First I’ll apologize to George and everyone else on the BB Forum for creating this thread and hope it won’t cause to many problems – my rational, I respect the recommendations of the individuals that participate in the BB Forum and I don’t own a DR so rarely participate in that forum.

I have a couple of ‘relocation’ questions for Texas residents.

My wife and I are constitutional believing, small-federal government, limited federal government spending, GOD believing individuals. We’re leaving California because we’re feed up with the state’s nanny government mentality along with their insatiable spending habits. Additionally, my 90yr old mother lives in Conway, AR so we'd be a short drive away...

We visited with friends in Frisco, Texas two years ago and really liked the area but would like to know a some recommendations/observations first...
1st question – Frisco is split between Collin and Denton counties, which county is the preferable county to live within?
2nd question – other than the Frisco area, where would you recommend to relocate to within the state and why?

Cappo,

You might PM Wendell Riech as I think he lives in Frisco. My Brother in law and sister in law live there as well. It seems to be a popular place. Too crowded for my taste however as I'm more of a country boy!! But, if you are coming from the city out in CA, you'll feel like you have all the elbow room in the world there.

I live just west of Fort Worth, outside a town called Weatherford. Granbury is also close by. Weatherford is ranch country. Granbury is a quaint little place with much history and old time shops on the town square. I live between the two and have access to the city of Ft. Worth when I need it. Dallas is another 20 miles or so east.

Firstly, if you are moving here to TX, Welcome! Secondly, take a look out west before you decide, unless you have work in that area that make it more logical to be close to. You'll find the DFW metroplex to be a tale of two cities. Dallas is trendy and metropolitan while Ft. Worth is cattle and ranch country. Out in Weatherford, it isn't unusual to be dining in a nice restaurant and have guys wearing spurs. No, I'm not kidding. Just depends on how laid back you are. Mercedes - Dallas side. Truck - Ft. Worth side.

We have a saying here in the Metroplex, when drinking a martini in Dallas, you must extend your pinky, in Ft. Worth, it's optional!

Welcome to Texas!!

Jim

You have a PM

In the interest of helping you escape from Kommiefornia, I'll leave this here for a couple of days (then I'll move it to 'Miscellaneous Topics).

Good luck eith your move.

George

Todd thanks for the information; we're not locked into Frisco, we just have friends there and wife enjoyed the area - I'll PM Wendell.

Sean you have a response PM.

George thank you very much...

Welcome to Texas. We are currently accepting all God fearing, 2nd Amendment believing, Republican voting out of state relocations! Makers only, no takers.

Seems like the most popular areas these days are the Hill Country, including the areas around Austin (not Austin itself, you would feel like you were back in California in Austin) and San Antonio. Personally if I was relocating somewhere in Texas I would probably look at the area around San Antonio. It has some topography, it is a big enough city to be able to get and do most anything, interesting culture and architecture, etc.

This will sound strange, but take a map and a compass, set the point dead center between Fort Worth and Dallas, and make a circle equal to a 75 mile radius of that center point.

With the exception of the Dallas/Plano area, the rest of it, especially as you get 25 to 50 miles out from the center and specifically going in some form of a southerly/northerly anything to the west, depending on your taste is pretty good country.

Wife and I lived in Parker county, outside of the town of Azle from 1998 till 2009 and it was not bad.

It began to get crowded, but that is just my opinion.

That aside, I would not look any farther out than Denton/Decatur/Jacksboro/Mineral Wells/Stephenville/Hico/Hillsboro, again, that is just my opinion.

I don't know your employment or income needs so you will have to give us some indication there.
I have lived several places around the state.

I do not care for the desert west Texas or the flat windy panhandle. I lived out there some when I was a kid. There is nothing wrong with Norht Central Texas say from Palo Pinto County over to Tarrant County (and south of those counties 1 or 2 counties) except it is windy. It can get cold in the winter and hot in the summer.

I much prefer the Texas Hill country down I-35 and 183. Start say at Hamilton or Lampasas down to New Braunfels on a north south line.
You can go west of this line - generally stay west of I-35 in the hills up to about 100 miles.
Smaller towns are Burnet, Marble Falls and Fredricksburg.

One thing you might keep in mind about Texas there is relatively little public land. So if you move into a big city that is it. You might be able to go to a lake or the coast but there is no public out back to go shoot at.

I worked in the area back in 1983-84. At that time Frisco still had tumbleweed! Plano was the building hot-spot at that time, but I guess Frisco and Wiley are like that now. Great state!

Congratulations Jim!!!!!!

About time.........

