Thinking of relocating to SA..... Help Please! (Houston, San Antonio: rental, crime rate)

[blmccloud]

My husband and I are looking at San Antonio or Austin to relocate to, but wondered if I could get some opinions on some basic info please.

Background: Married, two kids (one in grade school & one in middle school)
My husband work mostly in different Construction fields, but also just got his certificate as an Auto Tech. My daughter loves dance and theater & my son loves soccer & some other sports. We have one dog (Shep. mix) about 70 lbs.

Questions:
1. How is the job market in SA or Austin? Would my husband find work?
2. How are the schools? Are there some recommended schools?
3. How are the nieghborhoods? Which ones would you all recommend?
4. How much would rent be on a 3 Bedroom home?
5. Would we be able to find a rental that accepts pets? (one dog)
6. Are there good dance or theater schools available?
7. How about sports (especially soccer) for kids?
8. Are either of these cities good for families?

Sorry for so many questions, but I thank you for reading and for any information and advice!

[majormadmax]

Most of your questions have been answered numerous times in this forum, so take a look around and you'll find the answers you seek. But in a nutshell between the two cities you are considering, I would recommend SA over Austin for a couple of reasons. For one, SA is more of a family-oriented town. Austin, being the capital and the home of UT, is better for singles.

Secondly, SA has a larger "blue collar" job market. Austin is heavily tech-focused, and I think your husband would have a better chance of finding employment here.

Lastly, SA has a lower cost-of-living. Austin is expensive for Texas, but SA enjoys a high standard of living at moderate costs. If finances are an issue, SA would get the nod.

I think with a little research on here you will find positive answers to your questions. We've got a good job market and like Austin are weathering the current economic situation better than the rest of the country. Homes are still cheap here and have gotten even moreso due to the housing market bubble bursting...I would recommend considering buying instead of renting if you could swing it. I think prices have bottomed out and will start rising again soon, albeit much slower than before. How much a 3-bedroom would cost to rent is dependent on too many factors (age of the home, location, etc) to give you a price range, but you should have no problem finding on that takes pets.

Most schools in the NISD and NEISD areas are very good, and there are lots of places that offer kid activities (dance, karate, etc) which will actually pick you kids up after school. There are also the usual little league, soccer programs, etc that you'd expect from a city of this size.

Hope that helps, and good luck with your decision! At least coming from Arizona you are used to the heat, although it will feel humid in comparison.

Cheers! M2

[Spock's Beard]

Originally Posted by blmccloud

My husband and I are looking at San Antonio or Austin to relocate to, but wondered if I could get some opinions on some basic info please.

Background: Married, two kids (one in grade school & one in middle school)
My husband work mostly in different Construction fields, but also just got his certificate as an Auto Tech. My daughter loves dance and theater & my son loves soccer & some other sports. We have one dog (Shep. mix) about 70 lbs.

Questions:
1. How is the job market in SA or Austin? Would my husband find work?
2. How are the schools? Are there some recommended schools?
3. How are the nieghborhoods? Which ones would you all recommend?
4. How much would rent be on a 3 Bedroom home?
5. Would we be able to find a rental that accepts pets? (one dog)
6. Are there good dance or theater schools available?
7. How about sports (especially soccer) for kids?
8. Are either of these cities good for families?

Sorry for so many questions, but I thank you for reading and for any information and advice!

THIS is the San Antonio job market, and is pretty much the same thing on 90%+ of every job application I fill out. Vey racist.

[IMG=http://img42.imageshack.us/img42/2043/grab0245.th.jpg][/IMG]

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[blmccloud]

thanks major!

[Ophelia77]

I recommend Austin. San Antonio has high crime and I've been living here for 7 years (married, with two step kids). San Antonio is okay for families if you want to bake in the sun at Sea World and Six Flags but there aren't very many parks to play at. Austin has more parks. Austin will be more fun for your kids growing up, it is a VERY active city for sports.
AUSTIN ALL THE WAY!

[majormadmax]

First, the crime rate in SA is not high; that myth has been propagated on here numerous times; but for a metro area of +2M statistics prove that it is a safe place to live!

Secondly, there are numerous city parks in SA, so it is incorrect to act like Austin has more. Plus we have SeaWorld, Six Flags, Splashtown, the Riverwalk and numerous other family-focused attractions here that Austin lacks. About the best they can come up with is Kiddie Acres.

Lastly, how much cooler are the temperatures 45 minutes north of here? Not much at all, so it makes no sense to act like a person wouldn’t “bake in the sun” in Austin any more than they would in SA!

Austin is a great town, and has weathered the economic downturn as well as San Antonio; but it is definitely not as “kid friendly” as SA and the cost of living is considerably higher. For a single Yuppie it would make sense, but someone with a family in the construction or auto repair business would most defintely do better down here!

[RGJ]

Plus, your kids are not exposed to all that marijuana haze leftover in Austin from the sixties and seventies

[markintosh]

We chose San Antonio after looking at Houston and Austin. We have two children and to us, SA clearly was the best for families. We're moving down in less than a month... Can't wait!

[kevcrawford]

Originally Posted by RGJ

Plus, your kids are not exposed to all that marijuana haze leftover in Austin from the sixties and seventies

**zing!!**

[rgb123]

San Antonio unless you have a job ahead of time in Austin.