Where is the best place to live in TX

doba_s · 12-28-2008, 10:32 AM

great info guys ...

Blake · 12-28-2008, 11:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doba_s

great info guys ...

see, now it'll start turning into a which city is better politics discussion

peter@wheelexperts · 12-30-2008, 11:43 PM

I was born in Houston and lived there for 30 years until my wife and I moved the Dallas 3 years ago. The humid rainy weather and the traffic out of inside the loop (where downtown and the medical center are) are the 2 things that are the worst in my opinion.

That being said, Texas Medical Center in Houston is defintely one of the top places to be if you are in the medical field....not only a great place to work but a great place to learn. As long as you lived "inside the loop" the traffic wouldn't be as much of a problem, its all the surburbanites commuting to downtown/Med center/UH every day that make the traffic horrible. Then, the only thing would be the weather/flooding/hurricanes.

We like the weather better in Dallas, although it hits over 100 for about a 6 week period in the summer, it does not rain nearly as much and is much less humid than Houston, which makes it more liveable in my opinion.

Houston is a much bigger city overall, since the DFW area is sort of like Orange County, many small towns and cities put together.

One thing to note, is that I would say that Houston is much more diverse, with a wide range of ethnicities. Dallas is a little less diverse, and depending on where you are, can be a bit more pretentious than Houston, but you will likely find this trait in most metropolitan areas nowdays.

iamvietness · 12-31-2008, 12:34 AM

I currently live in the Las Colinas/Irving area, which is a suburb of Dallas. I really like the area in that it's not super crowded and is only 20 minutes or so from downtown Dallas. Also this area is where most of the young professional crowd are residing and working...there are a bunch of Fortune 500 companies around here.

bigjae1976 · 12-31-2008, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blake

austin is cool, but kinda weird. it's a very interesting mix of people in austin. traffic in austin is arguably the worst in the state. the only reason that i think i would live in austin is the topography.

What? Traffic is WAY worse in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. I'd take the traffic anywhere in TX over the northeast anyday. Northeast trafffic: Too many drivers + not enough roads + nowhere to build any more = screwed

1. Austin
2. DFW
3. San Antonio
4. Houston

All of those cities are good places to live.

Austin has Hill Country which is pretty good. Car scene BLOWS in austin...too many tree hugging, bike riding hippies. Global warming FTW! Still has a decent job market - Kind of a mini silicon valley. Traffic is decent as long as you don't have to go through the downtown area. Better on the north side. Southside is pretty bad but there is a lot of construction. It is one of the safest cities on the US.

Dallas - lots of ice hockey if you are into that.

Houston...weather sucks bad. Great car scene though. Keep in mind that a lot of the displaced people from New Orleans/Katrina moved to Houston. Just saying...

DevJ · 01-01-2009, 09:50 PM

^ austin was the most congested traffic wise when I went down there

skierman64 · 01-01-2009, 10:12 PM

Wherever they don't root for the cowboys.

bigjae1976 · 01-01-2009, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DevJ

^ austin was the most congested traffic wise when I went down there

I'm the opposite, I think DFW is way worse. I try to flee DFW before 3pm or its 60 MPH all the way to Hillsboro.

At least you're still good until 4:30pm in Austin. The traffic on the southside of Austin is much worse than on the northside but its only for a 5-6 mile stretch.

Overall, I do like driving in TX. People here are a LOT more courteous than Philly where you have to earn your spot on the road. And I'll take Dallas or Austin traffic over the northeast any day.

Mack211 · 01-02-2009, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigjae1976

What? Traffic is WAY worse in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. I'd take the traffic anywhere in TX over the northeast anyday. Northeast trafffic: Too many drivers + not enough roads + nowhere to build any more = screwed

1. Austin
2. DFW
3. San Antonio
4. Houston

All of those cities are good places to live.

Austin has Hill Country which is pretty good. Car scene BLOWS in austin...too many tree hugging, bike riding hippies. Global warming FTW! Still has a decent job market - Kind of a mini silicon valley. Traffic is decent as long as you don't have to go through the downtown area. Better on the north side. Southside is pretty bad but there is a lot of construction. It is one of the safest cities on the US.

