Couple Moving to Austin from NYC (San Antonio, New Braunfels: waterparks, townhouse, movie theater)

[Aquitaine]

78750 is going to be much more expensive than South central Austin - they are not really comparable locations. 78750 is also less walkable but has other perks!

[MtnLion512]

Originally Posted by Aquitaine

78750 is going to be much more expensive than South central Austin - they are not really comparable locations. 78750 is also less walkable but has other perks!

How are they not comparable locations? They are both in Austin city limits, no? ...which is one of the OPs few specific criteria. I'm seeing some blanket statements being thrown around regarding rental costs in city limits, so I'm sharing my own 'stats' to demonstrate that prices can be different across the city but still within the city of Austin, and that with some effort the OP will be able to find a place that meets their needs both location-wise and cost-wise.

[Aquitaine]

It really depends on the degree of "in town" you're talking about. Circle C is "within the city of Austin" but nobody would actually say it's "in the city." 78750 - NW Hills and Balcones - is 16 miles to the city center, just as far as Circle C is, though it's got the Arboretum and the Domain right there so you could make a case that it's more "in town."

I also thought for sure that I'd end up "in town" (North of Ben White, South of 183, east of Mopac, west of I-35) because our preferences were pretty similar to the OP and we came from NYC. We liked 78750 and would've lived there, but "South Austin" to us was more convenient but not as appealing.

I agree that the OP can find a place that meets their needs but the area "within the city limits" encompasses a huge swath of neighborhoods.

[Mikey Bee]

I think I would want to find a job first, before choosing a neighborhood. Otherwise depending on how much stuff I had to move, I would look for something month-to-month, find work, then move to that area. I'd say that Austin has more good neighborhoods than bad; so unless you have special wants and desires, perhaps you should look at commuting time. Traffic can be bad here. That being said, if you want to be near parks, for example, there are some great areas around Barton Springs. If you want to be downtown, there are great places there too. If you want to be on the lake, there's Lakeway, etc. Also renting in some areas may be possible where buying might be prohibitively expensive. $900 in Hyde Park sounds pretty good, but buying there is going to cost much more than other parts of Austin. Good luck with your move.

[homeinatx]

In terms of urbanity, the Austin City limits are somewhat arbitrary, and coming from NYC, all of Austin with the possible ( and I say possible) exception of downtown itself is going to feel pretty suburban. You are getting good advice about living near to work, but for what it is worth, my subjective boundaries of "in-town Austin" would be North of Oltorf, south of 2222/Koenig, West of Airport and east of the river/lake north of the river - the river/lake makes a fairly sharp turn as it approaches downtown, and east of Mopac, south of the river/lake, give or take a block or two. Within those boundaries, there are plenty reliable bike lanes, good day time bus service and reasonable walkability, and it feels like Austin, as opposed to anywhere sunbelt USA suburbia, which emerges very quickly outside those boundaries. With the exception of about 4 blocks of a very charming nineteenth century Texas town, Round Rock is ur or uber-suburbia. There are pockets of walkability in Northwest Austin, but I kinda despise them. The Domain is walkable, but is a faux-urbanist horror of canned elevator muzak from the streetlights, cheap new construction apartments above chain retail, and is about as squeaky clean and sterile as it gets. The Arboretum area is closer to town, but a low concept 1980-1995 version of the same- think a cheaper and uglier version of the apartment areas of the Connecticut suburbs. You are in for a huge adjustment, but since you are childless and renting, there is absolutely no reason to be out in the 'burbs, especially if you will be sharing a car. In my opinion, there is not much to do without a car or kids there, except quietly drink by yourself in the day or walk repeatedly to your mailbox, or make a pass at the pizza delivery guy, if you live in an area where you are lucky enough to get delivery.

[MtnLion512]

Originally Posted by Aquitaine

It really depends on the degree of "in town" you're talking about. Circle C is "within the city of Austin" but nobody would actually say it's "in the city." 78750 - NW Hills and Balcones - is 16 miles to the city center, just as far as Circle C is, though it's got the Arboretum and the Domain right there so you could make a case that it's more "in town."

I also thought for sure that I'd end up "in town" (North of Ben White, South of 183, east of Mopac, west of I-35) because our preferences were pretty similar to the OP and we came from NYC. We liked 78750 and would've lived there, but "South Austin" to us was more convenient but not as appealing.

I agree that the OP can find a place that meets their needs but the area "within the city limits" encompasses a huge swath of neighborhoods.

Sounds like just a misunderstanding on definition of terms - I absolutely would say Circle C and NW Hills are "within the city of Austin", because they are. Most people I know would say the same thing. Now if someone says "Central Austin", that's the boundaries you're talking about above. "In the city" is vague but I see what you're saying, that could mean a number of things. I was going by the OP's reference to wanting to be inside the city limits, which I didn't interpret as necessarily central.

