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what kind of climate and geography do you like? what kind of culture? there are so many places in Texas to choose from and so different. in your industry, you will do well in many places-every big city in Texas is booming and growing. Texas is definitely friendlier than the Carolinas and Southeast. I was stuck in Georgia for 3 years before moving back to Texas last year and i hated it. plus no state income tax here. would love to give you some ideas, but first answer those questions so i can steer you in the right direction.
where in Colorado are ya?
Thanks Belle. Climate wise I was wondering if I might need to stay up the north end. Although the Colorado winters have been very harsh this year I do still like my cooler weather (not freezing...lol). Geography wise I would still like to see/have some hills and forrests to trail ride and camp in! NC was full of friendly people to me (at least where I was from), but Colorado, especially in Denver, people are so rude, obnoxious and not nice at all. They are out for themselves. I keep hearing that Texas takes care of and cares for it's people.
Right now I'm in Brighton, CO...about 25 miles NE of Denver, had to get away from the city limits! Appreciate any help. Thanks.
Just curious, why aren't you going back to North Carolina, the place that truly is
"Gods Country"
1. No more family there. They all moved to Florida...and I am NOT moving there!!
2. Can't afford the move back. Have made several friends through another web-site/chat line that have all offered me places to stay for a while when I figure out what part of TX to be in. Plus, it's all ways been a childhood dream to come out here, so now I'm getting very excited about the fact that I will actually be living in TX soon.
There is NOTHING wrong with NC!! It is a beautiful state, I still love it and it will always be home. Will visit and vacation often, but will never go back to "live" there. Too many bad memories. Trying to make a new life for myself on my own. And I will succeed!
well from what you want, West Texas and Panhandle are ruled out for sure. if you really want heavily forested areas, then you have to pick East Texas. i dont know much at all about East Texas, and just wouldnt want to live there-too many skeeters, humidity, rain, gators-all the things i hated about Georgia, plus i like to see the horizon unobstructed by freakin trees.
so if you dont mind all of the above, look at East Texas. you will find friendly people all over Texas, without a doubt.
but i personally think you would really like some rural areas in the Hill Country, maybe an hour north or west of San Antonio...but its not HEAVILY forested with tall trees, but is very green and has lots of trees, though the trees are short-oak, mesquite etc...
Quote:
Originally Posted by nccntrygrl
Thanks Belle. Climate wise I was wondering if I might need to stay up the north end. Although the Colorado winters have been very harsh this year I do still like my cooler weather (not freezing...lol). Geography wise I would still like to see/have some hills and forrests to trail ride and camp in! NC was full of friendly people to me (at least where I was from), but Colorado, especially in Denver, people are so rude, obnoxious and not nice at all. They are out for themselves. I keep hearing that Texas takes care of and cares for it's people.
Right now I'm in Brighton, CO...about 25 miles NE of Denver, had to get away from the city limits! Appreciate any help. Thanks.
Being from NC some years ago, I was particularly struct by your situation. I've been in Houston for longer than I would like to remember and have spent some time in Colorado hiking in RMNP. I love Colorado in the summer when it sizzles in Houston. I've spent time in Breckinridge, Grand Lake, and Durango but I wouldn't want to live there in the winter! I hope that some of the discussion below will help. Sorry for the length, but there was a lot to say which would, perhaps, flavor some of your expectations.
The first thing is that Texas is no NC, geographicly or temperature wise. Average July high temperatures in most of areas of Texas that you might be interest in will be at or above 94 degrees. Also, it will average above 90 degrees for about 3 months in the summer. Compare this to central NC where you have the average high temperature of less than 90 degrees in July. So you have to decide whether that is going be acceptable even to try out if you wish.
Secondly, the trees, in general, are not like the trees in NC in that they are not as large and because of the climate, Texas does get the dramatic color change for which NC and other southeastern states are known. I certainly am not saying that Texas doesn't have any beautiful trees, it does, but it is just a different feel. This is particularly true of the Texas Hill country where it is dominated by the cedars and scrubier oaks because, I suppose, of the lack of rainfall and the limestone base. As you have already been told, east Texas comes closer to being similar to NC than other areas of Texas. (My brother lives in east Texas and when I go up there I just take my gator stick along to beat off the gators that grab my legs; mosquitos are everywhere in the US...I've been attacked in RMNP, in the Hill Country, in Nacogdoches, in Raleigh, in DC, and they find me a good treat here in Houston as well.)