Dallas - lots of ice hockey if you are into that.

Houston...weather sucks bad. Great car scene though. Keep in mind that a lot of the displaced people from New Orleans/Katrina moved to Houston. Just saying...

Sorry, but I have lived in all 3 cities. i35 near downtown Austin is the worst traffic in the state. I dreaded anytime I had to drive through there.

doba_s · 01-05-2009, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigjae1976

What? Traffic is WAY worse in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. I'd take the traffic anywhere in TX over the northeast anyday. Northeast trafffic: Too many drivers + not enough roads + nowhere to build any more = screwed

1. Austin
2. DFW
3. San Antonio
4. Houston

All of those cities are good places to live.

Austin has Hill Country which is pretty good. Car scene BLOWS in austin...too many tree hugging, bike riding hippies. Global warming FTW! Still has a decent job market - Kind of a mini silicon valley. Traffic is decent as long as you don't have to go through the downtown area. Better on the north side. Southside is pretty bad but there is a lot of construction. It is one of the safest cities on the US.

Dallas - lots of ice hockey if you are into that.

Houston...weather sucks bad. Great car scene though. Keep in mind that a lot of the displaced people from New Orleans/Katrina moved to Houston. Just saying...

good to know !

doba_s · 01-05-2009, 07:06 PM

thank you guys ! i think we are going to visit TX some time and look around ... I looked at the houses and I was very impressed ! prices are not that bad !

consolidated · 01-05-2009, 07:18 PM

Keep in mind that Austin is much smaller city than Houston or Dallas, so any given average commute is likely much shorter in miles, your travel time is going to be shorter.

My advice is to try and work/live using Mopac instead of I35 as your major route, it's just a kinder, (no giant fleets of NAFTA semi's heading to/from the border), nicer and shorter commute. My wife drives from downtown to Georgetown everyday, 28 mile each way using Mopac/tollway/I-35 and it takes 30-35 minutes...try to drive 30 miles in Houston on I-59/I-10 or the loop at rush hour.

Peter has Dallas and Houston spot on. Even Austin's got nothing on the ethnic diversity and integration Houston has, Dallas is pretty much a voluntarily segregated city, oops did I say that.

Dallas has lots of nice places, but they're all sort of the same. I enjoy going to Dallas for business, but the best part is Motorsports Ranch south of Fort Worth.

They are all large enough cities to where anyone can find a place for themselves and be quite happy. It's not like living in Corpus Christi.

bigjae1976 · 01-06-2009, 07:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by consolidated

My advice is to try and work/live using Mopac instead of I35 as your major route, it's just a kinder, (no giant fleets of NAFTA semi's heading to/from the border), nicer and shorter commute.

Or a bunch of cars in tow driving 50mph.

consolidated · 01-06-2009, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigjae1976

Or a bunch of cars in tow driving 50mph.

yeah, those trains are crazy, seeing a compact truck towing three cars at a time to Mexico, can't believe they're legal.

bigjae1976 · 01-06-2009, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by consolidated

yeah, those trains are crazy, seeing a compact truck towing three cars at a time to Mexico, can't believe they're legal.

the good thing is if one breaks down, you have 2 more you can drive.

TwoSaints · 02-14-2009, 10:26 AM

I know I'm reviving an older thread but I'm happy I came across this. My Fiance and I are looking to buy our first house after the wedding (in May) and we are looking heavily at Houston. Right now we are living in Beaumont and want out ASAP! lol. We migrated from NY (long island) and so we're looking for a bigger city to be near. We're both in the medical field so that will play a role. It's beginning to sound like we should do more research on Dallas. Any specific areas that are nice to live in?

