Thinking of moving to Texas

[Chris]

My mortgage payment will drop $1700/month and will get to put a large chunk toward retirement.

What the hell!? How much were you paying a month for your house in Texas? You must have been paying something astronomical!

I currently pay $1450 a month for our house in Salem, which includes the property tax (which is about $350 a month).

You must have been living in a mansion or something.

 

[Starrs]

What the hell!? How much were you paying a month for your house in Texas? You must have been paying something astronomical!

I currently pay $1450 a month for our house in Salem, which includes the property tax (which is about $350 a month).

You must have been living in a mansion or something.

I’m thinking it was a typo

 

[Kiwi TJ]

I should have moved there a while ago I may have been taller coz everything is bigger in Texas

 

[Chris]

I’m thinking it was a typo

It must have been. Unless he has a mortgage with 30% interest or something!

 

[JMT]

Holy crap it’s going to lower 1,700/month? What kind of house are you in now? Damn that’s expensive haha

Yeah, it currently is expensive. I bought this house as an investment. It was too hard to save otherwise. The area is a rich man’s retirement area. Small, limited properties

https://b1iw.app.link/Zt7y7NyJBY

 

[JMT]

What the hell!? How much were you paying a month for your house in Texas? You must have been paying something astronomical!

I currently pay $1450 a month for our house in Salem, which includes the property tax (which is about $350 a month).

You must have been living in a mansion or something.

$2356 including property taxes and insurance. My new payment is going to be $636. Woohoo!

 

[JMT]

I should have moved there a while ago I may have been taller coz everything is bigger in Texas

I wish Kiwi, but I been here all my life and I’m only 5’6”.

 

[Kiwi TJ]

I wish Kiwi, but I been here all my life and I’m only 5’6”.

Damn....im 5ft 5 and shrinking haha

 

[lowranger]

Probably nothing for the kids to do, and I'm sure the houses are priced like the rest of the PNW. I could be wrong.



Wow, $5800 a year for electric? Holy cow. I pay probably $100 a month here in Salem, Oregon.

Same here in Northern California, average about $100 a month for electric bill and I have my own well, so no water bill, plus I have my own septic system, so no sewer bill either.

 

[Leakey]

Yes, on Monday. LOL. We’ve been in the Hill Country for 15+ years and before that in Lubbock and Paris and Austin. This is a big move. It looks like Spokane is a nice place to live too. @Chris might consider it if he wants to escape the rain and dreariness without such an extreme distance move. Granted, no theme parks in Spokane, but lots of outdoor activity.

Wow, that's a big move!

 

[Baltimoreed]

We used to go to Ft Worth a lot for my wife’s family. And we even considered a move from eastern NC but I’d never buy in the Dallas-Ft Wth area. I grew up in Baltimore, too many people. I liked the Texas hill country a lot. In today’s world you’ve got to factor in the extreme weather. Seems no matter where you are you’re under the gun for something.

 

[Chappys4life]

Texas is nice but expensive. Lived in Austin for almost 3 years now.

I like it but it’s getting too crowded causing traffic and housing cost rising.

Just signed a year lease on a house rental for 1700 a month. Not sure how long I will stay in Texas.

I do like San Antonio but beware it’s spotty on areas. Some places are nice and some are bad

 

[Leakey]

Texas is nice but expensive. Lived in Austin for almost 3 years now.

I like it but it’s getting too crowded causing traffic and housing cost rising.

Just signed a year lease on a house rental for 1700 a month. Not sure how long I will stay in Texas.

I do like San Antonio but beware it’s spotty on areas. Some places are nice and some are bad

It's only expensive if you live in the city limits, same thing here in Houston. And as far as the good in some area's bad in others, you could say that about every major city in America. The whacked out policies some of these cities are passing doesn't help either but that's another topic. I'm not trying to be an ass, just honest.

 

[Steel City 06]

There are quite a few cheaper cities in the US.

Pittsburgh is one. Many decades ago, the steel industry ruled the city. Hundreds of thousands of houses were built to house the workers, and significant infrastructure was developed to get materials to and from the city.

When the steel mills left, the city became a depressed area. Many areas looked like they were abandoned. But now there’s a lot of high tech business in the area that’s bringing in a lot of families and younger people. So there are a lot of well paying job opportunities, but the surplus of housing and infrastructure still exists. So it’s pretty much normal to be able to find a 2000+ square foot house in a good neighborhood for 200k or less. Many homes date to the 30s through the 50s but the houses have been kept up well in all but the worst neighborhoods.

I’m sure similar stories can be found in a lot of the midwestern cities, or even in places like North Dakota or Idaho.

 

[Chris]

I do like San Antonio but beware it’s spotty on areas. Some places are nice and some are bad

That's like any city though. Salem (where we live now) is the same way. Nice areas, and not so nice areas.

 

[tworley]

I couldn’t agree more with the suggestions of San Antonio over Dallas and Austin.

I live in the Hill Country, where several said they would like to live in TX. Yes, but expensive. One reason we’re moving to Spokane.

Here are some places worth considering near San Antonio.

Boerne
Kyle
New Braunfels
Dripping Springs

That was going to be my suggestion. Ive spent a lot of time in San Antonio and south at my last company. It grew on me. I had a coworker who moved from WY to TX and raved about his house and the price but once he spent money on taxes he was sure pissed.

 

[tworley]

Wyoming is a good state. Places up north like Sheridan, Cody, Powell, Big Horn, Buffalo are quaint. Strong communities and very personal people. But there is not much to do if you are not into the outdoors, or farm/ranch. Nothing is headquartered there. Small airports that may fly to an international airport (Denver CO or Billings MT). Winters can be brutal.

 

[JDS123]

Wyoming is a good state. Places up north like Sheridan, Cody, Powell, Big Horn, Buffalo are quaint. Strong communities and very personal people. But there is not much to do if you are not into the outdoors, or farm/ranch. Nothing is headquartered there. Small airports that may fly to an international airport (Denver CO or Billings MT). Winters can be brutal.

I think Cheyenne might not be too bad for @Chris if looking in Wyoming. Close to Denver, good amount of people, fairly low cost of living, good outdoor activities to do, no income tax. Though, just judging by the people I played hockey against in Cheyenne, he might wanna check the schools out before he sends his kids in

Buffalo and those places might get a bit lonely.

 

[Chris]

Wyoming is a good state. Places up north like Sheridan, Cody, Powell, Big Horn, Buffalo are quaint. Strong communities and very personal people. But there is not much to do if you are not into the outdoors, or farm/ranch. Nothing is headquartered there. Small airports that may fly to an international airport (Denver CO or Billings MT). Winters can be brutal.

See, Wyoming and Montana are places I want to live. However, my wife doesn't want to live places (and I totally get this) unless they are super kid friendly. Think amusement parks, water parks, children's museums, zoos, etc., all within a 1 hour driving distance.

Now if the kids were all grown and moved out, that would be another story altogether, because I could care less about any of that stuff.

 

[tworley]

However, my wife doesn't want to live places (and I totally get this) unless they are super kid friendly. Think amusement parks, water parks, children's museums, zoos, etc., all within a 1 hour driving distance.

Maybe avoid Wyoming then You have to drive over an hour just to get groceries in some cases.