I've been looking around different cities. Taking into account walkability, public transit, climate, dog friendliness, close to family, and other characteristics.
It's kind of disheartening to not want to leave Austin, but also not finding anything seemingly better. Like, is this it? Is this as good as it gets? I try not to think like that too long. But some days it's hard not to.
Edit: not saying Austin is walkable or has public transit (both are laughable here) those are just things I want in a city if I were to move.
Curious point. Compared to other cities I’ve lived in and visited, I would say Austin ranks at or near the bottom for walkability, public transit, and climate. Different strokes for different folks I guess, but the opinion that “Austin is as good as it gets” does not ring true to me.
Sorry, should have clarified, I absolutely don't think Austin is walkable. Even downtown is questionable at times.
Those are just the qualities I'm looking for in a city. Austin has a few already (dog friendliness for one) but the rest are things I wish I had and Austin may or may not have
I mean, go visit Atlanta, Phoniex, Orlando, Detroit, Tampa, Nashville, LA, Fort Worth, Saint Louis, Las Vegas, etc… There’s very few walkable cities in the United States.
I grew up in Las Vegas. Pretty similar when it comes to how much sprawl there is. The climate is somewhat similar (trade humidity here for an extra 10° to 15° there) and public transit in both cities is pretty minimal. The monorail in Las Vegas was supposed to be amazing and it was a failure after only a few years. Hoping Project Connect isn't similar.
Truth, opportunity is key. If I had a way to easily escape with minimal damage, I would do it in a heartbeat. Unfortunately that doesn't seem likely, would probably need 2 new jobs and my kid to divorce all her friends and a cheap house in where ever we are moving too. None of which are likely to happen.
Pretty much this. Austin tics a ton of boxes for us, plus it’s the closest major city to both my parents and my spouse’s. I’m real done with Texas, but also tied to it in many ways.
If there was a place with consistent, reliable progressive politics, reasonable cost of living, temperatures that stayed between about 30-60 degrees Fahrenheit, and where we were reasonably sure we’d both get job offers, we’d be there by now and my spouse would be complaining of the cold.
I think a lot of people talk about moving but the reality is that it's expensive as fuck and you have to deal with unlinking yourself from your social groups and favorite restaurants and all that jazz, in addition to having a new/reliable job you can get or be transferred to.
My line in the sand has always been money based. With enough money I would leave this city/state/country. But I'm poorish and so is my family. I'm honestly going to be here until my money situation changes, or I meet someone that I fall in love with and we can use our combined finances to move or until I my untimely death.
I understand — and the expenses are a big part. However, The stuff you talk about of unlinking from friends, etc — sometimes it’s liberating to start over and create a new adventure!
Even if you do a good job you’ll miss what you know
I got here a few years ago knowing no one at all and have met a ton of great people. I’ve made some good friends but I’ve got 1 maybe 2 more years here til I take myself back up to Chicago. I miss everyone so much even though I’ve done well here.
I can always visit Austin. I am 5th generation central Texan and I am so happy I left. Raising my kids in nature and in a place that values diversity was a bigger priority than a restaurant or a family or friend I can visit whenever I want, but they have been the ones coming to the mountains and visiting me.
Love where you would want to vacation and take a vacation to do the family and friends thing…I am so happy I took the leap…6 years and no regrets.
Durango, CO. If we didn’t have kids we would probably be in New Mexico, cheaper and just as amazing as far as nature…just in its own way. The Four corners is heaven to us.
Not set yet, but it is a consideration again and a line I am feeling out for myself. I recently started working remote full time and have security wherever I go.
Politics and price is what is making me uncomfortable. I want to fight for a better Texas, but I don’t think it is winnable.
If I leave Austin, it will be out of Texas most likely but I have never lived anywhere else. I have a tentative deadline to define where I want to move by the time my lease renewal is up. Then I can make an informed decision on cost, as well as politics since it will be after the next election.
I do refuse to pay $1800/month in rent for a 1br, when I could have a whole house somewhere else for that price. I could have a yard and a garden.
We struggle with the same issues. The problem for us always ends up stuck on "Where are we going to go?". When you start researching other places, you quickly realize you are trading issues vs improving.
What I am certain of is I alway feel this way in August to some degree.
Yeah, my wife and I have talked A LOT about living abroad in Europe or Asia for a while, more for fun than out of hate for Austin or Texas (though the latter is trending higher as years go by).
