The age demographics are similar for both cities, with about 40 percent of the population between 18-44, but my feeling is that among that group, San Antonio has a much larger percentage of people who grew up in the city. Many Austinites in that age group grew up in other cities around the state and first came to Austin for college. Austin has a slightly higher median income and quite a bit higher average level of education (because of size of UT and the many students who stay, Austin is toward the top of the list nationally in that category).
As many people have mentioned, San Antonio is HEAVILY Mexican. About 60 percent of the population according to the census, and that's likely vastly underreported, as many residents, both legal and illegal, won't fill out census returns. (I realize I'm lumping all Hispanic backgrounds under the title "Mexican" here, but that's far and away the dominant ethnicity.) Turn on the radio and there's about a 50-50 chance the language you hear will be Spanish.
The main entertainment area in San Antonio is the Riverwalk, but it's pretty different from the areas I mentioned in Austin. Whereas Sixth Street, the Warehouse District and Red River are mostly bars and clubs with a smattering of restaurants, the Riverwalk is more along the lines of a restaurant-heavy tourist destination.
If you like Mexican food, you'll find some of the best in the world in San Antonio. My wife's sister lives there and there are a couple of places I make sure to eat at whenver I have to go down there. But I'm always glad to leave. The whole city feels to me like one of the areas of Los Angeles that aren't TOO bad, but feel like they could get that way in a hurry.
Let me contact my sister and her husband to see when they are available so I will know when I'll be flying in. I'll find out more after talking to them. They live in Houston but have a house in Austin they are looking to move in to once they get jobs there.
Anyone else interested other than YAA and Zit?
Looking forward to meeting both of you guys.
Anyone else interested other than YAA and Zit?
Looking forward to meeting both of you guys.
The traffic really is bad. Over the last 15 or 20 years the city grew much faster than anticipated, so the major roads don't have enough lanes for the number of cards. Sprawl is beginning to show some signs of being a problem, but that's really minor right now. If you do end up moving to Austin, though, move to AUSTIN. Not Round Rock or any of the other suburbs. You'll be happier being close to the center of the city.
The real downside to Austin as far as I'm concerned is the summer weather. It gets hotter than you might even think, and it's a wet heat. It can be tough to deal with, and the summer lasts a very long time. The first hot days usually start coming in April, sometimes March, and can last up through Thanksgiving some years.
Annoying college kids can also be a downside, as there are a lot of spoiled kids at UT. Much of that can be avoided by making sure you don't live in an area where it's all college students and by doing your bar-hopping in the Warehouse District or Red River.
While there's a wide range of people living here, Austin itself has a reputation as a very liberal city. In most elections it votes differently than the rest of the state. So you'll still the occasional leftover hippie and the granola girl who doesn't shave her pits. Think Willie Nelson. He loves it here and fits in perfectly. The suburb I mentioned above, Round Rock, is one of the most conservative towns in Texas, though. So you've got pure Republican-ville sitting 20 minutes north of cosmic cowboy Austin. That always seems funny to me.
Housing and overall cost of living is very affordable compared to many parts of the country, but neither rental nor mortgage costs dropped as much here as during the bubble popping as they did in many places. You won't find any houses listed on the market at 50 percent the price they had two years ago, like you see in places like Miami and Las Vegas.
On a side note -- this is too trivial to call it a "con" -- it's always seemed odd to me how in a city that so loves barbecue, there's a puzzling lack of really great barbecue joints. There are several very good ones, but only one I'd really consider world-class, and it's about a half-hour outside of town. Austin falls behind Dallas, Houston and some of the small towns 30 or 45 minutes outside Austin in my personal barbecue rankings.
If you can visit before commiting to a move, I'd advise doing it, and do it in the summer. The weather is just starting to reach the roasting highs, so it would be a good idea to find out whether or not it's too much for you. This is the time of year I really wish I were living in Southern California.
Thanks again for the opinions!!!!!!!!..any other tips? I did visit Austin over Thanksgiving and had a blast anrd started looking for jobs in that area after that. May come down soon to check out both cities...If I had 2 days to check some things out what are some "must sees" or places to visit/do on my trip?
The Austin downtown nightlife would be highly recommended, as would a day at a place called Barton Springs (you can look that up on the Web, it's an Austin favorite). You'll want to see the Riverwalk and maybe the Alamo in San Antonio, but both of those places are extremely touristy and won't really give a clear picture of the city itself.
Send me a PM if you come to check out the cities, I can recommend some good places to eat in both Austin and San Antonio.
Send me a PM if you come to check out the cities, I can recommend some good places to eat in both Austin and San Antonio.
I don't find traffic bad at all. Though, I drive mostly in North Austin...
I've come to enjoy the heat also. I love being able to play tennis
and basketball outside virtually year 'round. One of my complaints
is that Texas is so flat. I grew up in the mountains, and miss them
a lot... Austin is considered the Texas Hill Country, and has some
nice rolling hills, but nothing like mountains.
Though, I spent Spring Break at Big Bend, and that place is
awesome.
Being a conservative, I prefer Round Rock, Georgetown, and
Williamson County, as the loony libs know to stay away from there.
I don't find traffic bad at all. Though, I drive mostly in North Austin...
I've come to enjoy the heat also. I love being able to play tennis
and basketball outside virtually year 'round. One of my complaints
is that Texas is so flat. I grew up in the mountains, and miss them
a lot... Austin is considered the Texas Hill Country, and has some
nice rolling hills, but nothing like mountains.
Though, I spent Spring Break at Big Bend, and that place is
awesome.
Being a conservative, I prefer Round Rock, Georgetown, and
Williamson County, as the loony libs know to stay away from there.
Thanks for the opinions zit...does anyone know much about the Aboretum area? I may live in this area if I did move.
To clarify, there are a lot of things in Austin named after Barton Springs. Here's a link to what I was actually talking about, though.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barton_Springs_Pool
I live up around the Arboretum area. It's a good spot. Lots of young professionals. It's about a 20-minute drive to the downtown bars when you're in the mood for that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barton_Springs_Pool
I live up around the Arboretum area. It's a good spot. Lots of young professionals. It's about a 20-minute drive to the downtown bars when you're in the mood for that.
Austin in 1978 was in the twilight of the Cosmic Cowboy days, when the Armadillo World Headquarters was still the best place to be. I'm sure it was quite a good time.
Stay away from Hippie Hollow, punter. You should know the first rule of public nakedness: The people most likely to get naked are the ones you least want to see that way. It's pretty much just a hangout for fat hippies -- as the name says -- and gay dudes.