IMO, if an out-of-towner says "in the city limits" I'd assume that means City of Austin, not in the close-in core. "In town" might mean something different but at that point I'd be way confused

I'm not sure where you're getting your distances, either - Northwest Hills (which I'm almost positive is not in 78750) is 7 or 8 miles from downtown, and Circle C is ~12.

[Aquitaine]

Going by your terms I'd agree. And I would use your definition of "in Austin" for most people unless they really wanted to be living "in the city," i.e. central, but there certainly are folks who prefer it.

Got my hills mixed up. I meant Great Hills, which is closer to the center of 78750:

Austin, TX 78750 to Austin, TX - Google Maps

I live in Circle C and would have no problem saying that I lived "in the city of Austin" but there are those who would fight me tooth and nail on that definition.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by Aquitaine

Going by your terms I'd agree. And I would use your definition of "in Austin" for most people unless they really wanted to be living "in the city," i.e. central, but there certainly are folks who prefer it.

Got my hills mixed up. I meant Great Hills, which is closer to the center of 78750:

Austin, TX 78750 to Austin, TX - Google Maps

I live in Circle C and would have no problem saying that I lived "in the city of Austin" but there are those who would fight me tooth and nail on that definition.

great hills is 78759, it is 11 miles to downtown.

[supernaut112]

Originally Posted by homeinatx

In terms of urbanity, the Austin City limits are somewhat arbitrary, and coming from NYC, all of Austin with the possible ( and I say possible) exception of downtown itself is going to feel pretty suburban. You are getting good advice about living near to work, but for what it is worth, my subjective boundaries of "in-town Austin" would be North of Oltorf, south of 2222/Koenig, West of Airport and east of the river/lake north of the river - the river/lake makes a fairly sharp turn as it approaches downtown, and east of Mopac, south of the river/lake, give or take a block or two. Within those boundaries, there are plenty reliable bike lanes, good day time bus service and reasonable walkability, and it feels like Austin, as opposed to anywhere sunbelt USA suburbia, which emerges very quickly outside those boundaries. With the exception of about 4 blocks of a very charming nineteenth century Texas town, Round Rock is ur or uber-suburbia. There are pockets of walkability in Northwest Austin, but I kinda despise them. The Domain is walkable, but is a faux-urbanist horror of canned elevator muzak from the streetlights, cheap new construction apartments above chain retail, and is about as squeaky clean and sterile as it gets. The Arboretum area is closer to town, but a low concept 1980-1995 version of the same- think a cheaper and uglier version of the apartment areas of the Connecticut suburbs. You are in for a huge adjustment, but since you are childless and renting, there is absolutely no reason to be out in the 'burbs, especially if you will be sharing a car. In my opinion, there is not much to do without a car or kids there, except quietly drink by yourself in the day or walk repeatedly to your mailbox, or make a pass at the pizza delivery guy, if you live in an area where you are lucky enough to get delivery.

I can't attest to the NYC couple's lifestyle, but if they (the OPs) enjoy doing things downtown, living in the 'burbs can make you feel very isolated. My S.O. lives way out North ... when I stay over weekends, we don't go into the city. (We don't have children either.) We can't have a few beers at the restaurant then pop into the car and drive such a long distance. Nor would I want to even risk doing that, ever! Whenever we want to do something, a drive in the car is always involved. We do spend a lot of time at his place, watching movies and drinking a couple of beers at home. It can feel very isolating at times, especially because there's not a lot of other childless/childfree couples in the neighborhood.

Downtown, there's the bus, walking, cabs, etc. There's more of a "plugged in" feeling being located centrally. There's simply a lot more to do, even if it's something free/cheap, like walking around Ladybird Lake or people watching downtown.

[MovingOut2012]

Hello all:

Thanks for all the helpful info. I have been reading about all the places you mentioned and doing my research. Some update: my DH has an upcoming phone interview for a nursing position in St David's in the downtown(?) area or rather the one near UT. I'm really hoping he gets that job.

Supernaut, you are right I would prefer being downtown since we don't have any kids and I like the idea of hopping on the bus and doing a tour of new places. Love people watching also, LOL. Just a NY kind of thing to do. And if we don't need a second car, we could increase our rent budget.

Any comments also about the area immediately east of St David's would be helpful, particularly Manor Road.

I've been reading about the SoCo area and it seems pretty interesting. How far a ride would that be to St David's? THe apartments around the area of St Davids are a little pricey and I don't know whether I would like to be very near UT. THe only upside to that is that he would be able to walk to work if hired there. That leaves the use of the car for me in case I don't get a permanent job as a teacher right away.

I am excited but also apprehensive about moving after living in a big city. Or also about the job market since I always had a job.