:O)
Posted on 09/24/2009 8:04:34 AM PDT by Frogtacos
Calling Texas Freepers!
My husband and I lived in the Wichita Falls area several years ago (he was stationed at Sheppard AFB) and we absolutely fell in love with Texas. Since then, he has gotten out of the Army, had a great job, and gotten laid off.
Now, 6 months and a whole lot of job searching later, he has 2 job opportunities in Texas. One in Dallas, the other in Houston. Both are excellent job opportunities with very similar salary packages. I have never been to Houston, and only into Dallas for the airport and Nascar track so really have no knowledge of either one.
If any of you can help me with good/bad info (as far as living there) on either/both cities I would greatly appreciate it. Education need not be a factor as we homeschool.
/johnny
I think housing is cheaper in Houston, but we're overrun with illegals - if I were to choose right now, I'd choose Dallas, but I'm from north central Texas so I always liked that area.
I lived in Houston for two years (1998-2000) and loved it.
Houston can be so humid and so hot as to be unendurable sometimes. It can really be awful.
If you homeschool then you have a better choice of locations. I would say Dallas, just because of the weather.
BTW I live in south-west TX.
In Texas being in a good school district is an important factor in the future value of your property though.
Vast - help a soon to be Texan out here...
If you are just talking about the cities themselves, not the surrounding burbs, Dallas is a much nicer town to live in, however, the Houston FReepers are more fun. If you end up in Houston, you may want to look to my old stoming grounds- The Woodlands.
Houston has hurricanes, Dallas has nasty hail storms.
Dallas’ climate is more moderate, for me, Houston is unbearable in the summer.
Traffic in Dallas is much better.
We had to make the exact same decision to make in 2003. We finally settled on Dallas.
Houston is an interesting place. A massive city with no zoning. It’s also much hotter and more humid than Dallas. Plus tropical storms.
The Dallas area is actually bigger, although Houston is bigger on paper. The reason is that 7 of the 10 largest cities in Texas are in the DFW metroplex, while Houston is pretty much Houston.
Only outsiders complain about the Houston summer weather. Houstonians never go outside in the summer.
You’re within an hour of a warm beach, more lakes, more watersports opportunities. Air travel is much cheaper out of Houston. If you live on the north side (FM 1960, The Woodlands), you have very good schools, attractive shopping, concert venues, etc. Dallas politics is a nest of snakes. (And I live in the Dallas area.) Don’t think about living in Houston proper, except maybe west Houston. Katy is very attractive, but the commute is hell.
I am seriously considering moving to the Houston area when I retire.
Houston is sea locked on one side. East is the third world nation of Louisiana and west is the growing nation of Atlan or something like that plus a lot of nothing before you get to the hill country. Houston has better drivers than Dallas but it also has hurricanes, high humidity and incessant heat.
Somehow Dallas seems easier to get out of and get through but it is infested with yuppie types. It also seems easier to get to somewhere I want to go that has a little topography and fewer people. Anywhere north of Houston soon runs into recreating people coming south from DFW. And there ain’t much for recreating north of Houston.
I would choose neither but am eternally grateful a lot of people choose one or the other.
Ping
The only good thing about Houston is that it’s so close to Texas. It barely resembles anything Texan.
Dallas! Houston and the surrounding area are ginormous! Traffic galore. High humidity. Houston Texans football.
Definitely Dallas.
Massive Houston vs. Dallas fight in 5, 4, 3, 2, ....
:O)
Houston is a great city, as long as you live inside the 610 loop. Outside the loop (which is most of the city) you will spend all your time in traffic. The summers are worse than anywhere on earth.
Not Eaker. He's no fun at all.
Cowboys or Texans?? That’s really all that matters isn’t it?
Personally... I think people in Dallas are snobby. Heck, they’re almost Okies... :-)
Houston is a more interesting place to live IMHO. More storms, more bugs... a beach. Interesting.
In either location, it will help if you learn some Spanish. That way, you’ll be able to communicate with the sales people everywhere.
Houston seems to be more laid back than Dallas and is also only a drive away from New Orleans, Florida Beaches and the Texas coast. Dallas is very landlocked and a very long drive for many fun places like the beach. I have lived in Dallas a long time and I like it fine.
The boy ain’t right.