Why Texas is the Second greatest State in the Union, just behind South Carolina!!!!

I reckon you will be just fine.......

Michael

I live about 5-6 miles south of Frisco. In Collin county however Denton county line is only 350 ft west of my house.
My first question is where do you plan on working (if you work; not retired). There can be significant traffic in this area and if you frequently are traveling south it could be burdensome.
Do you like the metro areas or a little more rural?
I have lived in N Dallas for +50 years so I am familiar with the area.
There are some large planned communities in Frisco where you can spend $5Million on a home or other areas are closer to $200K.
I like the ability to get whatever I want or need within a few miles of my home however there is a price to pay and that is congestion. I am fortunate enough to have some property to escape to on weekends if I desire.

EZ

Welcome to Texas. Nevada and Arizona are also nice. Stay out of the big cities if you can, although job and business opportunities are best there.

Todd –
Just glanced through Granbury on the internet and wife liked the area especially the couple of one story house we quickly identified…

Mike –
We fit that criteria pretty well but we’re pretty much spenders right now.

CHC –
Makes perfect sense, I’ll have to dig out an actual map and give it a go here shortly.

SR –
Good questions so I’ll try to help with the following.

My wife and I are retired with a decent annual income, so for us job availability is pretty much ‘extra time on our hands’ type of thing.

We’re trying to downsize from a 3K sq-ft house one story house and due to wife’s degenerative arthritis we’d like to stay with a one story house – if possible. But installing a within-home elevator is less than $10K so that is also an option.

Wife’s minimums…
- 3 bedrooms & 2 bathrooms
- Large open kitchen (she’s a cook and baker – I’m an outdoor grill kind’a guy)
- No more than one hour drive from major shopping accessibility.
My minimums…
- Firearms range within one hour drive (Frisco is building a huge indoor range including 100yd rifle lanes that’ll open sometime this summer)
- RV parking onsite or close by
- Not too far from new Texas AR buddies
Price point…
We’d like to stay under $350K on a purchase price.
We’re finding a number of very nice homes in the $250K +/- $30K range in Frisco, and a few in the same price range now in the Granbury area. The homes in Granbury are winning at the moment ‘cause they’re one story homes where the Frisco homes are two story.

Biebs –
Frisco was very busy construction wise when we visited, but a lot of construction nearby as well.

Michael –
Thanks. Yep we’re finally getting out of here and I’ll definitely be at the DSC in January 2014!

EZ –
10-4 on the multi-million $ gated communities (way out of our price range). We drove by many of them. We’re retired but there is a very good chance that one adult son and one adult daughter (with 4 grandchildren) may be following us a few months after our move so we’ll likely have to accommodate them while they look for work and places to live.

fla3006 –
Wife hates the desert so that knocks much of Arizona and Nevada off the table. I lived in the SoCal desert for over 8 years so don’t mind the heat but do get tired of looking at sand… San Francisco has ruined Northern Nevada and wife’s not to sure about living in the Flagstaff, AZ area ‘cause she doesn’t want to deal with the winter snow. Told her we could leave the snow in the winter but she seems to like the idea of Texas more than Nevada or Arizona so Texas bound we are…

Capo,

On the range issue, TacPro is about an hour west of Weatherford (and Granbury) on I-20. You should check out their website. Very nice facility with multiple ranges and a 1,000 yard range to boot!! There is also a private range/club in Weatherford that I'm heading over to this Saturday to check out and see about joining. I think it's called the Parker County Sportsmans Club. I just heard about it this past week from another AR member. I've been shooting at my deer lease about 15 miles west of Granbury for the last couple of years. Granbury is on a lake as well should you be a water enthusiast. It's a nice quaint little town and Ft. Worth is about 30 minutes away.

Capo
You will be able to find what you want within that price range. Grandbury is a good location though there is no major shopping in the area. You will find the state is so large that the land prices 30 miles outside the major metro area are low enough you do not have to suffer with a damn 2 story house.
You might consider your allergy situation too.
North Texas is loaded with ragweed so it will give hayfever suffers fits in the Sept to Nov time frame. Then there is cedar fever in the hilly country.

Also stay on high ground, away from creeks and rivers and off of slopes. North Central Texas on down through central Texas gets 23 to 28 inches of rain a year. Sometimes half of it in one day. Every few decades all of it in one day.