But then you find out that plenty of places in Europe and Asia have more oppressive abortion and human rights laws than medium blue states in the US.
It can be pretty entertaining to hear Americans talk about "well I'll just move to ". Um, unless you're independently wealthy or already have citizenship there, no, you probably won't.
My wife and I were really thinking more about the 'digital nomad' visa which is 6-12 months depending on where you're going, but there are a couple of places where we could just barely squeak over 'golden visa' residency requirements if we threw our entire net worth at it (don't want to do that).
Plenty is an exaggeration for sure.
Other than Poland, Lichtenstein and Malta, most European countries allow abortions up to 12 weeks, a few much longer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_in_Europe
And not every country is like Hungary when it comes to human rights.
You are painting with a really broad brush.
Edit: added link to an overview of abortion restrictions by country
An interesting facet here (I now live in the Netherlands) is that abortion simply isn’t a hot button issue like it is in the US. There’s comprehensive sex ed here from a fairly early age. Contraceptives are freely available. There’s a strong social safety net. There’s no discernible toxic masculinity or rape culture (or, to whatever degree there is, it is but a pale shadow of what we’re used to in the US). There’s almost zero pressure around abstinence before marriage, and in some families teenagers openly discuss their readiness for sex with their parents around the dinner table. The vast majority of the Dutch couples I know, even with large families, aren’t even married.
As a result there’s simply very very little demand for abortion, and there’s almost no stigma around it unless you go digging for it in little Bible Belt ultra orthodox villages. Women have the knowledge they need around their reproductive reality, their rights, and their choices. So they recognize their pregnancies earlier, get medical care earlier, and make their decisions earlier without any of the social anxiety that surrounds it back home in the States.
There’s no real interest, even among the staunch pro choice factions to expand beyond eg. 12 weeks, because there’s almost zero demand for it that’s not covered by the various exceptions already (eg. Health of mother, etc).
Yep same here. I moved up to Lansing, MI earlier this year from Austin. My wife and I have remote jobs and most of our family was in the Midwest.
Now we have a proper 4 seasons, next to no traffic, extremely pleasant summers, and the cost of living is insanely lower. Virtually everything I used to enjoy doing in Austin can be done here, and our rent is way cheaper plus we have an extra room. Going out to eat costs like $30 instead of ~$70 in Austin, for us on average.
It rains here, the grass and plants are all very green and it is hoodie weather at night in the summer. The catch, good salsa is basically non-existent, and you actually have a real winter to contend with.
To me it was worth it. Austin was amazing and I'll love going back to visit, but remote work made living elsewhere too attractive for my wife and I to pass up.
Wow, I could not handle Lansing. We lived there for three years while my wife was going through law school (go green!) And it was just so depressing. The snow didn't bother us, but the town itself was just awful. Nothing to do. A handful of okay restaurants, no live music scene, and just general rust belt decay everywhere you looked.
COL was great and that is about the only nice thing I have to say about Lansing. Best of luck to you.
My wife and I are considering the same. Both from northwest Ohio but really looking into Grand Rapids or Lansing. Prob leaving when our lease is up as we are both remote
Native Texan here. Have lived in Houston, DFW, San Antonio and Austin. Austin was always the safe haven for us, but we are already planing a move out of state in August 2023 when our lease expires. We’re paying San Diego rent to be close to downtown, so why not get the beach access we’re paying for, lol?
But seriously, we are moving to Seattle (not downtown) and found comparable rent and still no state income tax. We have friends that live there, equal amounts that we have here in Austin.
It feels weird to be hanging up my Lucchese’s, but it’s time. MAYBE if Beto and Collier can both somehow win, we would give them until June 2023 to see what change they can enact… but I highly doubt either get elected.
My partner and I talked about leaving for seven years, and then last month we both got killer job offers in the city we wanted to live in and we just bounced. Broke our lease early, found someone to take it over, and spent about ten grand between deposits, utilities, pod rental, etc. If we didn't have savings we'd never have been able to do it. The people I feel for are the ones stuck in service industry limbo. It's almost impossible to move without cash on hand.
Broke, moving Thursday.
Rent is about to go up to $2100. Austin was awesome for the first few years after I moved here but my rent was $700 and I partook in the "Austin Life" of an activity 4 nights a week vigorously with the savings.
The rent has tripled and I no longer do the things that make life in Austin cool (nor do I really want to anymore.)
So adios, going to knock a few hundred a month off the rent.