Blake · 02-14-2009, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoSaints

I know I'm reviving an older thread but I'm happy I came across this. My Fiance and I are looking to buy our first house after the wedding (in May) and we are looking heavily at Houston. Right now we are living in Beaumont and want out ASAP! lol. We migrated from NY (long island) and so we're looking for a bigger city to be near. We're both in the medical field so that will play a role. It's beginning to sound like we should do more research on Dallas. Any specific areas that are nice to live in?

beaumont?! eek!

anyway, the good areas in dallas are the park cities (university park and highland park), basically anywhere between the tollway and 75 from downtown to 635, west plano and frisco (although really far north), uptown (lots of yuppies), and lakewood/m streets area (mockingbird lane on the north, 75 on the west, abrams on the east, and henderson to the south).

there are other suburbs around, but i wouldn't mess with them. you're going to the be happiest in any of the above locations.

bigjae1976 · 02-14-2009, 10:05 PM

San Antonio might be worth looking into. It has Brooke Army Medical Center and the US Army Medical troop schools. So there might be some more/unique opportunities there.

Blake · 02-15-2009, 03:29 AM

san antonio is boring

Voltigeur · 03-22-2009, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blake

san antonio is boring

It's getting better and more diverse. It depends on one's stage of life too. BTW, I don't live in SA (b/w Austin & SA). I'm seeing a bunch of Cally plates these days when I drive in SA ...

Personally I'd say:

1. Austin - cool , and close to Hill Country

2. San A - very liveable, and close to Hill Country (great drives!)

3. Hou - like the diversity
4. DFW - bit flat for me, but some nice areas, restaurants
5. Ft. W

I quite like living b/w AUS & SA for we get to access to both cities to go out etc.

Voltigeur · 03-22-2009, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigjae1976

San Antonio might be worth looking into. It has Brooke Army Medical Center and the US Army Medical troop schools. So there might be some more/unique opportunities there.

Lots of medical development going on in SA. More than just military-related these days. It's also getting more tech. My wife's new university's Provost's wife was keen to move to a town close to SA so she could pursue her medical career (coming from NC).

bigjae1976 · 03-23-2009, 06:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Voltigeur

3. Hou - like the diversity

The weather is horrible there. Its hot, extra-humid, and you have hurricanes. Pea soup and 90 degree weather isn't cool at all. Makes Austin feel as dry as a desert. Don't they have those stupid love bugs?

Plus, I've heard that Houston is kind of on a downhill slide since the riff-raff displaced from Katrina moved in and stayed.

Its def got the best car scene in TX though and lots of energy-related jobs. Oh yeah, lots of rich people too. The Galleria is a pretty cool place as well.

Despite all of that...Houston is still better than CA or the northeast!

