Posted on 07/12/2012 8:16:20 PM PDT by This Just In
This last year has lead me to seriously consider relocating our family to another state. A state whose public representatives hold a healthy respect and regard for our Constitution. A state which welcomes entrepreneurs, small and big business, and industry. A state in which citizens-generally-don't apologizes for being Americans.
I had considered Wyoming within the past few months, but Texas has always sat in my periphery. And now the Lone Star state sits front and center.
We currently reside in a state in which our representatives actively engages in legal plunder of our tax dollars, despises the Constitution, and is enamored with dictators and tyrants.
I am seeking any information concerning conservative areas, cities, and counties in the great state of Texas. The Hill Country looks appealing. Your comments and recommendations are deeply appreciated.
TJI
It is getting late, and I should have my original comment first. You wrote: “ - - - we do say border, not State Line - - - “ but I did not use the term “State Line.”
Either I apologized for something I did not do, or you reversed your words. Which is it?
Thank you for the Texas size welcome. Lord willing, we’ll move to the Lone Star state.
We home educate our children. One in college, one about to start. So the local schools are not a consideration for us.
We’ll be sure to keep you posted.
Thank you. TJI
I have to agree with you regarding the entertainment industry. Austin is definetly the music “hub”. I guess one could live in the ‘burbs of Austin and still have access. Meaning no disrespect to any musician here, since there are exceptions, most musicians are pretty liberal no matter where they live.
Midland/Odessa is on a boom from what I am told.
I am partial to East Texas. Tyler is pretty. But not a lot of job opportunities. If one could telecommute and only drive to Dallas occasionally, it would be doable.
No offense taken. Artists are generally uber-liberal. IF you’re a conservative in the bus., you’d better sport a thick skin.
Thanks for the input.
We lived in El Paso in the mid 50’s when I was a little boy. My dad had his office on Santa Fe Street just south of downtown. In those days, people routinely crossed the Santa Fe bridge several times a day. We went to Juarez quite regularly. It was a nice place to live in those days. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case anymore. I was there a couple of years ago and the city has turned really bad, particularly in the area around I-10. The old historic areas are still pretty nice, though. The area north of UTEP has some very beautiful houses, many of them built in the 1800’s that are quite stunning. Cuidad Juarez has turned into a war zone. El Paso is the Poster Child for our lack of resolve to secure the Southern border.
Much like Jane Long said...keep us posted if and when you make a move. :)
. I commented that "we", meaning my family, and folks whose families came during the Republic of Texas times, use the word Border, rather than state line...
eg., "We just crossed the border into Oklahoma", or "he lives near the Louisiana/Texas Border..
Most states, except in reference to an International Boundary would say state line..but people from TX don't.
Hope that clarifies it for you..Night.
Been here for 30 years. Wouldn’t live in Houston any more but suburbs of Pearland and Sugar Land are great. Inexpensive housing, public schools much better than in Houston. Always lots of flags flying - you have to have 3, U.S., Texas and Gasden - and nativity scenes everywhere at Christmas. Both areas conservative and close enough to commute to Houston if you need to work there or want to go to the symphony. The first hurricane you go through is always interesting but we deal with them because we want to be near the beach. Huge rodeo in the spring, lots of sports and 4-H for the kids. You’ll find more farming areas, horses and cows in Pearland.
Our family also loves New Braunsfels and Fredericksburg but jobs in those areas are limited so we just visit as often as we can.
As it happens, my wife and I are making the Texodus from California. After losing her job, which was the lion’s share of our houzehold income, she landed one in Houston, which she started last week. I’m staying behind to short sell our house and coordinate the final move. Unfortunately, because of the short sale, we won’t be able to buy another house for awhile. Can anyone recommend a good area to look in for a rental that isn’t an awful commute to the Galleria area?
If you really want to consider relocating to the Great Southwest I might suggest Oklahoma. Remember, Oklahoma is the reddest of the red states, unemployment is around 5.0% and in the Green Country (Tulsa area) unemployment is around 4.5%. COL is respectable, housing costs are reasonable and the weather is less humid that Houston or Dallas. Broken Arrow (Tulsa burbs, pop 100K) is listed as one of the best places in the USA for retirement.