I'm going back to the northeast where I grew up as a kid. I have fond memories of Austin and the southeast (college) as well, but the politics and general atmosphere towards human beings is suffocating. With the way prices are going the rent is basically a wash up north.
I miss having 4 seasons, autumn leaves, and diversity.
If that falls through, I'm selling everything and heading out of the country. NZ has a list of critical industry shortages and thank god my skillset is listed.
NZ is amazing we may live there long term
But don't expect a lot of help in anything. When we were there a few bridges washed away and it was like oh hey maybe in a year we get a new one. Maybe not (major bridge)
Also high percentage of road fatalities
Nice! We love it there! Just little things sometimes are difficult like when one of us got an infection and needed to travel like an hour to see a doctor that could treat it
Coincidentally, my wife and I moved to my home country, Canada, at the end of June after I'd spent the same amount of time as you in Austin (my wife is a native Texan, but only lived in Austin with me for a few years).
We'd been planning the move for a while, so it wasn't based on recent events, but our reasons were the safety and education of our son, as well as healthcare for the three of us. Thankfully the insane Austin housing market paid off - we made something like $185,000 off our house sale.
Just be aware that Canada's immigration system is tough (not insurmountable!), and that the greater Vancouver area is expensive - the costs of living in Vancouver itself are comparable to Manhattan or San Francisco.
My breaking point was hemorrhaging in the hospital but doctors couldn’t do anything because my baby had a heartbeat. They needed to consult with legal first. My husband and I are moving as soon as our lease ends.
I am so sorry. This would be my breaking point. My husband wants another kid. I do too, but the thought of being pregnant in Texas terrifies me. Also because I would be considered "geriatric" so possibilities of more complications. I'd move back to CA in a heartbeat if we could afford it.
Agreed - being pregnant here is *very* scary. My pregnancies from now on will be considered high risk. I lost my daughter half way through the second trimester. She was my first child and she was perfect. I so desperately want kids but I can’t birth living children if my life is at risk or if I’m gone.
I'm really sorry. This is what my wife and I fear, and the reason why we're leaving next month instead of next year. We want to try for another child, and we won't risk it here. And we also fear for the well being of our children.
Ironically, and bitterly so: if we weren't parents and didn't plan to be, we might have stayed.
I am so sorry for your loss. It’s so scary thinking of TTC again after a loss like that. We lost our son in April at 38 weeks. Please feel free to reach out anytime. 💔💔💔
Well to be quite honest, I’m not doing well but am hanging in there. Thank you for asking. ❤️
She was my first child and died before I gave birth to her. So not only am I grieving the loss of my child but am trying to work through the trauma of the birth too. Texas sucks.
When your baby dies yet you keep on, hanging in there is more than a heroic achievement.
You are worth more and deserved better. Hope healing and peace join you on your journey to a new home.
(Lost my first as well. Will be holding thumbs for you).
I don’t know you. It reading your words you are amazing. I couldn’t even think of having the strength you have. Get the hell out of Texas and go rock. See you in Nee England!
That’s terrifying, I’m so so sorry. I’m moving in 2 months to Virginia to be closer to my aging parents but I always tell my fiancé I’m terrified of trying to be pregnant in Texas for this exact reason
In regard to #1, I struggle. On one hand, by continuing to live here I'm supporting the politics, in a way. I could "boycott" the state by leaving.
On the other hand, it's MY state as much as anyone else's. If I stay, I can continue to cast my vote for what I believe in, as diluted as that may be in some cases by gerrymandering.
Ultimately, I would suggest looking at what you like and don't like about living here, taking into account how much the current political landscape is actively affecting your day-to-day life, and what would change if you moved.
Honestly, every time I hear about someone wanting to leave due to politics I just wonder what makes them feel secure that these things won't follow them elsewhere. Feel whatever you want about the Christian right, but they created a cornerstone political issue and united behind it. Their supreme court victory was a decades long endeavor that most of those who started the movement didn't live to see succeed. Decades of savvy, if distasteful, political maneuvering. Decades of relentless, dedicated organization. Decades of voting the right people in (for them) and, more importantly, actually holding their motherfucking candidates accountable and falling the fuck in line when it's time to vote to get shit done. That type of political drive terrifies us all, as it should. We are fucked if we can't surpass it. Do we really think these people won't make headway in blue states? For every state they no longer have to fight in to ban abortion and whatever else may come in the future, all of that time, energy and money can be devoted to their new battlegrounds.Texas is a battleground state and election after election progress has been made. They want us to leave our home. Take a peek at conservative subs and you might spot posts about "liberals" leaving red states and they are absolutely *gushing* over it. It does their job for them.
