Anyone live in San Antonio, Texas?

[Leader of the Club]

We are thinking of moving to San Antonio. DH has a job offer there. We have never even been to Texas!

So, what is San Antonio like?

I found houses similar in size to ours for about $50,000 less than what our house would sell for, but the property taxes there are double than here.

Is there state income tax? Is there personal property tax on vehicles? How are utilities?

Give me all the poop!

Oh, and we are "low-wage" earners. DH is a zoologist and I work in Child Care. Neither pay much but we do not mind living simply to do what we love.

 

[RadioNate]

We moved here 2 years ago. I really like it. We've lived in a lot of places and SA has been one of my favorites. There is tons to do around here. Housing is still quite affordable. Property taxes are high but we paid just as much in Memphis on a smaller house with no local school. For the most part schools here are very good.

There is no state income tax or personal property tax on vehicles. We don't think utilities are out of line but electric can get high in the summer because of all the air conditioning.

Check out an online cost of living calculator. SA is ususally pretty low.

 

[Chuck S]

The weather is also VERY humid in the summer, temps above 100 are not uncommon with high humidity.

 

[RadioNate]

just bumping for you because I know there are several people from the area here

Yes the summers get hot and humid but you can't beat rarely dropping below freezing in the winter. We are looking at a high of 82 today. Right now it is in the high 60's. It is lovely out!

 

[jimmiej]

Speaking of weather, the winters are for the most part mild. It's 86 here today. I'm 30 miles north of downtown SA. The cost of living is low compared to the northeast and left coast.

On the other hand, we have traffic problems. No real mass transit system. Just a bunch of clogged roads. Not nearly as bad as Houston or Austin though. The big stink in SA right now is toll roads . Big debate. I'm afraid it's coming despite the protests.

Texas for the most part is VERY conservative poltically. Exceptions are Austin (San Francisco lite) and the border counties.

All in all, a great place to live... Course, I'm a native, so take that for what it's worth.

Oops, I forgot. The best reason to live in SA...the Mexican food!!!

 

[RadioNate]

I'm going to sort of disagree about the traffic and congestion. IMO, the traffic isnt' too bad. Of course I grew up in Chicago so prespective is everything.

Yep the toll roads are becoming a fight but that is because the proposed road has already been bonded and paid for. I grew up with toll roads so again, it is a non issue for me. The toll road will run paraell to an existing road so people can always use that if they don't want to pay tolls.

SA is also a pretty good political mix. While not as liberal as Travis county (Austin), in the last election nearly 45% of Bexar county voted for Kerry. I'm a socially liberal independent and I haven't felt out of place politically. I think 'respectful' is a good word to sum up the area.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Antonio

 

[Leader of the Club]

Thanks so much! Keep the info coming. I have read everything I can on the internet, but it is nice to "hear" from real people that actually live there.

My DH is retired military and having the bases close by would allow us to use our retiree benefits more fully.

I am not really worried about the weather. I can adjust to anything, well, anything except cold and cloudy Ohio where we have lived for the last 4 years! Our hot, humid summers here do not bother me.

 

[Leader of the Club]

What major grocery stores are in San Antonio? I wanted to look up their ads on line and compare prices to what I get here.

We moved to North Carolina once and I did not research the grocery prices--boy, was I in for a shock! We could barely afford to eat! Had to totally revamp the budget. I do not want a shock like that again!

Oh, how much was a gallon a gas this week?

 

[RadioNate]

I think I paid $2.09 for gas yesterday. The only grocery store in town is H-E-B but there are Super Wal-Marts and SuperTargets that sell groceries. There are also the standard club stores like Sam's and Costco.

 

[ahutton]

HEB is a Texas chain - very reasonable. Randalls is part of the Safeway/Tom Thumb family and Albertsons is here. There are also SuperTarget and SuperWalMart stores. Overall cost of living is pretty reasonable here, just be aware of property taxes and how that calculates into your monthly payment.

