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As a CA native the thought of making a change has crossed my mind lately. Out of the three metros listed which would you choose for:
COL
QOL
Job Opportunities/Economy
Entertainment
Outdoor/Leisure Accessibility
Proximity to other major cities
Quick rundown I'm born and raised in CA, wife is originally from Toronto but has spent some time in GA. Couple in our mid 30's, no kids yet but planning on it soon. Her family still lives in Toronto, my parents are in CA so would like to have easy accessibility to both locations. I have sisters who both live in DMV and ATL areas. Not 100% sold on making a move as we bought a new home 2.5 years ago but would be open to it if everything makes sense. I work in logistics and she's in the medical field.
I've been to all three cities numerous times and they're all pretty similar in most sense. Trying to stay out of the cold/snow, extreme heat doesn't bother me as much as high humidity heat.
Any thoughts or feedback would be great.
COL - Slight edge to Dallas (mainly because of no income tax and lower gas prices)
QOL - This is subjective, but I think it's a draw
Job Opportunities/Economy - Dallas
Entertainment - Atlanta
Outdoor/Leisure Accessibility - Atlanta
Proximity to other major cities - Atlanta. It's a 2 hour or less flight from most major cities east of the rockies and in day drive distance to a number of other mid-size / major cities.
COL: I'll defer to others on this as they may have more specific expertise. I can only share that... according to recent estimates, the median housing value in Phoenix is 291... Dallas is 255... Atlanta is 241. However.. this could have other differentiating factors for it.. such as average salaries.. quality of the median house.. how much bottom or lower end there is.. etc.
QOL: This one is really subjective IMO.. not really a set way to answer unless we are specifically defining the factors that come together to define QOL for the user. That said, I'm happy to let others try.
Job Opportunities/Economy: I would tend to assume that Dallas might be absolutely best.. followed nearly by Atlanta, then a decent gap, then Phoenix, which isn't bad but not at the level of these two.
Entertainment: I guess this sort of depends on what you enjoy too? But, as I define entertainment (major attractions, theme parks, nightlife, events, etc.), I would rank them 1. Atlanta 2. Dallas 3. Phoenix. This isn't to say Phoenix isn't happening.. but less so decently than the other two.. Atlanta has the most happening but Dallas isn't terribly far behind.
Outdoor/Leisure Accessibility: Unfortunately I hope I'm not being unfair, but I feel like depending on taste, Dallas is going to fall in line behind both these two. The only caveat to that, is that from Dallas, you can get to both eastern and western-style scenery and nature in a half-day, whereas in Atlanta and Phoenix you are sorta limited to one or the other. Whether you prefer Phoenix or Atlanta is gonna come down to personal taste. Phoenix has easily the most significant mountain landscapes surrounding it... the most significant geologic/globally unique nature, in the form of places like Sedona and Grand Canyon.. and it's about 5 hrs., a little over to the Pacific at La Jolla/Torrey Pines, and 3.5 hrs. to "Arizona's Beach" Puerto Penasco in the Gulf of California for potentially warmer water for swimming. Going there might give me more pause though, not because of P.P. itself, but that the gravest warnings of safety in Mexico have cited the danger of driving on remote roads, esp. in the northern states. Atlanta OTOH, has significant mountains still (beautiful though not as tall as dramatic as those in AZ), it's about 4 hrs. to Atlantic and 5 hrs. to Gulf Beaches.. and what it loses in not having quite as grand or unique scenery.. it makes up for in not being dry and barren, but instead being one of the lushest major metropolitan areas in North America (the city in a forest).
Proximity to other major cities: IF we are talking air travel access, then ATL almost certainly wins. But, if we are talking by car, then there's 3 different answers:
-Atlanta has the best proximity to the greatest overall number of cities within a few hours.
-Dallas has the best proximity to the MOST major cities within a few hours drive.
-Phoenix has proximity to Los Angeles. Even if it has fewer overall cities within proximity.. Los Angeles is MAJOR and prominent on a level no city within even a 10-12 hr. drive of Atlanta or Dallas is.
I would go with a place that offers the best professional opportunities for you both, with all other things being equal. But, as far as location then for air travel.. Dallas is probably the best.. and I'd assume has regular flights to Toronto and CA.
Your comment on the heat and humidity is something to consider. I would avoid FL major cities then, and I would up Phoenix. People talk about how humid ATL and the southeast in general is. But, I find the humidity (or, at least, the temperature) less bothersome in the Appalachian region and the Piedmont surrounding it. I would unequivocally choose ATL for climate based on having experienced some measure of all 3.. and also the fact that ATL has climate-altering mountains to escape to within even a 90 minute drive. But... I'm not everyone. If you are really considering this as a long term move, I would visit all 3. But, out of the major sun-belt metros, I would agree these 3 probably best match what you are looking for.
