Reviews & Comments
Austin, TX
re: Austin Very Unfriendly and Unjust - 2/23/2010 -
2/21/2012Brittany- I HAVE done the research. Starting salary is not the problem- you don't raise much higher if you have 1 year, 10 years 30 years experience or have a masters degree or not. Its not like the east coast where degree, experience and intellectualism has a greater value. Which might account for Texas' low high school graduation rate. And Austin 1st year teachers are definitely not making $46K. The salary is better in Westlake Hills- which is NOT Austin- and don't get me started with the people around there. NOT very nice people AT ALL as a culture, but I have met some very nice people who moved there from California. My experience with newbies in Austin is that they are generally more travelled and nicer than others. The rudeness I experience is with lots of natives. If you want to better Austin society in any way or try to talk about the problems, natives will often say, "go back to where you came from." Austinites are resistant to change and not at all friendly to transplants.
Austin, TX
Austin Very Unfriendly and Unjust -
2/23/2010Stereotypes 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 me said it is "low priority" compared to rapes and murders. I don't have a problem with the summer heat like most do but air conditioners are high everywhere and utility costs are very high. Teachers' salaries barely reach above 40k, even if you have a Master's Degree and over ten years of experience. Substitute teaching pays $9 an hour, as do most part-time jobs, and work is hard to find. Everyone says "the market is saturated with teachers" and there has been a teacher hiring freeze because of the economy. Unless you work in technology and your job is secure, you will probably find this city to be expensive, overrated and snobby. I have met some very racist and sexist individuals as well. The parks are nice though.