Retiring to Texas Prairie/Lakes or West Texas (Houston, Dallas: house, to buy)

[RoadkingCHP]

I am new to the forum, thanks to everyone for so much useful information.

My family and I are considering a move to Texas in the next year or two after retirement. We have sort of narrowed it down to the prairie and lakes area or west Texas (using the travel guides regional descriptions). Our goal is to buy 10-20 or so acres and continue to raise our now 10 year old son. Being in decent health but of retiring age we don't want to be too far away from quality medical services and we hope to find good schools for our son. We plan on farming and once again having some horses. We currently live in northern California and enjoy the small town atmosphere, just tired of the California politics and the cost of living. We enjoy boating, motorcycling and hiking/sight seeing. I understand the humid climate and have visited Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Missouri. It is commonly 100-118 degrees here between June-Aug.

Can anyone suggest locations that may fit our situation. We plan to visit over the next year or two to better understand the different areas. I have lived in Northern CA all of my live with a few years spent in various cities in southern CA due to my job with the state. I have survived a few earthquakes and lots of fires but have no experience with hurricanes or tornadoes, are these common in this area of Texas? Also, we seem to hear about flash flooding in certain areas of Texas. Any advice?

Thanks in advance,

Matt

[ChristieP]

You need to look into east Texas if you want to farm. West Texas and the north central region are currently in a major drought, water is very scarce, and hay prices are through the roof. East Texas, fortunately, isn't in nearly as much of a drought, and is a much better place for horses, too.

Don't worry about hurricanes unless you are in Houston, Corpus Christi, or another coastal city. Texas is almost always on the west, or dry side, of a hurricane, so we get wind and very little rain. Even Katrina gave us hardly any rain.

Tornadoes are also quite uncommon. Sure, there are a few annually, but they are not usually large, and do relatively little damage. The states of Oklahoma and Kansas have many more, and many larger, tornadoes than we do in Texas.

[RoadkingCHP]

Thank you! I have begun my searches in the Tyler area with a wide radius. Seems like a good place to start.

[Mark Senior]

Yep, Tyler is a good start and maybe finish, lol. 1 1/2 hours to Dallas, THE medical center of East Texas, about three hours to the mountains of SE Oklahoma and not far from the Ozarks. Small towns around Tyler should work for you, 6 private schools in Tyler. Best of Luck to you and welcome !

[Westerntraveler]

.Abilene has excellent medical care and one of the best school districts in that area is Wylie.You could always hike at the state parks and drive to Nasworthy in San Angelo to do some boating.If you wind up in San Angelo, be sure your house is zoned to Central High if your in San Angelo ISD.San Angelo has good healthcare too.Budget?Abilene and San Angelo are both good towns.

[Restrain]

You might also consider the Nacogdoches area. Good land, good medical and an easy drive to Houston. Lots of lakes, reasonably priced land, and not in the drought area.

[RoadkingCHP]

Continued thanks for the replies. Schools are also a major selling point, both high school and college. Can't wait to visit. My wife likes the Temple/Belton area from what she has initially read. So many places to check out, but I do have some time.

[Restrain]

Temple is hill country, much dryer than east Texas. You also have a lot of the land eaten up by the military base. Also, demand is strong as a lot of military retire in the area.

[ChristieP]

No way would I pick Temple/Belton over east Texas. If for no other reason, east Texas is a lot prettier. I personally like the trees and green a lot more than the terrain in central Texas. The Temple/Belton area does get some really strong storms, including tornadoes. It's much more on huge center of tornado alley than east Texas is. There is also eh issue of overall socioeconomics...let's just say that there is a lot of poverty in Central Texas...much more than in most of East Texas. You will also find much better public schools in east Texas, and a lot more colleges to choose from.

[RoadkingCHP]

Great to know, thank you.