Pros and Cons of Life in Texas? Considering move to Texas. :) (Commerce: school, income)

[Belldandy07]

Originally Posted by stan4

I just can't imagine having to drive hours to get to an international/major airport.

That'd be my only knock.

Fascinating. Okay. A city is worth extremely high praise when one can only list distance from an airport as a con.

Okay. What about the sense of community? The open-ness of people's hearts and minds? In Tyler, Dallas, Houston or anywhere in Texas, is there a large population of people closed off to those of different races? Are they locked within a 'this is our town, you're not welcome here' attitude? Or is everyone mostly open and friendly? Maybe I'll get a dealbreaker asking this question.

There are bad apples everywhere. I definitely understand that. Just need to rule out places with huge populations of bad apples. Mom and I live in a barrel of sour apples-don't need to move to another one.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by stan4

I just can't imagine having to drive hours to get to an international/major airport.

That'd be my only knock.

My husband's job requires him to travel extensively by air all over the US. Most of the time he leaves out of Tyler. Occasionally we'll drive to DFW but we don't usually have to. That's a two hour drive from Tyler.

Both Tyler and Longview have decent local airports. From Longview, the Shreveport airport, which offers very good service, is only an hour or even a little less from Longview.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by Belldandy07

Fascinating. Okay. A city is worth extremely high praise when one can only list distance from an airport as a con.

Okay. What about the sense of community? The open-ness of people's hearts and minds? In Tyler, Dallas, Houston or anywhere in Texas, is there a large population of people closed off to those of different races? Are they locked within a 'this is our town, you're not welcome here' attitude? Or is everyone mostly open and friendly? Maybe I'll get a dealbreaker asking this question.

There are bad apples everywhere. I definitely understand that. Just need to rule out places with huge populations of bad apples. Mom and I live in a barrel of sour apples-don't need to move to another one.

This has been my experience as the mother of four biracial kids and with an EXTREMELY multicultural family (Asian, African American, Anglo, and Hispanic):

I wouldn't recommend moving to a small town. It's been my experience that small towns just tend to be cliquish - anywhere, not just in Texas. Not that a multiracial family couldn't build a good life in a small town - it just seems like it's harder to settle into the local community in smaller towns. That's been my direct personal experience several times over my lifetime.

Larger towns and cities - Longview, Tyler, Waco - that size and up (DFW, Houston, etc) should be no problem whatsoever. There is a lot of diversity in larger towns, small cities and of course large cities. I've never experienced any issues settling into a small city or larger one.

I moved my family of four kids from a small town to Tyler when they were in junior high and high school and there simply wasn't a problem at all. I didn't leave the smaller town because of problems, but it WAS easier to settle in from a business perspective and from a generally broader mindset in Tyler.

[Belldandy07]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

This has been my experience as the mother of four biracial kids and with an EXTREMELY multicultural family (Asian, African American, Anglo, and Hispanic):

I wouldn't recommend moving to a small town. It's been my experience that small towns just tend to be cliquish - anywhere, not just in Texas. Not that a multiracial family couldn't build a good life in a small town - it just seems like it's harder to settle into the local community in smaller towns. That's been my direct personal experience several times over my lifetime.

Larger towns and cities - Longview, Tyler, Waco - that size and up (DFW, Houston, etc) should be no problem whatsoever. There is a lot of diversity in larger towns, small cities and of course large cities. I've never experienced any issues settling into a small city or larger one.

I moved my family of four kids from a small town to Tyler when they were in junior high and high school and there simply wasn't a problem at all. I didn't leave the smaller town because of problems, but it WAS easier to settle in from a business perspective and from a generally broader mindset in Tyler.

With you being so close to so much diversity, you're once again the go-to person feedback. You have a multi-racial family, and not having any devastating problems even in a small town like Tyler, says a lot of wonderful things about Texas. I'm not picking up a 'stay away from this city, they won't like you' vibe off any Texas city yet.

I know sourpusses stuck in the 1930s are everywhere. I just need to make sure we go somewhere that will mostly be welcome to us, not bloodthirsty towards us. And I still feel like we're moving in the right direction!

