relocating again... (Dallas, Austin, Orange: how much, houses, job market)

[eribear]

I'd like to know a little more about Austin. I've been reading the forums here and getting some ideas. My husband and I are contemplating this area (along with others to relo to) and I'd love some advice!

We moved from Madison, WI to Orange County, CA less than a year ago for my job. I cannot believe how badly I misjudged a place! Other than having a great job here, access to the beach and awesome weather, I hate it so much. The car culture, extreme cost of living, lack of community, greedy and materialistic people is just getting to me! We are 30 and 32, with no kids, though wanting to start a family somewhat soon. We want to live in a more urban environment with decent walkability to cafes/resaurants. We want to own unique older house again (up to aprox 400k) that is not a 45 min commute! All of the things we loved in Madison (sense of community, locally owned stores, cute homes, parks, affordability, good job market, easy to get around, progressive thinking, highly educated population) and the things we wanted to get (larger metro area, better weather) seem to be in Austin.

So, after reading that, do you think Austin might be a good match or have other suggestions? If Austin is a possible match in your opinion, do you have neighborhoods to recommend? We are thinking about moving in about a year (after finding employment of course!)

thank you in advance!

[atxcio]

Well, Austin will still have the car culture. Definitely. You can live in a close-in neighborhood where you won't have to use it much, but outside of the central areas it's pretty much drive only.

The older house with character thing may also be a problem -- there is only a tiny amount of houses older than the 60's... and in good neighborhoods, they command a premium price even for a small house. Your price range (don't forget up to 3% property taxes) will get into many neighborhoods here in Austin, it's just that old houses with character are so difficult to find. You might have to settle for a 2 bedroom, small floorplan, carport, etc... not all of those things necessarily, I'm just saying that if you go out looking for an older (with character) house with 3 bedrooms, 2 car garage and 2500 sq feet... you won't find it in your price range.

You also may be shocked by the hot weather -- you won't have experienced that coming from either Madison or the OC.

But, cost of living is definitely cheaper than the OC, and the people are completely different. Overall the vibe is very friendly and laid back, not materialistic. People won't judge you for what you drive, what kind of house you have, or what you wear... and it's a great city for young families.

Do you know where you will be working? Cause if you work south of the river, you should probably live south. And vice-versa. Neighborhoods to check out:

South - Travis Heights, Barton Hills, Zilker, Bouldin, SoCo (south congress)

North - Rosedale, Clarksville, Tarrytown, Allandale, Crestview, Northwest Hills. If you can deal with being close to students, Hyde Park.

East - French Place

[CptnRn]

As much as I love Austin, I have to say, I don't think you will find much of what you are looking for here, at least not as far as in "urban walkable neighborhoods". A lot of the other things you are looking for are available, but it is a car based culture here.

atxcio has some excellent recommendations, but as atxcio said, "The older house with character thing may also be a problem", When you consider Austin's historic growth rate, the older historic structures are few in number.

//www.city-data.com/forum/austi...austin-tx.html

[eribear]

I guess I shouldn't say that an older house is a necessity- I more mean that we are equally happy in older or newer homes. We also don't want or need a giant house- something in the 3bed/b2a 1500 sqft type of size is completly sufficient. My price range can also go up if necessary. Oh, and the property taxes in Madison were 3%, so I'm used to that!

As for the car culture, maybe thats not the right term. We have 2 cars, and are not planning on ditching either! So, I guess its more that I am living in a giant, sprawl-y suburban place, and want to be somewhere that things are a bit more compact. A short drive is fine, its when going out to do errands takes all freaking day! I think most cities are car based to some extent, and OC is probably the worst.

Thanks for your opinions, I didn't research enough before moving to the hell hole that is OC, so regardless of where we going I'm going to research a lot more. Also, thanks for the neighborhood lists, I'll be sure to look at them!

[G Grasshopper]

So sorry about your OC experience. We lived there for 13 years, most of them on what was then the eastern edge of the city of Orange. We left 22 years ago because I was tired of the smog (you could see the mountains only a few days out of the week), the traffic, which was getting worse, and the fact that they were about to build a freeway east of us, which meant that we would no longer be on the edge, close to the hills, but would be in the middle of the city. Plus, we had just had a baby, and we didn't want him to grow up in the smog. (I don't know how the smog compairs now.) Obviously, there were a lot of reasons to leave, but we had good friends there, and we never had problems with overwhelming materialism. I think it may have been more materialistic in the richer areas, like Newport Beach. Maybe as the place has gotten more crowded, there is competition for everything, including social status. I don't know. But I'm sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience. Let me assure you that all of California is not like that, and that there are good people everywhere. Good luck on your decision about moving.

[nonexpat]

I graduated from UW-Madison and lived in the city for a few years after graduation. Now I live in Dallas, TX, but will be moving to Austin soon since my husband got a job there recently.I have heard many people compare Madison to Austin. Since I have only visited Austin five or six times I'm not an expert, but it is a capital city and a university town with an open minded, liberal vibe much like Madison. Austin has lakes and hills much like Madison. A favorite bumper sticker there is "Keep Austin Weird" which amuses me since Madison and Berkely are much weirder, but compared to the right wing neighborhood I live in here in Dallas, I guess Austin is weird. Austin has an amazing music scene. I 'm not sure about its other cultural strengths since I have only visited and am now in the process of researching where to live there etc. I miss the summer and fall in Wisconsin, and since I like skiing the winters in WI didn't bother me too much. Right now it is gorgeous in Texas, and I do enjoy the winter and spring here as well. The summer is hellacious from mid-June until the end of September it will be 90+ degrees. The heat is unrelenting, but you don't have to shovel it. Thank God for air conditioning. By the way, my electric bill can be over 400 dollars a month, and my house is only 2700 square feet.

[Trainwreck20]

something in the 3bed/b2a 1500 sqft type of size is completly sufficient.

(up to aprox 400k)

Okay, you just opened up a world of possibilities with that combination I have a friend that bought a house in Travis Heights for quite a bit less than that (although it was also 1200 sft), but he is going to add on to increase it to ~1600 since baby no. 2 is on the way. They will end up probably in the 400k range.

[eribear]

Thanks for the added insight everyone! I really appreciate the input from you all.

I think we just want to be able to afford a nice home in a nice neighborhood that isn't completely boring/materialistic. I think our issue with OC is when we first did our research on socal, it was 3-4 years ago. Before the economy tanked and prior to wanting to start a family. I think had we moved right then, I would have a different view of this place. I realize not all CA is "horrible" (I like san deigo and san francisco)- but am not willing to gamble on the next destination, nor do I want to pay the associated cost of living!

After spending way too many winters freezing to death and shoveling, I'd rather deal with the heat. I hate everything about cold weather, so would gladly be in 90 degree sweltering heat any day compared. Besides, when you work a lot, how much are you actually outside?

I think my next step is to keep reading, then go and visit our top couple cities before I start the job search process! Austin is still at the top of my list.

[TexasHorseLady]

You can also find yourself something quite nice, likely an older house re-done, in Barton Hills in that price range, walking/biking distance to a lot of things (restaurants, Sun Harvest, Central Market South, Half Price Books, and a whole lot more).