Welcome to Texas, Jim! I've lived in Texas all my life & have lived in Frisco for 12 yrs. Feel free to pm me if you'd like to discuss details.

keep places like Texoma in mind. The lake is great for recreation. The city is growing, but not considered cosmopolitan, more blue collar.
You will also find that if you look about half way between Frisco and OK state line, then consider weather North vs South, you will find that the weather is markedly different in winter. There always seemed to be a demarcation in that area where snow was much less likely looking South below that line.
Don't disregard places in Red River county, a bit East and North of where you are looking. Lots of both farm land and timber land with some excellent hunting.

I am good friends with some of the people who owned most of the land that Frisco is now built on...they sold made a mint and moved the hell out of there.

I am with Bob...if you dont need a City...Look outside...Canton,Texashoma area, west of Ft Worth...Aledo, Weatherford, Stephenville is nice too.

Ed

Denton County would be preferable.

I live outside of Gainesville Texas. Frico is the bottom end of our practice area. Can answer any question you have. ledvm@msn.com

quote:

capoward:
fla3006 –
Wife hates the desert so that knocks much of Arizona and Nevada off the table. I lived in the SoCal desert for over 8 years so don’t mind the heat but do get tired of looking at sand… San Francisco has ruined Northern Nevada and wife’s not to sure about living in the Flagstaff, AZ area ‘cause she doesn’t want to deal with the winter snow. Told her we could leave the snow in the winter but she seems to like the idea of Texas more than Nevada or Arizona so Texas bound we are…

Not trying to talk you out of TX but we recently visited Prescott & Sedona, very nice places.

Jim,

Welcome to the greatest state in the Union! Wouldn't live anywhere else. We are a low tax, low service state, and I wouldn't want it any other way. I personally, could not live north of Interstate 10. Too damn cold for me! Best of luck.

Capoward, forgot to include this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMhaehb5AnE

Welcome to Texas, once you are here, you will be at home.

Be VERY CAREFUL! Biebs is thinking of moving there.

I made the same move just about a year ago. I think you like it here. Cheap gas, pro-gun, cheap housing, no state income tax, more jobs and some friendly people.

I'll PM you my opinions of the areas.

Enjoy living in a free state!

This is a very interesting and informative thread. I've been thinking about a move to the Dallas area (for work) soon. Sooner if things in NY get any weirder.

rich

almost forgot. I have a friend I visited in Wimberley a few years ago. Very nice area.

Hayes or Comal counties -- great country, places to ride, swim, hunt, eat and drink are all within 45 miles ..

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
Hayes or Comal counties -- great country, places to ride, swim, hunt, eat and drink are all within 45 miles ..

Hey we dont need anymore folks here!!!

I grew up in Denton and lived in the mid-cities area for a long time after college. Stay out of Tarrant and Dallas counties. Denton is too big and busy for my tastes today.

I'm currently looking for a future retirement place out near Mount Pleasant myself.

Hey Jim,
Congratulations.
I spent 6 months in Texas (training off and on) when I was in the USAF.
San Antonio area was great back then.
Sounds like it still is, and it is close enough to nice beaches at Corpus Christi.
I could drive down there just to buy fresh shrimp and boil them in a pot on a beach camp fire.
Also close to New Braunfels for some tubing on the river.
Topless hippie girls on the riverbanks back then.
My son was conceived in a La Quinta Inn in San Antonio.
That is a fact.

If Kentucky ever asks me to leave, I will say, as Davy Crockett did to his Tenneseeans, "Y'all can go to hell, I am gone to Texas,"
or something like that.

Ron, we'd love to have you too. Kentucky is a nice place though, except for the taxes, especially Lexington area. Which LQ in SA? I've stayed in several there.

Gents:
I find this post very interesting. The older I get the more my desire to live in a warmer climate than Alaska. I mean my wood stove is fired up from early September to May. I pay next to nothing in taxes here so want to find low taxes, low cost of living, freedom for firearms, and lots of open hilly country to hike around in. Texas is one of my choices. Thanks for all the info.
Any recommendations or suggestions will be received with appreciation.
Cal
PS. But not TOO hot in the summer!

I'm a refugee from the People's Republic myself, and currently live in Allen. Bear in mind that Dallas, like SoCal, lives and dies by freeway access. The majors are the 635, the 121 the 75 and the 35 (e and w), together with the 20 and the 30. The DFW area is gigantic, much like the Greater Los Angeles area, which extends from Ventura in the north to San Juan Capistrano in the south. There are numerous very nice areas, and I'm sure that you can find a very nice home in a very comfortable community. You might want to rent for 6 months to a year until you have enough time to see what direction is up. FWIW, I'm very happy in Allen, and the McKinney area is also very nice; but there are any number of exceptional communities in the area.