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by Belldandy07

With you being so close to so much diversity, you're once again the go-to person feedback. You have a multi-racial family, and not having any devastating problems even in a small town like Tyler, says a lot of wonderful things about Texas. I'm not picking up a 'stay away from this city, they won't like you' vibe off any Texas city yet.

I know sourpusses stuck in the 1930s are everywhere. I just need to make sure we go somewhere that will mostly be welcome to us, not bloodthirsty towards us. And I still feel like we're moving in the right direction!

Yay!

Texans are independent by nature. What I've experienced is a "live and let live," mentality. Do your best, keep your own business straight, be a good neighbor, and everything's fine.

[stan4]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

My husband's job requires him to travel extensively by air all over the US. Most of the time he leaves out of Tyler. Occasionally we'll drive to DFW but we don't usually have to. That's a two hour drive from Tyler.

Both Tyler and Longview have decent local airports. From Longview, the Shreveport airport, which offers very good service, is only an hour or even a little less from Longview.

Yah, I'm a non-stop kinda gal.
That's why Austin also fails for me as an airport.
I live 20 minutes from Love Field and DFW. So that's nice.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by stan4

Yah, I'm a non-stop kinda gal.
That's why Austin also fails for me as an airport.
I live 20 minutes from Love Field and DFW. So that's nice.

LOL I understand!

My husband flies out of state and back twice every month and I fly about once every three months or so, either to meet up with him or go visit kids in far flung places.

We live seven minutes from the Tyler airport so since we usually use that one, it's super easy for us. But once in awhile, there's a 3 hour delay or something like that in Dallas and so it makes more sense to just drive up there, which is sort of a pain. It's a two hour drive for us but we only end up doing that about 3 times a year or so.

When the oil and gas industry was stronger, there was no issue with any flights out of Tyler, but now that it's in a temporary slump, the flights have been reduced and that's why we occasionally have to drive to Dallas because fewer flights fill up quickly. I don't expect that problem to last much longer since the industry is picking back up.

American Airlines better straighten up or we'll go back to using Delta out of Shreveport! It's the same distance and it's a LOT easier to get there and navigate the airport than it is to go to Dallas. And personally I have been very pleased with Delta - much moreso than AA. Grrrrr.

[Tigerlilly50s]

My Jewish friend just moved to Texas from ny, and he's loving it he said the ppl are more friendlier. When in ny he lived in a rented basement now he has an apartment with Jacuzzi swimming pool and other activities on site and of course the rent is much cheaper im strongly thinking of relocating to texas from nj texas here i come look for me

[MovingAndUnsure]

I love the lack of an income tax, the amazing culture in some parts, the diversity, the lack of (noticeable) racism, the attractions like Six Flags, etc.

I'm actually planning on moving out of Texas in the next year or so though for one reason - I hate the heat. It isn't horribly hot, but I prefer a colder climate. From my brief experiences with cold days, I love them! With that in mind, I want to move to Washington State (Another no income tax state) and enjoy the weather. But if it wasn't for that, I'd probably stay here. Also, depending on where you live, there are some great school systems.

[Cowboys fan in Houston]

Its to each their own as far as what constitutes a pro and a con. Im originally from LA. Below is what I would consider my pros and cons. I live in Houston:

Pros:
-Dallas and Houston are excellent bang for your buck cities. You get a whole lot without paying that much.
-Houston is a world class food city
-Dallas is a world class shopping city
-Dallas and especially Houston are international and extremely diverse cities
-You have two huge international airports that have flights all over the global at DFW and Houston Bush
-Houston and the Gulf Coast have no real winter to speak of
-Houston is probably the most laid back major city in the US.

Cons:
-Its a red state (thats not a con to many, its a con to me)
-Its way too overly religious in politics. I didnt find everyday life in Dallas or Houston to be overtly religious, it just has a way of shoving itself into our laws.
-Lack of visually stimulating scenery (at least in Dallas or Houston)
-Lack of a comprehensive rail system
-High property tax

Again this is just me.