Hello from California, maybe a move to Texas? (Houston, Dallas: rental, house)

[IrwinFamily]

Hello.
I'm a mother of 2 soon to be 3 kiddos. My husband and I are just plain sick of life in California.
While we were both raised here we both feel like we never belonged here. It's over run with crime, its so expensive and the illegals over run everything, as I'm sure most of you already know.
We are bascically looking for a more simplistic family oriented, down home sort of place to raise our young family.
My husband works for Key Energy Services (oilfields) and has for 4 years.
From what Ive seen on the company's website, most oil field work is in California, Texas and Oklahoma.
I don't really think that they will transfer him, so I was just curious of any of you knew how easy/hard it is to get an oilfield job in Texas?
What towns would I want to look into living that would be close to the oilfield work with the samll town feel and safety?
How does cost of living in Texas compare to California?
We don't even know where to start, we want to move, but we're not sure how. It's too scary to think he'd just have to save up a couple months rent, quit his job and HOPE to be hired onto an oilfield quickly.
Right now Hubs makes $21 and hr as a "hand" in the oilfields and we live in a 3 bed 2 bath 1200 sqft duplex for $1150 a month, we need a 4 bedroom house with a yard but where we live in Bakersfield CA, we can't afford it.
I've never been to Texas so any more info you might want to share about weather, people, freindliness would be appreciated. Thank you very much!!!

[bgrn198]

I would check out the Houston area there's tons of oil company's based in Houston I can't name all of them I know Conoco is one of them i'm not in the oil industry so i'm not shure how easy/hard is is to get a job in it.

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[jaxart]

Oil field hands need to live where there are wells being drilled or there are producing wells that need servicing by the well servicing companies. That would depend on where in Texas there is the most activity at the present time, and I have no clue on that issue. It could be just about anywhere - but most likely in the Odessa/Midland region.

So others replying might wish to address what they know about current oil and gas well activity, not major oil company activities in other areas.

[IrwinFamily]

Yes, that's what my husband currently does..well servicing.
But I saw on a map that there are tons of oil fields in Texas so there must be a ton of oil field workers, so Im hoping an oilfield worker or someone who knows one will jump on and give me some info. This move is just an idea right now, if we find that there's a good possibility of him getting another oilfield job in a desreable area to rasie a family then we'll be all for it!

[love roses]

One of my brother in laws is in that business. He lives in Dallas, but travels pretty frequently to West Texas and Northwest Texas.

[bgrn198]

My Uncle who lives in San Antonio is in that business he works for Barrett Brothers Oil and Gas in San Antonio I know they drill oil wells. They don't seem to have a website so here's the number might give them a call.

(210) 829-7831

[Cowboys fan in Houston]

I would look at the Midland/Odessa or Lubbock areas. That seems to be where the wells are themselves. If your husband was looking at the working for the oil company in an office job, I would look at Houston. But if he is wanting to work on the rigs themselves, the big Texas cities are pretty much out.

[IrwinFamily]

Thanks LAnative,
He's definatly not going to be working an office job, he works as a derrick hand and hopefully operator soon, on a production rig.
We are looking for more country life than city anyway. I have no idea what prices are like and what we can afford with Texas oilfield wages and Texas rental prices. But we are hoping to be able to rent at least a 3 bedroom nice sized house with either a really large yard or a small bit of land, in a desirable safe location.

[Nomadic9460678748]

Oooooooh!!!! "The Illegals"! Those pesky vermin. I should go to the library and research Ellis Island's hey day to learn if broadsheets and independent papers contained similar tirades against the onslaught of illegals and the degradation of life as "we" know it.

I can't wait until this country is majority-minority.

Maybe you should move to Sweden? It's pretty non-brown there. Or so I've always believed.

[ays4268]

I always wonder when I hear from people like you... do YOU live next door to a house-full (because that's the only way they live) of illegals? And if so, do you mind that the value of your home is plummeting? Has the town you grew up in become totally OVER-RUN with illegals? Have you ever stood in line at the grocery store waiting to pay WITH MONEY YOU EARNED and watched while the illegal woman in front of you with 4-5 small kids and one on the way pays with a Lone Star card (welfare) or in other words WITH MONEY YOU EARNED? Yes, these are just a few of the things I wonder when I hear from hypocrites like you...