Nashville vs Austin? (Brentwood: crime, house, neighborhood)

[gwenrn]

Was wondering if anyone had knowledge of how these 2 places compare? Weather, Cost of Living, People, etc.

I was told Nashville is in the south and Austin is in the west which makes them incredibly different. Then, we were told they are quite similar. :\ We are familiar with Nashville. Our biggest concerns to be honest are hat we are not big fans of alleriges or guns. It is probably very conservative in most places in TN than where we are coming from...NY. Just differences, not judgements. But, the gun thing really does freak me out.

[qwertyasdf]

I wouldn't call Austin and Nashville "incredibly different". They are similar in some ways. Both are State Capitals, similar sized metro areas, both are growing but Austin is bigger and growing faster than Nashville. Nashville has 4 seasons and Austin has 2, hot and not too hot. Housing and property taxes are expensive in Austin, but things like gas and food are not that much out of line from the rest of the South or Midwest.

Both towns have very friendly and approachable people. It's really hard to complain about the people in Austin. And the people are much nicer in person than a lot of the rude commenters that participate in this forum would lead an outsider to believe.

Politically Austin is libertarian with a liberal slant. Most anything goes as long as you don't hurt anybody or cost anybody a lot of money. I'd venture to guess that there are a lot of artist types in Nashville and Nashville may be a lot like Austin politically, maybe a little more conservative.

Traffic is heavy and barely crawls at rush hour, but Austin drivers as a rule, are very courteous drivers. It's never hard to change lanes or pull out on to a busy road, as most drivers are more than willing to let you in. Drivers in Austin are not bad drivers, as a rule that is.

Both are music towns, but Austin is more iindie and Texas music. Music is heard nearly everywhere in Austin. Nashvile is more corporate mainstream music. It's all according to what you like. I love all kinds of Texas music, whether it's country, rock, blues, folk, Tejano. On the other hand, Nashville has Emmylou Harris and John Prine. Austin can't top that.

Austin has lots of restaraunts and good places to eat. It's not all Tex-Mex and BBQ. Trip Advisor ranks an expensive sushi restarunt as the number one restaraunt in Austin. Who would have ever thought that, 5 or 10 years ago?

And there are tons of festivals. Nearly every weekend seems like there's a big festival going on somewhere.

Austin also has lots and lots of shopping areas and there are new ones popping up seems like nearly every week.

No pro sports in Austin, but the Longhorns are here. If you want pro, San Antonio, Houston and Dallas are all easy drives away.

Austin seems like a very safe town. I know anything can happen anywhere at anytime, but I have never felt unsafe anywhere in Austin, or never felt like I was about to be a crime victim.

My family comes from Cannon County, about 60 miles SE of Nashville, and I been there a few times, but I don't know much about Nashville really, but it seems like Nashville moves at a slower pace than Austin. If I didn't live in Texas, I think I would live in Nashville, if for no other reason but Emmylou Harris and John Prine.

[BirdieBelle]

Originally Posted by gwenrn

We are familiar with Nashville. Our biggest concerns to be honest are hat we are not big fans of alleriges or guns. It is probably very conservative in most places in TN than where we are coming from...NY. Just differences, not judgements. But, the gun thing really does freak me out.

First we sneeze on you, then we shoot at you.

If you survive, you're allowed to move here.

[Sigequinox]

Originally Posted by gwenrn

Was wondering if anyone had knowledge of how these 2 places compare? Weather, Cost of Living, People, etc.

I was told Nashville is in the south and Austin is in the west which makes them incredibly different. Then, we were told they are quite similar. :\ We are familiar with Nashville. Our biggest concerns to be honest are hat we are not big fans of alleriges or guns. It is probably very conservative in most places in TN than where we are coming from...NY. Just differences, not judgements. But, the gun thing really does freak me out.

Texas and TN are both very gun friendly states. Personally, "I heart guns" so find that to be a big plus (TX and TN are top 2 on my list of places to move--with TN having a gigantic lead).

If you want to avoid guns you should look into moving to Chicago. They pretty much have an all out ban on guns. But beware, there were more murders in that city last year than the entire state of TN

I wouldn't worry about the gun thing. Be more concerned about schools, COL, weather, crime, taxes, and all the things that WILL actually affect your life.

[bspray]

Texas actually has more liberal gun laws than Tennessee. In Texas, the homestead law allows you to shoot someone, even if they are trying to flee, if they are in posession of your property.

