Houston Vs. New York!? (San Antonio, Austin: renting, daycare, home)

[mpope409]

P.S.
As far as looking at walking everywhere in New York as an advantage...somewhat. They say that America is "fat", so I guess that we should be walking. But judging from what I've seen from day to day, Houston is a pretty fit and good looking city. Excercise would be the least of my worries. I'd like for my feet to not have to go through treading on hard concrete, shuffling through rude fools with poor motor skills all day. Besides, we dress up a lot in Houston, so after spending time to look perfect, I'd rather be carried by a vehicle or just take the METRO.

[irwin]

Originally Posted by mpope409

P.S.
As far as looking at walking everywhere in New York as an advantage...somewhat. They say that America is "fat", so I guess that we should be walking. But judging from what I've seen from day to day, Houston is a pretty fit and good looking city. Excercise would be the least of my worries. I'd like for my feet to not have to go through treading on hard concrete, shuffling through rude fools with poor motor skills all day. Besides, we dress up a lot in Houston, so after spending time to look perfect, I'd rather be carried by a vehicle or just take the METRO.

Yea...people never dress up in New York.
And I wouldn't classify Houston as "sexy."

Look, Houston is a fine place. It has many advantages, including an expanding job market and cheap housing for middle income people. If you have a family and having a big yard in the burbs with a church and all that is what you want...Houston is not a bad choice. If you are conservative and living around other conservatives is important, that would be another reason to choose Houston. In fact, if those are your priorities, it's probably a very good choice. But, it's not New York and cannot compare to the culture and excitement of the city. Don't feel bad, there are only a handful of cities in the world that can match NYC (Tokyo, London, Paris, Hong Kong...maybe Moscow).

[mpope409]

Originally Posted by irwin

Yea...people never dress up in New York.
And I wouldn't classify Houston as "sexy."

Look, Houston is a fine place. It has many advantages, including an expanding job market and cheap housing for middle income people. If you have a family and having a big yard in the burbs with a church and all that is what you want...Houston is not a bad choice. If you are conservative and living around other conservatives is important, that would be another reason to choose Houston. In fact, if those are your priorities, it's probably a very good choice. But, it's not New York and cannot compare to the culture and excitement of the city. Don't feel bad, there are only a handful of cities in the world that can match NYC (Tokyo, London, Paris, Hong Kong...maybe Moscow).

Yeah, and only a handful of corny cosmopolites are looking for those secular thrills out of life...

Houston can't compare to New York for all those material things. Yeah, we got that. But like I said before, it makes New York a better big city, not a better city. It's only a superior town to some people. Everybody's not into the whole cliche of jumping on the New York bandwagon. They want something newer and (yes) sexier. The guy who started the post is grown and mature and has a family already, I believe, so I highly doubt he's going to want to deal with that type of city. Plus, something tells me that he's African-American, so for his culture he would definitely prefer Houston over New York.

We have different types of people in this city and some of those people are looking for a little bit more than what NYC can offer. And it's much more than just cheap houses and big yards. Both cities are EQUAL. So he can make his choice.

(Keep in mind Houston's flaws: the heat, the people can be pretty belligerent, and I even hear of dangerous wildlife in some areas although it's nothing to take into consideration---and if you're looking for a country city with southern charm...this is not the place.)

[mpope409]

And for the record, Houston is post-"New South"...It's not hardly that conservative.

[LANVIN]

Oh, Good God.

How could you ever compare Houston to New York? Houston is a decent place, but it's NOWHERE near the same level as New York. I'm not biased at all, because I live in Houston currently.

[mpope409]

Originally Posted by LANVIN

Oh, Good God.

How could you ever compare Houston to New York? Houston is a decent place, but it's NOWHERE near the same level as New York. I'm not biased at all, because I live in Houston currently.

I said New York is a better big city, and on those terms, Houston can't be compared.

