I know there has been a lot of people to move from El Segundo and San Ramon and relocate to the Houston area (refinery/area offices).
How’s life been? How do you like Texas in comparison to your previous life in California?
Yes, we all know the real estate is much cheaper… Just curious about your experience and lifestyle change.
Which place are you describing, @kj? That sounds like my cousin's backyard in San Diego.
Polluted. Sometimes it stinks.
When it is not hot it is rainy.
When it is not rainy it is humid/hot.
When it is not humid/hot it is windy/cold.
Add loud thunderstorms and a hurricane or a tropical storm to the menu, and you have a recipe for depressing wheater.
I will probably move soon.
I know people that have retired in Houston because everything is green here and that is easy on the eyes.
I have never heard anyone complain about having to shovel snow here in the winter time.
If you've been to Houston and only found steers you haven't met me yet, big boy!
😘😘😘
Are you all going on vacation and evaluating all of the outdoor and leisure activities? That's sure what it sounds like.
And YES you absolutely 100% unequivocally have a choice. Is someone literally FORCING you to move somewhere? Maybe you are spoiled by a high salary and benefits from a company that let's you get away with doing whatever you want and you can't find another job that let's you do nothing or will hire you with no talent. If that's not the case find another comparable paying job in CA or wherever you are, geniuses.
@jp, Yes. your employer is moving you based on health concerns specifically for you, dear. You keep thinking that, cupcake.
According to wallethub's fat-town index of the largest 100 cities. H-town ranks 14th, while SF and Mile High rank 89th and 100th respectively. I guess corp. wants us to be fat and unhealthy? Seriously, a lot of the reasons for this have already been discussed. My two pieces of advice are have an exercise plan and commit to it. Restaurants are cheap and tempting, but stay away. 20lbs in 5 years for sure.
Living in any location is what you make it.
Yes, Houston is hot, humid, overcrowded and has the same big city problems as every other large American city. It's spread out so public transportation is suspect at best.
That said, if you don't mind the commute, there are plenty of nice areas on the perimeter with great schools. Housing is cheaper than CA so you could use some of the money you save to put in a pool and beat the heat. If you enjoy fishing or water skiing, there are plenty of lakes and the Gulf of Mexico, I'm sorry, Gulf of America. Buy a boat or a kayak. Wade fishing for redfish or speck's is a blast. Lot's of golf courses and more restaurants than you can imagine. Great hunting in the fall. There are plenty of professional and college sports to become a fan of.
If you are blaming the heat and humidity for not going outdoors, you are just looking for excuses.
I like the dolts posting, “stay away” like some of us have a choice. I like the retiree chiming in too. Imagine being retired and spending time online here. Native Texan, lived in Houston and yeah, it su-ks.
Please go back to California you ungrateful turds.
Houston is horrible. If you’re from California don’t waste your time moving here. Stay away. Please. Stay away. Thank you.
"Drive friendly the Texas way" is a joke
People just tailgate, drivers are basically rude. It's a mad Max movie. They drive big trucks, I guess driving large vehicles might be a way for them to compensate for feelings of inadequacy in other parts of their bodies if you know what I mean.
Houston is a basically a sh-t hole third world country
Tacky, tacky, tacky. With all the weather threats here you'd think some resiliency would be built in the system. But no. Invest in a generator, a big one.
A pedestrian's nightmare.
Houston smells bad.
Without a doubt California probably the most physically impressive and beautiful state, top 5 for sure. But, it is case study 101 in mismanagement. People play up the property tax thing in Houston, but there are definitely pockets where it isn’t as high. And year, the homeowners insurance is really high, but for my personal situation the overall math is conclusive. It is way cheaper when you consider the lack of state income tax, particularly for higher earners. Can you honestly say that CA doesn’t squander your tax dollars to an absurd degree. There is no excuse for the degradation in living conditions and crime spike in the major metros over the last decade. Clean air? The place is on fire every year. Quiet? Have you been to LA, SF/OAK. Houston weather su-ks, and I would strongly urge caution to anyone moving here as it is not for everyone. But a good thought exercise to consider is if someone in TX was pondering a move to CA, I would also tell them to be careful. If they also had a family to support, I would tell them you are nuts to take that leap in the current market, pretty state or not. Like wth are you even talking about unless you have family there. If I owned a house in CA at a low rate, it would be a tough sell to leave from a financial perspective. The cultural stuff is completely overblown. Do your homework and you can find a great suburb if that is your speed. I can’t say TX is retirement location material for me, but it ain’t CA either. What I do know though is that I am in a far better position financially having moved and am better set up to take care of my kids long term needs.
If you like being inside, food, diversity, people, constant activities and places to get involved, and alcohol, it’s a fantastic place. If you like nature, breathing good air, quiet, the outdoors being pretty, being comfortable outside, then it is a soul-su-king drudge of a life. It’s ok enough and it’s easy to be here a long time before you realize your life is being slowly stolen away by living in a mediocre place.
Yes, Texas is absolutely awful. Please stay in California. We don't need your attitude or your politics.
OP, I gotcha right here:
https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLf0ejejfF_wYRhBwtSwvNBPGyA95Ll7mt
You’re welcome!
sigh, the places where there are many good jobs are shitholes or are turning into them
the standards of living in the US appears to be dropping everywhere
this is only partly a joke
you might want to join the Amish
nice clean land and a simple hard day's work
Texas is not California, move at your own risk but most regret it.
I spent a few years at Richmond 25 years ago for a project. My family and I absolutely fell in love with the area, esp. SF. My relatives from Europe did as well.
