Dallas Or Houston? Single Mom from Ohio needs help (San Antonio: 2015, houses)

[cBach]

Houston

[NoClueWho]

Originally Posted by lipbalm

You are making decision to move based on what CNN said ? Wow. Dallas or Houston will probably shock you just how expensive it is compared to where you have lived. When others say the major Texas cities are cheap they are coming either from the left coast or east cost. Both are super expensive areas of the country.

Right!!! For example, Austin was just named the best city in America to live in by one major publication or news outlet, but that's disingenuous and ridiculous, considering how expensive Austin is to live in. Dallas is not too far behind now as far as being expensive to live in, and Houston's COL will skyrocket next. CNN and all these other websites, outlets, and publications are going to have a lot of folks moving to Texas and living in the hood or under bridges, worse off than they were in the states they were trying to escape.

[walker1962]

Originally Posted by Tex Luthor

Very true, but as quickly as the cost of living has risen and is STILL skyrocketing in the Dallas area, what difference would Dallas having more nice suburbs with good schools make, if the average middle class person or middle class family (not UPPER middle class) can't---or soon won't be able to---afford to live in those suburbs anyway? Dallas/DFW is getting RIDICULOUS (especially with the housing and rent prices), and is on pace to catch up to and even surpass Austin's overpriced COL.

I'm not trying to be confrontational by pointing that out, but that is VERY important information that should not be omitted when discussing a life changing decision such as a move, especially considering she is a single mom. Heck, even the cost of DAY CARE has gotten ridiculous in the Dallas area. It's just significantly more expensive to live in Dallas/DFW than Houston these days, and the gap is quickly growing wider.



...and this is EXACTLY why Dallas has gotten noticeably more expensive than Houston so quickly. Having a bunch of foreign born residents from typically poorer countries doesn't drive the cost of living in a place up much. But having more US born residents (and companies) relocating in droves from much higher cost of living areas like California and the Northeast sure as heck will jack up the cost of living quicker than you can blink, though, which is exactly what's happening in Dallas/DFW. People trying to decide between Dallas and Houston for relocation need to be made aware of this, especially middle class folks, because they are the ones who are getting priced out.

This is some SERIOUS hype! Look at the median home price and median family incomes of BOTH areas and not some of what THIS guys says! Houston was BOOMING for a good while due to Energy companies going crazy with hiring due to rising prices. Houston also had a influx of people due to Katrina. Houston's rate of growth has slowed due to falling energy but again it's not all about the energy industry. Medical and import/export are very prominent drivers of growth in Houston.


Second, understand Dallas is just not Dallas and Plano to the north. The highest home prices are north Dallas, Plano/Collin County and some north central suburbs. Depending on where you find work, you can find more affordable housing. A fair number of black residents call Arlington home. Tarrant county tends to be less expensive too than Dallas/Collin.


Austin COL has grown fast and compared to Alabama, all big cities in Texas (outside of El Paso) are more costly than Alabama but the pay and quality of life is better. I know because I lived in Birmingham in the late 1990s and have family in that state. Visit Dallas/FW and Houston. Cowboys fan in Houston made some excellent observations about demographics. I have family in both metro areas.
The great thing about Texas which really can find in only a handful of states are multiple diverse big progressive cities. Most states, like Georgia, or Colorado have only one big area to consider. Hell, you might find move to one then spend time in another and decide to move again.

[walker1962]

Originally Posted by agreen9189

Thank you so much for this info. Alot to think about, I definitely want to be able to afford my move and afford to live comfortably as well. I'm shocked you stated that Austin is overpriced, that was another option I was thinking of after reading that it was one of the top up and coming cities on CNN

Depends on where you are in Austin. The east and south sides are more affordable. Again, its all relative. Austin was dirt cheap 15-20 years ago. You want overpriced. check out anyplace on the west coast, Denver, southeast Florida and the eastern seaboard from D.C. to Boston. THAT's overpriced Example, just last week the median home price in Seattle hit $813,000. A year ago, it was $700K. Twelve years ago, a family member of mine sold her 50 year old, 1,000 square foot, clapboard house in a lower middle class neighborhood in Seattle for $275,000! THAT's overpriced!

