Is Texas the place to be or not????

[Nomad Farrier]

Hey guys Ive been from Oregon my entire life. For the past 10 years Ive been traveling up and down the west coast for my job so It doesnt really matter where I live. My wife and I have recently become really discusted with Oregon and the California ideals that are infiltrating the government there. So weve decided that since our son hasnt started school yet it would be a great time to move. Texas is on our top 5 list and I dont have any friends or relatives there to draw info from. So just a little background on us, we hunt, fish, have rope horses and cattle, need to live on acerage, christians, hate traffic and rude people, republicans, love small town people, want a good place to raise kids the right way, I travel so I want a safe place for my family when Im gone, We really arent hot on illegal immigrants. So weve been looking just west and south of FW. What are all the pros and cons you guys have for Texas?? Thanks for all the help!!!

Mike

 

[Sinus211]

I've met a lot of like minded guys from Texas that I got along with very well. That being said the weather is nothing to shake a stick at and you'll miss seeing vegetation that's green. You might be better off in Montana.

 

[VJJPunisher]

sounds like Missouri to me(God's Country), pure small town America with a decent city on the left border and ....well St louis on the right side border. I enjoyed living in Texas a great deal but as of now the only place I could imagine settling down is home in Missouri, Wyoming or Montana

 

[fdkay]

I depends on where you go in Texas.
I live in the South East, the terrain is flat, it is brutally hot in the summer, the trees look like shrubbery, grass is nearly non-existent.
The fishing is great, lots of deer and hogs, you just have to have money or land to hunt them.

You can go a couple of hours west and be in the southern part of the "hill country".
Again, lots of deer and hogs, it is even hotter as there is no wind off the gulf.
The deer are rather small in this neck of the woods, so just shoot two.

You can go three/four hours north, rolling hills, big, green trees and nice grass. Still brutally hot in the summer, but winters are a bit colder (just north of Houston).

Now, if you get up around the Red River area, it is really beautiful, but the winters can be rather nasty.
The area around the Texas/Louisiana border is pretty damn nice, never lived there but have been through a couple of times.

The pan handle is much like New Mexico and western Oklahoma.

There is also plenty of desert if that suits you.

 

[Nomad Farrier]

Montana and Wyoming is definitely on my list. Texas has just taken a little higher place at the moment due to the ease of flying in and out in the winter. I damn sure wouldnt let that be the defining factor in my decision though. Ive been told the heat sucks, but I really dont think it would bother me because I have to work in extreme heat all the time anyhow. The green factor may bother me though, FW area is pretty green most of the time isnt it??

 

[NMMX]

Man, you burst my bubble. I was really looking at moving to Oregon. Last thing I want is to live in little Cali though.

 

[Sinus211]

Man, you burst my bubble. I was really looking at moving to Oregon. Last thing I want is to live in little Cali though.

Oregon is stuck between Seattle and California. Expect to see Prius' traveling in force...God I hate Seattle...

 

[Nomad Farrier]

Ya unfortunately the west coast is ruled by 4 cities that are overflowing with liberals. Wa, Or, and Ca have really neat places in them but the laws and taxes make them really shitty to live in.

 

[RanchhandTCR]

What about arizona? Down in the pheonix area and south, and west side of arizona gets pretty damn warm, but if you up in prescott, of payson, flagstaff its nice in the Summer time but gets fairly cold in the winter, but the winter time in pheonix is very pleasant. At least it is too me, when I go down for X-mas and get away from this -30* Winter for a couple of days. Plus it was Ranked #1 for the least amount of gun control. Some good schools in arizona too, Mesa, Gilbert, and Guadalupe have some ghetto parts of town, but have some really nice neighbor hoods, and their are alot of shooting ranges. Hunting good just have to put in for it, and fishing is good in alot of the lakes. Some of the lakes you will have to deal with the floating house mansions.

 

[1TallTx'n]

East Tx is deffinately greener than central or west Tx. The Longview / Tyler area actually has trees. I'm in Abilene and I don't reccomend it as a place to move to. Midland / Odessa east to Sweetwater, north to Lubbock, housing will be at a premium because of the shale oil boom there and going south and south central there is the Eagle Ford shale boom.

