Pros vs. Cons of TX cities (Houston, Dallas: transplants, real estate, insurance)
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Every city in Texas has good qualities. Along with those, there are bad qualities. People on this forum who are moving here ask what they need to look out for, if this city has this or that, if the city a high crime rate or whatever. I'll clear some of that up with the good, bad, and in betweens in the 6 largest cities in Texas.
Houston
Good: The city has everything any city could want. Close to the beach. Big beautiful skyline, Rice University, great place for starting a music carrer, great for hosting major sporting events .
Bad: Traffic is terrible, Floods, mosquitoes, hurricaines, smog and gangs (imagine Los Angeles with no mountains and people with Texas accents... you get Houston).
In between: good place for rap music, its proximity to the nastiest looking beach in the world, oil-lots and lots of oil.
San Antonio
Good: strong Latin culture,very festive city, the Alamo and its fame, the river walk, great place to hold sporting events
Bad: big city but dosen't feel as...let's say..."advanced" as Houston or Dallas
In between: none, really. Although some say thier highway system isn't that good and their skyscrapers are smaller than ours (Ft. Worth).
Dallas
Good: Great place for business, along with Ft. Worth and Arlington makes one of the best sports areas in America and has one of the biggest busiest airports on earth , beautiful and recognizable skyline, glamourous city with plenty of shops, and is a very artsy cultural city.
Bad: City leadership spends more time arguing instead of fixing the city, Mayor Laura Miller, crime, more bad neighborhoods than good, city dosen't feel as friendly as other Texas cities, bad traffic.
In between: the Cowboys, most of the Dallas movie won't be fillmed there (that sucks).
Austin
Good: artsy city, great college town (Hook 'em!!!), one of the safest cities in America.
Bad: none that I really know of
In between: no Pro sports (but apparently that's o.k.). Oh, wait, they have that Arena Football team (really,who cares?).
Fort Worth
Good: Friendly down home atmosphere, one of the safest cities in America, cleaner than Dallas, plenty of land and not over crowded, in a great sports area, Downtown's Sundance Square, the Armed Forces Bowl, great mayor, great police force, and great city leadership.
Bad: the most over shadowed city in the country, small underdeveloped skyline, for those who don't like the small town feel-this city isn't for you.
In between: Texas Motor Speedway (it's not the track itself, it's the the traffic), big city that doesn't feel very big, they film Cops here so much, their might as well be a spin-off called "Funkytown Cops" or "F.W. Law"
El Paso
Good: uh....uhmm.... people don't complain about the city much, and... it's got a great mountain setting and...I'm sure it's a great place to live
Bad: well....the city is like 600 miles away from the other major cities in Texas and... ok, I really don't know much about El Paso, but the city is so far away from the rest of us it feels like E.P. is in New Mexico or something. Sorry El Paso forumers. I'm sure you could get in on this.
In between: ??????????????????
Location: The land of sugar... previously Houston and Austin
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Houston
Good: The city has everything any city could want. Close to the beach. Big beautiful skyline, Rice University, great place for starting a music carrer, great for hosting major sporting events .
Bad: Traffic is terrible, Floods, mosquitoes, hurricaines, smog and gangs (imagine Los Angeles with no mountains and people with Texas accents... you get Houston).
In between: good place for rap music, its proximity to the nastiest looking beach in the world, oil-lots and lots of oil.
Smog and gang problem is not nearly as bad as in L.A. I would never compare the two.
I don't think Galveston is that bad, unless you're speaking of another beach.
Also there's a lot more than oil -- that's less than half the economy now. It's a great city for jobs, especially for people in the medical field, biotech, engineering, finance.
Austin
Good: artsy city, great college town (Hook 'em!!!), one of the safest cities in America.
Bad: none that I really know of
In between: no Pro sports (but apparently that's o.k.). Oh, wait, they have that Arena Football team (really,who cares?).
Bad: traffic is horrible for a city of its size, and most entertainment revolves around the college scene.
Hey, I like your reviews. I was wondering if you have a review on Corpus Christi?
The reason Corpus Christi isn't in this list is because it isn't one of the top 6 largest cities in Texas. I was there for three days and I could probably name one good thing about it but that's it.
Thanks for the complement on my reviews, though.
I also liked your reviews and am wondering if you can review some other places too (in Texas or outside of Texas). I live in Sacramento, CA and can't wait to move, but need some help deciding on a place. I am a starving graduate student, so I can't visit all of these places (actually I can't visit any of them for awhile) so your help, and/or anyone's help who has lived in Texas and/or other states would be much appreciated.
If this helps, this is what I think I am looking for: lower housing costs (they don't have to be rockbottom, just better than Cali), a picturesque landscape, things to do, great places to eat, nice people, a cool downtown, and jobs---also, the hubby hates very humid places (so I think Houston is out??).
I also liked your reviews and am wondering if you can review some other places too (in Texas or outside of Texas). I live in Sacramento, CA and can't wait to move, but need some help deciding on a place. I am a starving graduate student, so I can't visit all of these places (actually I can't visit any of them for awhile) so your help, and/or anyone's help who has lived in Texas and/or other states would be much appreciated.
If this helps, this is what I think I am looking for: lower housing costs (they don't have to be rockbottom, just better than Cali), a picturesque landscape, things to do, great places to eat, nice people, a cool downtown, and jobs---also, the hubby hates very humid places (so I think Houston is out??).