Sounds like you've never been to Saudi. :-)
My Achilles heel in Texas. I don't fish, hunt or watch football. It's akin to being a communist in more than a few eyes.
You don’t want to live in Dallas but nearer to it than Houston. Visit Dallas often for the eats, entertainment, da clubs etc. Settle in Arlington or FW or Mansfield or Southlake, perhaps Lewisville. Besides they have the Toxins and we have the Cowboys. Wait. Maybe that’s not what I want to say.
In all seriousnes both economies are doing well. My nephew and sister just relocated to Houston about yr ago and they like it just fine. Energy sector still vibrant, which pretty much determines their fate.
Agreed with most of what has been said about Houston, but will add a bit to it and give my opinion about Big D.
Houston is indeed a lot more humid, being that it’s on the Gulf. That being the case, it’s also a lot greener. They have these tall things called trees that seem to flourish in that environment. It can be a lot prettier, espeically as you get out of “Houston” and more towards Conroe or the Woodlands.
Dallas....mostly ugly, with some surprising beauty. North Oak Cliff is just South of Downtown. It is an older area and is extremely diverse. You’ll find million dollar homes in some neighborhoods and lower end housing in others. Rolling hills and trees. The Northern area of the DFW metroplex is the high growth area. It also has the highest number of foreclosures. Beautiful homes, many small lots. Pricing is higher than a lot of the metroplex area.
In my humble opinion, Dallas proper is a city that always try’s to pretend that it is a city such as NY or Chicago or San Francisco, but fails at doing so. Fort Worth has traditionally embraced its Western, Texas heritage and does a great job of being a large city with a more Texan attitude, which is one of self reliance and friendliness.
I have lived in both Dallas and Fort Worth and between the two, I prefer the Tarrant County area (Fort Worth) over the Dallas County area, but you’ll find great areas and people in both.
Check out the www.city-data.com website. They have blogs from the various regions and city’s around Houston and the DFW area. There is a wealth of information on the sites.
Good luck and if you have any further questions, I’d be more than happy to answer them offline.
I live in near San Antonio, but if you made me choose one or the other then I’d say Dallas.
We tell people the way to get to Dallas is to head north 'til you smell it and then west 'til you step in it. ;-)
Several of my friends live and work in The Woodlands just north of Houston. I’ve been there numerous times on business. They really like the area and it seems like a nice place to me.
Houston: lots of trees and green and 50 miles from the Gulf Coast. People are down the Earth and not snobby like in Dallas.
Ft Worth
Hey!! I'm at the crossroads of those lines, and it doesn't smell bad until you get way north of here, almost to Arkansas. The smell is coming from up there.
I have lived near both cities. Currently I live in League City (halfway between Houston and Galveston). Either metropolitan area is a good choice. No, a winning choice. The DFW area has marginally better weather. (Houston gets humid, but you get very few 100 degree plus days in Houston. Dallas is drier, but you get more 100 deg plus days. Houston has better winters than Dallas).
The only real discriminator is geographical preference. if you want to travel in any direction, choose Dallas. If you want to live close to a seacoast, choose Houston. (You can get access to the Gulf from the Clear Lake area, which is 20 miles from downtown Dallas.) And Houston does get hurricanes, but if you are north of Clear Creek and west of I-45 all that gets you is lots of wind and rain — no worse than real bad line squalls that run through Dallas during the summer. (You DO NOT have to evacuate if you live in Katy or the Woodlands - honest. And I wish those folks would STAY PUT, so those of us who really do have to go can get out without the streets being clogged by those with hurricane envy.)
Personally, I have a fondness for the sea. That’s why I would like to stay in the Houston area. But that’s just me.
I wouldn't feel bad about a move to Dallas if it where for a good job. We in Houston kinda resent the way Dallasites look down their collective noses at us. Dallas is more white collar, we're refinery trash. Plus they got the Cowboys we got the Texans.
Cost for a similar home used to be better in Houston, don't know how current economy has affected that. Both cities have good medical but Houston is a world class center with MD Anderson, Rice, and I understand Galveston county has more doctors per capita than any other county in the USA. Texas passed tort reform and has seen a net increase in doctors over past few years.