San Angelo could be a good option but if it were me, I'd look at Longview / Tyler. An hour west is Dallas and an hour east is Shreveport, La.

Just my 2 coppers worth.

 

[Downzero]

Texas will probably be a blue state before your son graduates from high school. Frank doesn't want politics on his forum so I won't expand on that. Some think it won't even take that long. I would probably suggest Wyoming, Montana, maybe the Dakotas, Indiana, or the south.

I do love Texas though and almost recently moved there myself and just visited it last weekend. That said, if I could pick anywhere, it probably wouldn't be Texas...go somewhere where land is cheap and the legislature is part-time.

I'm sure Montana fits that.

Also: it's really hard to generalize about Texas because it is very big and diverse in a lot of ways, including climate. It has everything from desert, conventional 4 seasons, tropical, and everything in between.

 

[long range newbie]

I live in oregon and we are getting some tree huggers from cali over here and its kinda going down, but I like montana, its beautiful, lots of hunting, land, and fishing is amazing. Montana is where I would live and I only went there for a week and I experienced the great weather and horrible weather, its just beautiful and i went fishing in a lake, lets just say you could see the bottom it was so clear, and the madison river was amazing to fish on too. Montana has everything I need, fishing, hunting, and beautiful land.

 

[hankpac]

I live in Oregon, in the mountains east of Klamath Falls. Nice place, real conservative values. However, the entire state is ruled by the liberal assholes in the I-5 corridor, so everything we don't want is voted in by them, everything we do want is voted out by them. It is getting tough to stay here.
I have property in Texas, and lived there for ten years before retirement. Even though there are lots of liberals there too, it seems that continual gerrymandering allows the conservatives to keep a sort of loose control. There are limited public lands, but that also means limited Federal say-so. make a few friends, and getting access to land to hunt becomes more reasonable. A disabled vet can get property tax completely waved. Driver's license and hunting/fishing combo is free for them too.
If you prefer country living, land is still reasonable, although uprooted Californians are coming here like they did Oregon, and Washington, mostly to get out from under their upside down homes.
For now, because I can, I travel to Texas in the winter, and live in Oregon in the summer.

 

[MarshalTex]

+1 on east texas. It is in the top ten for economy growth in the US right now I believe . Im originally from Longview and intend to be back there some day. Jobs are easy to find and pay well, cost of living is low, and its covered in evergreens. It is in the bible belt so conservative mindly people carry the vast majority there. Also its is easy to find mostly "conservative" schools. Summers are hot and winters are cold but there lakes every where and the wildlife is abundant. Pm if you need more info my dad is a homebuilder there. Best place in the world in my book.

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2

 

[ELR Shooting Range]

I live in southwest Texas near the border. We are fortunate in that the illegal immigrant activity isn't bad. We ranch about 40 miles north of the border. Texas is a special place with a huge variety in climates, terrain, things to do, and mostly hospitable folks. We have some awesome State and National Parks and again, a ton of things to do if you don't mind driving. Desert, marshlands, forest, grasslands, and a load of fantastic history. It's a no brainer!!!

 

[1TallTx'n]

if you don't mind driving.

To put this in perspective, for me in Abilene; its 6 hours west to El Paso, 5 hours east to Longview, 5 hours south to Houston and 4 hours north to Amarillo. Or, 10 hours from El Paso to Longview and 9 hours from Amarillo to Houston.

 

[Flea21]

I live in southwest Texas near the border. We are fortunate in that the illegal immigrant activity isn't bad. We ranch about 40 miles north of the border. Texas is a special place with a huge variety in climates, terrain, things to do, and mostly hospitable folks. We have some awesome State and National Parks and again, a ton of things to do if you don't mind driving. Desert, marshlands, forest, grasslands, and a load of fantastic history. It's a no brainer!!!

I dream of one day living there... if I could just make my current income or more, I would move in a heartbeat but currently that is not the case so im stuck in the hell that iw chicago...

 

[Downzero]

To put this in perspective, for me in Abilene; its 6 hours west to El Paso, 5 hours east to Longview, 5 hours south to Houston and 4 hours north to Amarillo. Or, 10 hours from El Paso to Longview and 9 hours from Amarillo to Houston.

