23 Yr Old Single Irish Male Wanting to Immigrate to USA - Where is Best For Me? (Houston: real estate, broker)

[Warren86]

Hi everyone, i'm just looking for some opinions from people who would know better than me about where would be good for me to live in the USA. I'm a 23 year old Irish male with a Degree in Commercial Real Estate. I recently worked in Jacksonville FL for 2 months over the summer and loved it, mainly the weather and the fact everyone was so friendly. I did some traveling after and found the main touristy big cities are not for me, i like the normal american places which i found had much friendlier people. I'm basically looking for a place that comes as close as possible to meeting the following criteria :

1. Nice weather all year round, i'v had enough of cold rainy winters in Ireland! I loved the weather in Jax while i was there, although im not a big fan of sweating so a slightly less humid climate would be a plus, but not important.

2. Friendly people. Just to give you a quick example of what i don't want - i also visited Miami for a week while in the USA. I thought it would be a great place for me, but i didn't like the fact that most people were Spanish, It was very pretentious which i didnt like, and most people were very rude.

3. Relaxed and non pretentious. Similar to point 2 but its very important. I hated being turned away from clubs in these places just because i don't know the manager or am not a celebrity!its a joke. (ie i don't want Miami, Vegas, New York, or LA)
4. Lots of young people. I'm single so plenty of nice ladies is important also!

5. English is the language not spanish! and most people are american not tourists.

6. Plenty of bars, clubs.(remember im irish!) Basically nightlife which is generally busy, young and fun.

7. I will be looking to get a job as a commercial real estate broker so somewhere with good prospects would help, but i don't think this is overly important as most places need real estate all the time, so i would not count out any place on this point alone!

8. Reasonably inexpensive. Obviously i will be tight on money when i first come here, so somewhere like Beverly Hills is just out of the question for me for now!

I am seriously considering Jacksonville,the only down points for it are the nightlife could be slightly better (though i still had a great time),and the humidity (not overly important however. I'm thinking other places such as Texas or California or elsewhere in Florida might have the climate i am looking for so all suggestions welcome! I've submitted this post in the California and Florida forums for opinions from them also.


Thanks in advance for any help everyone.

[Lakewooder]

I think Dallas would be good for you but it's going to be hot and humid sometimes. Am I too much of a tourist if I say I stayed at the Clarence and partied in Temple Bar?

[TexasHorseLady]

I was thinking Dallas as well - it has a large population of folks who've come here from Ireland and who would no doubt be happy to show you the ropes.

[Premont]

Since you're looking for young people and pubs, you might like Austin.

[allbizness]

Warren, no offense, you sound a bit racist.

[Warren86]

no offence taken, and sorry if i offended anyone. I'm just stating exactly what i experienced while i was in the US for 3 months so i can give the best possible picture overall for people to help me find the best place possible.for instance i found a number of the people in new york to be not very nice compared with other places i was, yet many (not all) were the same race as me. i don't wana get into any form of racist debate i just want some suggestions which may suit the points iv said. Nothing against spanish people its just its unsettling if you don't understand what people are talking about around you, I'm friends with people from many different races at home!
Thanks for suggestions so far though guys, keep them coming

[doss1]

Don't worry warren, that's pretty much the consensus around the US anyways.

[shoe01]

You might want to consider Lubbock. It is on the smallish side with about 250,000 people, but it does have quite a few bars and clubs for its size being a college town. The cost of living and humidity are extremely low. The university has students from over 100 countries.

I looked in the home ads last year and saw every price range listed, so that's not a problem.

It's also one of the friendliest cities in the United States. One possible downside is that packaged alcohol is sold only in particular areas outside the city limits. Also, it is conservative, whether that's a problem or not.

As for other cities, I think Dallas might be another good option, but the cost of living is pretty high. It's also very big. Austin is the king of bars/hangouts in Texas, but the traffic is nuts and so are housing prices. It also gets hot/humid in the summer. You may also want to look into Ft. Worth (west of Dallas).

[Metro Matt]

With the Houston area having one of the highest percentages of Roman Catholics in all of Texas it would only make sense there would be a sizable Irish population there.

Like some have said before, Dallas feels like Texas & Houston feels like the world which is pretty well put. Over 90 languages are spoken throughout the Houston area & just about every other countries US consular offices are located in Houston.

[NOTAM]

i IMMEDIATELY thought of DFW. personally i dont care for Dallas too much, i am a Ft Worth girl-still plenty of nightlife, growth, and a few good Irish bars. i used to go to one off of Camp Bowie Blvd area and it was a "hole in the wall" on a side street off the main drag, and the owner and bartender were 100% Irish and most of the customers were too!
please go visit DFW area!
i would also recommed Austin, a little younger and more liberal than Ft Worth. not my cup of tea, but lots of folks LOVE Austin.
if you think Jacksonville FL was friendly? HA! You aint seen friendly-we got them beat. Come to Texas!