I am retired now and made a trip back and horrified at how bad the city has decayed during a recent vacation - homeless people dirt, crime , dr-gs. Crazy expensive.
Houston is the 4th largest city in the US, and the most ethnically diverse, yet it's still a backwards bubbaland. Property taxes are crazy, particularly in suburbs where they're paying for school bonds. Insurance is higher here, both for car and housing. Utilities are expensive, and you feel it if you go all-out and buy a 3,000+ sf home here. Everything revolves around church and football. You're constantly reminded how superior Texas is compared to everyone else and how much they despise Californians and liberals (which is sour grapes IMHO). The weather is cr-p; It rains more here than in Seattle and the heat is nearly unbearable with humidity added. Unlike California, you drive 3 hours and it pretty much looks just like where you left, so no Yosemite, Carmel, Lake Tahoe, etc. If you do choose to move here, keep your house in California and buy something cheaper and easier to sell when you're ready to go back. Wish I had done that years ago when I took the bait and moved here. Needless to say, retirement won't be in Texas.
Houston is what you make of it. Focus on the neighborhood and the home that suits you and your family best. Like any large city, traffic is terrible and property taxes are high. Schools are generally good in the main suburbs and not so good within the inner loop of Houston, although there are always exceptions so do your homework. Summer heat is brutal so plan to mostly be inside May-Oct. The airport is a step up from the Bay Area with a lot more direct flight options, specifically on United. Texas universities have a policy of automatic admission for the top 10% of graduating high school classes anywhere in Texas, so that’s a plus if you have kids close to college age and they want to stay in state (it’s not a scholarship though, just automatic admission). Outdoor activities are not nearly as good as California. There is no state income tax. Good luck with your decision!
Lived in Houston most of my life. Yes it su-ks but it has everything you need, lots of good jobs, and relatively cheap cost of living. No one moves to Houston because for the high quality of life.
Thank you for all the datapoints!! Very appreciated!
Houston IS cheap compared to the Bay Area. Prop tax is a higher % of a lower tax base, and would be lower if you bought before housing prices spiked. Home insurance in CA is just as expensive and sometimes impossible to find. Gas is almost 2x, PG&E is 3-4x, my commute is 2x the distance and the same or slightly shorter than it was in SR. Unless you bought a house before 2019 in CA it’s impossible to afford anymore but you can get a 4000 sq ft home in a Houston suburb still.
Life's too short... enjoy Yosemite, Big Bear, Mammoth, Lake Tahoe, the Redwoods, Monterey, Napa Valley, Central coast, Palm desert, San Diego, marin headlands, golf, ski, sail, surf, bike, pretty much any time of the year
Getting some statistics numbers to manage the risk of relocation:
Declining Relocation Rates:
Record Low:
The 1.6% relocation rate in Q1 2023 was the lowest on record since 1986.
Historical Context:
In the past, a much higher percentage of workers relocated for jobs, with rates averaging around 29% from 1986 to 1997.
Recent Trends:
The percentage of job seekers relocating for new positions has steadily declined, from 4.6% in Q1 2022 to 1.6% in Q1 2023.
People said houston is cheap, house is very cheap so I thought wow too much money for saving to relocate there.
Reality: you do not know all hidden cost like 3% property tax, if you want good school pay 700k house with 3% tax in katy then you hit big traffic everyday. Multiple storms per year so insurance is too expensive for house, car compared to california
not to mention the weather. Bottom line is you do not get what you thought you would save more money for retirement.
Do not move!
It is what you make of it. With a good attitude it can be a great place to live if you pick the right area. Summers are horrible but that’s why god invented sire conditioning. If you come already planning to hate it, you’ll hate it.
Do not relocate because they offer you a boat of cash up front. That is just a trap you do not to get into
sad ! huge mistake. begging my family to forgive me
Wikipedia
Houston's mu---r rate in 2005 ranked 46th of U.S. cities with a population over 250,000 in 2005 (per capita rate of 16.3 mu---rs per 100,000 population).[1] In 2010, the city's mu---r rate (per capita rate of 11.8 mu---rs per 100,000 population) was ranked sixth among U.S. cities with a population of over 750,000 (behind New York City, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia)[2] according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Houston had over 400 homic--es in 2020 and 473 by the end of December 2021[3] a predicted increase of 30% year on year.[4]
Houston is a significant hub for trafficking of co----e, ca--abis, he---n, MDMA, and methamphetamine due to its size, and proximity to major illegal-dr-g exporting nations.[9] Houston is one of the country's largest hubs for human trafficking.[10]
Historical racial and ethnic composition 2020[156] 2010[157] 2000[158] 1990[37] 1970[37]
Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 47.0% 43.8% 37.4% 27.6% 11.3%[159]
Whites (Non-Hispanic) 21.8% 25.6%[160] 30.8%[161] 40.6% 62.4%[159]
Black or African American 24.9% 25.1% 25.3% 28.1% 25.7%
Asian 7.1% 6.0% 5.3% 4.1% 0.4%
Houston has generally good people, awesome BBQ, more affordable housing, nice neighborhoods and good schools depending on location. It’s probably the ugliest city in the US with no discernible nature beauty, strip mall capital of the world, thunder dome on the freeways, awful weather to the point where the key objective in summer is to completely avoid the natural environment and just live indoors, completely unhinged State government leaders.
Just beautiful! I love the humidity, the hurricanes and flooding that comes with them. The bugs are awesome and the beaches are far better than those in California! What’s not to like.
I’ve only found steers
So far there’s only two things I found in Texas