Dallas - should I move?

[qba335i]

To all people living in Dallas. What are the top 3 positives and 3 negatives of living there?

I live in Chicago and like this city. There is always something to do: In summer there are many concerts, I can sail, play tennis, golf. In winter it's only 2-3h drive and I can ski. The job market is pretty good.
On the other hand we have Harsh winter, crime, taxes...

Recently I am spending a lot of weekends in Dallas (GF lives there). Seems like a nice city, but very slow/boring.

Thanks

[djpeetur]

I have a barber who is from Chicago. He hates in Dallas. Dallas is slower place for sure. Cost of living is inexpensive.

[F80Dreamer]

I moved to the Dallas area 7 years ago (from Canada)...overall, it has been a good experience.
Top 3 Likes
- cost of living is cheap when you factor in house prices, gas, no state tax, etc...
- overall, pretty friendly people
- great sports scene, especially with the Cowboys, Mavs, highschool sports, etc...
Top 3 Dislikes
- way too churchy and conservative (for my liking anyways)
- lack of culture/diversity, especially vs what I was used to in Toronto
- heat is absolutely brutal for about 3 months of the year...even the evenings/nights are close to 100 degrees on many days

[qba335i]

I checked some home prices and it's comparable to chicago. Not sure why people say cheap...

For example a 2 bedroom in Azzure (high rise) is around 600-700k. The houses around highland park are 1M+.

[TheNus]

Originally Posted by qba335i

I checked some home prices and it's comparable to chicago. Not sure why people say cheap...

For example a 2 bedroom in Azzure (high rise) is around 600-700k. The houses around highland park are 1M+.

Yeah, because you are looking at a luxury high rise on my block in Uptown and a much pricier upscale neighborhood which is Highland Park. People base their real estate assessment here on what you can get a house for in the suburbs...Frisco, Plano and even further out.

Moved here 7 years ago. Expat from Las Vegas...

[LGWGN]

Originally Posted by TheNus

Yeah, because you are looking at a luxury high rise on my block in Uptown and a much pricier upscale neighborhood which is Highland Park. People base their real estate assessment here on what you can get a house for in the suburbs...Frisco, Plano and even further out.
.

I have a feeling we are neighbors.

To the OP's question:

Top 3:

• Cost of living is very affordable. The areas you are comparing are on the very high end of the city.
• Weather is tolerable. This is relative though, as we can see all 4 seasons in a single week (along with the occasional tornado). If you're not a fan of the cold though, it's a good escape.
• Economy. The economy in Dallas is booming at the moment.

Bottom 3:

• Little to no diversity. Compared to other large cities there isn't a feeling of mixed diversity.
• It doesn't offer much for the outdoors. DFW is basically flat from one side to the other with little to do outside.
• $30k millionaires. While I think there are some great people in this town, it seems the overarching culture is one of chasing the next best thing and putting on a facade of success. It's tiring to watch...

If I were in your position, it would be my preference to stay in Chicago and hope the crime situation improves.

[TheNus]

Originally Posted by LGWGN

I have a feeling we are neighbors.

To the OP's question:

Top 3:

• Cost of living is very affordable. The areas you are comparing are on the very high end of the city.
• Weahter is tollerable. This is relative though, as we can see all 4 seasons in a single week (along with the occasional tornado). If you're not a fan of the cold though, it's a good escape.
• Economy. The economy in Dallas is booming at the moment.

Bottom 3:

• Little to no diversity. Compared to other large cities there isn't a feeling of mixed diversity.
• It doesn't offer much for the outdoors. DFW is basically flat from one side to the other with little to do outside.
• $30k millionaires. While I think there are some great people in this town, it seems the overarching culture is one of chasing the next best thing and putting on a facade of success. It's tiring to watch...

If I were in your position, it would be my preference to stay in Chicago and hope the crime situation improves.

I think we are...you have the blue M2 that lives at GH? Sorry, e-stalked you for a minute to see what you drove. I've seen your car a few times.

I think you pretty much nailed it. I was trying to figure out how to describe the 30K culture and the constant next best thing desire. It is quite tiresome and I haven't ever experienced it anywhere else quite like here. It even extends to older people which is quite funny.

[LGWGN]

Originally Posted by TheNus

I think we are...you have the blue M2 that lives at GH? Sorry, e-stalked you for a minute to see what you drove. I've seen your car a few times.

That would be me. Hopefully I never cut you off or anything.

[TheNus]

Originally Posted by LGWGN

That would be me. Hopefully I never cut you off or anything.

LOL no, I usually see you when I'm out with my dog. I have the MW M3 with CF goodies and HREs. I usually only drive on weekends so you may not have seen it.

[Fahrvergnügen]

I just moved from Chicago (the actual city) last summer to the DFW area (Frisco).

