Moving to Galveston? Bad Idea? Good Idea? (Houston, League City: spring break, for sale)

[cadebentley0209]

Hey guys,

My wife and I are very much considering Galveston Texas for our next location for a few reasons: Schools being quite cheap, cost of living relatively low, the people are very friendly, and the Geographical location is great (beaches, history of the island, plenty to do, etc.) I am going to be attending nursing school and my wife major is undecided for the moment.


We also hear it is quite expensive on the island, crime is awful, and the only place you can get housing are in the areas of town that you do not want to be in. We also hear that the tourist season is a nightmare

How would Galveston differ from a place like League City for a young married couple?

Would employment in healthcare, or employment in general be hard to come by? I have worked at a hospital in Southern Utah for about 2 years.

How would the cost of living differ from a "good" area or a "bad" area?

Ultimately would moving here be a good choice for us now?

Thanks again so much!

[desertsun41]

Originally Posted by cadebentley0209

Hey guys,

My wife and I are very much considering Galveston Texas for our next location for a few reasons: Schools being quite cheap, cost of living relatively low, the people are very friendly, and the Geographical location is great (beaches, history of the island, plenty to do, etc.) I am going to be attending nursing school and my wife major is undecided for the moment.


We also hear it is quite expensive on the island, crime is awful, and the only place you can get housing are in the areas of town that you do not want to be in. We also hear that the tourist season is a nightmare

How would Galveston differ from a place like League City for a young married couple?

Would employment in healthcare, or employment in general be hard to come by? I have worked at a hospital in Southern Utah for about 2 years.

How would the cost of living differ from a "good" area or a "bad" area?

Ultimately would moving here be a good choice for us now?

Thanks again so much!

You are going to get a lot of mixed answers here. For whatever reason I can't explain, many do not like Galveston. It's got it's problems but I love the place. Maybe I love more the potential Galveston has that it will never achieve due to the crooked corrupt local govt there which is really run by the 4 wealthy families.

Schools in Galveston good? Everyone is going to point and laugh at you for that. Galveston College is good and UTMB schools are great. Last I read, Galveston high school lead the nation in rape crimes. Being from southern Utah I might assume you are Mormon and with that I can say you will be a minority.

You did not say rent or buy. Buying is dirt cheap due to the depression and in Galveston the depression is severe but that will improve with the spring vacationers. Renting is expensive probably because Galveston is a rental town. 62% of it's residents are renters. Once you drive off the Seawall you will see blight. Nothing but dilapidated homes. Nearer to where you will be going to school are nice enough. But just drive down most streets in the Strand such as Post Office St and every single home but maybe 4 on the whole street have a for sale or for rent sign. You would think this glut would lower rents......nope.

Don't get me wrong, I love Galveston. I would not live there. We had our store there for 10 years before relocating and I loved every day going to work. Great restaurants and great beaches. So much to do though you need deep pockets as tourist things are a rip off..

Why did you bring up League City? Great place to live but Kemah is better for your commute to Galveston. You need to go in person as whatever any of us can tell you may be of little help making your decision. But good luck.

[DJboutit]

If you have kids the shcools in Galveston suck now if you do not have kids then go for it. You can get a house 2000 sqft home for like $300 to $400k older home. Some day I would like to move to Galveston myself. I am not worried about hurricanes hitting Galveston every few yrs small storms hit & every 20 to 25 yrs decent size storms hit that do minumal damage.

[Malvie]

I agree with the others; you're going to get a mixed-bag of responses.

I love Galveston. It's kind of like New Orleans: you either love it or you hate it. I know people who think New Orleans is the scum of the earth; I know others who can't make the trip often enough.

Galveston has a lot of history; it's got beaches (those who've lived near beaches all their lives discount the fact that, for much of the country, the beach---any beach---is something they may go their whole lives and never see. Ditto palm trees. It's got some cool old historical areas. It's got a lot of trashy tourista areas. It's got traffic during "the season" that will boggle the mind, and Spring Break is still...Spring Break.

But, it's a more temperate climate than Houston, which is only 45 miles away. It's still a small town, but with the 4th largest city in America as its next-door neighbor. UTMB is quite good, but the Texas Medical Center is some of the finest healthcare in the world. Departures daily from Bush Intercontinental for "the world". Departures from Hobby to the US. Cheap cost of living compared with other beach locales (like anywhere in Florida, or the "Florabama" panhandle area of Florida). Key West can be just as trashy, but at 100x the price.

