meh
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5/31/2019
Been in Austin since 1998 so to most residents I'm practically a native. I've always been ambivalent about Austin - the weather can be crushing. It gets hot here and stays hot. Like summers they nickname "100 days of 100," meaning 100 straight days of 100 degree weather - yikes! And unlike other areas it doesn't cool at night, maybe down to 80. It does get cold in the winters, briefly.
Mosquitoes are a problem. If you live near any trees or landscaping or water, you'll have those big vicious "Tiger" mosquitoes; you know the ones that carry Zika and West Nile.
Housing is expensive; renting will eat your paycheck and buying (provided you can find something) is better but still expensive - since the state doesn't have income taxes, they get their revenue from property tax. My property tax nearly doubles my mortgage payment. Renters don't fare better because the landlords pass the cost onto their tenants.
Work is plentiful if you have anything to do with the tech industry. Coders have an especially good pick of jobs and there's a healthy semiconductor design sector too. Academics also fare well as long as you're in the top of your field. UT is a *huge* school and employs a lot of people. If you're unskilled or a liberal arts major you'll probably have to settle for a lower paying job.
But traffic? Austin traffic is some of the worst, per capita, in the US. Early on the city fathers decided *not* to build any east/west freeways so getting across town is done on city streets (I kid you not). North/south commutes are limited to two large freeways that carry the bulk of commuters. My former commute of under eight miles took a little over 40 minutes at 10am in the morning.
Infrastructure in this town is sagging. You've probably heard the statistic of 120 people moving to Austin per day. That number has dropped to 35 - but - the surrounding counties are now experiencing the population boom. What this means is that Austin just can't keep up. Grocery shopping? Not enough grocery stores. Need a new computer? Not enough places to buy. Going out at night to clubs? Streets packed shoulder to shoulder with drunken revelers. Restaurants? Always a wait.
B | Austin, TX