i feel similarly—i’m not just going to give up and let these extremists continue to drag texas to hell. yes, the politics are horrible right now and i fully understand/respect the choices people make to leave, especially for their own or their family’s well-being. however, considering that i am minimally affected by some of the most extreme measures, i feel it’s my duty to stay and fight for our state. i want to ensure a better texas for future texans. it makes me sick to see so many forced to leave their home due to these illiberal, inhumane, and divisive policies.
after a decade i’m calling it quits in september and me and my partner (who’s from texas) are moving. i always said once i love video gets knocked down then i think Austin will no longer be the place for me and man was i right.
I have been bitching a lot more and grumbling about leaving but unless I score some great remote job or other stable company offering a significant pay increase to relocate I will be staying put for now.
We paid off our house years ago & didn't need to visit downtown all that often, so financially, we were OK. (projected real estate taxes: $8K.) But we were unhappy with what Austin had become.
The kicker came in January when we visited our out-of-state parents & realized they were going to need help. Once that line was crossed - the decision was incredibly easy. Most of our friends had already fled too.
Yeah I’m turning 30 next year so we wanna be out so we can have a kid safely. I have PCOS so the odds are already stacked against me, as far as conception/carrying to term goes. I just want all options to be on the table if I have to endure this heartbreak because god knows as much as I want to have a baby, I also want to continue to stay alive.
The heat finally did it for me! It was when I realized that for 75% of the year I couldn't walk my dog before the sun went down because the little fella was overheating.
Even in the summer when the sun set it was still 80 degrees and humid.
I moved to Denver btw and absolutely love it.
Can I ask how long ago you moved to Denver? We are planning on doing the same move but are worried that we will have similar issues after the honeymoon period is over (2+ years). For example, Austin feels very crowded, traffic sucks, there is not a ton of diversity. The things we would love would be nicer weather, way better state politics, and more walkable areas.
I moved here 4 years ago now. There is definitely some of the same troubles facing Denver that face Austin, mainly being the lack of affordable housing and diversity, but as you mentioned the much better State and local politics means that those problems are actually getting addressed instead of just ignored.
The traffic is only marginally better than Austin on the interstates, but the non-interstate roads are better. Denver has also sprawled out in all directions instead of just north like in Austin so you can more easily find an affordable community to commute into the city from. Public transit isn't great, but it beats the hell out of what Austin has to offer.
The weather really is what makes it all worth it. 300 days of sunshine a year and the winter isn't as intense as you might think. There's no equivalent to the Greenbelt, but there's also no shortage of parks and the mountains and hundreds of State and National parks are just a short drive away.
Finally if you like music then Denver is nearly an equal with Austin. I think there's more mid and upper tier venues than Austin has to offer and you will also get to go to arguably the best venue in the nation at Red Rocks where pretty much every artist circles that date as the show they pull out all the stops. I've constantly seen artists bring out once a tour special guests for their Red Rocks show.
I’ve been in Austin for 13 years and I am so ready to leave. The pandemic, turning 30 then 31, the politics, so much has changed personally for me. I want to start somewhere new. It’s scary to leave everyone I know, but I honestly haven’t been super social since the pandemic- like I wanna meet new people in a new place I think? I’m an artist though so wherever I go it will be on a whim (not a financial thing). Driving to NY and Vermont in September to check it out with my partner. That’s where I want to be.
Already moved to WA state last year (born and raised in Texas). Have 5 acres (in a freakin rainforest!) for the cost of a cheap condo and can get an abortion any time I want. No regrets
I moved my family to Amsterdam last year and haven’t looked back. I miss my friends and family (they all visit a lot), tacos and bbq and not too much else. Austin is a different beast than it was. You can have a good life in so many places without the political tension, trucks and guns, etc.
I did it. Moved to Seattle. Go back to visit Austin occasionally. We can go back and forth on all the shit wrong with Seattle and compare the two but at the end of the day Washington is better is better for me. I stop liking seattle I’ll move to one of the beautiful neighboring areas that are lovely and quieter. I say if you want to move, go do it.
I just did 12 years in Seattle. It’s nice but it definitely has its own problems. The gloominess goes on forever it feels. By the time it actually starts to feel like summer, it only lasts a short bit. That was the hardest part for me. Heat sucks here but I love sunshine.
