Hey dagoof...I'll be out there at Halloween. My brother, myself, and his daughters are going to Disneyland for Halloween.

I live in Converse (5min outside San Antonio) and I LOVE it here.. born and raised in Wisconsin but moved here about 2 1/2 years ago. San ANtonio is like a big city with a small town feel IMO also I got a 3Bed 2 Bath home for 90,000 (only 10 years old too!)

Puppyloveconfections - my dad was a "damn Yankee". Although I guess since he lived here for 50+ years of his life he might be considered a full-fledged Texan. Mom was a west-Texas girl (actually panhandle). The DFW metroplex was a very friendly "typical Texas" place to live for over half of my life. It really has changed and that makes me sad. Thing is there was SPACE between Dallas and any of the suburbs and between each of the suburbs. I remember when the place where I now work was once open grazing land - across from a nice little lake. No more - we're a concrete jungle and people tend to behave accordingly.

Vicky - I've been to all the other areas people have mentioned and they could be great. Texas does have a lot to offer and some really beautiful places to live and where "Texas hospitality" still exists.

Whatever you choose - I hope things work out well for you!! I know no matter where I go (if I go) Texas will always be home and I'll always love it despite the things I don't like about DFW now.

Ann

Hi well i was born and raise in Dallas tx, I grew in a nice richy area the city is called carrollton so that a great place to live and the SCHOOLS THERE ARE AWSOME. if you want infor my SISTERS are realtors and can find you a house.

Jessica

I live just north of Austin. I've only been here for one year but so far I really like it. The housing prices are great! For me it is a 30 minute drive to downtown Austin or 2 minute drive to rolling hills and corn fields. West Austin is also really beautiful with lots of hills but does cost at least twice as much as Round Rock. My only complaint as a new comer to Texas is the fire ants!

Hello Fellow Texans!
I live in Red Oak, Texas and work in downtown Dallas. It's a nice little drive, but I am a city girl that lives in the country and I wouldn't have it any other way! We'd certainly welcome you! Come on down for a visit!

I've a native Texan, born there and lived there for 37 years. I don't recommend Dallas/Ft. Worth or Houston. They are huge, extremely hot, and full of concrete (which heats up). We visited Houston last year and I'd forgotten how you have to drive everywhere (there are no sidewalks). My sister and her husband thought nothing of driving 40 minutes to get to a restaurant they liked. Nobody will even blink if you tell them it takes you more than hour to drive to work (kind of like California).

I DO recomment Austin or San Antonio, though. I like San Antonio but lived in Austin for 18 years. Austin is the best place in Texas, IMHO. There are plenty of lakes for recreation, the hill country is beautiful, and it's a nice-sized smallish city but very alive, since it is the capital of Texas and has a major university. The night life is great, especially if you like lots of live music! It has many good restaurants, too. It's a pretty place, and easy to find your way around.

Housing prices in Austin: a friend of ours just bought a nice little 2-bedroom rancher in town for $160,000. Other friends bought a huge house (5 bedrooms, 3 bath, new kitchen, two-storey, amazing backyard) a little over a year ago for $330,000.

The heat and humidity can be an issue, though. One January it was over 100 degrees for a week! The summers get long since they last for six to nine months (my opinion), especially if it never gets below freezing in the winter. I DON'T miss the heat.

Some bad things about Texas: you have to have a car (very spread out, not walking-friendly, poor transit systems), the heat and humidity, poisonous snakes, poisonous spiders, fire ants, fleas, chiggers, floods, and drought.

I miss the amazing thunderstorms and Texas hospitality. When I moved to Boston I really missed the friendliness of Texans!

Please make sure to visit Austin! Good luck.

Cheers, from
SwampWitch

p.s. Nobody complains about the weather! I guess it's like complaining that the sky is blue.

I'm so excited!! so many places to visit LOL!! We would like to buy a couple investment homes for now and move in a very short time, so far I haven't heard many negatives, and the heat is something that I'm willing to deal with, like I say before I just would love to live in a nice, peaceful and safe place.
One thing tough that I was thinking and I've seen on the news a few times is flooding, where is more common to happend??

Well I can tell you that in 29 years I don't think I've ever seen any really problems with flooding in my neck of the woods (Longview, Tyler, Marshall).

No problem!

Hi!
Just had to put my 2 cents....I live in Sulphur Springs and its great! 2 hrs to the casinos in Shreveport, an hour to Tyler, an hour 15 to Dallas and 4 hrs to Austin.
We are a small town aprox 25000 have excellent rated schools and Texas A&M university @ Commerce is 20 min away. Also Colleges close by are Paris Jr college, Tyler Jr and Several in Dallas.
My daughter goes to Univ of Texas @ Dallas!!!!
Come see us! you will love it!

Houston floods, I know, and so does Austin. I'd stay away from houses along Shoal Creek and South Lamar in Austin.* I remember several Memorial Day floods, when the sky poured buckets for days non-stop... And in 37 years I witnessed hail the size of oranges (with an occasional grapefruit) only once. And the lightning shows are unbelievable!

I really only know about the central area of Texas, though. As a wannabe storm-chaser, I loved the wild storms there.

