[Don 79 TA]

Well... we had another offer in the Houston area thrown our way to investigate. I am still waiting on the offer from Albuquerque NM

Since Houston is near the Gulf i am assuming that it's very humid there?
how's the weather typically there? alot of humidity? change of seasons pleasant?

[78 GHOST]

Don, there are many PY members in the greater Houston area.

Knowing where you were coming from would help greatly in the comparison shopping.

Albuquerque is a VERY nice area and would be hard to pass up considering the beautiful area and all the great mountains. Real Estate is considerably more expensive than Houston. In addition, ABQ seems to be growing at a very rapid pace.

I've lived pretty much all over and moved to Houston due to it's relatively mild weather, and the fact that I was tired of living in the rust belt. Houston has more annual rainfall than Seattle, WA. so it's wet here.. very wet! Humidity is a way of life and A/C in the garage is pretty much mandatory for me.

Temps are seldom in the 30s on the coldest winter days, with more typical temps over the winter from the 40s to the 50s. The summer is usually 60% humidity or greater, and temps in excess of 85 Degrees F. A typical summer day is 95F and probably 40% humidity, with strong afternoon thunderstorms.

Economically speaking, Houston is the 4th largest city in the U.S. and one of the top ports. Houston is obviously a hub for energy related businesses and has enjoyed sustained modest economic growth. Unemployment in Houston is relatively low, and we've not seen a radical impact of the real estate bubble that other metro areas have suffered.

Real estate is cheap. Let me rephrase that: Real Estate is VERY CHEAP!!! My wife and I live in a good middle-class suburb called Kingwood in a 1650 SF 3, 2, 2 which I bought about 3 years ago for $97,000, improved a bit and is now worth around $130,000. Depending upon where you need/want to live you can find some really nice properties for a reasonably cheap price compared to practically anywhere.

We could buy a nice 4000-4500 SF home on a couple of acres in a NICE neighborhood for around $350,000-500,000.

A fantastic resource for real estate is www.har.com which is site provided by the Houston Area Realtors Association. The site is easy to use and can be tailored to suit your specs on a home. As usual, I'd suggest shopping in areas with the best schools.

Texas doesn't have a state income tax, and the sales tax is around 6.25% plus the municipal taxes which usually results in around an 8.25% sales tax. Property taxes are steep, typically the lion's share of the property taxes are the school taxes.

With a Homestead exemption, expect to pay 2.0-2.5% property taxes on your home.

Classic cars are very popular, and there are a lot of activities for the gearhead. I could go on for a long while, but I think that get's the basics across.

If you can post your possible job location, I might be able to suggest some areas you might consider.

[TTS]

If you like a big city... Houston is your place. The weather is milder than you would think, but it does rain a lot. It's similar to New Orleans but not nearly as humid. I'm in the northern burbs so maybe our temps are a few degrees cooler than the city.

I was in the mid west about 8 months, if you want nice four season weather like that you won't find it anywhere in the South.

The two biggest drawbacks are high property taxes, and your commutes could be VERY long distance. I.e. my wife drives 60 miles one way to work, my property taxes are close to $600 per month- and I have the lowest rate around. It's a tax system that keeps people out of homes beyond their means, since you're taxed on your property instead of income.

The good news is my wife's 60 mile drive takes just over an hour (about a quarter way around Greater Houston), so at least traffic is moving! It took her longer to drive 26 miles in New Orleans. I think the Katy area (west) traffic is probably the worst- at least anytime I drive out there, and rush hour has got to be worse.

IMO the Houston area does lack character. It's an endless string of big name cookie cutter shopping centers, deed restricted cookie cutter subdivisions, repeat. Nice malls, but several of them are cookie cutters

If you like Mexican food we have a mex. restaurant next door to every mex. restaurant on every corner . Good Chinese is very hard to find, and good Pizza is rare- illegals obviously can't cook these foods well . The barbecue of coarse is good and plentiful.

There are lots of classic, performance and race cars here! It seems like everyone has something, so a car enthusiast is going to be right at home.

[YVEYANT]

[quote=TTS]
Good Pizza is rare- illegals obviously can't cook these foods well
quote]
Sounds like you guys are in desperate need of Italians. We call it a "slice" or for all eight slices a "Pie". "Gonna go get a slice" "Gonna go pick up a large pie"
How you doin..lol

[briann]

There is a reason houses are so inexpensive in Houston....Humidity sucks.

I was raised in Houston and you couldn't pay me enough to wanna go back there to live. My family lives right outside of Dallas now and thats a helluva lot better than Houston area humidity/people wise.

[Don 79 TA]

I did not know they got that much rain
the humidity is what she suffers from or should say trips off the asthma

we also have an offer in Kingsman AZ, right now that looks promising too
the NM offer has not gotten back to me yet, so still waiting

[Goathead]

Dallas now and thats a helluva lot better than Houston area humidity/people wise

You gotta be kidding, right? Houston people are good people. I hate big cities, and that is why I live in Galveston, breeze all day long, cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter and just 50 mile away, and not a big city like Houston.

The bad thing about the gulf coast in Texas is the summer humidity, but the good thing is that we have a fall, spring and winter (one big season) that is just great. While they are freeing thier asses off up north of here, and that includes Dallas, we are having a blast 90% of the time. And all of the rain down here comes in big chunks, so please don't compare us to the northwest, it's nowhere near the same...

[Colin Frolick]

man I love Houston. My favorite city in Texas

[Primitive Artist]

Originally Posted by Don 79 TA

... I am still waiting on the offer from Albuquerque NM...Since Houston is near the Gulf i am assuming that it's very humid there?

Way back when, during the 80s recession, alot of guys went to Houston to build it up. Driving past, it looked like a concrete jungle, so I didn't bother stopping there. West Texas is pretty. As soon as you drive over the geographical border (I took the famous Route 66) you start to see the cacti and tumble weeds.
I'd choose Albequerque, any day. New Mexico is pretty with all that red sand and there's more to do there than in Texas. You're also closer to the west coast and mountain range

[theYman]

I am NOW from Corpus Christi,Tx.,which is about 4hrs down the coast from Houston. The weather is indeed humid right now. I still like it though.
The evenings usually cool off and there always a breeze or wind.

The people are awesome here though. Very friendly. I've spent many hours talking to folks who flag me down or stop by the house when my car is out.
Good luck,
Trent

[Goathead]

HOUSTON -- Pat yourselves on the back, Houston. Kiplinger just named the Bayou City as the best place to live, work and play in the United States.
That’s right. Kiplinger went looking for cities with strong economies, plenty of jobs, affordable living costs and lively social scenes.
Also online Read Kiplinger's entire article here


And when they applied that formula to Houston, we came out on top.
Kiplinger cited Houston’s resurgence from the oil bust of the 80s to become a city with a booming job market, housing at a fraction of the price of other metro areas and a healthy dose of folks who work in creative fields like scientists, engineers, architects, educators, writers, artists and entertainers.
AP
Home, sweet home

They praised the city for investing in downtown, noting the improvements likely helped in attracting new residents and major companies.

And thia came out yesterday, I believe...