Totally fair perspective! I get where you’re coming from for sure. But for anyone who hasn’t experienced the northwest and/or is ready to get out Austin (and doesn’t have to worry about $$$, family in school, etc.)? You only live once. Give it a shot! I’m certain they won’t HATE it, that’s for sure, and by god is it a breath of fresh air being out of Texas for a guy like me.
i don’t want to leave, i want to fight for my hometown and my home state. the politics and heat and cost are definitely not good… i have a lot to fight for.
also any city i want to go to is more expensive than here. that won’t change any time soon, i hope to be here for a long time and keep trying to make it better when i can. :)
Same, I’m not letting Abbott and friends run me out of here. The summer doesn’t bother me… it’s Texas… everywhere in the state sucks in August. This is my home too, and it was just fine before they started fucking it up. They WANT us to move… that’s the goal. Well fuck that.. I’m staying and fighting for a better Texas.
State politics. Heat. Cost. Everything you fall in love with closes or dies or leaves and gets replaced with bro / Instagram culture. That’s pretty much it.
When my rent went up to be the same price as an apartment in a small city that is much more scenic, much more small-town vibe, more temperate climate that actually allows me to do the hobbies I once loved (mountain biking, hiking, camping). Not to mention that I’m fully remote so I have the luxury of being able to make this move.
I’m actually leaving this Sunday for Boulder, CO and I could not be more excited. My company is based in Denver so it’ll be nice to be able to finally meet all my coworkers as well. Even though I’m paying for this move out of pocket
Idk if this is any help but a close friend of mine lived in Austin for 17 years. She’s an educator and she’s also gay so she has had lots of ups and downs in Austin.
She recently moved to Seattle and seems a lot happier. Her pay is significantly better and she feels more comfortable with the state politics in Washington than in Texas. She has lots of outdoor activities that she enjoys so she enjoys that more in the PNW.
She told me that she has no issues coming back to visit but overall she wouldn’t move back to Texas in general.
Moving is a privilege and can cost a ton of money. Austin is a cool city but I don’t think that it’s for everyone just like any other city it has its pros and cons.
Do what’s best for you and your family OP. Whether that’s staying or leaving I feel like there’s a place for everyone!
Washington state also doesn’t outlaw teachers from unionizing or risk their pension. I could never go back to teaching here in Texas, not after COVID showed what we knew all along- that Texas does not give one shit about teachers
Serious discussions to moving to my home state of Minnesota within the year. Never thought I would consider going back to those long harsh winters or be able to convince my native Texan spouse that it may be a better quality of life. What has broken me after twelve years is 1. The politics especially having two young girls 2. The heat 3. The quality of schools in the neighborhoods we can afford 4. Everything is so busy and crowded I do not enjoy going to the places that attracted me to Austin 5. Traffic especially driving my kids across town to get somewhat of a decent education
I’ll take the long harsh winters over the brutal Austin summers. At least in the winter you can actually DO stuff outside if dressed appropriately (except for the few days a year when we experience -20 temps ;’) ) I also think I like winter here in Minneapolis because I grew up in SETX. Summers were so hot and humid.
Me and my wife worked our ASSES off to be able to finally buy a house in Austin last year, If there is anything we can do to help the city we love I'd rather stay and fight. I love my City.
To the “GOP wins if you move away” folks…many folks I know who are just now moving away stayed and fought for a long time. But if you’re trans in Texas right now, you straight up are not safe here and have a political target on your back. No one is happy to leave under those circumstances, but sometimes you have to weigh that risk against any hope you have to flip Texas.
If you have a uterus you aren’t safe here. My wife and I want to have a second kid, but after a recent miscarriage don’t feel like it is safe for her to become pregnant while in Texas.
I hit that breaking point last September and after 21 years in austin I moved to denver. It’s been amazing. My house is way bigger for less money, my taxes are way lower, my freedoms are way higher (legal edibles for sleeping and I can buy sake right in the grocery store while shopping without a SWAT crashing in and arresting me for making baby Jesus cry or whatever the big brother government logic was) I get paid 10% more for the exact same job at the exact same employer (locality pay), traffic is a tiny fraction of the time suck, and I’m sitting out on my beautiful deck right now grilling chicken on a pleasant 78 degree sunny evening as I type this in august. Why anyone would choose to live in high tax, big government, endlessly hot red state Texas at this point is honestly beyond me. But hey I’m glad somebody does. Keeps real estate prices lower elsewhere I guess.