Cheers, from
SwampWitch

*The first Whole Foods was on South Lamar in Austin. It flooded so many times that it was fondly refered to as "Whole Floods" by the customers.

Hey chrissy saw your post after I submitted. I'm in NW 15 min from Sea World where are you? Great info by the way on our city, should we mention the Spurs too? Or how about the possiblity of a Grand Prix race here in 07? Gotta give the men something to shoot for.

Morningglories, I live in the 1604 and Bandera area. Traffic can be bad going to school at UTSA but we love our house. BIG SPURS FANS!!! I think the spurs fever hits a lot of people when they move here!

Hey there, NW San Girls. I'm down 1604 off of Tezel and Culebra. Amen on the Bandera drive, but having lived in Houston I gained Traffic expierence. I learned real quick when to drive there. I have Dr's and a Bank to visit off there and know when to make my appt's and when I can get to the bank with no problem.

VickyA, to address flooding. You know how it goes, somewhere in every state and city it floods. A big clue here is the same as it is anywhere, the smell of mold. If you sniff the air and smell mold don't buy there. Low lying area's are everywhere too. You can do like my DH and I did, check the FEMA maps and reports. It will be all layed out for you by zip codes.

puppyloveconfections, very sorry to here you haven't been well accepted. I ditto a move if it's possible. Some cranky Texans can be down right ornery buggers. But there are plenty more Texas Friendlies to counter act them so...we win! From a CA native with deep family roots in the Lone Star State may I say, Welcome Pardner.

Gloria I

Morningglories that is such a great tip, to check the FEMA maps, I wouldn't never tought of that!!
You guys are such a great help!!
Thanks sooooo much!

I live in Sugar Land, TX, a few miles from Houston. I was born and raised here and I love it. The city is growing very fast and becoming conjested. However, I am use to it. The weather is super hot. My property valve has went up every year. The schools in my area are pretty good, so I hear. My kids are too young for school.

I live in Beaumont which is about an hour and half away from Houston, four hours from Dallas and about five hours from San Antonio. It is a mid-size town that is growing. As others have said it is HOT here in the summer and usually 100% humidity. We are all excited this week becuase a weak cool front came down and the humidity is lower! The cost of living here is very reasonable, but we do occasionally have hurricanes. Part of living this close to the coast I guess. My DH is from Woodville which is a very small country town north of here. Very pretty! My sister lives in Austin and if I could talk DH into it that is where we would be! It is a beautiful city with everything you could ever want. I lived there for about a year and loved it!! HTH and good luck!

Yeahhhh, we got aproved!! now we need to find the time to go home shopping!! not easy with 3 kids, but we'll try to make the time and also make is a romantic get away!!

Ok, it's hot and there are a lot of people, but we live in Plano, just north of the Metroplex. We love it! Plus there is an AWESOME cake store in Richardson that is a huge bonus. Plano is nice because there is less crime, fairly good schools, plus it is really close to Dallas and the surrounding areas

Stephanie

I have lived in houston going on 17 years this January. We live in northwest houston-next to katy, and we have never flooded here. the places that do flood are south houston and now jesery village area. We don't live in a 100 year flood plan area, but we do have flood insurance because there is a building explosion happening around us so i would rather be prepared than not. I do know that the schools (cy-fair school district) are good, and that's why we bought in houston. Also with both my husband and I having jobs is the oil and gas field we will stick around here for a while.

Good luck on your move where ever you decide to settle in the lone star state!

Oh yeah, it would be hard to leave houston ever...i would miss the food to much.

Food??? yummy I love eating out!! I guess I have to check it out!! LOL

Puppylove..I am a damn yankee too, and PROUD of it. I t was a HUGE culture shock to move to TX!! Every kind of soda is a "coke", no matter what the flavor...well, cept for Dr. Pepper..(ewww). I, too, experienced awful manners, behaviors here. Don't worry about speed limits...no one pays attention to them...yield signs??--yeah right...YOU better be the one to yield, cuz no one else will....on ramps....good luck...they run you over to get onto highway. The education system has alot to be desired (except for the cooleges--lots of them) no money to pay for kids' books, but we have a great football team! Where I come from , sports is extra-curricular...you go to school for an EDUCATION..not sports!! The crime rate is horrendous (but I come from a small town) so I guess I am just appalled by all the shootings, drive-bys, mothers killing their children.

On a positive...yes, there is....I love the diversity of activites. There is so much to see-do..we still haven't even seen the rest of Ft. Worth Zoo! There are more diverse restaurants than you can shake a stick at. We live in small town just north of Denton, and there are lots of tiny towns around that are quaint.

I like TX, but it's only geography to me right now. I don't expect to live here forever.

Good luck in your search, but no matter what...and no matter where, always try to find happiness!!

What can you say about Lake Conroe area??

Anyone??

As a tx gal that moved away and just had to move back, let me tell you that it is so slower paced. My advice to you is to do some research. Texas has several different areas, from mountains to dry prairie to forests. Think about what kind of area you are looking for and research that area for houses. If you are a forest lover, you don't want to live out in West TX where it is prairie and plataues. Good luck house hunting.