There was a case in San Antonio about a year and a half ago where a guy was leaving his girlfriend's house and came out to find two guys breaking into his car. The two criminals took off running when he came out, he shot them both killing one of them and no charges were filed against him.

Then of course, there is the infamous case of Joe Horn in Houston.

If I am not mistaken, it is only legal to use deadly force in Tennessee if you feel your life or one of your family members lives is in danger and there is no reasonable way to flee the scene and deadly force is the only option.

Let's just say, I would much rather break into a house or car in Tennessee than I would in Texas - not that I would ever do something so stupid anywhere...

[Sigequinox]

Originally Posted by bspray

Texas actually has more liberal gun laws than Tennessee. In Texas, the homestead law allows you to shoot someone, even if they are trying to flee, if they are in posession of your property.

There was a case in San Antonio about a year and a half ago where a guy was leaving his girlfriend's house and came out to find two guys breaking into his car. The two criminals took off running when he came out, he shot them both killing one of them and no charges were filed against him.

Then of course, there is the infamous case of Joe Horn in Houston.

If I am not mistaken, it is only legal to use deadly force in Tennessee if you feel your life or one of your family members lives is in danger and there is no reasonable way to flee the scene and deadly force is the only option.

Let's just say, I would much rather break into a house or car in Tennessee than I would in Texas - not that I would ever do something so stupid anywhere...

Well, in either case lets hope OP is not in the crime business. Don't need more of them in TN.

The fleeing part about TN in untrue however. You have no duty to retreat in TN. So, while you need to be reasonably threatened, the criminal/attacker does not get the benefit of doubt in TN. When you sit in front of a jury you don't have to prove that you weren't capable of climbing over the 8 foot fence in the ally before using lethal force.

Pretty fair laws IMO. If you shot someone in the middle of raping your kid here in CT I would not be surprised if the DA would put you on trial. "At the point where the defendants pants were off and not around her ankles, is it not possible the defendant could have ran away screaming?" SMH

[WanderingFar]

I'm trying to be more open-minded about guns but people are just so stupid about them. How many times do I have to read in the Brentwood Journal crime log about handguns being stolen from unlocked cars?! It's at least once a week.

Now, granted, Brentwood crime is a joke, but I suspect that's more a function of the wealthy suburbanites who live here than gun ownership. If you feel safe enough to leave your car unlocked while you're running errands or hanging out at home ... why the heck do you need a gun in it? A gun that anyone can just reach in and grab, no less.

That's the kind of irresponsibility that gets my leftist ire up.

[eastmemphisguy]

Outside of climate/natural scenery, what's the difference, really? They're both trendy, low density, fairly reasonably priced, mid sized, and convenient to hilly recreation. In any case, neighborhood is almost always much more important than city. Just about anywhere has the scary side of town, the quaint historic area, the generic suburban sprawl, etc.

[Sigequinox]

Originally Posted by NYCtoBNA

I'm trying to be more open-minded about guns but people are just so stupid about them. How many times do I have to read in the Brentwood Journal crime log about handguns being stolen from unlocked cars?! It's at least once a week.

Now, granted, Brentwood crime is a joke, but I suspect that's more a function of the wealthy suburbanites who live here than gun ownership. If you feel safe enough to leave your car unlocked while you're running errands or hanging out at home ... why the heck do you need a gun in it? A gun that anyone can just reach in and grab, no less.

That's the kind of irresponsibility that gets my leftist ire up.

I hear ya. That is beyond dumb and negligent. However, I tend to direct my anger toward those who commit the crime of stealing a gun instead of the idiot breaking no laws and having is personal property stolen.

[WanderingFar]

Originally Posted by Sigequinox

I hear ya. That is beyond dumb and negligent. However, I tend to direct my anger toward those who commit the crime of stealing a gun instead of the idiot breaking no laws and having is personal property stolen.

Their negligence and stupidity created an opportunity for a criminal to get his or her hands on a lethal weapon. That to me is blatant disregard for others' lives and property. I can't see someone like that as a victim any more than I can see a drunk driver as a victim if he's injured in a crash. Nevermind parents who leave unsecured guns around children (and some of these "victims" are surely parents).

Being pro-gun rights is one thing but there should be reasonable restrictions to protect innocent people from the stupidity of others. People (on both sides) have lost the ability to see shades of gray on this issue.