People?, I don't know, I seem to find people pretty much the same wherever I have traveled. If you don't like an area, it is pretty easy to find fault with almost everything there. I think that the people in different regions have their own quirks, but you just have to adapt somewhat wherever you go. I believe that you would find it very comfortable here in Texas if that is where you chose. If they are truly intolerant to your way of life, then you might just have to leave them to their misery. There is one common thread though; if you put a person behind the wheel of an SUV, then they almost always drive like an idiot in any region.
The Hill Country has its own particular beauty. I have had a number of great cycling and hiking trips out in the Hill Country. The vegetation has a unique look which a lot of people love and the rivers and streams are generally crystal clear because of the limestone base. There's lots of ranches out there and lots of cattle guards which aren't particularly cycling friendly. If you've hiked in RMNP, then you will be very disappointed in the Hill Country hiking. Of course, there's almost nothing that compares with the grandeur of the Rockies. I like it all though.
The difficulty that I see you having is locating where there is construction activity. This generally means larger cities not necessarily near the locations that I have talked about....need the lotery!
Other options: Not too far from here is the state of Arkansas(Here's where Texans get the rope). It is much more like NC than any other in this southern region. It does suffer a little from the same temperature problems, but it has beautiful trees,lots of land, some mountains, lots of parks(great website), and outstanding fall foliage. You would probably feel very at home there. I have no idea about the job opportunities....just a different thought for you.
Hello Texans! I am presently in Colorado, moved there 2 years ago from NC for all the wrong reasons. Time to relocate and for the right reason this time...me! I've been told that Texas is the true "God's Country" and the closest I will come to finding the "southern hospitality" that I miss from back home. Is this true? I work in the home building industry (Project Admin). Any suggestions as to the best city with booming housing industry? I can work in the city career wise, but most definitly need to stay living in the country. Looking for a rental where I can have my horse, dog and cat. Maybe even rental property near barn/farm/ranch where I can help with chores to work to lower/trade for rent. Any insight, suggestions, direction would be apprciated. Thanks.
Happy Trails and God Bless!
NC
I would suggest the area east of Austin near Bastrop. Nice tall trees and country living. Heck, there's even a pine forest out there! We just bought a lot in the nearby town of Elgin. These communities are about 20 minutes east of Austin... They are also within an afternoon drive to just about anywhere in Texas... San Antonio is an hour away, Dallas a few hours north, Waco and Killeen about an hour away, and Houston is a few hours southeast.
I intended to just give a flavor of the NC/Texas differences and not comment on specific towns since there is an abundance of messages about the various little towns and of larger ones like Austin. However, I do concur with the idea of the Bastrop area. It is one of my favorite places given that its near Austin, has a river running through it, and borders the Bastop State Park which also connects by a hilly road through the pines with Beuscher State Park. It's one of my favorite bike rides which I did just a week ago. Besides camping, the connected parks also present an opportunity for a 12 mile hike between the parks. A little more downscale, Round Top(not Round Rock) and Fayetteville are also cute little towns with some restaurants and facilities, but would be a bit more of a drive if you had to go into Austin for work. The terrain in this area is rolling hills and there is an annual bike ride called the "Texas Hill Hopper". It has a similar look as you would see in the countryside outside of Raleigh. Also, there are freakin' horses all over the place.
