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To the OP's original question about where we would live if not in Austin, I am not in a position to move because of family caregiving. But if I get to a point where I am no longer needed for that, would I stay in Austin? I don't know at this point. I do know that many of us are called to move. If not in a religious sense, we may be called by a job, by family, by our history with the place, by what we think we can accomplish in a place (mission), by affinity to the landscape (which often has to do with our personal histories.) There is no ideal place because people are "called" for such diverse reasons. I do think, however, that no matter what the attractions of a place, it is people that give depth to our lives. So we are most happy when we have family, friends, good neighbors, good co-workers, and group affiliations that are fulfilling. So if a person is unhappy in a place, there may be a lot of factors, but that "people" connection is the most salient in terms of a sense of belonging, which is essential to happiness. So if I move (since I am retired, and not looking for a job), my choice will be heavily affected by family or friends who are already in that place. Young people probably feel more free to start over in a place of unknowns, since they have a lifetime to make these connections, and since they will have some automatic groups (work, kids' schools.) But people who are retired are probably more careful about moving someplace where they know no one, since they have no support system there, and fewer automatic groups to affiliate with. It takes more energy for a retired person to seek out connection. This all sounds like a ramble, but what I am trying to say, is that picking one's next place to live is more complicated and more personal than what place looks best on paper.
you can get a split foyer in anne arundel county for 200,000 or a little less. Very nice townhomes for around the same price or even less and in great school districts. If you want to brave PG county or Baltimore City- property is cheap. PG county is beautiful and I would probably move to a rural section of that county if I didn't have to worry about school systems. The pay is higher up there so it's relative, I guess. There are a lot of bank owned properties in the state right now and prices are as low as they've been in 10 years. Now is the time to buy in Maryland. 2 or 3 years ago I really couldn't even consider Maryland but most homes have dropped $100,000 or more since then. MoCo (Montgomery County) is still very affluent and expensive. However, it's a bad example of the real estate value in Maryland as most of the state is considerably cheaper to live in.
The taxes suck though.
Good info! I'll be keeping that in mind. My only family up there lives in MoCo and Ellicott City, which aren't cheap but are awesome. The part of PG County I've seen wasn't particularly beautiful but I haven't seen much. Good luck if you end up leaving.
Which part of South Austin are your complaints directed towards, out of curiosity? I bike through the neighborhoods just south of Ben White & West of Congress, as well as Oak Hill, which are affordable. Not totally sure where the McMansions are located but I haven't been everywhere in South Austin.
To the OP's original question about where we would live if not in Austin, I am not in a position to move because of family caregiving. But if I get to a point where I am no longer needed for that, would I stay in Austin? I don't know at this point. I do know that many of us are called to move. If not in a religious sense, we may be called by a job, by family, by our history with the place, by what we think we can accomplish in a place (mission), by affinity to the landscape (which often has to do with our personal histories.) There is no ideal place because people are "called" for such diverse reasons. I do think, however, that no matter what the attractions of a place, it is people that give depth to our lives. So we are most happy when we have family, friends, good neighbors, good co-workers, and group affiliations that are fulfilling. So if a person is unhappy in a place, there may be a lot of factors, but that "people" connection is the most salient in terms of a sense of belonging, which is essential to happiness. So if I move (since I am retired, and not looking for a job), my choice will be heavily affected by family or friends who are already in that place. Young people probably feel more free to start over in a place of unknowns, since they have a lifetime to make these connections, and since they will have some automatic groups (work, kids' schools.) But people who are retired are probably more careful about moving someplace where they know no one, since they have no support system there, and fewer automatic groups to affiliate with. It takes more energy for a retired person to seek out connection. This all sounds like a ramble, but what I am trying to say, is that picking one's next place to live is more complicated and more personal than what place looks best on paper.
Interesting point. I have mentioned on a few other threads that I tried living in Austin for 6 months in the first half of 2010. I wanted to be closer to my son in Williamson County, and also the prospects for my career future as a graphic designer in Phoenix were looking very grim.
Austin didn't work out as a place to live, the economy was just way too depressed, relative to the pre-recession "boom". Austin's a comfortable and fun city, but as a native of the SF Bay Area I immediately saw the strong and pervasive influence of yuppie Northern California - and how it drove up the cost of living.
Also, it seems that local employers - the few that ARE hiring - like to take advantage of the job market and pay about 1/3 less than most any job is worth. And if you're over 35, expect age discrimination. In any field.
I decided that Houston, the nation's 6th largest metro area, was close enough to my son that I could drive over and visit, and the job market at the very least couldn't be any worse that Austin's. Houston was a city I considered as early as 2001, but Tropical Storm Allison, with the dramatic Houston Chronicle photos I saw on the Web of the city literally innundated by floodwaters, scared me off of that plan.
I'm glad I reconsidered later.
I'm in my early 40's, so I still have a few good years left as far as employment goes, and I'm still looking for that elusive second wife and second family. Houston is mostly a grungy, crowded, dirty town in most spots, with a few nice pieces here and there.
