Moving to San Angelo (El Paso, Waco: house, transfer, middle schools)

[wingseternal]

I saw nothing on Craigslist about rentals In San Angelo.... I am really looking into moving out there, Just need to get together the costs for Electric Deposit And Gas Deposit.

[Rathagos]

Originally Posted by wingseternal

I saw nothing on Craigslist about rentals In San Angelo.... I am really looking into moving out there, Just need to get together the costs for Electric Deposit And Gas Deposit.

Wings,

Not all houses here have gas. In fact, I wanted to get gas for my fireplace, and they told me I would be the only house on my side of the block to have it, so I would have to pay for them to rip up the street, run the piping, and fix the street. That is, of course, unless I get gas for the water heater, etc.

There are places that have gas and/or electric. I know my mother in law just got an apartment here. Her credit is not that good, so we had to put $150 down. That was with Reliant Energy. Since there are a couple companies that supply power, you may be able to shop around for more affordable rates. Below are some links to the companies that supply here in San Angelo. There may be more (I'm sure there are) but these are the ones I've dealt with most.

Texas Electricity | Order Electricity in Texas
Reliant Energy - Your Electricity & Power Company
WTU Retail Energy - A Direct Energy Company
TXU Energy :: Home

[scsigurl]

We're thinking about moving there, too (my husband's in the military).

What's San Angelo like with respect to floods and tornados?

Thanks~

[Rathagos]

Originally Posted by scsigurl

We're thinking about moving there, too (my husband's in the military).

What's San Angelo like with respect to floods and tornados?

Thanks~

Scsigurl,

I assume your husband will be going to Goodfellow AFB then (unless he's a recruiter).

Floods... well.. there's no real "floods" in the sense that people have to move out of their houses. There are lowlying roads that get a little flooded, but they are marked, and you may want to find alternate routes around. Additionally, when it rains hard and a good amount of water comes down in a short amount of time, because of the dryness of the ground, most of it runs off. Then, when it's in the main streets, the right-hand lanes flood a little while all the water runs to the drainage, but that just means be in the left lane. The only think you have to worry about with rain, is if it hadn't rained in quite a while, the water on the roads lifts the oil that's been building up from vehicle traffic. Then, when it first rains, the roads are particularly slippery.

I have been here since 1998. I have, since then, only been aware of tornado sirens twice. Once, there was no tornado at all.. just favorable conditions. The second time, someone said they saw a funnel cloud, but it never made it close to the ground. I heard a tornado did touch down in 1995.

The biggest issue here, aside from the heat, is the hail. We get a bad hail storm about once ever 2-3 years. Bad for the cars and house roofs, but other than that, not a real nuisance.

[DesertDog]

Seems a few of you have some real useful knowledge of the San Angelo area so I'm hoping someone will give me a good guesstimate on a question that I've been trying to figure out ever since I started researching moving to the area. I gather most jobs are in the 7-10 dollar an hour range so if that's the case what would be a comfortable middle class income for San Angelo? My wife is a Medical Assistant and I am on SSD. Would something in the 45-55K range be enough to rent a nice house,visit the local tavern occasionally, eat out a few nights a week, just generally have a nice life in a wonderful little town? We have been living in El Paso the last year after moving from Las Vegas, Nv. and are ready for a little more green in our life. Any input would be appreciated.

[desertrose09]

Would something in the 45-55K range be enough to rent a nice house,visit the local tavern occasionally, eat out a few nights a week, just generally have a nice life in a wonderful little town?

DesertDog

I'm anxious to see replies to your question. We are almost in the same situation. After a lot of researching we are pretty sure we can make it. We are familiar with San Angelo and can't wait to live there - even if we have to make some sacrifices.

[scsigurl]

Originally Posted by Rathagos

Scsigurl,

I assume your husband will be going to Goodfellow AFB then (unless he's a recruiter).

Floods... well.. there's no real "floods" in the sense that people have to move out of their houses. There are lowlying roads that get a little flooded, but they are marked, and you may want to find alternate routes around. Additionally, when it rains hard and a good amount of water comes down in a short amount of time, because of the dryness of the ground, most of it runs off. Then, when it's in the main streets, the right-hand lanes flood a little while all the water runs to the drainage, but that just means be in the left lane. The only think you have to worry about with rain, is if it hadn't rained in quite a while, the water on the roads lifts the oil that's been building up from vehicle traffic. Then, when it first rains, the roads are particularly slippery.

I have been here since 1998. I have, since then, only been aware of tornado sirens twice. Once, there was no tornado at all.. just favorable conditions. The second time, someone said they saw a funnel cloud, but it never made it close to the ground. I heard a tornado did touch down in 1995.

The biggest issue here, aside from the heat, is the hail. We get a bad hail storm about once ever 2-3 years. Bad for the cars and house roofs, but other than that, not a real nuisance.

yeah, my husband is about to retire from the service after this gig. I'm a musician, so I hope that I can find some students. We will probably move there and stay because we're both nearing retirement.

[DesertDog]

desertrose09
Thanks for the reply. My wife and I have lived from coast to coast and from the research I've done it just seems as if San Angelos what we've been searching for. We've never been there but hope to make a weekend trip soon to get a feel for the town. We'd like to have horses again and be able to go fishing whenever we want without it becoming a major event. Good luck to you and anything about the town you'd care to share we be happy to read.

[desertrose09]

DesertDog

When you go to San Angelo be sure to go to the Visitor's Center. They are really helpful.

I sent you an e-mail with some more information you might be interested in.

[Rathagos]

Originally Posted by DesertDog

I gather most jobs are in the 7-10 dollar an hour range so if that's the case what would be a comfortable middle class income for San Angelo? My wife is a Medical Assistant and I am on SSD. Would something in the 45-55K range be enough to rent a nice house,visit the local tavern occasionally, eat out a few nights a week, just generally have a nice life in a wonderful little town?

Desert Dog,

It's funny. It depends on what you consider "middle-class" income? According to some, it's up to $100k. For some, it's even more than that. I consider myself "middle class" and my wife and I (with my current job, my military retirement, and my wife's income) have a joint household income of right around $100k. But, we also have a lot of bills we are paying off from previous marriages.

My wife has been a certified nursing assistant for almost 20 years and makes just over $10/hr. Nurses here make (starting) about $10-12/hr. Some that have been here longer make upwards of $18-20/hr. But realize this is for a doctors office. If they work at a hospitial with weekends & night differentials, it's upwards of $30+/hr.

I think an income of $45-55k is very livable here. I don't know a lot of jobs that pay that much here. Houses run from about $30k up to $3 million. The higher end ones are few and far between of course. My house (4 br/2ba, central air/heat, elec. (no gas), 2 car garage, 1600 sqft) was bought at $83k new (in 1998). Most houses in the area similar to mine are around $130k-$180k. But, again, there's a lot of older houses that are just as nice, if not nicer, for less.

I recommend going to realtors.com or some other site, and put in 76901, 76904, 76908 and doing a search for houses in the range you desire and see what comes up. If you pick any of those zips and do a 10+ mile search, you'll cover everything you need.

There are plenty of little taverns around the area, and some larger ones too.

If there's anything I can specifically answer, please don't hesitate to ask.

Rath