Have been reading this thread while I was browsing cities across the nation. We spent 30 years in Houston but I'm from MA and my husband from NC. We've traveled to Raleigh once/year forever to visit family there and know how gorgeous NC is....all over. We also spent 5 years in OH. To the person looking for trees and hills similar to NC, then East Texas is your place. Lufkin is a growing pretty fast and Nacogdoches a little slower. Stephen F. Austin (SFA) University is in Nacogdoches which is 30 miles north of Lufkin. East TX is the only area where there are dogwood trees. There are wild redbud and dogwood here....if the idiots who make money off timber and mall development don't cut them all down. Housing development still seems strong in this area despite the higher interest rates, but if your looking for high paying jobs in the construction industry, then you'll probably need to live near the big city....Houston, which grows constantly and new buildings of all types spring up daily, Austin, San Antonio, Corpus, Dallas area. If it's woods, small town atmosphere, a place to have horses, dogs, and cats, then look into the area around Lufkin/Nacogdoches. We knew we wanted to return to TX from OH, especially after paying their sky high state income taxes for 5 years. Retiring to Lufkin/Nacogdoches area wasn't in our plans...it was accidental. But everytime we drive down to Houston (3 hours), we decide we can't stand the traffic and how ugly it is. I-45 is nothing but one long strip mall on both sides of the freeway from Galveston through Houston all the way to Conroe (Conroe used to be in the country). From Houston, you take Hwy 59 to E. TX and once out of Kingwood, it's a country drive and more pleasant than I-45. If only TX would protect the woods along this road. No future planning in TX to protect the woods, although there are 3 national forests in E. TX. If you need major shopping areas, then this area isn't a good idea, unless you like Tyler, further north. We have 3 acres of woods around our house yet we are 3 miles from the hospital, Super Walmart, restaurants, and the university....which by the way has a lovely Arboretum and Azalea Garden (Texas' best kept secret). Dr. Creech, head of it, did some study at NC State and is trying to fashion it after the NC State Arboretum. It has the largest number of Japanese maples I believe I've ever seen, especially in TX. We are in planting zone 8, Houston's is 9. It's definitely a different climate here than Houston. We may get as hot in summer, but we don't have the humidity that Houston has. Most of my friends in Houston refer to Houston as Humidiston. Our nights are definitely cooler in winter. I never realized when we lived in Houston that they actually have a winter in E. TX. But it's cold enough to use a chiminea on your patio evenings and mornings. We can actually sit on our patio and drink coffee in the mornings here in spring, summer and fall where in Houston it was always so darned humid that you didn't want to be outside your air conditioned home or car. So, far we like this climate so much better than Houston's. I don't think most Texans outside this area realize the enormous number of red maples here. They have the largest red flowers in spring that I've ever seen anywhere. My yard has many winged elm, red maple, 15 dogwood, redbud, oak of all sorts. There are wild crabapple, also hawthorne that bloom in spring, also saucer magnolia. Daffodils bloom here whereas in Houston, I hardly ever saw any. SFA plants tulips but you cannot leave the bulbs in the ground here and expect them to bloom as they do in NC or the north. There's also wild Carolina jasmine and much more. The only pain are armadillos! We have a Belk's but it's probably not as big as most, so the shopping here is lacking but Tyler is a little over an hour away and the drive through the countryside is almost refreshing. All of Texas is very different and another area that's a must see is Lost Maples and Garner State Park. My friends in Austin are sick of the traffic as well as the skyrocketing costs to live there. I would say that E. TX is still one of the few places left in TX where you can buy a house with acreage whereas if you're buying a house in Houston, the size of the lot will be quoted in sq. ft. I can't say that good paying jobs are as abundant here as in Houston though. I think the largest employers here may be Tyson or Pilgrim's Pride chicken, the two hospitals, and the university. The highest paying jobs will be in Houston, Dallas, etc. There's also the Forest Service, Social Security with offices here. Driving around town is a piece of cake; no congestion. Why some large high tech company hasn't discovered this area for an office is beyond me. As a drive around the area, it almost looks like the foothills of the NC mountains; I would compare it to the area around Pilot Mountain. After living in Nacogdoches for 2+ years, I almost hate going down to Houston and only do so to visit friends or if we have to go to the Medical Center. Houston has a great Medical Center so if you want to be closer, you could check out Conroe. Just north of Conroe might be an option and Conroe is development so fast that it looks like a part of Houston. Hope this helps.
You and i should switch places! I live in the Mcallen area of texas (Rio Grande valley) and i'm planning to move to pueblo or Canon City, Co. The housing is booming down here and culture is great. i wouldn't leave thism place, but for one thing. WEATHER! I can't stand the hot summers, spring, fall. Winters are nice and cool and sometimes cold only with arctic fronts. If you come down here you'll be losing the 4 seasons.
sugar land and austin have booming housing industry. sugar land is the 3rd best place to live according to cnn money. I personally love sugar land. Austin is really pretty. Tx will be different than CO. no more snow capped mountains.
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They are out for themselves. I keep hearing that Texas takes care of and cares for it's people.
Some thoughts on Texas and NC