Our avg. summer temps hover at 105*. Our avg. winter temp. is about 25*. Considering the political landscape we’re facing, and have had to deal with, the trade-off would be worth it.
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Your age range and type of work, plus present location might yield more specific replies that better suit your family, TJI.
I’ve lived in the Grapevine/Colleyville area since ‘86, about 4 miles W of the DFW airport. Great area with ample restaurants, stores of all types, great schools and low crime rates. Midway between Dallas and Fort Worth (each about 20-25 miles away).
Great news! We’re planning on making a visit there early this fall. Have relatives there, so if we decide to move, at least we’ll be among some familiar faces.
Kingwood is really nice. Beautiful pine trees and lots of nice neighborhoods at reasonable prices.
Thank you, Grams A. 30 yrs. is a long time. You’re one of the “Go to” ppl concerning anything Texas.
Thanks, octex. I glanced over the cities you mentioned. Will take a closer look.
I appreciate your suggestion, but my heart’s set on TX.
Congratulations to your wife in landing a job, and for this promising opportunity for your family. I wish you all the best, and hope the home sells quickly so you may be reunited with the mrs., and start a new life in TX.
TJI
San Antonio is a city that has a small town feel to it. It is less humid and much less prone to hurricanes than Houston. There is a festive, happy spirit and lots of music. Many pocket areas twenty or thirty minutes out of downtown are very livable. Check the area as you head towards Austin, just on the edge of San Antonio, such as Live Oak, Universal City. Houston is a huge city, San Antonio is just a big city.
Lake Fork is near Tyler. World class bass fishing with a lot of tournaments if you’re an angler.
Walkingfeather seems to have had an outlier experience.
I lived in the northern suburbs of Dallas for 12 years.
Steer clear of Dallas county, and you’ll be fine.
Tyler is quiet, mostly ranch country.
The airport, DFW, is centrally located wrt the entire country. This means easy flights (no connections) to most places. The airfare was reasonable also because most flights are in the 4 hour range.
The heat should be a concern. My max electric bill was maybe $180 in a summer month. Those types of bills occur for maybe 3-4 months. Compare that to my heating bills in New Hampshire which range from $500 to $700 for a total of $3000 on average per winter. Your heating bill in winter drops to virtually nothing in TX.
Texas manages its water very well. There are a lot of lakes used as reservoirs. Only 1 natural lake in Texas. Tyler will probably require well and septic.
Tyler won’t be great for kids in the summer. But, if you’re retiring, you’ll do fine and save a lot of money.
Fly into DFW and drive about 75 miles to the east. Check it in August. Spring and Fall will be much more pleasant. Winters are easy. No snow, maybe 1 ice storm per yer. Power is very reliable.
New Orleans is an 8 hour driver from there. Colorado is 12-14 hours.
There’s not much to do in Tyler for nightlife, but if you like ranching/farming/hunting/fishing - then you’ll be fine there.
We love to fish; esp. largemouth.
Thanks for the tip.
Some of our friends visited SA. They loved it. Thank you. I’ll take a gander at LO and UC. As I read the comments I’m researching counties within the Hill Country.
We’re far from retiring, but Tyler sounds like a beautiful and healthy area to live.
Texas has a pop. of over 25 million ppl. Walkingfeather made a rather sweeping generalization. I don’t doubt his/her experience, but I am inclined to disagree. Living in a state as large as texas for 4 yrs. is an insufficient amount of time to adequately familiarize yourself with the citizens and their communities.
Thank you for your time.
TJI
I confirm all your observations about Texas, with one caveat. We often appear that way to cretins, jackasses and shirtliftin’ homos.
Pretty obvious why they were not well recieved, not much room in Texas for people like that. I’ve lived in Texas for over 60 years, raised kids and I’m now watching my grandkids grow up. I’m in West Texas and agree with others on the weather, during the summer it just gets hot but the winters are rather mild. We’ve got mountains, beaches, lakes and rivers and some of the greatest hunting and fishing to be found. Y’all will be welcomed with open arms.
