dont move to Texas unless you wanna be surrounded by clones of Greenman everywhere you go. Dont see anything appealing about the state except for maybe San Antonio.
I spent one of the most boring weekends of my life in Charlotte. I find very little to recommend it. It is a commuter, mall based city. Jobs are plentiful, but it sounds like you will not need to worry about that.
I did a road trip through New Mexico earlier this year. My friend has been down there doing non-investment related research and loved it. ABQ and Santa Fe are both cool citie, althought the Santa Fe airport is tiny. The ABQ airport is big and the drive from Santa Fe to ABQ is an easy hour going 85 the whole way. Skiing is awesome there. Mexican food is the best I’ve eaten. Thornburg (tons of AUM) has its office in Santa Fe, so they much be recruiting out of somewhere, although I think there are lots of relos.
I do know of some hegies outside of Philadelphia (Wayne area) for exactly the reason you mention: Philly taxes. Tampa is just too hot for me, but I hate the heat and humidity. I think Charleston would be great, but I’m not sure on the airport situation.
Ouch, my alma mater just took a pop shot from a UTSA grad…that’s a first for sure. No worries though. I understand. Sort of like these clowns taking pop shots at America. Makes them feel better. The difference is UTSA isn’t all bad. These clowns on the other hand. Must be tough to walk around with all those chips. I certainly don’t go to bed at night with them on my mind…
Yeah, nothing appealing about having a job. If you have to work for a living, great place to be. I really don’t HAVE to anymore, so I moved away. Great state though. Incredibly diverse. If you can’t find your niche in Texas, you might want to look in the mirror.
Moving back to Austin is one of the best things I ever did. It is a great city so long as you live central.
I would highly recommend it, especially for someone setting up their own shop. The finance community is growing here quickly.
If you make decent money (100k + ) and can afford to live within a 15 mile radius of downtown, the traffic and the other common complaints are non-issues. Something tells me you won’t be buying a $150k house 40 miles outside of downtown and suffering with the masses. Most of those poor souls work for the tech companies that have setup big campuses in the suburbs. Most finance companies are downtown or within 10 minutes of downtown where office space is cheap.
The summer heat is oppressive, but you really do get used to it quickly. Its also not nearly as humid as elsewhere. Yesterday was about 100 but I was outside working on projects all afternoon and didn’t die.
There is definitely Austin weird, but most of the hipsters and Prius drivers are bay area or new york transplants. The liberal elitism is nowhere near the level of SF. The other side of the spectrum is definitely noticeable at the state level (low taxes!), but the city itself is fairly middle ground.
A couple of people in my family and some close friends also said ABQ. I’ve never been, would need to go before I have an opinion. It’s pretty far off the beaten track but that doesn’t matter if I like it. I kind of like “the frontier” anyway. All options are still on the table.
I have Denver on the current list, which has evolved since the first post. I was originally only focused on places I have been and Denver isn’t one but all the points you make are good ones.
How much of an issue is this? I spent 3 days in Austin. I stayed at the W Hotel downtown. All I saw was hot Texas chicks, great weather (I was there in June 2012), a good nightlife and Southern Charm. I invested in STRS which more than doubled (STRS owns the W and they hooked me up a sick room).
To me that’s what Austin is. But I keep hearing about hipster douchebags and Prius drivers which is what I am trying to get away from in the Bay Area (among other things). I didn’t see any of that but maybe I was in the wrong part of Austin to see the “weird” part.
Only place where I have been asked what kind of car I drive by a young lady I was chatting up. Company provided Oldsmobile 88 at the time. Was in town for a project. She was not impressed. I left out the company provided part. No play for me.
That kind of sounds like what I expected LOL! Dallas felt like mega urban sprawl to the max with lots of materialism and bulls–t. I’m sure there are nice people and good parts though, it’s probably what you make of it like most big cities.
Austin has changed quite a bit since I lived there, I hear, but everyone that I know that lives there, loves it. No one, except me, ever leaves. Hotel California…Probably can’t go wrong with Austin. The diversity keeps it interesting. I wouldn’t worry about the douchebags. You’d find your niche.