Thanks!
Are you wanting to stay in an area that is similiar to where you are in the Sac area? I've visited Sac and can say you probably can find some areas that would give you some of what you have there - minus the high cost of living. I'll say this though and maybe I am wrong, I noticed that Sac is not a huge town for walkers and bike riders? It also seems to be somewhat similiar to most cities in Texas in that not many people live in the downtown areas. There are a few spots like we have in Dallas but not large areas of residential living close in. I'd almost bet that there are more places to live in urban areas in the cities in Texas than what I saw in Sac. Are you wanting an urban area or do you want suburbs? Are your professions going to be somewhat limited in some areas or can you pretty much find a job in any large city? Knowing some of your interests might help too in finding out what cities to concentrate on to choose from: sports, outdoor activites, fine arts, casual-laid back, more trendy or a mix of both, higher education opps if you wanted to pursue a Masters.........?
Good: liberal and tolerant, gorgeous landscape, lots of outdoor recreation (spring-fed streams, mountain biking, etc.), one of the safest cities in America, one of the most highly-educated cities in America, very green, low pollution, strong tech industry, good universities, music scene, lots of "mom and pop" stores, diverse neighborhoods, lively downtown with lots of residential development, and an overall great quality of life.
Bad: Housing costs among the highest in the state, under performing public schools in the city, horrendous traffic, relentless heat in the summer, you have to use a pick-axe to plant a tree in your yard (seriously), and the housing boom/over development is threatening water quality and natural areas.
In between: As mentioned above, the entertainment is geared toward the younger crowd and we are lacking in some big-city amenities. I think this will change in the future as Austin realizes that it is not a small city anymore. We also have no pro-sports but I don't think anyone really cares.
I just listed the basics, but here are some more points....
The DFW area, I believe, is the most expensive area to live in Texas, but the cost of living is cheap, so other cities in Texas are even cheaper to live in.
Downtown entertainment specialties: Houston has Buffalo Bayou, Dallas has the WestEnd, San Antonio has the River Walk and Alamo, Austin has 6th Street, Fort Worth has Sundance Square, and (like I said) I don't know much about El Paso so if your thinking of moving there, I couldn't tell you what to watch out for.
Safest Texas Cities: Austin, Ft. Worth, San Antonio
Most Dangerous Cities: Houston, Dallas
Scale of College atmosphere from 1 to 10:
Houston (U of H/Rice): 5
Dallas (SMU): 4
San Antonio (UTSA): 2
Austin (Texas): 10 (you saw that coming, didn't you?)
Fort Worth (TCU): 4
El Paso: (UTEP): (probably) 6
That's all for now...
Let me know if I'm missing something.
Are you wanting to stay in an area that is similiar to where you are in the Sac area? I've visited Sac and can say you probably can find some areas that would give you some of what you have there - minus the high cost of living. I'll say this though and maybe I am wrong, I noticed that Sac is not a huge town for walkers and bike riders? It also seems to be somewhat similiar to most cities in Texas in that not many people live in the downtown areas. There are a few spots like we have in Dallas but not large areas of residential living close in. I'd almost bet that there are more places to live in urban areas in the cities in Texas than what I saw in Sac. Are you wanting an urban area or do you want suburbs? Are your professions going to be somewhat limited in some areas or can you pretty much find a job in any large city? Knowing some of your interests might help too in finding out what cities to concentrate on to choose from: sports, outdoor activites, fine arts, casual-laid back, more trendy or a mix of both, higher education opps if you wanted to pursue a Masters.........?
Honestly, I don't really know what I want, but I am pretty sure I want a place that at least looks different than Sac (as well as less expensive). (Your observations about this town are very accurate by the way).
I think I want to live in a more urban setting. I will have to be close to community colleges as I will be teaching college English. I am working on the Masters now (which is why I haven't moved yet), and although I am not planning on getting a doctorate, you never know. My husband will be an ultrasound tech. As far as interests are concerned...I like to travel, to eat out, to be downtown. I would love a more walkable/bikable city. We are passed the whole going out, partying club scene now, but maybe some classy bars with an older age group would be nice (late 20s plus). The hubby is really into sports, and we are fans of the Spurs... what are your suggestions? Also, no kids yet, but would like to have some in a couple of years, so that's a consideration. I think it would be fun to live downtown in a loft type thing for a year (before the kids) and move somewhere a bit out of town, maybe in the hills but still close to the action (with friendly neighbors). I suppose I want it all...
Can you give me any information about the Rockport area? Can find very little on this board about it and haven't gotten any response to the question I posted.
I know the town itself is small, but what is the approximate population of that area of several towns? Are there alot of retirees, 2nd home owners, true locals, or transplants?
One statement that I have read here is Rockport is "upscale" compared to some of the other area towns. Alot of the real estate that I have found online seems to be affordable especially compared to other coastal areas.
Some of the pics of houses that I have seen though seem to be built up somewhat.............is it for the view or for the flooding?
Do you have any idea if the home insurance there is as whacked out as it seems to be in Florida?
Also, is there any predominant industry around there? Is there shopping, entertainment, cultural events.
Sorry for so many questions, but I just can't seem to find out anything about this area or get any type of feel for it. Thank you for anything that you can tell me about it or anyone else that might help me out on this....................................thanks!!
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