Relo Questions... Prev lived in NYC, ATL, KY - now thinking Houston, Dallas, etc...? (Austin: middle-class, sales)

[AtlantaGal]

Hello All!

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!!

I have read many many threads on the topic... just wanted to add a post with my specific situation, needs/wants, etc.

About me:
-28 y/o
- Black Female
- College Educated
- I work in Corporate Finance
- Single w/ no children (I've been very career focused while in Atlanta, I'm starting to date more now - but since I plan to be out of Atlanta soon I'm not looking for anything serious here... would eventually want something serious when I relocate.)

My wants/needs:
- FRIENDLY DOWN-TO-EARTH people... Atlanta is too pretentious, too "Black Hollywood"... I hear Houston is somewhat that way as well... is this so!??!
- I like the idea of living a short distance from a beach.
- Diversity & Integration... I have lived in Queens, NY.. loved seeing Koreans, Polish, Dominicans, Jamaicans, all shade of people all interact together, eat together, etc.. I'm in Atlanta where people assume anything brown skin = "Black", light skin = "White", and anything 'other' = "Mexican". I need more diversity...
- Fun/Entertainment/Restaurants/Shopping/etc... I want to be in an area where there's lots shopping, lots of different restaurants (not just chains), etc... Great nightlife - not just clubs/bars, but lounges or low key spots.
- Clean city... I love the big city feel, but really dislike seeing abandoned buildings on every block... or factories with busted out windows off the highway.. etc. Yes, I like a 'pretty' city.
- A city that is not too spread out - the Atlanta area is VERY spread out, with the downtown/midtown section being very small. I'd prefer a city not so spread out.
- Big cities close to other big cities - if I can hop in the car and drive a couple of hours to another big city for a random day trip or weekend trip, I'm happy.

What I'm looking to know:
- Interracial dating... I tend to prefer Hispanic men, but I'm absolutely open to dating all races... I know some parts of the country, Black people don't 'mix' with Asian people... or Dominicans don't 'mix' with Black people... etc... even if the connection is there, some races just don't interact/mix a lot.
- Would Dallas be a better choice...?
- If Houston sounds like a good place for me, any particular areas I should look into?

Sorry for the long post but tried to include details. TIA!

[usc619]

Originally Posted by AtlantaGal

Hello All!

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!!

I have read many many threads on the topic... just wanted to add a post with my specific situation, needs/wants, etc.

About me:
-28 y/o
- Black Female
- College Educated
- I work in Corporate Finance
- Single w/ no children (I've been very career focused while in Atlanta, I'm starting to date more now - but since I plan to be out of Atlanta soon I'm not looking for anything serious here... would eventually want something serious when I relocate.)

My wants/needs:
- FRIENDLY DOWN-TO-EARTH people... Atlanta is too pretentious, too "Black Hollywood"... I hear Houston is somewhat that way as well... is this so!??!
- I like the idea of living a short distance from a beach.
- Diversity & Integration... I have lived in Queens, NY.. loved seeing Koreans, Polish, Dominicans, Jamaicans, all shade of people all interact together, eat together, etc.. I'm in Atlanta where people assume anything brown skin = "Black", light skin = "White", and anything 'other' = "Mexican". I need more diversity...
- Fun/Entertainment/Restaurants/Shopping/etc... I want to be in an area where there's lots shopping, lots of different restaurants (not just chains), etc... Great nightlife - not just clubs/bars, but lounges or low key spots.
- Clean city... I love the big city feel, but really dislike seeing abandoned buildings on every block... or factories with busted out windows off the highway.. etc. Yes, I like a 'pretty' city.
- A city that is not too spread out - the Atlanta area is VERY spread out, with the downtown/midtown section being very small. I'd prefer a city not so spread out.
- Big cities close to other big cities - if I can hop in the car and drive a couple of hours to another big city for a random day trip or weekend trip, I'm happy.

What I'm looking to know:
- Interracial dating... I tend to prefer Hispanic men, but I'm absolutely open to dating all races... I know some parts of the country, Black people don't 'mix' with Asian people... or Dominicans don't 'mix' with Black people... etc... even if the connection is there, some races just don't interact/mix a lot.
- Would Dallas be a better choice...?
- If Houston sounds like a good place for me, any particular areas I should look into?

Sorry for the long post but tried to include details. TIA!

Nor Cal(Bay area) would be the Ideal place for you, but since you only mention Houston and Dallas, I'd choose Houston.

[AtlantaGal]

Originally Posted by usc619

Nor Cal(Bay area) would be the Ideal place for you, but since you only mention Houston and Dallas, I'd choose Houston.

