Coulld I find a place in TX meeting my desires? (Dallas: 2013, lease)

[Serious Conversation]

I am 27, male, and currently make under $25k in Appalachia in IT customer service with no benefits. I have an economics degree, eight IT certs, and some academic accounting experience along with accounting software skills. Needless to say, it's time for a change and TX has come up in my own research as well as some recommendations of a personal friend who lives in San Antonio.

I am open to anything in IT except for call center (have a CCNA, CCNA-Sec, Net+, Sec+, CASP - time to move on from phone support), but economics/finance/accounting would be my preference. I have lived in a better state, IA, and made about $45k there. The bare minimum I'd be willing to take for the move with TX COL differences would be around $40k.

Here is what I am looking for.

1) A younger demographic. 40% of my town is over age 50. This screws up job openings, dating opportunities, social ties, etc, for anyone young.

2) Metro with a half million minimum and maybe closer to a million. My MSA has about a half million people in it, but there are so many different municipal governments competing that no cooperation occurs and it feels much smaller. When I lived in Des Moines, local governments were mostly on the same page. Des Moines was slightly on the "too small" side of "just right" - livable, but not yet ideal. As far as an upper bound, I've been to DC/Atlanta and always found them to be too large, but Minneapolis, Nashville, Kansas City, and Indianapolis all felt large enough to have enough to do, but didn't have the hassles of an Atlanta or DC.

3) I'm a moderate Republican, but live in a very religious/extremely conservative area dominated by the Southern Baptist Convention and Duck Dynasty. I'm a more establishment conservative along the lines of a Bill Buckley and I'm not fond of the Tea Party crowd. Is there anywhere that would suit a moderate Republican? I'm not religious at all and don't fit easy social stereotypes.

4) A healthy public life. It is extremely rare to socialize with anyone outside church or immediate family where I live. There is no social scene nor anything productive to do after work. I'm a gamer and there's no culture for that here. I like frequenting bars, but again, there's little to no bar culture here. I've been into gothic music since I was a teenager and there's no longer anyone here into that. I'm very sociable and looking for an area that has sociable people. Neighborhood ties, local food, local businesses, etc, are quite important to me.

5) A sustainable future. I've had four jobs in one calendar year between 12/2012 and 12/2013. None of the jobs in TN have provided health insurance or any benefits of any kind. I'll be in 28 in April and am looking for a place I can settle down until I'm at least 30. Not saying I never want to move again after this, but I'm tired of the constant stress of job hunting, moving, contract expiration, etc. I'm a capable individual, but can't seem to get any traction due to the economic conditions here in Appalachia. If a job is eliminated, I don't want to have the fear of having to terminate a lease and relocate across the country ASAP to avoid bankruptcy like I have here.

6) Sports. I'm a sports junkie and want to be within at least driving distance of decent college and/or pro athletics. It is at least two hours from where I live to watch a D-1 college football or basketball game. I am close to four hours from any pro sports. Football and hockey are my favorite sports, followed by basketball, and I have little interest in baseball. I've also taken up swimming recently and have been into weight lifting since high school. I want to be within an hour or so of D-1 college and pro sports. If an area has clubs for more unusual or infrequently played sports, I'm also interested.

7) Decent airport. I want to be able to fly relatively cheaply back to either Atlanta or Charlotte to see family.

The friend I grew up with recommended San Antonio hands down. He has a wife, two kids, and supports his family on a single income better than I can support just myself on my $11.68/hr living with my family here in TN.

I don't know enough about TX to make a very informed opinion. I would be looking to relocate between spring and summer, with a preliminary trip around April/May if I decide to make a trip.

[curtbr72]

Dallas might be the place your looking for. I know DFW is the only Texas city/metro that cracked the top ten on CIO.com for IT jobs.

CIO.com - Geek America: The Top 10 U.S. Cities for Technology Jobs - 1. New York Metro Area

[Cowboys fan in Houston]

Originally Posted by curtbr72

Dallas might be the place your looking for. I know DFW is the only Texas city/metro that cracked the top ten on CIO.com for IT jobs.

CIO.com - Geek America: The Top 10 U.S. Cities for Technology Jobs - 1. New York Metro Area

If he thought Atlanta and DC were too big, he is going to think Dallas and DFW are too.

I would look at Austin. It has a good IT market and its a fun place.

[ChristieP]

Austin sounds like what you are looking for, and you could also make San Antonio work, too.

[Westerntraveler]

I agree with ChristieP that Austin and San Antone could work. Austin's more of a young single person's town from what I hear and San Antone is more for families.

[TXEX06]

Originally Posted by Westerntraveler

Austin's more of a young single person's town from what I hear and San Antone is more for families.

Not true at all, the urban core of San Antonio is full of young professionals. Not to mention the many universities, UTSA, UIW, St. Marys, Trinity, A&M San Antonio and a few real small ones.

The OP will most likely be able to live in the urban core of San Antonio (where all the young people are moving) and will most likely not be able to afford to live in the downtown Austin area. The cost of housing is much greater in Austin compared to San Antonio.

In the end just move where you get the best job offer. Can't go wrong in any Texas city.

[Westerntraveler]

Originally Posted by TXEX06

Not true at all, the urban core of San Antonio is full of young professionals. Not to mention the many universities, UTSA, UIW, St. Marys, Trinity, A&M San Antonio and a few real small ones.

The OP will most likely be able to live in the urban core of San Antonio (where all the young people are moving) and will most likely not be able to afford to live in the downtown Austin area. The cost of housing is much greater in Austin compared to San Antonio.

In the end just move where you get the best job offer. Can't go wrong in any Texas city.

Im sorry I was mistaken I was just going by what I have always heard on old city data threads and what my friends had said.

[Westerntraveler]

I don't live in the area so maybe that has something to do with my perception.Thanks for sharing.

[DSL_PWR]

I would think that Dallas would be what you are looking for.

Since you are Republican I would stay away from san antonio and austin.

[Serious Conversation]

I wouldn't rule out the bigger cities completely - it would depend on offer, COL, and commute. I know it's going to be a lot easier to find something if you're laid off in Dallas than it would be in a small town.