanks so much!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 05-03-2013, 12:43 PM
 
4,307 posts, read 9,537,917 times
Reputation: 1858
Welcome! We have a number of Kiwis in San Antonio. You'll feel at home!

Monte Vista is near downtown, and anywhere in the near vicinity of Monte Vista will be easily accessible via public transport. You should be able to find an apartment in that price range, but it'll more likely be in a house (i.e. house broken up into apartments) rather than in one of the larger new complexes in the area which I think run a bit higher. However, that means that you really need to see it before settling on a place, as they will vary a lot. You might be better off staying in a short term place when you first arrive until you can find something suited to you. The large complexes are easier to commit to unseen as they're new and all the same.

re: insurance - does your job include health benefits? If not, private health insurance will take up a huge chunk of your salary. if it does include benefits, then most things should be covered and you pay a portion of that. That'll be discussed with the HR.

Utilities will depend on where you live, some apartments will include that in the rent, others won't. Wait til you find a place to set that up.

Banks - local bank is Frost, and then there are large national banks like BofA, Wells Fargo, Chase and probably others...I use a credit union through work myself.

Good luck on the move!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-03-2013, 06:40 PM
 
Location: San Antonio, TX, USA
5,142 posts, read 13,095,522 times
Reputation: 2515
Have you visited the city website yet? If not, here is the link: http://www.sanantonio.gov/ and San Antonio Texas official vacation and visitor information. San Antonio Convention & Visitors Bureau. :: VisitSanAntonio.com
Good place to get started on the general services like the library or the mall, etc.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-04-2013, 01:45 PM
 
Location: Kaitaia, New Zealand
29 posts, read 42,499 times
Reputation: 32
Thanks Chaka for all the info - I really appreciate it.

And thanks skeet09 for the links. I will check them out thoroughly of the next day or so.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-04-2013, 02:40 PM
 
Location: Mid South Central TX
3,216 posts, read 8,538,917 times
Reputation: 2264
Cell phones: 2 ways to go:

Contract : phone is free or subsidized, but you are in a 2 year contract.

Pay As You Go/ Prepaid : You pay the phone's full price, but you can start and stop service when you want.

All the major carriers offer both types : AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile.

There are more option for pay as you go : Cricket, Smart Talk (through WalMart), Net10.

You can check these all out at their websites (add dot com to name), or you can walk into their storefronts. Major retailers like WalMart, Target, etc., also have phone reps in the store.

Welcome!!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > San Antonio
Similar Threads
View detailed profiles of:

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:12 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top