[NoClueWho]

^ LOL, okay. OP, you can listen to CNN and a couple of boosters on City-Data if you want. They won't help you pay your rent or any of your other bills when you move down here and realize that it's way more expensive in real life than you were lead to believe over the internet.

[RJ312]

Originally Posted by Tex Luthor

...and this is EXACTLY why Dallas has gotten noticeably more expensive than Houston so quickly. Having a bunch of foreign born residents from typically poorer countries doesn't drive the cost of living in a place up much. But having more US born residents (and companies) relocating in droves from much higher cost of living areas like California and the Northeast sure as heck will jack up the cost of living quicker than you can blink, though, which is exactly what's happening in Dallas/DFW. People trying to decide between Dallas and Houston for relocation need to be made aware of this, especially middle class folks, because they are the ones who are getting priced out.

The Dallas metro area is bringing in East/South Asians in droves, primarily Chinese and Indians. Collin County is now 17% Asian. So your idea that Dallas transplants are more from other parts of the United States isn't entirely accurate.

To the OP's question: I think Houston is the better fit, and I live in Dallas.

[Jeohnny]

Honestly you can't go wrong with either one. To me they are more similar than different, but that's just my opinion. Coming from Cali , the AA experience is far superior in dallas and Houston than in the la area where I'm from. People tend to usually say dallas lacks in AA culture,but that's simply not true. It may not be as "noticeable" as in other cities, but trust me it's here.

[agreen9189]

Originally Posted by Tex Luthor

Very true, but as quickly as the cost of living has risen and is STILL skyrocketing in the Dallas area, what difference would Dallas having more nice suburbs with good schools make, if the average middle class person or middle class family (not UPPER middle class) can't---or soon won't be able to---afford to live in those suburbs anyway? Dallas/DFW is getting RIDICULOUS (especially with the housing and rent prices), and is on pace to catch up to and even surpass Austin's overpriced COL.

I'm not trying to be confrontational by pointing that out, but that is VERY important information that should not be omitted when discussing a life changing decision such as a move, especially considering she is a single mom. Heck, even the cost of DAY CARE has gotten ridiculous in the Dallas area. It's just significantly more expensive to live in Dallas/DFW than Houston these days, and the gap is quickly growing wider.



...and this is EXACTLY why Dallas has gotten noticeably more expensive than Houston so quickly. Having a bunch of foreign born residents from typically poorer countries doesn't drive the cost of living in a place up much. But having more US born residents (and companies) relocating in droves from much higher cost of living areas like California and the Northeast sure as heck will jack up the cost of living quicker than you can blink, though, which is exactly what's happening in Dallas/DFW. People trying to decide between Dallas and Houston for relocation need to be made aware of this, especially middle class folks, because they are the ones who are getting priced out.

Originally Posted by lipbalm

You are making decision to move based on what CNN said ? Wow. Dallas or Houston will probably shock you just how expensive it is compared to where you have lived. When others say the major Texas cities are cheap they are coming either from the left coast or east cost. Both are super expensive areas of the country.

umm NO... I was just quoting a source maam

[agreen9189]

Originally Posted by Tex Luthor

Right!!! For example, Austin was just named the best city in America to live in by one major publication or news outlet, but that's disingenuous and ridiculous, considering how expensive Austin is to live in. Dallas is not too far behind now as far as being expensive to live in, and Houston's COL will skyrocket next. CNN and all these other websites, outlets, and publications are going to have a lot of folks moving to Texas and living in the hood or under bridges, worse off than they were in the states they were trying to escape.

FOR THE RECORD....I wanted to move to Texas before ANY publication REGARDLESS if it praised all of Texas OR didnt mention it at all. I just wanted to know from people that are actually LIVING in Texas, what cities are promising for a newcomer. The only reason I mentioned the article is because of what I have seen in regards to Austin, but by all means Im way smarter than to just to base my life off of one publication.

[agreen9189]

Originally Posted by Jeohnny

Honestly you can't go wrong with either one. To me they are more similar than different, but that's just my opinion. Coming from Cali , the AA experience is far superior in dallas and Houston than in the la area where I'm from. People tend to usually say dallas lacks in AA culture,but that's simply not true. It may not be as "noticeable" as in other cities, but trust me it's here.

Thanks Im visiting both cities sometime this year