It's a very personal decision. You'll just have to look and see for yourself.

Good luck!

[ElectroPlumber]

Originally Posted by desertsun41

You are going to get a lot of mixed answers here. For whatever reason I can't explain, many do not like Galveston. It's got it's problems but I love the place. Maybe I love more the potential Galveston has that it will never achieve due to the crooked corrupt local govt there which is really run by the 4 wealthy families.

Schools in Galveston good? Everyone is going to point and laugh at you for that. Galveston College is good and UTMB schools are great. Last I read, Galveston high school lead the nation in rape crimes. Being from southern Utah I might assume you are Mormon and with that I can say you will be a minority.

You did not say rent or buy. Buying is dirt cheap due to the depression and in Galveston the depression is severe but that will improve with the spring vacationers. Renting is expensive probably because Galveston is a rental town. 62% of it's residents are renters. Once you drive off the Seawall you will see blight. Nothing but dilapidated homes. Nearer to where you will be going to school are nice enough. But just drive down most streets in the Strand such as Post Office St and every single home but maybe 4 on the whole street have a for sale or for rent sign. You would think this glut would lower rents......nope.

Don't get me wrong, I love Galveston. I would not live there. We had our store there for 10 years before relocating and I loved every day going to work. Great restaurants and great beaches. So much to do though you need deep pockets as tourist things are a rip off..

Why did you bring up League City? Great place to live but Kemah is better for your commute to Galveston. You need to go in person as whatever any of us can tell you may be of little help making your decision. But good luck.

That's an excellent review. I also worked in Galveston for five years and really enjoyed the experience, but would not live there because of the reasons listed above. I'd seriously consider Clear Lake, which also has areas on the water and is like night and day from Galveston. You can drive to Galveston in about 30 - 40 minutes from Clear Lake if you are going to school at UTMB.

I'm not a big fan of League City. I don't like their police and I don't like their city government, although in fairness it may have changed since I left. I think you can get everything in Clear Lake that you can get in League City without the disadvantages.

[DanielWayne]

Originally Posted by desertsun41

You are going to get a lot of mixed answers here. For whatever reason I can't explain, many do not like Galveston. It's got it's problems but I love the place. Maybe I love more the potential Galveston has that it will never achieve due to the crooked corrupt local govt there which is really run by the 4 wealthy families.

Schools in Galveston good? Everyone is going to point and laugh at you for that. Galveston College is good and UTMB schools are great. Last I read, Galveston high school lead the nation in rape crimes. Being from southern Utah I might assume you are Mormon and with that I can say you will be a minority.

You did not say rent or buy. Buying is dirt cheap due to the depression and in Galveston the depression is severe but that will improve with the spring vacationers. Renting is expensive probably because Galveston is a rental town. 62% of it's residents are renters. Once you drive off the Seawall you will see blight. Nothing but dilapidated homes. Nearer to where you will be going to school are nice enough. But just drive down most streets in the Strand such as Post Office St and every single home but maybe 4 on the whole street have a for sale or for rent sign. You would think this glut would lower rents......nope.

Don't get me wrong, I love Galveston. I would not live there. We had our store there for 10 years before relocating and I loved every day going to work. Great restaurants and great beaches. So much to do though you need deep pockets as tourist things are a rip off..

Why did you bring up League City? Great place to live but Kemah is better for your commute to Galveston. You need to go in person as whatever any of us can tell you may be of little help making your decision. But good luck.

Agreed 100%. I've been in Clear Lake since 2000. Lived in League City for over half that time. Lots of really neat stuff in Galveston, but lots of serious blight, too. League City is very nice, but quickly turning into a big cookie-cutter suburb. Still I was looking at homes there a year ago. The Clear Lake area (Kemah, League City, Webster, etc.) would be the best (safest) bet as it is an easy commute to Galveston.

Also the beach in Galveston is going to be nothing like a beach in Florida.

[texas7]

Galveston is great for the wealthy - they love it. Two of the guys I work with have homes there (2nd homes with 8-10 bedrooms). Average income ...... better off in League City or Clear Lake.

[Grunn]

I love Galveston like others here but I wouldn't buy a place there due to flood and hurricane risk and the subsequent difficulty in obtaining reasonably priced insurance or indeed any insurance.

That said I only looked at beach front property on the seawall so maybe it's a different story elsewhere.