Just to add perspective, LA is closer than San Antonio from where I'm sitting...and El Paso is only 45 miles away.

 

[kraigWY]

Hey guys Ive been from Oregon my entire life. For the past 10 years Ive been traveling up and down the west coast for my job so It doesnt really matter where I live. My wife and I have recently become really discusted with Oregon and the California ideals that are infiltrating the government there

My question is how come it took so long. I was born in Portland, moved around a lot until my father retired from the military, Went to high school, spent three years in the Army, got out, took a look around, said screw this and beat feet to Wyoming. Stayed there a couple years, then 22 in Alaska, and back to Wyoming. I see no reason to go anywhere else.

Texas may be OK, but its way too hot for me.

 

[Charger442]

Texas is terrible and no one should move here. Period.


and FYI, Texas legislature is part-time. they only meet every two years.

 

[1TallTx'n]

Hehe, when I lived in the Atlanta, Ga area, I'd drive half way across Ga, through Al, Ms, La and half way across Tx; 1/3 of my drive time was in Tx. But we digress.

 

[MarshalTex]

Charger are u trolling or are you serious? If your serious California is looking for more salaries to take half of. Please feel free to pack your bag, send your guns to me and dont let the door hit you in thw backside.

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[ABader]

Im in El Paso, I was forced here due to the Army, but I'm from Ohio. The only real complaints I have about El Paso is no greenery, its a boarder town so you better know Spanish, and getting used to walking into Walmart and hearing the announcements in Spanish or doing your Christmas shopping at the mall and all the music is in Spanish. Oh I almost forgot, most public service jobs will not even consider you if you aren't bilingual. It took my wife a year to get a job and her boss ended up firing her for "miss-communication with a students parents", ie she wasnt bilingual and the parents b*tched they couldn't understand her so she was fired. Other than that it isn't horrible. Since you are really into the outdoors Ruidoso has tons of land and greenery and isn't a bad drive. Like Downzero said, Las Cruces is less than an hour away and has greenery. Phoenix is within 6 hours. Albuquerque is about 4 hours. Dallas is about 9 and San Antonio is about 10. All in all it sure beats Ohio in my opinion. I plan to say as long as I can.

On a side note, you might want to Consider Nevada as well if it is not on your list. I have a good friend that lives in a small town called Fallon, NV. It has a Naval Air station up there plenty of jobs. Land and housing is cheap. I found a 3 bed 3 bath house up there with a one car attached and 2 car detached garages sitting on 8 acres for $135k a few months ago. It really isn't a big town even with the base there. They mainly just have a couple squadrons and its where the Top Gun school is, so you don't have the issues normally associated with military towns there. I actually wouldn't of even known the base was there if my friend didn't tell me. It is just big enough for a Walmart and a Tractor Supply and that is about it. Fallon sits about 1.5 hours from Reno, 4 hours from Vegas, 4 hours from San Fran, and 5 hours from Aspen. Has some desert to it, but does have greenery. The wife and I are actually looking to move there once I am finished with the Army or the Army is finished with me, which ever happens first.

 

[Michael]

From a former Coos bay resident;
Tx beats Oregon for politics.
Learn hymns, plenty of them. The bible belt buckles here.
Alcohol laws are very 1800's
Government is 30-40 years behind the west coast.
Gun laws, best in class.........ANY class!
Find a good private school for your kids, we're number 49 in education and it's not getting better.
Scenery? Ha! You're leaving all of it behind.

Look at Northwest Arkansas real close, you'll be happier.

 

[Nomad Farrier]

I keep hearing Montana and Wyoming. Arent the winters pretty hard up there? Maybe the summers in Texas are worse than I thought? Im in the 100deg plus California summers all the time and I was under the assumption that they were pretty much the same in Texas with a little more Humidity of course??

 

[Sinus211]

I keep hearing Montana and Wyoming. Arent the winters pretty hard up there?

Follow the latitudinal parallels from Oregon east and your looking at southern Montana, northern Wyoming and South Dakota. Winters just depend on what part of the state you live in. The only major weather trip up is the continental divide that forces all the humidity to drop from weather systems coming out of the east. You wanna see some crazy weather? Move to Wisconsin.

