Where is a good place to live in TEXAS?

Question

i'm thinking of packing up my two young kids and moving from california to a place where the cost of living is cheaper. i'm thinking about texas but i'm not sure where. i wouldn't want to move into a place with flooding or tornados or anything. any suggestions?

Answer 1

I've lived in Wichita Falls, Lubbock, and Houston and have spent weeks in Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio. If you're wondering about weather, Wichita Falls, Lubbock, Amarillo, Dallas, and Fort Worth have all had tornadoes in their areas relatively recently. Houston gets hit with hurricanes since it's on the coast, but I wouldn't be too worried. Houston is huge, and there are more than enough places that aren't prone to flooding. The weather gets hot in the summer in every Texas city, but Houston gets really humid, so it's worse. Wichita Falls, Amarillo, and Lubbock get snow more often than any other cities. The Bible Belt runs through Texas, so there are some pretty conservative cities and areas. West Texas is really dry and gets some pretty nasty dust storms going (ever see brown snow?). From my experience, Lubbock has some of the cheapest cost of living. Austin is the most expensive. There is obviously a lot more to do in Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, or Houston.

I recently read an article from someone that moved from San Diego or Los Angeles to Kingwood (close to Houston), and he said the cost of living, when all is said and done, is about the same per month. He sold a 1700 sq. ft. house in CA for $200,000 more than he bought a 2200 sq. ft. house in Kingwood for. Other than that, TX gas is cheaper, car registration in cheaper (I guess that was important enough to say in his article), tax on groceries is the same, house insurance is more expensive, no income tax in TX, house tax is more expensive, and you'll have to run your a/c in the summer a LOT, so that'll obviously be more expensive.

I hope this can help you be a little more informed.

Answer 2

I have lived in Texas for 34 years but, I currently live in Conroe (about 40 miles north of Houston). It is great because you are far enough away from the coast that the hurricanes are usually not very strong by the time they get here and tornados are mostly up in north Texas, although we do get a few. It is about a 2.5 hour drive to Galveston (yucky water but still a very popular place to visit). Conroe has a recreational lake and lots to do for kids in the area. The Woodlands is also a very nice community. Go to www.har.com for a list of everything on the MLS. Choose Conroe ISD and that will bring you to the general area that I am talking about. I will be taking my exam to become a realtor at the end of this month. So give me an e-mail and I can help you with your house hunt.

Answer 3

I have spent a lot of time in all of these cities. I have a clearcut idea of each. All have their parks, nightlife, and similar weather in comparison to cities outside of Texas. Dallas is a little colder, Austin and San Antonio a little drier, Houston more humidity. Traffic bad in all 4 cities. Austin is the worst, Houston is second-worst. Dallas is third, and San Antonio is fourth. If you REALLY hate traffic then choose where you live wisely. You can avoid traffic in all four cities. 1. Austin. If you have a choice, this should be #1 in nearly any category you ask about. The nightlife is amazing. Yes, there are drunk kids on 6th street. There are also a plethora of 4-star restaurants on 4th street, a mere two blocks away. The nightlife is possibly better in Austin than any city I have been to (and I am getting a PhD in Tourism). Not matter what your style of nightlife, Austin is the place. Staying in shape, walkability, biking, activities - Austin's #1. The river is beautiful. Lakes Austin, Travis, and LBJ are beautiful as well. The North side of the city has some cheaper housing. The south side does as well. It is closer to San Antonio and San Marcos, a cool college town. 2. Houston - This is a city that stinks to live in unless you know where to go. They have random red and blue doors housing amazing bars. Houses that turn into clubs one night a month. Odd nightlife for mainstream culture. Still, there are some great areas. I love midtown and the Rice Village. If you want to get your "Ghetto" on then there is Westheimer outside of 610. Downtown has some great happy hour places. Memorial Park is beautiful. So is Allen Parkway. Both have little traffic and offer great places to jog, run into friends, and have fun playing frisbee golf. it is very different from Cali overall, but you can fit in just fine if you find the right places and people. The Galleria mall is one of the greatest shopping locations on earth - better than Toronto's Eaton Center, Rio's Copacabana, or Beverly Hills (unless you care more about the celebs than the shopping). 3. Dallas - I prefer San Antonio, but a Cali girl would like Dallas more. It has its trendy areas, but I think Dallas is just trying too hard. Downtown is not the best place to go unless there is a particular function going on. My favorite place to go in Dallas is Mockingbird Lane area near Southern Methodist University (SMU). I have always liked Cafe Brazil (coffee, soups, sandwiches) and Cuba Libre (nicer night out, still trendy/younger/hip crowd). I could list a bunch more of good places, but these are my two favorites. Mockingbird Lane is walkable and there are a lot of other good places you can stop in for a drink and such. 4. San Antonio has the Riverwalk and the west-side's La Cantera area. You'll get sick of those within 3 months. Then you're left with a Latino vibe throughout the rest of the city. I love it. BUT, know what you're getting into. If you want ethnic food or experiences, forget it. Nothing in comparison to the other 3 cities.

Answer 4

North Houston is great (Woodlands/Spring area)! A lot of people like Austin for the quirky people there. I can't say about Austin but the cost of living in Houston is unbelievable. You can get a GREAT, New house for less than 150,000 easily (and even more house if you buy preowned) and there are a lot of nice people.

I agree with another contributor though---I would visit first. Best of luck to you.

Answer 5

Why would you leave CA. I love this place!!! but im originally from El paso, TX its a small city the cost of living is cheap. But there is a few downsides of moving to TX. The weather is horrible its hot, and dry and in some cities its hot and humid like San Antonio.

Answer 6

Wichita Falls. There is a military base there. People associated with the military are usually well-behaved. The cost of living has to be relatively low because the military personnel don't have much money to spend on houses.

Answer 7

Burleson. Right outside of Fort Worth. Cheap and Beautiful houses and good schools. A friend of mine just moved there.

Answer 8

i lived Dallas until i was 11 (not a good place to grow up-to many gangs and violence) but I also lived in Canyon Lake and San Antonio and those are both beautiful places to live espicially Canyon Lake

Answer 9

Corpus Christi by the ocean!

Answer 10

vist first don't just pack up