12-28-2008, 10:32 AM	#23
doba_s Major General 405 Rep 6,107 Posts Drives: X7 l Cayenne l 997.2RS Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Danville iTrader: (26)	great info guys ...
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12-30-2008, 11:43 PM	#25
peter@wheelexperts 65 Rep 546 Posts Drives: E92 M3, C6 Z06, 10 Range Sport Join Date: May 2007 Location: Dallas, TX iTrader: (1)	I was born in Houston and lived there for 30 years until my wife and I moved the Dallas 3 years ago. The humid rainy weather and the traffic out of inside the loop (where downtown and the medical center are) are the 2 things that are the worst in my opinion. That being said, Texas Medical Center in Houston is defintely one of the top places to be if you are in the medical field....not only a great place to work but a great place to learn. As long as you lived "inside the loop" the traffic wouldn't be as much of a problem, its all the surburbanites commuting to downtown/Med center/UH every day that make the traffic horrible. Then, the only thing would be the weather/flooding/hurricanes. We like the weather better in Dallas, although it hits over 100 for about a 6 week period in the summer, it does not rain nearly as much and is much less humid than Houston, which makes it more liveable in my opinion. Houston is a much bigger city overall, since the DFW area is sort of like Orange County, many small towns and cities put together. One thing to note, is that I would say that Houston is much more diverse, with a wide range of ethnicities. Dallas is a little less diverse, and depending on where you are, can be a bit more pretentious than Houston, but you will likely find this trait in most metropolitan areas nowdays.
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12-31-2008, 12:34 AM	#26
iamvietness Colonel 239 Rep 2,174 Posts Drives: 2015 M3 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Plano, TX iTrader: (4)	I currently live in the Las Colinas/Irving area, which is a suburb of Dallas. I really like the area in that it's not super crowded and is only 20 minutes or so from downtown Dallas. Also this area is where most of the young professional crowd are residing and working...there are a bunch of Fortune 500 companies around here.
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01-01-2009, 09:50 PM	#28
DevJ Colonel 154 Rep 2,736 Posts Drives: R8 V10+/YMB M4 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Tulsa, OK iTrader: (1)	^ austin was the most congested traffic wise when I went down there __________________ ‘23 RRS First Edition '22 X7 M50i '18 R8 V10+ http://www.bimmerpost.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=133578&d=1204654487[/IMG]
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01-01-2009, 10:12 PM	#29
skierman64 Brigadier General 125 Rep 3,071 Posts Drives: E92M3-E46M3-E46Wagon-E89Z4-E36 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Greater St Louis Metro area iTrader: (1) Garage List 1994 325is Race Car [0.00] 2011 BMW Z4 [0.00] 1998 M3 Coupe [0.00] 2008 M3 Coupe [0.00]	Wherever they don't root for the cowboys. __________________ Invest Wisely...The best mod for your money?? BMWCCA high performance driver's school. The mod that lasts a lifetime and improves the performance of any car you drive[/LEFT]
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01-05-2009, 07:06 PM	#33
doba_s Major General 405 Rep 6,107 Posts Drives: X7 l Cayenne l 997.2RS Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Danville iTrader: (26)	thank you guys ! i think we are going to visit TX some time and look around ... I looked at the houses and I was very impressed ! prices are not that bad !
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01-05-2009, 07:18 PM	#34
consolidated Lieutenant Colonel 205 Rep 1,864 Posts Drives: F80 M3 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Texas iTrader: (2) Garage List 2016 Porsche GT4 [0.00] 1999 Porsche Spec B ... [0.00] 2014 Ram 1500 Laram ... [0.00] 2007 Porsche GT3 RS [10.00] 2013 Tesla Model S 85 [0.00]	Keep in mind that Austin is much smaller city than Houston or Dallas, so any given average commute is likely much shorter in miles, your travel time is going to be shorter. My advice is to try and work/live using Mopac instead of I35 as your major route, it's just a kinder, (no giant fleets of NAFTA semi's heading to/from the border), nicer and shorter commute. My wife drives from downtown to Georgetown everyday, 28 mile each way using Mopac/tollway/I-35 and it takes 30-35 minutes...try to drive 30 miles in Houston on I-59/I-10 or the loop at rush hour. Peter has Dallas and Houston spot on. Even Austin's got nothing on the ethnic diversity and integration Houston has, Dallas is pretty much a voluntarily segregated city, oops did I say that. Dallas has lots of nice places, but they're all sort of the same. I enjoy going to Dallas for business, but the best part is Motorsports Ranch south of Fort Worth. They are all large enough cities to where anyone can find a place for themselves and be quite happy. It's not like living in Corpus Christi.
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02-14-2009, 10:26 AM	#38
TwoSaints Second Lieutenant 9 Rep 227 Posts Drives: E90 M3 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Beaumont, Texas iTrader: (0)	I know I'm reviving an older thread but I'm happy I came across this. My Fiance and I are looking to buy our first house after the wedding (in May) and we are looking heavily at Houston. Right now we are living in Beaumont and want out ASAP! lol. We migrated from NY (long island) and so we're looking for a bigger city to be near. We're both in the medical field so that will play a role. It's beginning to sound like we should do more research on Dallas. Any specific areas that are nice to live in?
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02-14-2009, 10:05 PM	#40
bigjae1976 Major General 1570 Rep 8,075 Posts Drives: 11 E90 M3 Individual Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Houston, TX iTrader: (22) Garage List 2004 BMW M3 [4.50] 2011 BMW E90 M3 [5.25] 2013 BMW 328i [5.00]	San Antonio might be worth looking into. It has Brooke Army Medical Center and the US Army Medical troop schools. So there might be some more/unique opportunities there. __________________ 2018 F30 320iX Melbourne Red 2011 E90 M3 Monte Carlo Blue 2004 E46 M3 Imola Red 2000 E36/7 Z3 Steel Blue
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02-15-2009, 03:29 AM	#41
Blake Banned 752 Rep 4,649 Posts Drives: Chevy Aveo Join Date: May 2008 Location: Parent's Basement iTrader: (7)	san antonio is boring
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