Texas is high on my list of places to retire to, if they can stand having another transplanted Ohioan. I like the Texas attitude, I hope they keep it alive. The wife and I enjoyed everywhere we visited, from El Paso to Texarkana. The people treated us well, the food was fantastic, the music is great and there are a ton of things going on. I’m looking forward to one day fishing off the coast.
PLUS, Texas is the home of George Strait. Don’t get no better.
God bless Texas.
I lived in Texas from 1981-1985. Started my career as a diesel mechanic there, bought all my Snapon tools there, lived on the north side of Houston which I liked, and later I moved up north to Marshall and was a drilling rig mechanic.
But man did I hate the humidity!
Texas does indeed has the best in affordable housing, cost of living is by far I think best in Texas than any other state.
As for Alaska you need to be partially insane to live here. But I would rather endure the winters here than the summers in the eastern and southern parts of Texas, I just work better outside in cold temps than high temps.
Alaska has a high cost of living index. Renting is sky high, fuel is sky high, manufacturing jobs or entry level warehouse places are very few. Especially compared with Texas.
Yes Texas is a much better place to immigrate to I would say for most refugees from liberal held ruined states.
Sorry to hear about the divorce Tom, Im sure once you are back in the Scientology HQ you will be fine...
That was easy!
BTW, don’t forget to vote for Cruz this month!
Here is our chance to put the next TEXAS Senator in the District of Corruption who thinks and acts like real people do!
Be a Paul Revere and spread the word: “The RINOs are coming! THE RINOs ARE COMING! Awake Texans! AWAKE!”
Don't know if y'all have kids (for schools) but both of those areas have great schools, too...especially the Katy area. If not, the Bellaire area (SW of Houston) would be another option - and the commute would be shorter.
Welcome to Texas! Best of luck!
I suspect the problem is in your attitude rather than the people you meet.
Heh, heh.
“So the local schools are not a consideration for us.”
The largest portion of home property taxes are for schools. You will pay it regardless of use... check locations carefully. And, welcome to Texas!
Thanks. Unfortunately, it looks like it’s a little too crosstown from where my wife’s new job is.
Thanks. I appreciate it. I hope for the same. Being separated for as long as it’s been already hasn’t been any fun, and there’s about another five weeks of it ahead.
My wife’s currently close to Bellaire. We’ve been looking at Sugar Land, but Katy seems a bit too long a commute. The challenge is finding something relatively close that we can afford that’s large enough, allows pets, and doesn’t look like it hasn’t been touched since the 60s. Seems to be pretty slim pickings, as rentals go.
The Hill Country is a great option. We lived in San Antonio for three years and the entire area is terrific. San Antonio itself is a cultural jewel. Boerne (pronounced BURN-ee) is a great place north of SA, as well as Fredericksburg, Llano, or Marble Falls. A lot of it depends on what you do for a living.
In terms of metro areas, I would look no further than Fort Worth. I was born and raised in Dallas County and got out as quickly as I could. Fort Worth is diverse, cultural, conservative, and actually has a vibrant downtown - a rarity in Texas.
Hope that helps - welcome to Texas!
I’ve discovered that the Hill Country consists of at least 25 counties. A lot of ground to cover. Any recommendations? I’m particularly interested in hill/mountainous country. Also, I’m looking at Forth Worth and San Antonio thanks to a number of comments on this thread.
Thank you,
TJI
Just 25 counties? Thought there would be more. Each of them has their own little political system, too. So before you settle on one, ask lots of questions. Also, some cities and counties have varying alcohol laws and some are still dry. In some respects it is just like a whole bunch of little states all inside one very, very big one.
Our “token mountain” is Enchanted Rock near Fredricksburg. You can hike, camp, go climbing. Pederneles Falls is another great area in the Hill Country and near Johnson City. A lot depends on if you have kids, need to work, etc. San Antonio has awesome golf courses and we like to visit but too much like being in Mexico for us. Fort Worth used to be a great area if you are looking for more cowboy environment that is near a metropolitan area but haven’t been there for a while so no current info. We prefer winters that are not quite as cold and icy as it can get up north in Fort Worth.
Go on the Internet and check out some of these areas and then recommend you take some time and drive through those parts that appeal to you, particularly if you’ve not spent much time here. Our family would never consider Austin or San Antonio as a primary residence but lots and lots of other wonderful towns.
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