Are you looking to move into the city of Dallas (downtown area) or one of the suburbs?

The business area of Dallas is pretty dead and only has small pockets of liveliness compared to Chicago. The Loop in Chicago is dead, yes, but you have River North, Streeterville, west Loop, etc... and those areas have much more to offer compared to the like-areas in Dallas.

Although many people say Dallas is cheaper to live, condo prices are actually pretty on par with much of Chicago (since Chicago is a relatively cheap big city to live). Parking, gas, restaurants, etc. are a little cheaper though.

For me, if I wanted to maintain that 'big city' feel, I would have stayed in Chicago. The suburbs though have a lot to offer if you are looking to live outside the city. I can elaborate if you want.

Here are my top 3 pros and cons:

Pros:
- Weather... you are trading 6 months of winter in Chicago for 2-3 months of scorching hot weather in Dallas. I've listed this as a pro because I love hot weather much more than cold. Also, weather is great for the most part outside of those 2-3 months. It's ~72 degrees most days this week! I've never been so hot in my life until moving here though... it could be 92F at midnight! 99% less potholes too!

- Space... you don't have to constantly pay to park everywhere you go. Outside of a handful of restaurants, you don't need to make reservations or wait, you aren't constantly rubbing against people at parks. It's quiet at many places (no constant sirens or subways). Trash doesn't build up and places are clean. Especially for suburbs, you have a yard and garage and a massive house to have a pool table and media room.

- Culture... the culture here is different than Chicago but it is definitely here. Texas culture has a lot to offer such as Grapevine's wine fest, Fort Worth is basically a massive historical site, lots of hiking at parks, sailing at the surrounding lakes, they are build a third motorsports park (LG), you can take up shooting at the nice gun ranges, the car scene is immensely bigger than Chicago, Austin and Texas Hill country aren't too far away, the list can go on. We obviously don't have skiing around here but the midwest doesn't have many good places either... and they're usually jam packed when I've been.

Cons:
- Food - Chicago is spoiled with good food. In Texas you are surrounded by Chick-fil-A and other chains. There are some good spots but they are sporadic.

- Distance - I've gotten use to it now but everything is so F***ing far away from everything else. You basically can't walk anywhere, nobody walks here. Chicago usually has a grocery store, liquor store, bars, restaurants, subway, barber, coffee shops all within 10-15 minute walk if you are in a good part of town

Neutral
- Drivers - instead of having a bunch of idiot taxi drivers in Chicago, you have a bunch of retarded soccer moms that don't know basic rules of the road and drive massive Escalades

[LGWGN]

Originally Posted by TheNus

LOL no, I usually see you when I'm out with my dog. I have the MW M3 with CF goodies and HREs. I usually only drive on weekends so you may not have seen it.

Not sure I have. I'll keep my eyes out though, I'm a big fan of most HRE's on a BMW.

[iamvietness]

Originally Posted by qba335i

To all people living in Dallas. What are the top 3 positives and 3 negatives of living there?

I live in Chicago and like this city. There is always something to do: In summer there are many concerts, I can sail, play tennis, golf. In winter it's only 2-3h drive and I can ski. The job market is pretty good.
On the other hand we have Harsh winter, crime, taxes...

Recently I am spending a lot of weekends in Dallas (GF lives there). Seems like a nice city, but very slow/boring.

Thanks

Which area are you looking to live? What's your age? Where does your gf stay? All will play a role.

Keep in mind that Dallas is getting busier even up towards Frisco and Plano. Toyota just moved their NA campus here and people from Cali, NY, and Kentucky are moving here for that in addition to a bunch of other companies.

The food choices here will disappoint you compared to Chicago. Everything here is a chain and nothing unique like what you have there (although Legacy West is trying to build something to change that).

I myself hate downtown and uptown here. I would pick the shops at Legacy or Addison to live

[qba335i]

I am 35. The GF lives around the highland park area. She travels a lot for work so needs to be close to the airport.

I work in finance so probably will get a job in the city. I don't want to waste 1-2h a day commuting to work so the uptown location made sense. Not sure if I am ready for a house at this point.

I am used to living in the city. My work is less than 2 miles away, have all stores within 5-10min car drive. Can walk to the gym, bars, restaurants (or $5-10 uber).

[TheNus]

You will probably want to stay with Uptown, Downtown, Harwood District, Turtle Creek or City Center/West Villiage. Most people who live on our little block are either in finance, energy or corporate law. You would most likely have an office in downtown or uptown if you work for a smaller boutique or hedge.

If you are interested in buying, look at Blue Ciel which is just being built. It is near he Azure.

This link may be helpful. I'm not affiliated in any way, just an easy and informative realtor site.
http://www.nancymartinezhomes.com/HTML/highrises.htm