 

[Dtarget]

Texas is not a bad state but not the best either. If I had a choice I would be more north.... AK, MT, ID, UT etc. If you want to be south, I would pick AZ.

 

[long range newbie]

yeah snow doesn't bother me so living in montana is fine as long as snow isn't a fear of yours.

 

[427Cobra]

I'd look into Arkansas, this state is full of illegals, full of transplanted Yankee F-heads.

 

[Nomad Farrier]

427Cobra I just laughed my ass off!!!!!

 

[mrsleeve]

lots of Californians have migrated to MT as well and working hard on fucking it up too. Unless you want to live out on the high prairie.

 

[shaman]

Texas will be blue and brown soon. High tech jobs in Austin bring in the silicon valley cali people, and they bring their ideas of how things should be. Heard the same about Dallas. Unless you have money or friends a place to hunt is hard to find. As much as I would like to stay here, someplace further from the borders is where me and soon to hopefully be legal immigrant wife will end up.

 

[Flea21]

Im from illinois and have been planning on moving to texas and am not a yankee ftard... I like guns, freedom and land. I really hope texas would welcome me and not hate on my previous roots.

 

[Sharpsman]

Buffalo, Wyoming!!

 

[30calDeath]

I trying to get out of SoCal in 2 years. I am going to look into Northern Az, like Prescott and Flagstaff areas. I love Montana though!!!

 

[tylerw02]

sounds like Missouri to me(God's Country), pure small town America with a decent city on the left border and ....well St louis on the right side border. I enjoyed living in Texas a great deal but as of now the only place I could imagine settling down is home in Missouri, Wyoming or Montana

^MO is a great place to live. I wouldn't mind Wyoming, Montana, or even Idaho if I had to move.

 

[shaman]

Im from illinois and have been planning on moving to texas and am not a yankee ftard... I like guns, freedom and land. I really hope texas would welcome me and not hate on my previous roots.

Leave your roots behind and you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[nic_bravo_whiskey]

Leave your roots behind and you shouldn't have any problems.

For anyone wanting to move to Texas...

This, this, and this.

 

[Name Enough]

I moved to Texas from Florida 35 years ago. What supprised me most was how friendly folks were to strangers. I wasn't used to people saying hello while standing in line at the supermarket.
Here is some info - Texans decribing Texans:

"You know you're in TEXAS when..."
And Remember...
Humor Is Healthy

You see more Texan flags than American flags.
You know someone who ate the 72 oz steak and got it for free.
You attend a formal event in your best clothes, your finest jewelry, and your Cowboy Boots.
You can write a check at Dairy Queen for 2 Hungr-Busters and fries.
You prefer Whataburger to McDonalds.
You dress up to go shopping at the mall.
You've hung ornaments and tinsel on a tumbleweed and used it as a Christmas tree.
You're disappointed when ice cream doesn't come in spicy flavor.
You know from experience that rattlesnake and/or alligator meat tastes like chicken.
You know that armadillos are Mother Nature's version of a speed bump.
You know what a 'Cowboy Cadillac' is. (Chevy Surburban)
You have both a dog and a brother-in-law named Bud
Your local grocery store sells cactus in the Fresh Produce department
You watch the movie Urban Cowboy and laugh at the phony Texan accents
You choose a brand of Mexican salsa with the same care that another might use to select a bottle of fine wine
You think that the 4 basic food groups are nachos, bar-b-que, fajitas, and Copenhagen.
You refer to the Dallas Cowboys as "God's favorite football team"
You don't consider people from Austin to be real Texans.
Your Pastor wears boots.
The Blue Book value on your truck goes up and down depending on how much gas it has in it.
Armadillos sleep in the middle of the road with their feet in the air.
Roadrunners dont say Beep Beep.

