Where are we moving? You decide!

[Barb&Meg]

Originally Posted by Babaloo

sorry
i talked to many texans at peepfest
they said houston was an armpit

okay...they didn't say armpit
they said it sucked

It is worse than an armpit! Yes, there are some nicer areas, but for the most part, its air is as polluted (or more so) than Mexico City, the water comes out of the pipes with a greenish or brownish tinge, the buildings are filthy and never re-painted, etc, there is no mass transportation, the expressways become parking lots more often than you can move freely on them, thousands of immigrants come through Houston every month bringing diseases this country doesn't know what to do about ( I worked for the Health Dept, so I know that this is true!), there are so many cases of active TB that the city and county health employees can barely get to see all of the people infected and get them their meds, smallpox is active there, and Houston is as high on the list of targets as is New York and LA for terrorist threats ( I know this too because I worked in Emergency preparedness and Bioterrorism)

I could go on....

[sctx]

Originally Posted by Barb&Meg

It is worse than an armpit! Yes, there are some nicer areas, but for the most part, its air is as polluted (or more so) than Mexico City, the water comes out of the pipes with a greenish or brownish tinge, the buildings are filthy and never re-painted, etc, there is no mass transportation, the expressways become parking lots more often than you can move freely on them, thousands of immigrants come through Houston every month bringing diseases this country doesn't know what to do about ( I worked for the Health Dept, so I know that this is true!), there are so many cases of active TB that the city and county health employees can barely get to see all of the people infected and get them their meds, smallpox is active there, and Houston is as high on the list of targets as is New York and LA for terrorist threats ( I know this too because I worked in Emergency preparedness and Bioterrorism)

I could go on....

no, "armpit" will suffice

[JudyBluEyes]

Never mind Texas.. move to California!! We have wonderful beaches, great wine, beautiful people, we don't get snow (but it's not far away), no hurricanes, no tornados, and we hardly ever have earthquakes...

[kirbyfan]

Originally Posted by JudyBluEyes

Never mind Texas.. move to California!! We have wonderful beaches, great wine, beautiful people, we don't get snow (but it's not far away), no hurricanes, no tornados, and we hardly ever have earthquakes...

We would consider Cali but housing is worse than nuts, its INSANE! For what we could get in other parts of the country that are honestly just about as nice, we could get a 550 ft studio apt...not good.

[kirbyfan]

Originally Posted by Bumper

Come to Winnipeg.

Too hot in the summertime, way too damned cold in the wintertime, it rains all autumn, and floods every spring. If you don't have a 36", 25 horse snowblower, you can't even keep up with a light snowfall. The wind is so strong and constant that if it ever stops, everybody falls down. The mosquitoes are required to file flight plans. The land is so flat and featureless you can watch your dog run away from home for three days. Lots of great beaches close at hand, and you can depend on the ice being off them for a good 4 or 5 weeks of the year. Sounds like paradise, doesn't it? (I should get me a job working for the Chamber of Commerce.)

Bumper...we live in Northern MN and I grew up in North Dakota...I wanted warm, sunny and picturesque not more of what i already have but colder!!!!
I've been to Winnepeg 5-6 times...it was ok but I honestly cannot think of a reason to go there again.

[NorthMinnesota]

Look at school districts for kids before you make decisions. Unless you're doing private , of course.

[Ginger]

If you have to choose the US, we love Oregon. If I were moving to the US, Oregon would top my list. I love getting the four seasons, so I like somewhere where we can enjoy the cold winter (but short!), blooms and blossoms of spring, heat and dryness of summer, changing leaves and cool crispness of autumn. That's why I love BC, it is all of that. We rarely see snow, but can drive an hour in any direction and hit a great ski-hill for snow activities. We have great camping, fishing, wildlife, great city life, beautiful beaches, oceans. I have found that Oregon is just like that!

[MWC]

I have a selfish motive for posting this, as we are interested in it as a possible retirement area ....