Gas in Austin this week is $2.05-2.15 per gallon. I believe San Antonio prices have been pretty consistent with ours.

I live in Austin but am in San Antonio regularly for work as our "home office" is there.

Someone mentioned traffic - I find that traffic from the north side into downtown is VERY reasonable. I can actually get from Austin to downtown San Antonio faster than I can drop my kids at school and get into Downtown Austin.

Texas is a great state to live in!

 

[MouseKids]

I am in a similar situation to OP (except that I am definitely moving). The big decision now is where to live (have decided to rent at least short-term), with the options being close to work (St. Mary's University) or somewhere else. Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[HaleyB]

We live in Austin but go to San Antonio a lot. Another nice thing about San Antonio (and Austin) is that there is a lot of free or nearly free things to do. Great parks. Fantastic parks. Lakes, lots of trails to hike, and cheap eats too. We have a much higher standard of living here than we would have had with the same income anywhere else we have ever lived.

Sea World is in San Antonio and a season pass is only $51.99, a two year pass is $89. There is also a Six Flags park, season passes to it ar about $50. Both have water parks that are included in that price.

I don't find the summer that humid. It is not exactly dry either, but I wouldn't say very humid. Nothing near as bad as WDW can get.

 

[gradtchr]

I wish I wish I wish I lived in SA!

 

[krissy2803]

I was born in San Antonio..moved away for a bit, and came back. I really like it here. Yea the summers are a . But you get used to it.
Property taxes are a bit high. No state income tax.
HEB is pretty much the only game in town for grocieries, with a few Super Walmarts and Super Targets in the mix.
But I have been to other grocery stores in other places and the prices at HEB seem reasonable to me. www.heb.com
Lot's of military around me. I live a stones throw from Fort Sam Houston.
Hope some of this info helps. You can pm me if you need something specific answered.

 

[RadioNate]

I am in a similar situation to OP (except that I am definietely moving). The big decision now is where to live (have decided to rent at least short-term), with the options being close to work (St. Mary's University) or somewhere else. Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks!

St Mary's in not necessarly in the nicest area of town. I know someone who went there and they just answered 'no where near the University.'

The I410/HWY 151/HYW 90 area is growing by leaps and bounds and might be a good place to look.

The friend who went there lived in the Hubner/I10 area.

 

[HaleyB]

What major grocery stores are in San Antonio? I wanted to look up their ads on line and compare prices to what I get here.

We moved to North Carolina once and I did not research the grocery prices--boy, was I in for a shock! We could barely afford to eat! Had to totally revamp the budget. I do not want a shock like that again!

Oh, how much was a gallon a gas this week?

I paid $2.19 the last time I bought gas.

I know food is super cheap here compared to Southern California. I can post this weeks flyer prices latter today if you want.

 

[Chris2597]

I have lived in SA for over 30 yrs. This is a big little city.....Schools are great, housing still affordable, groceries are cheaper.....utilities are reasonable....Yes, taxes are too high here....that is our only complaint. If you have any questions please ask

 

[Leader of the Club]

Thanks so much for all of your info. I honestly cannot wait to move!

Our offical move date keeps bouncing around a bit. It was March 2007, then December 2006 and now is May 2007. Hubby graduates in May 2007 now, so that is it!

I found some 4 bedroom rental townhouses on the net. I'll post info later and maybe someone can tell me if that area is okay or if we should run screaming in the other direction .

Oh, and my kids want to know if anyone has ever seen a scorpion? We saw them at the insect house at the zoo Saturday and they were pretty freaked out--my kids, not the scorpions.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Oh this thread makes me want to move there....We are recent transplants to Texas and love it.

We are in the Dallas area with not much to do, imo. You are so lucky!

 

[spectrum-turbo]

Oh, and my kids want to know if anyone has ever seen a scorpion?

I don't think that you see them in urban areas too much.
I have lived in central Texas for 25+ years and I have never seen a scorpion, except at the zoo!!!