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Glad to see two great Texas cities in the top ten for the 35+ cohort. Both SA and Houston have been great cities for me, and the other tech workers I know. SA

by drone 13y ago

Glad to see two great Texas cities in the top ten for the 35+ cohort. Both SA and Houston have been great cities for me, and the other tech workers I know. SA is a beautiful city with lots of great jobs in the security and networking industries, and the economy in Houston continues to rage on, with low cost of living. (It's also worth noting, that most people would find the big population centers in TX a lot more liberal and diverse than they think they are.)

nilkn 13y ago
Houston's a great buy compared to Silicon Valley, but I wouldn't say its cost of living is low on a national scale at all. It's still drastically more expensive than most American cities (it's the 4th largest, after all). Most inner-loop neighborhoods are filled with million dollar homes, most of which are not mansions. Don't get me wrong, I love Houston. But it's not just a sea of cheap McMansions. There are a lot of very highly paid oil executives, corporate attorneys, and physicians (Texas Medical Center) who can easily afford a $1M+ home so the urban core of the city is really transforming into a much more expensive and exclusive area.
- hkarthik 13y ago
  I see the same thing happening in Dallas, albeit with healthcare professionals, lawyers, and executives. The urban core is still prohibitively expensive for many, especially those with families. You really have to get out into the suburbs before housing becomes more approachable. But then you have to add commutes into the city to find interesting work with little to no public transit options. All the cities in Texas have terrible public transportation with little to no plans to improve it. We're basically headed down the same road as California in this respect which is sad because our regulatory environment is supposedly much better.
- drone 13y ago
  Yeah, I guess I'm not counting the "buying" of a house as much towards CoL, renting is still fairly inexpensive, assuming you don't want a "luxury apartment," but gas prices (still paying less than $3/gal in my neighborhood), food prices, utilities (let's not talk about the water bill!) & etc. "as compared to other major cities." That last part is important =) You'll live a lot cheaper in Luling than Houston, but outside of great barbecue, there isn't much going on there. The inner loop is really expensive for housing stock, definitely, and even it has nothing on the memorial villages! That being said, the whole east side is still pretty cheap. The same house that would cost you $500k in the Heights can be bought for $250k in Eastwood/Idylwood.
  - nilkn 13y ago
    Ah yes, I completely forgot about places like Hunter's Creek Village. Those areas are insanely expensive too. =] Apartments are definitely a bargain in Houston, though. Even the "luxury apartments" are half the price of a normal apartment in San Francisco.

by drone 13y ago

nilkn 13y ago

Houston's a great buy compared to Silicon Valley, but I wouldn't say its cost of living is low on a national scale at all. It's still drastically more expensive than most American cities (it's the 4th largest, after all). Most inner-loop neighborhoods are filled with million dollar homes, most of which are not mansions. Don't get me wrong, I love Houston. But it's not just a sea of cheap McMansions. There are a lot of very highly paid oil executives, corporate attorneys, and physicians (Texas Medical Center) who can easily afford a $1M+ home so the urban core of the city is really transforming into a much more expensive and exclusive area.

hkarthik 13y ago
I see the same thing happening in Dallas, albeit with healthcare professionals, lawyers, and executives. The urban core is still prohibitively expensive for many, especially those with families. You really have to get out into the suburbs before housing becomes more approachable. But then you have to add commutes into the city to find interesting work with little to no public transit options. All the cities in Texas have terrible public transportation with little to no plans to improve it. We're basically headed down the same road as California in this respect which is sad because our regulatory environment is supposedly much better.
drone 13y ago
Yeah, I guess I'm not counting the "buying" of a house as much towards CoL, renting is still fairly inexpensive, assuming you don't want a "luxury apartment," but gas prices (still paying less than $3/gal in my neighborhood), food prices, utilities (let's not talk about the water bill!) & etc. "as compared to other major cities." That last part is important =) You'll live a lot cheaper in Luling than Houston, but outside of great barbecue, there isn't much going on there. The inner loop is really expensive for housing stock, definitely, and even it has nothing on the memorial villages! That being said, the whole east side is still pretty cheap. The same house that would cost you $500k in the Heights can be bought for $250k in Eastwood/Idylwood.
- nilkn 13y ago
  Ah yes, I completely forgot about places like Hunter's Creek Village. Those areas are insanely expensive too. =] Apartments are definitely a bargain in Houston, though. Even the "luxury apartments" are half the price of a normal apartment in San Francisco.