How about Corpus Christi, Texas?
A book I read about "Where to Retire in America" recommended it highly. The book said its waterfront is beautiful, it's close to South Padre Island ... its growing population skews quite young. Also said the medical care was good. Also mentioned that its climate was much different from Houston's -- more of a dry tropical climate as opposed to a moist one. Also ventured that it was less prone to hurricane damage than other parts of the Gulf Coast because of the curve in its coastline , and the barrier island protection.

Any info firsthand on this?

[MWC]

Originally Posted by kirbyfan

My wife and I are tired of snow and cold and have decided to move somewhere where the sun shines and its warm year round. We are both teachers and are going to take a year or so off from our schools and give somewhere else a try.
We have a problem in deciding what town/city/area would be a good place to move and try. I am hoping to get some input from some of you as this is a very diverse place. We are in our late 30's, with 3 children under 12. We are both teachers as I stated before and are looking for somewhere with affordable housing, sunshine and a beach not too far away(something we could at least drive to). We are not set financially so we will both have to work so employment is an issue...if making a living wasnt we would move to Playa tomorrow.

Any help, direction or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

If not Texas, there are many areas along the Gulf Coast of Florida that you could look into. But as others have warned you -- one big downside to "low cost of living" is that the local school system might, ahem, underperform. Also, if you go private, chances are the best-performing private schools have a religious element attached to them. That is the case just about anywhere in the South.

Try the communities south of Sarasota, Florida -- but still in Sarasota county, which probably has the most reputable school system in FLA. It has some top-class "specialized-interest" high sachools, too. Englewood is the furthest south, and probably the best bargain. There's also Nokomis, Venice.

[sctx]

Originally Posted by MWC

I have a selfish motive for posting this, as we are interested in it as a possible retirement area ....

How about Corpus Christi, Texas?
A book I read about "Where to Retire in America" recommended it highly. The book said its waterfront is beautiful, it's close to South Padre Island ... its growing population skews quite young. Also said the medical care was good. Also mentioned that its climate was much different from Houston's -- more of a dry tropical climate as opposed to a moist one. Also ventured that it was less prone to hurricane damage than other parts of the Gulf Coast because of the curve in its coastline , and the barrier island protection.

Any info firsthand on this?

Corpus is nice, I'd probably look more towards the north of there, say Rockport/Fulton Beach....my family is from there and Kingsville....highly recommend the ability to speak Spanish.......plus, it's the home of Whataburger!!!! I think Hurricane Celia was the last major cane to hit Corpus and that was in '71 I think...it was bad

[cuffedlinks]

Originally Posted by kirbyfan

I've been to Winnepeg 5-6 times...it was ok but I honestly cannot think of a reason to go there again.

They had a KILLER Winnipeg Peep Meet at Bumpers house that would be a GREAT reason to see Winnipeg again....

[JudyBluEyes]

Originally Posted by kirbyfan

We would consider Cali but housing is worse than nuts, its INSANE! For what we could get in other parts of the country that are honestly just about as nice, we could get a 550 ft studio apt...not good.

You're right, housing is insane!! There are cheaper areas, but you don't really want to live in Fresno...

[MN Annie]

Originally Posted by cuffedlinks

They had a KILLER Winnipeg Peep Meet at Bumpers house that would be a GREAT reason to see Winnipeg again....

Agree. They do it up right in Winnipeg!

[traci]

Originally Posted by JudyBluEyes

You're right, housing is insane!! There are cheaper areas, but you don't really want to live in Fresno...

I never get why housing costs are so high there Is it due to lack of available space, so what they have is at a premium? I think Cali is amazing, and have enjoyed visiting, I just have this unrational fear of an earthquake hitting and the whole lot falling into the ocean(maybe I should head over to the what are you afraid of? thread )

[dartay]

Originally Posted by tntsmith

Uh, excuse me, but Houston is not an armpit. There are some wonderful areas to live in. Yes, it has it's spots that are bad, but don't generalize the whole city. We live in The Woodlands area(north)and it is amazing!

I was generalizing I'm afraid. I've never cared for Houston. I guess I should have used one of the emoitcons.

I'm sure that there are nice areas down there, I've just never seen them