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What BestPlaces Users Say about Austin
Austin, Texas is a rapidly growing city known for its vibrant music scene, outdoor activities, and booming tech industry. With a diverse population and a thriving economy, many people are flocking to this city to live and work. However, as with any place, there are both positive and negative aspects to living in Austin. In order to better understand the experiences of those who have lived in this city, I have gathered a variety of user reviews from BestPlaces.net.
According to user reviews on BestPlaces.net, there are many positive aspects to living in Austin. One user, Grace, shares that "Austin has a great sense of community and a friendly atmosphere. People are generally laid back and open-minded, making it easy to make new friends." Another user, John, praises the city's job market, stating that "Austin offers a wide range of job opportunities, especially in the tech industry. I was able to find a job in my field within a few weeks of moving here." Additionally, user Lily highlights the city's vibrant culture, saying that "there is always something fun to do in Austin, whether it's attending a music festival, trying out a new restaurant, or exploring the city's beautiful parks."
On the other hand, there are also some negative aspects mentioned by users about living in Austin. One user, Mike, expresses his frustration with the city's traffic, stating that "the traffic in Austin is a nightmare, especially during rush hour. It can be stressful and time-consuming to get around." Another user, Samantha, mentions the high cost of living in Austin, saying that "rent prices and property taxes are constantly on the rise, making it difficult for some people to afford to live here." User David brings up an important issue, stating that "while Austin is a diverse city, there are also issues with gentrification and displacement of longtime residents in certain areas."
In conclusion, many user reviews on BestPlaces.net highlight the positive aspects of living in Austin, such as its sense of community, job opportunities, and vibrant culture. However, there are also some challenges and drawbacks mentioned, such as traffic, cost of living, and issues with gentrification. Overall, these user reviews provide valuable insights for anyone considering a move to Austin, allowing them to weigh the pros and cons and make an informed decision for themselves.
based on 449 ReviewsGet to know Austin with the latest comments and reviews from people who live in or have visited Austin
Austin is both great and horrible - 3/3/2010
I've read many of the comments here, and yes, Austin is great, yet at the same time it is horrible also. It's a young vibrant, city with lots of energy. Unfortunately, if you don't make at least 75k, it's difficult to really enjoy it. Since it has a high number of young, college educated professionals, the pay rates, salaries, professional positions and general employment opportunities are low. I moved from Austin in 2003, and I hate my current city. I want to return to Austin, but I know that I'll have a difficult time finding a job. In addition, I also agree that Austin was the most racist city I ever lived in. Much to my surprise, being black, I experienced the most racism from Hispanics, Asians, and other non-white members of the city, especially at work. Dating was horrible, there are more women than men, and there are a large percentage of gay and bi-sexual men. Yet at the same rate, I think that the city is incredible. It's safe, with a low rate of violent crime, and Austin
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Austin, Tx - 3/3/2010
Austin is a very welcoming city. People are very friendly and kind, witch was a good thing for me since I came to the States four years ago. There are plenty of family recreation places, and plenty of nature adventure also.
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Quite an experience - 2/25/2010
I moved to Austin TX from Omaha NE which is quite dreadful. Omaha was the opposite of Austin on every level. The weather is hot enough to sizzle your stick(which I enjoy), people are open minded to new ideas, the gay scene is active (you're not judged for being gay here), SOME of the people are genuine (besides the overly tanned bitchy blondes at Wholefoods), and there is a fair amount to do. But.... if you are from the Midwest you will despise Austin for its TRAFFIC. Don't have ADHD and attempt to move here. I sometimes went into fits of rage attempting to unbreak the gridlock of traffic. I kept thinking "you can't be serious!!! and "did Satan create I-35??" I later moved back to Omaha; partially because of the ungodly traffic... but at times I miss the people; they are really cool. (I'm gay so try to find a friendly gay person in Omaha-it won't happen!) If you are attempting to meet friends it's totally acceptable to place an ad online for a friend as this is a techno-savvy
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Austin Very Unfriendly and Unjust - 2/23/2010
Stereotypes are often incorrect. When people hear I am from NYC, they say, "ooh- a lot of crime happens there" and "people there are unfriendly." According to the 2009 City Crime Rate Rankings, more crime happens in Austin than other cities while in NYC, there is less crime than the national average. People here in Austin are very unfriendly. It is rare that people will ask you about your life or be interested/friendly unless they want something from you (or they are trying to sell you something). The management of the first apartment complex I lived in is trying to extort money from me for rent that I've already paid. Tenants are not protected here in Texas like in other states. If I want to maintain my excellent credit, I have to pay to bring THEM to court even though my rent checks cleared several months ago and I followed the lease exactly. Burglars knocked down the front door of my friend's home about a month ago while I was in it! And the police officer who got back to
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College town & starter town, nothing more, nothing - 2/13/2010
Believe me, Austin is a College town & a place to get a starter job once you graduate. There are so many college students that flood the market on graducation, the wages and salaries here are pathetically low & don't even come close to the high cost of living. Plus, Texas has a very high State sales tax on average of 8.25% and nearly everything is taxed. Yeah, there isn't an income tax, but you get shafted every other way in extremely high property taxes and automobile registration taxes. Austin's electricity rates are outrageous because they have a natural gas fired power plant and are still paying on the South Texas Nuclear project that has never generated electricity. The cost of living is only worse in the suburbs like Cedar Park, Leander, Pflugerville, although electrical rates are the only thing lower. They keep threatening to lower property taxes here and Governor Perry actually did around 3 years ago, but then the greedy real estate agents raised home prices and the
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lubbock - 1/29/2010
i think lubbock is a great place to live, but that's just me...im only 16, i was in alt of school activities, so yea it was great. you are right theirs not that much to do, but when im bored i just go to the skate ranch
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Austin area cost of living - 1/21/2010
In 2007 we moved to just north of Austin in a small community called Leander which happens to have the #1 school district in the state. After researching several cities and states to move to we selected the Austin area. After living in Kansas for over 25 years we wanted to get away from the tornadoes, snow and sub zero weather. There is no state income tax however Real Estate property taxes are 2.5% which is double that of Kansas. Instead of paying over $700 a year for taxes on auto's in Kansas we pay only $210 a year for three auto's. No tax on grocery food either. Utilities are another story. It's costing us 28% more for electricity and water which we knew before we moved and most of that comes from the hotter summers and having the AC run at 78 degrees. Unless you make huge bucks you won't be able to afford Austin itself for housing but Leander and Cedar Park are affordable. My wife is a nurse and got a huge bump in pay to work. Demographics are tilted towards the 18 to 35 age
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Top Place to Live - HUM - 1/20/2010
Crime is high though it is closely guarded away from the newspaper and public. I live near Town Lake and in a matter of two weeks there was one rape, one person killed and two other people attacked - a slight mention of some of this in the newspapers. And let us not talk about all the shootings, break-ins and drugs rampant in this town. Note: please do a ride out with an Austin police officer and you will be packing your bags!
Education - well mediocre at best. Again no mention of the drugs and teen pregnancies rampant in Austin District middle and high schools. I was darn near dragged out of the school meeting for pointing out the fact that the school primary goal was to only teach the Texas State Test - Lake Travis District. In Lake Travis District, advance classes are only the regular classes with more homework (as per the teacher). Almost every school just wants that exemplary rating and do not go beyond that in teaching. My experience has been Round Rock and
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Mass Transit - 12/22/2009
Austin is floundering in the mass transit aspect because it has inept leaders at Capital Metro, which is supposedly running a new "Light Rail" that goes from one NW part suburb to downtown. 75% of Austinites drive anyway, most for about 20-25 minute commutes. It could be so much better
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