Atlanta, GA to San Antonio or Houston, Texas (Sugar Land, Galveston: daycares, homes)

[akimbrough]

Hello,

My husband and I are considering relocating to San Antonio or Houston Texas. We are in our early 30's, with 2 pre-school age children, therefore schools and safe neighborhoods are very important. I work in healthcare, and my husband is a truck driver. We are undecided between San Antonio and Houston. I'm hoping to get some perspectives from people living in either city, to provide the inside track of some pros and cons of the cities. Where are the best areas for schools and to live/work? What are some fun things to do? Having young children, they enjoy parks and playgrounds, children's museums etc....my husband is an outdoorsman, and I'm a shopping, day at the beach kind of girl! I appreciate your feedback!

[theone33]

We have to many people at this time. Try again in 10 years

[Svensk08]

Originally Posted by akimbrough

Hello,

My husband and I are considering relocating to San Antonio or Houston Texas. We are in our early 30's, with 2 pre-school age children, therefore schools and safe neighborhoods are very important. I work in healthcare, and my husband is a truck driver. We are undecided between San Antonio and Houston. I'm hoping to get some perspectives from people living in either city, to provide the inside track of some pros and cons of the cities. Where are the best areas for schools and to live/work? What are some fun things to do? Having young children, they enjoy parks and playgrounds, children's museums etc....my husband is an outdoorsman, and I'm a shopping, day at the beach kind of girl! I appreciate your feedback!

These same questions are asked and answered repeatedly. Have you used the Search function on this forum to do some research?

[KatieKennedy]

What part of Atlanta? What is your budget? I moved here from Atlanta in the 80's and still have family there in Sandy Springs.

There isn't a beach in or near San Antonio. The beach in Galveston is about an hour south of downtown Houston, There are many suburban communities south of Houston, such as Clear Lake and Friendswood, that are an easy drive to the beach. The best shopping is in the Galleria area (akin to Lenox/Phipps in Atlanta). If you search for strings under my name with Atlanta in the title, you will find some that compare Houston and Atlanta.

[astrohip]

Why do you want to leave Atlanta? That may help us focus in on your answer.

I've been to ATL many a time. Daughter, SIL & grandson live there, it's a great city. Always enjoy my visits.

[akimbrough]

Originally Posted by astrohip

Why do you want to leave Atlanta? That may help us focus in on your answer.

I've been to ATL many a time. Daughter, SIL & grandson live there, it's a great city. Always enjoy my visits.

I have been in the Atlanta metro area my whole life. Looking for a change. I hate cold weather and snow so I know wherever we end up, it has to have good weather (sunny....hot most of the year). I want to live somewhere diverse, with a strong work force, things to do, reasonable cost of living, with good schools. The area I live in now is good. I have no complaints, just wanting to experience life somewhere else. I have young children (3 &1), so ideally, my husband and I would like to be relocated before they start elementary school.

[Svensk08]

Originally Posted by akimbrough

I have been in the Atlanta metro area my whole life. Looking for a change. I hate cold weather and snow so I know wherever we end up, it has to have good weather (sunny....hot most of the year). I want to live somewhere diverse, with a strong work force, things to do, reasonable cost of living, with good schools. The area I live in now is good. I have no complaints, just wanting to experience life somewhere else. I have young children (3 &1), so ideally, my husband and I would like to be relocated before they start elementary school.

Since you're in no big hurry to move, you and your husband really need to visit Houston and vicinity for a week or so to see what it's like. This is a huge, sprawling complex city. If at all possible, leave the kids at home so they won't be a distraction. Drive in the traffic at rush hour, both on the freeways and off. Compare prices at grocery stores, shopping malls, daycares, auto repair, etc. See the medical center, the ship channel, the museum district. Take in a pro sports game. Look at neighborhoods with homes that you can afford and check out school ratings in each. Drive to Galveston and look around. Eat in locally-owned restaurants, not chains.

If you're still unsure about Houston, take another trip to check out San Antonio.

[Lone Star Rooster]

I moved to Houston from Atlanta about 9 years ago. My impressions are that traffic may be a bit worse in ATL than in HOU (this was confirmed on a trip I took back to ATL a couple weeks ago...you have my sympathies, as I've never seen traffic like that, even on a weekend). Be sure to pay a visit to either San Antonio or Houston during what's left of this summer, if you can. Yes, ATL is hot and humid, but both the heat and humidity are a notch or two higher here in TX, and the summers last a few weeks longer.

As for Houston, best suburban areas are Katy, Kingwood, The Woodlands, Pearland, Sugar Land, Friendswood, and Clear Lake (the last 2 are closest to Galveston). Each is a nice place with strong schools, and each has its own pluses and minuses. Line up a job first and try to locate as close as possible to your job.

Houston has what is consistently rated the best Children's Museum in the country, which is also located close to a good zoo. There are also several neat museums in the nearby Museum District, which is located adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. And yes, while the beach in Galveston is a convenient 45-60 minute drive from Houston, and it's better than not having a beach at all, it's not the pretty white-sand clear-water beach you might be more familiar with in the Southeast. Unfortunately we're on the wrong side of the Mississippi River, so the water and sand are muddier. For a beach getaway, lots of folks here actually make the 8-hour drive to Destin (much like they do in ATL).

[akimbrough]

Originally Posted by Svensk08

Since you're in no big hurry to move, you and your husband really need to visit Houston and vicinity for a week or so to see what it's like. This is a huge, sprawling complex city. If at all possible, leave the kids at home so they won't be a distraction. Drive in the traffic at rush hour, both on the freeways and off. Compare prices at grocery stores, shopping malls, daycares, auto repair, etc. See the medical center, the ship channel, the museum district. Take in a pro sports game. Look at neighborhoods with homes that you can afford and check out school ratings in each. Drive to Galveston and look around. Eat in locally-owned restaurants, not chains.

If you're still unsure about Houston, take another trip to check out San Antonio.

Thanks for the excellent suggestion Svensk08. We are actually looking to make a trip or two next year to do just this.....I'm wanting to visit during the summer months so that I can experience the heat and humidity I keep reading about. The kids will be with Grandma. 😊

[bu2]

Originally Posted by Svensk08

Since you're in no big hurry to move, you and your husband really need to visit Houston and vicinity for a week or so to see what it's like. This is a huge, sprawling complex city. If at all possible, leave the kids at home so they won't be a distraction. Drive in the traffic at rush hour, both on the freeways and off. Compare prices at grocery stores, shopping malls, daycares, auto repair, etc. See the medical center, the ship channel, the museum district. Take in a pro sports game. Look at neighborhoods with homes that you can afford and check out school ratings in each. Drive to Galveston and look around. Eat in locally-owned restaurants, not chains.

If you're still unsure about Houston, take another trip to check out San Antonio.

Houston is less expensive than Atlanta in the city. And having dealt with Atlanta traffic, I have vowed never to complain about Houston traffic again. But if you are way out of Atlanta in someplace like Carrolton, you may have a different cost of living. But overall, this is good advice.

One thing-Houston will be hot and humid. I find Atlanta summers pretty comfortable after many years in Houston and sometimes miss being hot more than a couple of days a year. It won't be just Atlanta summers extended by a couple of months. But of course, winters will be much, much warmer.

San Antonio is hot, but in a different way.