[hunter_mom]

Originally Posted by Fusion3078

Ill make it easy for you. Do you want frigid winters with snow, have to walk just about everywhere, and horrific traffic squashed into a small area or do you want a spread out city where driving is a must, warm temps, and a warm beach? Other than that, the two basically offer the same ammenities. One major difference is NYC is overrated and cost of living is ridiculous, where Houston is more affordable and is growing everyday with more opportunities. Nothing against NYC, but I am from Houston and I just love the warm weather and the more relaxed spread out feeling. Good luck!

Nothing against New York? I'm sorry but as a native New Yorker, I find this post kind of offensive. My husband and I are contemplating a move to Texas (Austin) and I'm actually worried about missing the winters. It actually has not been very "frigid" here - this past winter I think we had maybe 2 weeks of unbearably cold weather - the entire winter. The snow, while often inconvenient, is actually really beautiful and I have a hard time thinking of my son growing up not seeing snow in the winter or being able to build a fort and have snow ball fights. Rather than "having to walk everywhere", I'd actually describe it as "being able to walk everywhere" which is actually really a nice feature of the city, but if you don't want to walk there's always a cab, a subway or a bus to get you where you're going. And if you want warm beaches, I can't even count the number of beaches within an easy drive (or train ride) from the city.

I can't speak about Houston, I've never been there and I don't know anyone from there, but the only thing I've heard about the "warm weather" is that it's incredibly humid and you can't escape the mosquitos.

Just want to add, I have nothing against Houston and I'm sure it's a great place to live, but I felt compelled to stick up for my home town!

[mpope409]

Originally Posted by hunter_mom

Nothing against New York? I'm sorry but as a native New Yorker, I find this post kind of offensive. My husband and I are contemplating a move to Texas (Austin) and I'm actually worried about missing the winters. It actually has not been very "frigid" here - this past winter I think we had maybe 2 weeks of unbearably cold weather - the entire winter. The snow, while often inconvenient, is actually really beautiful and I have a hard time thinking of my son growing up not seeing snow in the winter or being able to build a fort and have snow ball fights. Rather than "having to walk everywhere", I'd actually describe it as "being able to walk everywhere" which is actually really a nice feature of the city, but if you don't want to walk there's always a cab, a subway or a bus to get you where you're going. And if you want warm beaches, I can't even count the number of beaches within an easy drive (or train ride) from the city.

I can't speak about Houston, I've never been there and I don't know anyone from there, but the only thing I've heard about the "warm weather" is that it's incredibly humid and you can't escape the mosquitos.

Just want to add, I have nothing against Houston and I'm sure it's a great place to live, but I felt compelled to stick up for my home town!

Are you moving to Austin by choice, or is it for business? Ironically enough, in the south, Houston would be a more fit city than any other place for a native New Yorker. Besides that, I can tell you that what you've heard about the heat and the mosquitoes is an exaggerated statement.

[hunter_mom]

We're looking to move for the lifestyle change. As far as city living, I loved being in New York. I lived there for over 10 years and it was a great place to be as a young, single woman. Now I'm married with a son and I live in the 'burbs. My husband and I both commute to NYC for work, but for living and raising a family, at this stage of my life I much prefer living in the suburbs. I don't need or want to be in a big city anymore - I don't take advantage of all of the amenities it has to offer - I'm much more concerned about having time to spend with my son and leading a more laid back existence. That's why we're looking at Austin.

[mpope409]

Originally Posted by hunter_mom

We're looking to move for the lifestyle change. As far as city living, I loved being in New York. I lived there for over 10 years and it was a great place to be as a young, single woman. Now I'm married with a son and I live in the 'burbs. My husband and I both commute to NYC for work, but for living and raising a family, at this stage of my life I much prefer living in the suburbs. I don't need or want to be in a big city anymore - I don't take advantage of all of the amenities it has to offer - I'm much more concerned about having time to spend with my son and leading a more laid back existence. That's why we're looking at Austin.

In that case, Austin is probably ideal for you. People tend to look at it as somewhat of a big city, but to me it's nothing but a big suburb. You also might like San Antonio. It's big in terms of population, but very calm and I've heard of some great suburbs there. Still, you should keep in mind that the best suburbs are around Houston.

*Austin is not so far from the big city life as you think. Traffic is ridiculous.