How would you say DFW compares to other metro areas? (Houston: apartments, insurance)

[Runemaster]

How would you compare living in DFW to any other metro area you're familiar with? Both inside TX (Austin, Houston, San Antonio) and outside (NYC, LA, Chicago, DC, Twin Cities, Miami, Seattle)?

[Affirmed09]

Comparing to the east coast - very different. Its very spreadout here and alot of driving. Its also alot slower in terms of getting things moving at desks, customer service etc - they are nice but too much chatter...not bad if you are not in a rush, i am just used to quick service and out.

In terms of things to do, you have to adjust, there are things to do but not as much variety as you would get on the east coast

Its alot cheaper around here and housing is much more spacious for less $$

Dont expect much "sight seeing activity" there isnt much, you can cover most of it in a few days. Downtown isnt as robust as other metro cities for night life. There is some but fewer options

[FarNorthDallas]

I'm native to Dallas, but have lived in Austin, San Diego and Atlanta. We're real nice in Dallas. We will chat you up in the elevator or waiting next to you in line or in a doctor's waiting room. I didn't get that in San Diego at all.

San Diego is, of course, just beautiful. Dallas lacks in the Scenic Overlook department. Austin has a few spots that are beautiful as it's on the edge of the hill country. Atlanta has a lot of naturally occuring trees and the rivers and it's slightly hilly.

I found San Diego and Austin to be very down to earth. San Diego is very liberal-feeling. Texas in general is very conservative, something I did not even realize until I moved to San Diego. The conservative-ness just seemed "normal" to me, but it's not "normal" to people coming from more liberal areas and I get that now.

[TurtleCreek80]

Have lived in Dallas and Manhattan/NYC, and done quite a bit of traveling.

Biggest misconception about Dallas is how "cheap" everything is here- if you're moving from affluent city neighborhoods with excellent schools, Dallas is as expensive as anywhere else because you're limited to 1-2 in-town neighborhoods that are $$$. You won't find the 4,000sf home in a nice neighborhood with great schools within a 30 minute commute of downtown Dallas. Private schools are as expensive and selectiver here as anywhere else.

Best things about Dallas are:
-an abundance of shopping (from SuperTarget to Chanel and Chrisian Louboutin boutiques)
-excellent, non-chain restaurants (only cuisine we still lack choices in is great Italian food- alhough there are a few shining stars in Nonna and Jimmy's Italian Market)
-schools: there are many excellent school districts in the Dallas area and one doesn't have to be a millionaire to send their kids to a good school. Districts like Plano and Richardson have housing in the $200k range available as well as many apartments. These are suburbs about 20-30 minutes north of downtown.
-Major tour stop for all concerts, musicals, theatre, art exhibitions, etc. Check calendars for American Airlines Center, Fair Park Summer Musicals, Dallas Museum of Art, Winspear Opera House, House of Blues, Palladium, Granada Theatre, Wyly Theatre, Meyerson Symphony Center, and SMU's Tate Lecture series for the intellectual and artistic side of Dallas.
-Wildly popular pro sports teams: Cowboys, Mavericks, Stars and this season, Texas Rangers.
-churches (you will never be questioned or ostracized because you DO go to church- something I encountered often in varied
- a varied economy (finance, airlines, consumer goods, retailers, reap estate, federal government, energy, etc) which helps during downturns
-easy highway system to navigate: two north/south highways and a series of "loops" out from Downtown
-central location: 3 hour flight to either coast, 2 to Mexico, and an international airport with Many direct flights to Europe, South America, and Asia

Worst things about Dallas:
-being such a far drive from everything! Austin is 3+ hours, Houston is 4-5 hours, San Antonio is 5 hours, everything else is so far away!! I loved in NYC being able to take day trips to the Hudson Valley, Hamptons/beach, Newport, RI, or take the train or a dirt cheap bus (both cheaper than airfare!) to Boston, Vermont for skiing, Philly, DC, etc. When you're in Dallas, you can feel very "stuck" here
-Dont like the attitude of "newer is better" and the ugly McMansions and real Mansions that have plagued our beautiful neighborhoods over the past 20 years. Dallasites (new and old) have very little respect for history or preservation.
-We are a minority majority city (50+% Hispanic, with DISD being about 65-70% Hispanic) and have all the problems of a city where the base population doesn't speak English. We have a lot of undocumeted workers and about 25% of the city living in poverty. It puts a huge strain on the system- schools, county hospitals, insurance (try getting into a wreck with someone who doesn't speak English, have a drivers license or insurance of any kind!). It's a huge problem and no one knows how to fix it.
-We have a "weak" mayor system in the city of Dallas where the mayor's vote is equal to each city council member's vote. Makes it very difficult to push for reform and actionable change like Guiliani was able to do in NYC for crime and Bloomberg has done for education.

[Cowboys fan in Houston]

I agree with Turtle Creeks assessment except for the Italian food. Ferraris in Addison is as good as anything I have had on the East Coast (the ownership is from Italy as are several of the waiters). However, for more casual Italian dining, I would agree.