Thanks for the note... I am actually open to ALL suggestions, so I'll make note about the Bay area as well... Thanks!

[David Dollar]

People here are cool (inside the loop only), and it is pretty laid back. There for sure isn't any type of Mexcian Hollywood or anything like that here. That would be Austin, and the great works of Robert Rodriguez.

I am gonna get bashed by the Houston homers here, but here it goes. Houston is one of the more diverse cities in the country, but you will NOT see people mixing like you do in NYC. It won't even be close. People tend to stick together here. My group of friends is usually the most diverse anywhere we go. Mexicans (the vast majority of hispanics at over 90%) tend to really stick together and heavily favor their culture. You do see a lot of interracial couples. However, most of those will be black male/white female. I am usually the only non-black guy I see with a black girl.

Houston is not clean. This place is dirty. The beach sucks and is even dirtier.

There is also all the shopping you want. People love the restaurants here, and you WILL find somehting you like. I like dirty, cheap, authentic ethnic food places, and Houston delivers. The nightlife is good if you are into ghetto places or very upscale places. Middle-class offerings are basicly limited to a few places in Montrose and the Heights.

And no, Dallas would not be a good choice for you. If you come to Texas, Houston will be the way to go.

[nana053]

As for being within a short drive of the beach, it depends on what you mean by short. Galveston beaches are about an hour away.

I'm a transplant from the Chicago area where I could walk to the beach. I lived 5 blocks from Lake Michigan. I don't consider the beaches here to be nice and they aren't that close.

[ethanw]

Houston is perfect for you. Good jobs, great people, awesome diversity, good food, what else can you as for?

[TurtleCreek80]

Houston is very diverse and offers a lot of job opportunity (as does Dallas). Houston has many beautiful neighborhoods (River Oaks, Museum District, West U, Montrose) and suburbs (Woodlands), but it has VERY liberal zoning- ie, you'll see tattoo parlours next to churches and schools. Many neighborhoods have commercial & residential mixed on the same block. Dallas has much stricter and cleaner zoning. I would say both cities are equally "clean" as far as trash, graffiti, etc. I think that Houston probably has a larger young black professional population, but Dallas is pretty open to seeing mixed racial couples and a wide mix of people living in the same neighborhood and hanging out together, especially in the popular young professional haven Uptown.

One more thing- Houston is close to a beach (Galveston is about an hour south); but it is a disgusting beach. Not a clean place to go lay out, surf, etc. The best beaches in Texas are about an 7-8 hour drive south to South Padre or a 90 minute flight to Mexico's Riveria Maya/ Playa del Carmen.

[cheryjohns]

I think you would like Houston EXCEPT for the fact that it is VERY spread out. I have only driven through Atlanta a couple of times - but my impression was that it is smaller than Houston in area.

Also, Galveston beach is just so-so.

[AtlantaGal]

Thanks everyone for the responses!

I am planning a trip to Houston in June... can't wait to see everything for myself.

Thanks for the info on the beaches - while I knew it was around an hour away, I did not know that it wasn't a nice beach. I guess I'm spoiled by Miami's beaches (I go to Miami frequently and absolutely LOVE the beaches). So I'll lower my expectations there. :-)

I am a little "Ugh" about the fact that Houston is spread out. That is a major frustration that I have with Atlanta, and it's something that almost all of my friends who have visited Houston gripe about.

After the comment from an above poster I started looking into the Bay Area and so far I'm REALLY liking what I'm seeing (w/ diversity, compact city, views, etc.) but that Cost of Living is SCARY!! I must admit Houston's COL is a big big plus. And no state income tax :-) although I assume this is made up in other costs... sales tax, property tax..?

[Nairobi]

All major cities in the south are going to be spread out. Sprawl is the name of the game in the Sunbelt, but depending on where you decide to live, you may not have to do too much driving.

Coming from Atlanta, you instantly notice that much of Texas is not as striking in appearance. It is much flatter here, and while Houston is more lush, Dallas is more barren looking than what you're used to.

Dallas is definitely the cleaner looking city, in my opinion. The most developed parts are generally pretty sterile and very organized looking. There's a more progressive approach to new developments. Houston isn't as tidy looking, and especially from the freeways. It's more of an international blue collar city and has a few industrial looking areas here and there, but there are some very beautiful neighborhoods. Dallas is more Midwest/Southern Prairie while Houston is more Gulf Coast.

As someone stated earlier, Houston most likely has the edge for young black professionals, but you really cannot go wrong with either. You could make a decision from what you learn here, but the best thing to do is to visit and get a feel for each city to decide which one is for you.