 

[Cartman]

My wife and I are finally getting serious about leaving California. If, as planned, my wife gets bought out we're out. Mostly anyway. During the real estate collapse we bought a premier property in a premier area (home adjoining our lot is selling for over $13,000,000. A block away for $20,000,000). And my wife wants to keep that should we ever decide to live here part time. We got it for a song at the perfect meeting of a depressed market and unavailability of land loans where our aggressive real estate agent pushed and pushed over a 7 month period to get the owner's lender to agree to the sale. Without the amazing deal we got we never would have been able to afford such a property. And it is unlikely there will be another perfect storm like that which combines with the ideal property (despite being within a gated community a dispute with the original land developers left this one special -- no CC&Rs. Those of you in a California high-end gated community will understand how special this is.

If you have enough money, parts of California are hard to beat. Take San Diego, for example. Beautiful girls are a dime a dozen. People are friendly. And the weather is perfect. Literally. All year. Average temperature is about 71 -- room temperature. Pine and oak forests, mountains, year round trout fishing, and snow in winter are a short drive. Astoundingly nice.

But the better you do the more you'll be punished via taxes. And there are several bills coming to governor Moon Beam that will make the gun law situation too infuriating to bear any longer. If it weren't for gun and tax laws I would spend the rest of my life here -- notwithstanding the hippies and left-wing politics. It really is that nice.

I know a lot of people from Texas who just love it. But looking up the crime rates in cities like Dallas FW and Houston and it is a lot worse than what we're used to here. Moreover, while the politics seem attractive now, the demographic shift doesn't look like it's going to stop. In fact, it looks like it's going to speed up. And it has been established that the demographic shift is going to bring Blue politics. Or, even worse for us (I'm only speaking for my family, not yours, so please don't get me or this thread in trouble by trying to fight about politics) Mexico and/or Latin American politics, crime, literacy, economics, etc. So I don't see Texas being a long term solution.

From what we've read, Wyoming seems to have the best nexus of what we care about regarding politics, taxes, and gun laws. But we've only driven through the areas around Jellystone Park. Needless to say that seemed pretty fantastic, but I would appreciate it if folks from Wyoming could chime in (or PM) about the economies of various parts of the state. I'm probably done practicing law, but my wife would probably like to continue being in the diamond and jewelry business. We will have to research if there are enough younger people with jobs, or tourists, to support such a business. We've been meaning to get up to Jackson, but are open to anywhere in the state. First hand info from residents would be most helpful.

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Top ten states. Texas isn't one of them.

No state is safe beyond the date of the next election.

 

[ddavis]

I'd look into Arkansas, this state is full of illegals, full of transplanted Yankee F-heads.

I agree. I'm currently in south Texas. It is incredibly trashy and I look forward to getting out of here. I will probably stay in TX, but move more toward the central parts in the hill country. Driving to Arkansas (about 8 hours from here) you drive though several biome types of pretty country, but as soon as you cross the TX border into Arkansas, it's like a whole different country. No trash on the roadsides and people seem to have a sense of pride. Maybe the state spends more to keep the natural state clean, or maybe it's the people who live there.

One thing is for sure, Texans are very friendly and eager to help others. You want an example of this? Get your car stuck on the beach (which we can drive on!) It won't take long for someone to stop and render aid. Random people will strike up a conversation when standing around in public places, etc. I agree with others that TX will become the next California in the next couple of decades. Austin and all the other big filthy welfare cities are already there.

 

[tylerw02]

All the great states keep falling....CA, CO, and Texas next? That's so frightening.

 

[Nomad Farrier]

Well Im realizing that my question in regards to Texas and if I should move there was waaay to general because of the huge area the state encompasses. The area I was contiplating on moving to was the Stephenville region. Probably about a 45mile radius of Stephenville. The main things i want out of Texas that Im not finding in Oregon is politeness, conservative community, safe place for my family and good place to raise my son. Obviously I have to have a 2nd Amend friendly environment, with ample places to go shoot and hunt. Ive been told that Texas is terrible for hunting unless you have friends with land or pay to hunt? When we say pay to hunt, whats it cost to go hunt deer or pigs? Ive lived in a small town in Oregon all my life and the community, small town feel and friendliness is gone!! I want that back, I hope it still exists in Texas. Last time I was in Texas was 2002 and that friendliness was there in force. So far the general answer to the question has been about 50/50 in regards to Texas being a place to be and that worries me a bit. I sincerely thought I would get an overwhelming answer of "Duh you bonehead"

 

[1TallTx'n]

Ive been told that Texas is terrible for hunting unless you have friends with land or pay to hunt? When we say pay to hunt, whats it cost to go hunt deer or pigs?

