Houston: An outsiders perspective
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7/16/2007
As for someone who grew up in LA, and spent the last 15 years in Texas(4 in Houston, 11 in Dallas), I believe I can give an honest and open perspective on Houston. I'll first start off with the good stuff.
Good: First off, the native Houstonian people are friendly and nice here. I find that people from Houston are really down to earth vs. people from Dallas, who come off to be high society. The economy here is obviously centered around Energy, Oil and Gas, but there are other jobs in IT and other areas that you can find that makes the city more diverse. The housing here is affordable, and the city has reached out far beyond the suburbs to give you a number of choices. As far as culture, I was surprised to know that Houston has a very decent Arts District and Symphony, which most people coming from the West or East coast may not expect. The Medical Center district hosts some of the best hospitals in the country, so health care here and finding a good doctor should not be a problem.
Now, on to the not so good stuff.
Bad: The traffic here is bad, but being the 4th largest city in the country it's to be expected. Expect a long commute to downtown Houston if you decide to live in the suburbs. Coming from LA, its not as bad, but NO ONE LIKES TO SIT IN TRAFFIC! The weather here in the summer is like being in a oven, and the mosquitoes are bad as well. There is NO 4 seasons here, and the best time of the year is in the fall and part of the so-called Winter & Spring, when the average temperature is 67 - 77 degrees, with moderate rain fall. If it gets cold here, there is no ice or snow potentially that you would get in Dallas.
Overall, Houston has a number of things to offer without the rude people and over priced housing that you would expect to get in other big cities. You can raise a family here in safe suburbs and the single night life here is not bad. My two cents from a Cali boy..
AJ | Houston, TX