Since I have a couple of horses, I sometimes wish I were at least North of Houston where there is better pasture and topography. Both cities have good airports. I think you'll find plenty of Latinos in both places, I don't see that as much of an issue on a day to day basis. I wouldn't be living inside city limits either city, school systems are what one has come to expect in any big city. Commute into city from suburbs is probably comparable. I'd go with the job that seems to offer the most satisfaction. And Congratulations on job offers.
Houston. Hands down.
Houston may have its faults (oh, does it ever), but we Houstonians are REAL. We are a very friendly city.
Dallas is full of plastic people, Ladies Who Lunch, and posers. Plus, they pull off to the side of the freeway when it rains. Wusses.
But then, I’m a lifelong Houstonian, so I’m a bit biased.
That's because they don't want to get carried away by the bugs.
One major problem of Houston no one has mentioned- Mayor Bill White.
Nuf said..
The main reasons I would choose Dallas:
1 - much closer to Fort Worth - which has great cultural and entertainment attractions.
2 - roughly the same distance from Austin/San Antonio and the historically significant attactions in those places.
3 - traffic is probably not as bad in and around Dallas as it is in Houston
4 - Better sports venues and choices
5 - Many more options in terms of nice suburban area from any direction, especially if the Dallas job is in the north or northeastern part of the Dallas area.
6 - while schools are not that important since you home-school. the schools do impact the neighborhoods and communities; stay away from the DISD, but Lewisville, Farmers Branch, Carrolton, etc. are very good. Also, there are very good home-school groups in the DFW area that can provide good extracurricular activities for your students.
Disclaimer: I grew up in the DFW area, so I am biased in favor of it. Texasgirl grew up in Wichita Falls, moved out of state (as you might infer from her screenname) and has since moved back to the Houston area; thus, she would have very good insights on the choices you face.
I can sum that up easily. Fort Worth is more country (as in Tim McGraw) and Dallas is more metropolitan. Since I'm allergic to most things country I much prefer Dallas. One of things I quickly notice in FW is that the accents seem to be much more pronounced and I've never seen so much camouflage in an urban environment in my entire life.
You can go out to the suburbs, but you will be doing a 30 mile commute that takes 1.5 hours or more.
DFW has some nice towns in the metroplex, and North Dallas itself is still pretty nice. Out of the two largest cities, Fort Worth is a little nicer (though both, again, have very high crime rates).
I love Texas, but not the monster that ate East Texas (aka Houston). A damn shame that Galveston got blown away all those years ago, otherwise Houston would have just been an exurb in a swamp.
Houston is home to General Santa Ana's ass-whooping (Battle of San Jacinto) and the subsequent reason for Texas becoming Texas!
Houston *IS* Texas!
Dallas is full of metrosexual fashion show men.
Yeah... I said it! Bring it on fashion boy! ;-)
Dallas far and away....no question.
except to Yousetonians who might disagree
lived off Turtle creek as a little boy long ago in a garage apartment when dad was with Texas Industries
have kin there and always loved it and it’s fairly right wing for a big city...and it is big...D actually.
when I knew Dallas, Central Expressway was brand new. Neimans was only downtown and Farmers Branch had farmers and Harry Hines was safe and had Frito Lay and Brannif.
Pearl or Hamms had a waterfall. Love field was it and the stewardess were hot and wore shorts.
The Texas Book Depository was still known for books.
Southland Life next to the Sheraton was biggest building and the Adolphus was in decay.
Stemmons freeway was brand new and Deep Ellum was “what?”
Lower McKinney was not the cake district.
and it was bare between Dallas and Fort Worth
Houston doesn’t even have a hockey team!
Seriously, if they fell in love with Texas while living in Wichita Falls, Houston is not a good representation of a typical Texas town. I grew up in Fort Worth, have lived in Wichita Falls and worked in Dallas. I have lived in Houston for 30yrs. Houston? Texan? Not even close (ducking and backing slowly away).
Everytime I see an episode of COPS based in Texas, they are always filming in Dallas/Ft. Worth or San Antonio — never Houston.
I second that! Dallas is full of metrosexual fashion boy-men!
It’s Dallas hands down. Houston has more humidity. I raised my kids in Dallas...they are raising their kids in Dallas. I love Big D...even though I retired in East Texas with my horses and donkeys!
They have lots, but they're high school and college ones. :O)
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