The last time I looked was about 9 yrs ago when some friends and I were looking at 500 acres where the land owner was charging $1,200 yr for anything in season. No facilities and we couldn't set up a dear camp.

 

[Sniper Uncle]

I'd look into Arkansas, this state is full of illegals, full of transplanted Yankee F-heads.

They call those "Damn-Yankees"---the ones that stay.

 

[HD1911]

suprised no one has mentioned the Commonwealth of KY. I'm sure there will be jokes to follow....

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Anybody can be a F___head. IMHO, it's not about where you come from, it's about your ability to listen.

I figure that when I'm in a new situation, or among strangers; if they want to know who I am, or what I can do, they'll ask.

No point in going over old ground unless folks show an interest.

Greg

 

[kraigWY]

Anybody can be a F___head. IMHO, it's not about where you come from,

Reminds me of a story;

This old guy retired and was looking for a retirement home. He stops in an old out of the way gas station with an elderly owner. The retiree ask the old gentlemen what the people were like around here, saying he was looking for a place to retire. The old guy ask the retiree what they were like where he came from. "The are shitheads, unfriendly, rude assholes" The gentlemen said you'll find the people here the same way, just like where you came from, mean spirited folks, you'll fine no worse.

A while later, another retiree was also looking for a place to retire, he stopped by the same country gas station and ask the same question. What are people like around here, I'm looking for a retirement home. The old gentleman asked the same question, what are the people like where you came from. The retiree hangs his head, says that's the problem, they are great wonderful people, I hate to leave the area but I can't afford to live there on my pension. I'm hoping to find the same sort of people for my new neighbors. The old gentlemen looks him in the eye and says that's what we have here, friendly honest people, you'll find no better.

I've move around quite a bit in my 66 years on this earth and find that this story is quite true.

 

[W54/XM-388]

Well Im realizing that my question in regards to Texas and if I should move there was waaay to general because of the huge area the state encompasses. The area I was contiplating on moving to was the Stephenville region. Probably about a 45mile radius of Stephenville. The main things i want out of Texas that Im not finding in Oregon is politeness, conservative community, safe place for my family and good place to raise my son. Obviously I have to have a 2nd Amend friendly environment, with ample places to go shoot and hunt. Ive been told that Texas is terrible for hunting unless you have friends with land or pay to hunt? When we say pay to hunt, whats it cost to go hunt deer or pigs? Ive lived in a small town in Oregon all my life and the community, small town feel and friendliness is gone!! I want that back, I hope it still exists in Texas. Last time I was in Texas was 2002 and that friendliness was there in force. So far the general answer to the question has been about 50/50 in regards to Texas being a place to be and that worries me a bit. I sincerely thought I would get an overwhelming answer of "Duh you bonehead"

Stephenville is about and hour to an hour and a half out of the DFW area and it is a fairly good area. It is more on the desert side and you will have very hot summers.
There are a couple good gun ranges nearby so you can get plenty of shooting in.
For hunting, you can either buy a permit to hunt on the public hunting lands (which are okay but nothing great) or you will have to hunt on private land.
Texas right now is a good freedom loving God fearing state, but the demographics are changing and it's hard to say what things will be like in 20 years especially after a round or two of amnesty. However the rural areas are likely to stay decent for a lot longer.
It is a very friendly conservative area that is a great safe place for your family.
One important thing to note is that when it comes to kids, there is not just tons of stuff waiting for them to do for fun unless you plan it, so you'll need to be actively involved as your kids get older in getting them into hobbies & trades and keeping them busy with things they like, or they can get idle and bored & get into trouble (like too many of the urban well off youngsters).

You would also be about 90 minutes away from a bunch of amusement parks & big shopping areas for those days when the family wants to head to the big city for an excursion.
Then with them money you save living in the country, go on foreign vacations every so often (and not just down to Mexico), so your kids get a good view of the world.