[etjaipleure]

Dallas is land wise the largest city in America (from what I looked up at the internet, lol). The population is almost to 7 million. That said...it's large, expansive, and crowded. Anything within an hr of Dallas city limits is probaly going to be considered Dallas so people will tell you oh, Southlake? That's right outside Dallas. Oh Mesquite? That's right outside Dallas. Oh, Commerce? That's not too far from Dallas. Well...they are pretty far and it's a LOT OF DRIVING! Too give you an example: I bought a car with 35,000 miles in May 2009. By September 2009 it had over 50,000. I also only worked part time in a city 10 minutes from my house...so...yeah, lots of driving if you wanna do stuff, but doing stuff is awesome in Dallas, always something going on and it's relatively "safe". I never had any problems, even downtown at night. I love San Antonio. It's a little more laid back, but still large and nice and lots of stuff to do. You might want to learn Spanish...I had several people walk up and ask me to help them and did I speak Spanish, unfortuantely, no. Houston is also large, 4th in population after NYC and LA and I forget, but dangerous and smoggy (IMO). I loved LA but they arent as nice but the weather always is. Twin Cities is very clean, nice, and not a lot of minorities so you probably won't get a lot of outside feel. I live in ND now and just got back from the Cities and it's...well, very white and the ethnic food...eh, not so great. Pretty much huntin and fishin type but the cities were nice and clean and their transit system was excellent and safe. Haven't been to a few of the other cities you mentioned but yes, Dallas lacks scenic beauty but if you are just looking for a large city, it's not bad.

[Mister Nifty]

Originally Posted by Runemaster

How would you compare living in DFW to any other metro area you're familiar with? Both inside TX (Austin, Houston, San Antonio) and outside (NYC, LA, Chicago, DC, Twin Cities, Miami, Seattle)?

DFW is the distribution center of the south (700 million square feet), the primary fashion, retail and wholesale center as well, and the major financial center. It has the largest market center in the world collected in one place. It is a major center for corporate headquarters both public and private. It also has numerous multi-billion dollar affiliates headquartered in the area.
Dallas - Fort Worth is a major crossroads. The Fair Park of Dallas holds a huge exhibition every year during the fall as the State Fair of Texas. As the building architecture in Fair Park is quite unique, the State Fair of Texas has poured out into the many surrounding plazas. Literally, one can stand at any given point and sense how the people passing by are moving in every direction.
It has perhaps the most significant Aeropolis (airport city) in the world in DFW airport which is located almost dead center in the middle of the metropolitan area.
All told, DFW is unique when compared to Houston or Atlanta as it has a total of four commercial shopping districts including the Preston Center area, the Northpark / Eastpark area, the Addison / Dallas Galleria area, and the Stonebriar Center area. It also has four major employment centers including the downtowns of Dallas and Fort Worth, Las Colinas in Irving, and the Telecom Corridor in Richardson. And, finally, it also has Uptown. As the Telecom Corridor sprouted during the ninties, Uptown Dallas sprouted in the 2000's.

[Trae713]

Originally Posted by Mister Nifty

DFW is the distribution center of the south (700 million square feet), the primary fashion, retail and wholesale center as well, and the major financial center. It has the largest market center in the world collected in one place. It is a major center for corporate headquarters both public and private. It also has numerous multi-billion dollar affiliates headquartered in the area.
Dallas - Fort Worth is a major crossroads. The Fair Park of Dallas holds a huge exhibition every year during the fall as the State Fair of Texas. As the building architecture in Fair Park is quite unique, the State Fair of Texas has poured out into the many surrounding plazas. Literally, one can stand at any given point and sense how the people passing by are moving in every direction.
It has perhaps the most significant Aeropolis (airport city) in the world in DFW airport which is located almost dead center in the middle of the metropolitan area.
All told, DFW is unique when compared to Houston or Atlanta as it has a total of four commercial shopping districts including the Preston Center area, the Northpark / Eastpark area, the Addison / Dallas Galleria area, and the Stonebriar Center area. It also has four major employment centers including the downtowns of Dallas and Fort Worth, Las Colinas in Irving, and the Telecom Corridor in Richardson. And, finally, it also has Uptown. As the Telecom Corridor sprouted during the ninties, Uptown Dallas sprouted in the 2000's.

DFW is not unique in that regard. You can believe it if you want though.

[FarNorthDallas]

Legacy Plano is a significant employment center, too.

[Mister Nifty]

Originally Posted by Scarface713

DFW is not unique in that regard. You can believe it if you want though.

There are three stores in Dallas - Fort Worth to two in the Houston area. The stores in the commercial shopping districts of Dallas - Fort Worth take precedence over the office buildings. Now, Uptown in Houston and Buckhead in Atlanta are similar, but the office buildings have grown to overtake those areas in significance.
As the Preston Center, Northpark, Dallas Galleria, and Stonebriar Center areas are all commercial shopping districts, downtown Dallas, downtown Fort Worth, Las Colinas, and the Telecom Corridor are all major business district employment centers.
So, yes, DFW is unique in this regard. The area has the capacity to do things that Houston and Atlanta don't. As this metropolitan area surpasses the Chicago area in population, this advantage will increase exponentially.