I've never regretted the move for a second.

Guys –
Thank you so much for the many recommendations you’ve given me; please keep them coming. I have a busy day tomorrow so won’t be able to response as quickly as today but will catch up as quickly as possible.

It’s getting close to roost time here so I’m about ready to call it quits for the day. Looks like I’ll be spending most of the weekend going over a Texas map and trying to identify all the recommendations everyone has given. We’re still very much open to where we’ll settle except that wife says it definitely won’t be West of Abilene so at least we’re starting to narrow things down.

My wife mentioned her friend Suzie that moved to the Waco area with her new husband about 15yrs ago. Said Suzie loves it there and her two daughters have moved there and love it too. So guess the Waco area is on the ‘possible list’ as well.

I did make one mistake today. While trying to keep up with the comments I was also searching the internet housing market in a few of the areas. My wife walked by and while looking over my shoulder she zeroed in on a nice house in Granbury on the lake; said she was ok with the kitchen but really liked the salt water swimming pool between the deck and the super nice double-wide covered dock. Her exact comments were, “Oh good I can swim laps in the pool for exercise, and we can go fishing in our own boat.” She followed that with, “I saw you looking at the golf course so you need to finish my golf clubs so we can go golfing there.” Wanted to know if we could buy it before we sell our house! At his rate I’m going to have to buy her a ‘personal’ rifle and pistol just so I’ll have time to go shooting!
LOL… I’m most definitely going have to keep her from looking over my shoulder this weekend!!!

Sid –
Mount Pleasant area is pretty nice. Good luck on your hunt for your retirement home.

Ron –
Thanks. I’m sure you need to move to Texas pretty soon yourself…

Cal –
You need to get out of the cold and head to Texas as well. Nice shade, a little breeze, and a cool drink go a long way in overcoming Midwest heat.

George –
Thank you so much for allowing this to stay in the BB Forum for a few more days…

Someone said that home is where you prosper or something like that.I believe that because if you have the big funds then you can just drive to the airport and choose a destination to your hearts consent and that is the way of life of the folks that do,IMO.At least that is how I see it.I also believe that only a misfortunate individual live s in a place that has a bad climate.I believe that Europe has the best climate- does that mean we should live in Europe? Complicated isnt it?

quote:

capoward: Waco area is on the ‘possible list’ as well.

Ted Nugent lives on a ranch outside Waco, took his guns & money and moved from Michigan because of high taxes & oppressive local governments.

Funny thing about Texas is that where I live (San Angelo) is considered West Texas. Austin is 200 miles East and is considered Central Texas. The exact center of the state is just outside Eden, Texas which is only 45 miles from San Angelo. The pastures around San Angelo will have mostly mesquite trees, as you near Eden you'll see a few live oak trees and as you go East out of Eden the live oaks become more predominant. Austin is getting too big for me but in early 60's it was a big city (185,000) with small town atmosphere. BTW Harold Jenkins looked at a map and saw Twitty Arkansas that you mentioned. He also saw Conway,Texas and put the two together and became better known as Conway Twitty.

quote:

BTW Harrold Jenkins looked at a map and saw Twitty Arkansas that you mentioned. He also saw Conway,Texas and put the two together and became better known as Conway Twitty.

Interesting you bring up 'Conway Twitty'. My mom actually ran into him one day; she was visiting my granddad in Conway – my parents had moved to Wichita, KS due to work – and ‘Conway Twitty’ was doing something at one of the colleges in Conway, and they ended up in the same drug store checkout line. Said he was a very nice guy and visited with everyone in the store. Small world…

quote:

Originally posted by fla3006:
Ron, we'd love to have you too. Kentucky is a nice place though, except for the taxes, especially Lexington area. Which LQ in SA? I've stayed in several there.

Forrest,
Thanks. That son lives in Lexington. Yes it is nice, but after I spent 8 years in "higher education" there, I was glad to escape.
Daughter conceived and born in Lexington, KY.
Son conceived here:

La Quinta Inn San Antonio Lackland
6511 West Military Drive
San Antonio, TX 78227
(210) 674-3200
lq.com‎

But he was born at Whiteman AFB, MO, then went to Alaska when he was 3 months old.
New classmates called him "Eskimo Boy" when he came back to KY at 9 y.o.

Highjack off.

Yes, great idea! Move to Texas. I like it!
Some famous "Gone to Texas" concepts:

Davy Crockett: Remember the Alamo.

The Outlaw Josey Wales: Just cool.

Baldimar Huerta was another Texan that changed his name and became famous. Freddy Fender.