College Station-Bryan questions (Houston, Galveston, Center: apartment, rent , jobs)

[texasgal2]

I'm a 20+ year resident of this area. You can find very nice, affordable housing in both cities. Please don't take a previous poster's comment about "ghetto" Bryan too seriously. Bryan is the older of the two cities, and therefore has some older, low-income areas--nothing different than any other city in America. Bryan has a great downtown area with local restaurants and shops. You will pay more for rentals the closer you are to Texas A&M.

Bugs are not a problem! I've never seen a scorpion here, though I know they're probably around. We have warm springs and hot summers, and bugs do come with that climate, but nothing that I've ever felt would keep me inside!

In spite of the clay soil, you can grow beautiful landscapes here. The secret is to amend the soil. We have plenty of nurseries and soil suppliers. We usually have mild winters, so you can have flowering plants year-round.

Both cities have websites with plenty of links to area attractions.

[john4355]

Thanks Texasgal for that info.

[Bear's mommy]

Since you have lived there for so long, can you tell me, are the snakes and spiders bad there? I know I am probably driving you crazy with my phobias, but it is nice to be able to ask someone who has been there for so long.

What is it about living there that you like so much, and would you want to live anywhere else?

I know that there is good stuff and bad stuff with everywhere that you can live in the U.S., I am just trying to figure out where I would really like to live, because my husband asked me that. We are moving back to the states from Germany soon, and I really couldn't give him an answer about where I wanted to go. He loves Tucson, AZ, he lived there for 4 years while he was growing up. We have lived in Ohio (that is where we were both born), and we also lived in Colorado before coming over to Germany. Thanks in advance for your answers.

[RSTX]

Bear's Mommy, to be honest, if you have lived in Ohio and Colorado you may not like Texas. The climate is so very different. Texas is much closer environment wise to AZ, although more humid.

Temple is about just over an hours drive from B/CS. I love this area. Heat does not bother me, but I can't stand to be cold. The people are friendly and hospitable. I like B/CS because it is a vibrant town. The university no doubt helps keep it from being stagnant. Lots of small town kids raised with manners go to A&M, and it shows. It is just a good environment.

In the 10+ years that I have lived in this area I've never had an encounter with anything other than grass snakes and household spiders. Nothing to worry about.

[Bear's mommy]

Thank you for the info on the weather there, I forgot to mention, that in my first marriage I lived in Florida for about 2 1/2 years, so I have been in hot/humid climates before.

I really don't mind the heat either, I am usually cold and miserable in the winter, so this should be a nice change for me.

It is kind of humid in Germany, and we had a summer since we have been here where it was around 100 degrees for about 3 straight weeks!!! What was bad about that, is there is no air conditioning anywhere over here, they usually don't need it, so we really suffered that summer. Something like 10,000 people died in France and Italy that summer from the heat.

I also have been to Tucson, my mom lived there for about 3 years and we went to visit her there. I didn't really mind the heat while I was there, except when my husband got us lost in Sabino Canyon for about 9 hours and it was in August, I didn't even get out of bed the next day because I was so dehydrated!!! Really I am not as concerned with the climate as much as I am with the bugs, I really hate them!!!! Thanks again

[07Grad]

Welcome to Aggieland. Things to expect:
SUMMER: HOT & HUMID! B/CS is pretty empty too, since most students return home. Upside-no wait at restaurants & nonexistent traffic. Downside-boring!
RENTALS: prices range from dirt-cheap to arm & leg expensive. These can be found in both Bryan AND C.S., and both near and far from campus. In Bryan, you have Signature Park, Pindleton, and the Presidio if you want to spend a little extra, and hundreds of other places that will save you lots of money if you don't mind living in an older area that people might classify as 'ghetto.' In CS, the area north of northgate, near Marion Pugh Dr. (meadows point, treehouse 2, et al), in the south historic district, and off Longmire Dr. in south C.S. are cheaper. The newer developments in all these locations are all pretty expensive, and most are "residence hall" styles that are mostly occupied by athletes and undergrads.
CITIES: Bryan is a much older city; most of C.S. was built within the last 10-20 yrs., but IMO Bryan is much cooler. Downtown is awesome, as is the historic area east of it. It has some super-nice areas (Traditions, Miramont, Park Hudson) and some, well...not-so-nice (you will more than likely never even see this part of town, so don't worry). C.S. is like a suburb stuck in the middle of a pasture. Take that any way you want.
PEOPLE: so friendly it's not even funny. Yeah, there are some students that come in and swear they OWN the place because they're from Houston or Dallas (but really from Plano, Katy, The Woodlands, etc.), but the locals are the great. Although it has the stigma of being the Valhalla of southern-bible-belt-conservatism, you'd be pleasantly surprised by some of the people who live here and don't fit that stereotype AT ALL.
GEOGRAPHY-UGLY. There's just no other way to describe it. When God blessed Texas w/ breathtaking scenery, he overlooked the Brazos "Valley." You haven't seen ugly until summertime hits and everything is flat, brown, and dead. Ok, it's not THAT bad, but still...you won't be awed.
BUGS-not a problem, unless you like to pile trash or something, although I used to live out in 'the country' and encountered insects/arachnids of apocalyptic proportions, but in the city limits they're not much of a problem.
That's my .02 cents. Hope this helps.

[Bear's mommy]

Thanks for all the info!! I am really happy to hear that the people are that friendly there. Living in Germany everyone is so friendly and says hello to each other, and I was telling my husband that I didn't want to go back to the states because I was really going to miss that. I like living somewhere where the people don't look at you like you are a stalker or freak, if you greet them!!

[RSTX]

Bear's Mommy (I was going to use your initials, but stopped short ), I have struck up numerous conversations with total strangers while waiting in line at the grocery store or wherever. You will be looked at funny if you are not friendly and welcoming. We don't trust people who don't talk and wave. It sounds like you will be a perfect fit for the B/CS area. Best of luck to you.

[Bear's mommy]

I almost called myself BM at the end of one of my posts too!!! LOL

Bear is my beautiful and sweet, almost 11 year old Samoyed, who was born on the
4th of July, he is my baby!!!

You can call me Mary, I feel like we are old friends already Thanks for all of your help, I am actually getting excited about the chance to come and live there now, after all these nice people, and you, have written and answered my questions!!

Now we just have to wait and see if my husband gets the job there.

[Connor Heim]

Hi there! I'm moving to the area this summer as well. My husband is joining the faculty at A&M, and we are really excited!

Okay, this is really weird (I'm from New England) but the people I've been communicating with down there regarding jobs and such have been bending over to help me out. They've been asking friends and colleagues about job opportunities for me... and they don't even know me! Here in the northeast, people are reserved, unfriendly and suspicious. What a welcome change it will be to live in a community of neighborly neighbors!

I'm going down on May 5th for four days to find a house and interview for a couple of jobs.

Best of luck to you and your hubby if you should decide to move there!

Connor