The difference: the Houston economy is about as close to recession-proof as any in the nation right now, because of 1) the oil and gas industry being the 800-pound gorilla in the room and 2) healthcare being about a 200-pound gorilla. Two industries that people somehow always need no matter how good or bad an economy is. Companies can put off buying new software, but if you are lucky enough to have good medical insurance, and if you need to go to the hospital for a procedure that could alleviate pain or even save your life, you're gonna go. And Houston has some of the best medical facilities in the nation (Harris County Healthcare District) for people who are uninsured or under-insured, as well.
I have a halfway decent job now, although it took me six months of daily looking to find it. I'm in position to possibly get another, better job down the road or get my freelance design plans dusted off and going again. While I miss how "cool" of a town Austin is, I'm glad I decided to go to Houston. I may not spend the rest of my life here but for what I need to accomplish, it will do fine for right now.
We're thinking of NC because it seems most feasible. But I'd love to move back to the NY/PA/NJ region. I second what an earlier person said about how beautiful the outskirts of Philly are, and the seasons are perfectly even. Once you get tired of winter, here comes spring.
I think most of us can agree, Houston is more of a "real" city on the national and world stage, and along with that comes more of both the good and the bad.
Quote:
Originally Posted by micmac99
Interesting point. I have mentioned on a few other threads that I tried living in Austin for 6 months in the first half of 2010. I wanted to be closer to my son in Williamson County, and also the prospects for my career future as a graphic designer in Phoenix were looking very grim.
Austin didn't work out as a place to live, the economy was just way too depressed, relative to the pre-recession "boom". Austin's a comfortable and fun city, but as a native of the SF Bay Area I immediately saw the strong and pervasive influence of yuppie Northern California - and how it drove up the cost of living.
Also, it seems that local employers - the few that ARE hiring - like to take advantage of the job market and pay about 1/3 less than most any job is worth. And if you're over 35, expect age discrimination. In any field.
I decided that Houston, the nation's 6th largest metro area, was close enough to my son that I could drive over and visit, and the job market at the very least couldn't be any worse that Austin's. Houston was a city I considered as early as 2001, but Tropical Storm Allison, with the dramatic Houston Chronicle photos I saw on the Web of the city literally innundated by floodwaters, scared me off of that plan.
I'm glad I reconsidered later.
I'm in my early 40's, so I still have a few good years left as far as employment goes, and I'm still looking for that elusive second wife and second family. Houston is mostly a grungy, crowded, dirty town in most spots, with a few nice pieces here and there.
The difference: the Houston economy is about as close to recession-proof as any in the nation right now, because of 1) the oil and gas industry being the 800-pound gorilla in the room and 2) healthcare being about a 200-pound gorilla. Two industries that people somehow always need no matter how good or bad an economy is. Companies can put off buying new software, but if you are lucky enough to have good medical insurance, and if you need to go to the hospital for a procedure that could alleviate pain or even save your life, you're gonna go. And Houston has some of the best medical facilities in the nation (Harris County Healthcare District) for people who are uninsured or under-insured, as well.
I have a halfway decent job now, although it took me six months of daily looking to find it. I'm in position to possibly get another, better job down the road or get my freelance design plans dusted off and going again. While I miss how "cool" of a town Austin is, I'm glad I decided to go to Houston. I may not spend the rest of my life here but for what I need to accomplish, it will do fine for right now.
No musicians are thrilled about the situation here, as far as I can tell. I have dozens of musician friends. The slogan "The live music capital of the world" has become dark satire. Don't get me wrong - I love blues and cover bands as much as the next guy. But go the Austin craigslist musican section... lots of frustration and negative energy. SXSW isn't what it was. Everything has a time horizon.
I realize it's been 7 months since your post, so I have no idea if you're still reading this thread, but as a musician deeply involved in the Austin music scene, I want to address your statements about how the music scene in Austin is bad.
Let's get a reality check here: you're going to hear musicians in any city complain about their city's music scene. Music is a very tough career, and people who are not achieving success in their career are going to complain about how they're doing. Craig's List tends to be a web site where everyone goes to complain about whatever is going on in their life. Mix the two together, and of course it's going to sound like the music scene in Austin is horrible.
The truth is that Austin has a thriving music scene, especially for a city of it's size. If you think that Austin's music scene is just "blues and cover bands" then you really need to get out more because there is a huge diversity of music in Austin. SXSW is still a really important event for the city and the music industry. 2011 was the biggest year for SXSW, and 2012 looks to be even bigger, but I guess some people are going to always complain about it since SXSW has gotten so much mainstream attention.
I've met many musicians who have relocated from centers of the music industry (New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville) to make a music career in Austin because the cost of living is lower in Austin, there's less competition for gigs, and the musicians here are more helpful to each other. For instance, the guitarist in my band told me that he has been able to get more and better-paying gigs in Austin over Los Angeles. Yes, it's still tough to make a living playing gigs in Austin, but the same goes for any city in the country. Have you ever heard of "pay to play" gigs or venues that only let you play for 20 minutes? That's what it's like for a new band to get started playing in New York or LA. Austin has much less of that.
I don't know if you're still in Austin, but if you are, I would encourage you to get more involved in the music scene and maybe you'll see that it's different from your previous notions.
What they need to do here is buy out massive tracts of land and convert to forest preserves. We will need the parkland with all the people moving here.
Sure. And all these people moving here will live in the trees?
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