As a CA native the thought of making a change has crossed my mind lately. Out of the three metros listed which would you choose for:
COL
QOL
Job Opportunities/Economy
Entertainment
Outdoor/Leisure Accessibility
Proximity to other major cities
Quick rundown I'm born and raised in CA, wife is originally from Toronto but has spent some time in GA. Couple in our mid 30's, no kids yet but planning on it soon. Her family still lives in Toronto, my parents are in CA so would like to have easy accessibility to both locations. I have sisters who both live in DMV and ATL areas. Not 100% sold on making a move as we bought a new home 2.5 years ago but would be open to it if everything makes sense. I work in logistics and she's in the medical field.
I've been to all three cities numerous times and they're all pretty similar in most sense. Trying to stay out of the cold/snow, extreme heat doesn't bother me as much as high humidity heat.
Any thoughts or feedback would be great.
I know nothing of Phoenix so I can only speak tell you about Atlanta and Dallas
COL-Dallas( Dallas housing is more expensive but groceries and healthcare are generally cheaper)
QOL-Tie
Job Opportunities/Economy-Dallas (Atlanta's not too far from Dallas though)
Entertainment-Atlanta
Outdoor/Leisure Accessibility-Atlanta
Proximity to other major cities-Atlanta
It's hard for Phoenix to compete with Dallas and Atlanta IMO..
COL - Dallas but only slightly
QOL - Tie
Job opportunities- Slight edge to Dallas
Entertainment/Leisure - Atlanta
Outdoor - Atlanta
Proximity to other cities- Atlanta
I dont see how people are ranking Atlanta over Phoenix in outdoor activities. Thats the one area Phoenix runs away with given its massive mountain ranges, the Gila Wilderness, proximity to the Grand Canyon, and California. I get that Atlanta is significantly ahead of Dallas in this area, but not Phoenix.
I dont see how people are ranking Atlanta over Phoenix in outdoor activities. Thats the one area Phoenix runs away with given its massive mountain ranges, the Gila Wilderness, proximity to the Grand Canyon, and California. I get that Atlanta is significantly ahead of Dallas in this area, but not Phoenix.
Right...when it comes to outdoor activities, Phoenix cannot be beat. Atlanta is no slouch, but the sprawl goes into the hinterland a lot more than Phoenix does. There's also the factor if you prefer the Southwest to the Southeast as well.
It's hard for Phoenix to compete with Dallas and Atlanta IMO..
COL - Dallas but only slightly
QOL - Tie
Job opportunities- Slight edge to Dallas
Entertainment/Leisure - Atlanta
Outdoor - Atlanta
Proximity to other cities- Atlanta
Not that hard actually. I'd agree if you're just basing it on things like fortune 500 HQs, number of high-rises or specific types of job opportunities then maybe sure. Specific types of entertainment? Yeah, okay I can see that. But you're not going to be bored in any of these cities.
COL- This is pretty much a tie, they're all really reasonable in the grand scheme of things. based on an online calculator Phoenix is 3.5% less expensive than Atlanta. Dallas is 2.0% less expensive than Phoenix.
Outdoor activities- I don't see this as competitive, Phoenix stands out here. In Phoenix metro area you can be on peaks that are as high as the tallest mountain East of the Mississippi River, Brown's Peak- 7,600'). Then within a 2 hour drive you're in places like Sedona, Flagstaff, Prescott, Payson, Rim Country, etc.. and a bit farther than that you can be in Havasupai at the Grand Canyon. North Georgia is beautiful but I can't give it an edge to Arizona.
QOL- For me, this goes to Phoenix as well. Primarily because I can't stand sitting in traffic and both Dallas and Atlanta have magnitudes worse traffic congestion than Phoenix and all 3 require a car to get around.
Entertainment/Leisure- Depends on what you're looking for, if your entertainment means major league sports action only 1 city on this list hosts spring training... as one example.
Proximity to other cities- If were talking drive time within around 5ish hours from Phoenix you can be in Vegas, LA, Orange County (some call this LA, locals are adamant it is not), San Diego, Tucson and the beaches in Puerto Penasco/Rocky Point. Within a similar drive from Atlanta other large cities you can get to would be Charlotte, Nashville, Chattanooga, Jacksonville? This also comes down to personal tastes but I don't see this as a slam dunk in Atlanta's favor myself. I love taking road trips to SoCal and Vegas personally, Nashville is cool but don't I'd be heading to Charlotte or Jacksonville much at all.
If you are looking for a decent Muslim community, axe Dallas in favor of Houston. Dallas and Houston are fairly similar in every other aspect, but Houston has a vibrant Muslim community.
If your wife is in Medical, the Phoenix area has the highest growth in the bioscience field of the 3.
Coming from California, the cost of living an either city will be a welcome change!
QOL and entertainment are subjective. It really depends on what you like to do. I value sports and all three have that covered. I like being a short drive to Disneyland in the Phx metro, I have a season pass, Atlanta is fairly close to Orlando too.
The only definite on this list is 'Outdoors'. Phoenix Metro is probably the only place you could snow ski and water ski on the same day if you wanted to. There are too many outdoor opportunities in Phoenix to even list
For me this would be between Atlanta and Phoenix.
I did a short stint in the Dallas area and I would take the dry desert heat over that humidity any day!
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