Relocating to Texas or Florida? (Houston, Dallas: unemployed, living in, low cost)

[PlumFoolery]

Is Austin Texas pretty much warm all year round? I want to move there primarily for the weather. I've lived in Seattle my whole life and I've just about had enough of the cold

[Heimdall]

I'd go with Florida. Texas sucks!

[cruelkat]

I loved Texas, and I loved Florida, but I lived in Texas, and I only visited Florida... I lived in Fort Worth and some smaller surrounding towns for a few years...when I visited Florida, it was only for a week in Sarasota, then to Ft. Lauderdale...
I've actually never been to the ocean from Texas, but I have from CA and FL... Siesta Key was awesome, if you don't mind a crowd...Ft. Lauderdale was insanely rough...the beach, I mean...beautiful, but not ideal for swimming, imo. Daytona beach was PERFECT, but the neighborhood seemed a little ghetto, and there are half-naked teens running around all over haha...

My cousin lives in Florida and she loves it, but she doesn't care about politics, and she doesn't interact with the other ppl at all. Most of the housing is ideal, there...Most of the average housing, anyway... She and her husband are currently unemployed and have been for a long time, and they are renting waterside house with a pool. A very nice setup, overlooking a very scenic and beautiful large pond.
Texas was great, to me, because of the diversity in cultures and the weather. Although the hail was horrible and could strike at any minute, it seemed, the weather was hot and dry, which, for me, is perfect. I could never handle the humidity I hear of in Florida during the wet season...
Housing was MUCH cheaper in Texas, too, though I can't speak for the whole state.
I've heard many good things about Austin from younger Texans. San Antonio is also a beautiful and diverse town with a lot of culture and attractions.
If I were to move to either state, it would be Texas, and I would try to move close to San Antonio (somewhere where the housing isn't as expensive as San Antonio).

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by PlumFoolery

Is Austin Texas pretty much warm all year round? I want to move there primarily for the weather. I've lived in Seattle my whole life and I've just about had enough of the cold

See the link below for last year's weather in Austin. Note that 2009 was a record hot summer. Normal is a few degrees cooler in the summer. Austin is comfortable year round. Limited number of days per year near or below freezing. Lots of sun. Most days have at least a little breeze.

Weather Station History : Weather Underground

[loves2read]

frankly what is going on in FL right now regarding a legislative effort to revamp the teaching system in FL public schools with "merit pay" standards IF it passes is going to totally disrupt the public schools...
there is lot of hostility and misinformation over what the bill will actually accomplish and the legislators who are pushing it have no clue as to the havor it will cause...
my daughter teaches in FL--she is an excellent teacher--taught here in TX before she moved--and it will likely drive her out of education--such a stupid waste of talent
but there are powerful people in FL (and elsewhere) who want to turn public schools into private corporations--just like they turned much of the Army into private contractors working for companies like Haliburton and Blackwater...and we know there is terrific waste, inefficiency, and law-breaking going on with that
same thing will happen sooner or later in public education if private companies take over...

[TT Dave]

Originally Posted by directimports3

Hi everyone! I have a young family from Wisconsin. Me my wife and one child 9 years old. We are considering moving to a warmer climate and a larger city to have a better selection of jobs and quality of life. We have lived in Wisconsin our whole lives and the winters are really bad. My wife has a bachelors degree in business administration managment, I have a small business as a kitchen exhaust cleaner. ( I clean restaurant hoods). I plan on running a kiosk in the mall. I am a serial entrepreneur. I have done alot of research and I cannot decide on which is the best place for my family, maybe you can assist me. Anything helps. Thanks.

1. Warmer climate I would prefer to take my family out for a bike ride or golfing all year round.

2. Job market - Looking for a city with a wide variety of jobs and a great area to launch a business.

3. Economy - I want a area where the economy is going strong considering I want to launch several businesses.

4. Beach and Lakes - Would love to find an area with great access to beaches and lakes for boating.

5. Crime Rate - I understand the larger the city the larger the crime rate, but I dont want to be scared for my wife to go by herself or my kids as well.

6. Affordability- Being in a decent price range would be a nice asset. Can not afford California or I would choose san jose or san Diego.

7. Family Fun/Couple fun - A place where me and my wife can go out and have fun on the town and my family can have fun on the town.

Thanks for all your help. We have thought and done research on several cities. We have thought about houston, austin, fort worth, tampa st. petersburg area.

If you decide to come to Texas I would say that Houston should be your best bet based on your interests. The beaches are nearby and there's a beautiful lake just north of the city (Lake Conroe) for all kinds of water sports. Even though the economy in Houston has declined somewhat, the last I heard it's still fairly strong compared to the rest of the country. Housing in in the Houston area is also very affordable. Crime could be a factor there, depending on where you live, but if you stay in the nicer areas of the Houston metro you should be fine.

[bgrn198]

I would check out either Austin or San Antonio Austin has 4 area lakes and San Antonio is only 2 or 3 hours from Corpus plus Canyon Lake is close and SA has tons of family stuff to do like Sea World, Six Flags Fiesta Texas,SA Zoo and the Riverwalk both cities have great economies.

Austin
Austin Texas - Events, Austin Hotels & Attractions, Convention Information, Guides, and More - ACVB
GACC | The Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce :: Austin, Texas

San Antonio
San Antonio Texas official vacation and visitor information. San Antonio Convention & Visitors Bureau. :: VisitSanAntonio.com
Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce

[Maddress]

We just moved from Florida to Texas. We are two University students disappointed with massive budget cuts in the educational system.

If you have a child, it is definitely a better idea to move to Texas because their public education system is MUCH, MUCH better. And if your child chooses to remain in state for college/university, the public universities in Texas also have much more to offer and cost less.

As far as climate goes, Florida is always humid and you will have to worry about hurricanes and the insurance requirements they come with. It is very costly on families who wish to own their own home.

Property tax is generally lower in Texas, and cost of living is much cheaper. Groceries cost 25% less in Texas than in Florida.

The economy appears to be better in Texas. If you are working with the restaurant industry, you definitely want to consider Austin. (Supposedly, they have more restaurants per capita than any other city) Houston would be a good place as well, but you will have to deal with the problems of a big city that Austin does not have. Crime in Austin is marginally lower than in Houston.

Texans are SOOOO much nicer than Floridians. I was shocked to meet people so nice and friendly. Not everyone is, but the majority are. I am astonished, for I had lived in Florida all my life and not once known the kindness of people as I have known here.

As someone else stated, the hospitality in Texas is wonderful. Hospitality in Texas is part of their culture, whereas it's an industry in Florida.

Lake Travis in Austin is wonderful. The beach is nice too, but it's not something you're going to do every day and after you do it for a little while it gets old. Beach access in East Coast Florida is difficult to find and the waters of West Coast Florida are murky and questionable much of the time.

[buzzpost]

Texans are some of the friendliest people you will meet anywhere. Here in the DFW area, I've met soooo many nice people, even when standing in line to get a cup of coffee. You're making a wise decision. Oh, and if you relocate to the Austin area, Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels is a MUST.

[Heimdall]

Originally Posted by Maddress

Hospitality in Texas is part of their culture, whereas it's an industry in Florida.

Make no mistake. It's an industry in Texas too. I've noticed living in a few small towns that people don't like outsiders, even if they're from Texas. They will be nice to you and all, but you will realize how fake it is eventually.
The nicest people in Texas I've ever met were usually from somewhere else (often from East Coast).