Possibly relocating to San Antonio..

[crustychief]

..I would like to hear about the area. My wife works for the VA so we would probably be gravitating towards that area if the move happens.

[Tobra]

SA is a pretty good place to live, hot and humid in the summer, but plenty to do and see in the area. Housing is cheap, no state income tax. If you buy a home, you will want to file papers to declare it your homestead, save you dough on property taxes, do your homework, some areas are NOT desireable. If she works for the VA and is a nurse, I am not certain if she has to have a state license or not.

How is your Espanol?

[crustychief]

She is a BSN/RN, I think with the VA the license carries, her mother and sister are both in Nursing and had to get state licenses in Texas because they are in Civilian hospitals. My homework is just beginning here. My espanol is average So Cal white guy. I can get a hot beer and a bag to pee in if i need it.

[Tobra]

have a buddy who lives on the N side of town, can make some inquiries if this is getting serious for you

[cbush]

It is a great town. Huge growth over the last few years, but still has a nice feel. I am moving back there myself next Summer. I think they have a lot of Porsche enthusiasts there, so there are a lot of club activities. I am moving to the North side up Hwy 281. Traffic is bad now, but nothing like VA where I live now. Cost of living is pretty good, and the mexican food is great!

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Moving from San Diego I would expect: Lower crime rates (except for some parts of the city and you can spot those), lower taxes, lower housing costs, lower electric, lower insurance (especially if you are out of the county), less traffic (but still traffic issues in parts of town), cheaper fuel, higher food costs, better meat, don't get excited about any beaches, and there are lots of issues with water as this is desert and so MANY people are moving there. And with Austin just up the road you won't miss seeing tonnes of people from California...

I would look on the North side of town and maybe more West or East. We have friends in the area but they are both about an hour from San Antonio. The town has changed quite a bit from when we lived in Houston. I am sure many others are going to chime in with better information or more specific information.

[crustychief]

Thanks for the replies so far. I never go to the beach anyway so I won't miss that part at all. My SIL lives in Round Rock an keeps trying to get us to consider that area and the in-laws live in Texarkana.

[74-911]

We lived in SA for 35 years (69-2004). It is a great place to live and we may end up moving back eventually. SA has exploded in growth in all directions the past ten years or so but most of it is to the North/Northwest up IH10 west and 281 North. There is also a lot of growth up IH35N towards New Braunfels. SA is not in the desert as someone posted but at the edge of the TX hill country to the North and the beginning of the coastal plain to the South.

As to water, it is feast or famine as is much of TX but with the incredible growth the long range forecast is strict water conservation most of the time. Water is going to be a big issue in many parts of TX in the future. Average rainfall in SA is around 32 inches but you may have 6 months of drought followed by 14 inches in one day. Last year most of TX was in the worse drought since records have been kept followed by near record rainfall in places this spring ??.

There is a lot to do there and an easy drive to Houston, Dallas, etc and the coast is only 3 hours away if you are into salt water fishing, etc.

San Antonio's biggest problem is trying to keep up with the growth and traffic can be pretty bad ( not Los Angeles bad however)..

A definite plus: Jones Autowerke is one of the best Porsche shops in the country..

[Scuba Steve]

The northside is cool - neighborhoods with Deerfield or Inwood as part of their name (about seven altogether). The Huebner - Blanco - Rogers Ranch / 1604 area is great. If you go inside 1604 or a few of those areas outside of it you can be essentially traffic-free while being able to get to things to do in areas with more traffic in 5-10 minutes if you want to.

Google Maps / Street View is your friend here. Also people are pretty good at spray painting things like fences and buildings in worse areas so they can be spotted pretty easily.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by crustychief

My espanol is average So Cal white guy. I can get a hot beer and a bag to pee in if i need it.

That says a lot about SoCal.

[Tobra]

My buddy lives in a palatial mansion in that Rogers Park place.

[Joeaksa]

Always liked the Texas hill country, and San Antonio is a very nice part of it.

Enjoy...