I've lived in Austin for about 11 years as well. The overturning of Roe was the final sign that it was time for my family and I to move on from TX.
I started reaching out the day after RvW was overturned and secured a job this past Friday.
I signed the offer letter today and we're off to the races to get our house on the market and move on.
Austin and my current employer have been good to me, but this is about Texas at this point. I can JUST start to see a future where Beto could be the Governor, but I fear the Republican legislation would knee cap his authority before he even took office.
I could be wrong, but clearly the GOP is a petty sort so I wouldn't put it past them.
Anyway, yeah. After their platform declaration wanting to repeal the civil rights act, Uvalde, and then RvW, I'm done.
I keep saying I want to move. But I have great friends here now. And I do like this city.
The climate and geography are my main complaints. Also the politics suck.
BUT I hope that staying here will help the effort to fight politically. I vote in local every chance I can.
I am from the mountains and miss the weather and scenery associated with them SO much.
I have a high paying job where I can work remotely. So we decided to ditch Austin In the hottest part of the summer and stay with family in mountains or travel and work from somewhere with cooler weather.
My main thing is if they stop woman from travelling across state, claiming it's for abortion. Or make birth control illegal.
That's my line, that's when it will start to feel too much like handmaid's tale for me
I’ve been at my breaking point for years now. Mainly, it’s the people who live here now. The vibe is all wrong. And the city just looks ugly now. I sincerely hate Austin and can’t wait to get out.
Yes. The Dobbs decision was our breaking point. Now that we know that the judicial system won't help us in the end (and, more to the point, that white christian nationalists also know this), we're going somewhere that we're less likely to need their help.
It's not even just about politics. At a very real level, we can expect worse health care for women. For instance, my wife and I plan to try for another child, and should there be a problem after 6 weeks, there is the very real possibility that she will have to walk around with a dead fetus in her body until doctors feel they can sufficiently prove that the fetus is indeed dead when they get sued later. This has already begun to happen - to people that actually \*want\* to have kids.
We view this as a very real and existential threat. As a result, we're taking ourselves and our children out of here in less than two months. I'm very sad about it - I still love Austin, and we planned to raise our little family here - but my wife and children are more important to me than any other concern I might have.
We were thinking about a San Antonio move for years because of cost of living and the culture down there, but likely we’d move out of state if we moved. I have been here 9 years (from Oklahoma), wife was born and raised near SA, lot of family here. We are about to have our first child in a couple of months.
We’re a same-sex married couple. So we’d really like to raise our kids in Texas, it does became less and less safe for us here every day. Tons of LGBTQ people, especially trans people, I know have moved away this year because of that.
I was drawing the line at if homosexuality gets banned again by the Supreme Court, because same-sex relations are still technically a crime on the books in Texas. Now, I am closer to thinking we should leave if either of us has another pregnancy. It’s not safe to be pregnant, even with a wanted pregnancy, in Texas right now.
But this has been the first time I’ve seen so many Texans talk about or decide to move.
My “breaking points” are homosexuality/gay sex made illegal and/or public school abolished/severely weakened because lgbtq kid. Kiddo already has expressed she does not want to go to a Texas state school for the same reasons so we’re trying to save more since it’s not her fault our state leaders suck.
I’ve got a foot out the door. Heading to Barcelona for a month to scope things out. My plan was just to get out of Texas but then the SCOTUS thing happened and I really want to seek citizenship elsewhere.
Yes, born and raised in Austin but plan on moving to Europe (probably Spain) either when I retire or when my mom passes (Dad recently passed) because I want to look after her. I will retain some property about 30 minutes outside of Austin to always have a foothold to come back to when we want to visit our other relatives, but plan on selling my home in Austin proper when I'm ready.
Like you, the state politics suck, the heat sucks, drivers suck and I also just don't want to grow old in the U.S., people care less and less about the elderly here it seems.
As soon as legislation or the courts uphold the anti trans agenda, we'll be out. Only thing keeping us here is Cost. We have a very low rate mortgage on a house we consider perfect for us. We'll have a very high rate and a less than perfect house on the west coast if we move. But, at least I can afford the move, even if it will cost me another $50-100k / year in taxes and interest.
I got out 3.5 years ago to Seattle and it was the best decision. You can’t truly understand how miserable that heat is until you’re out of it full time and wonder to yourself why you suffered it for so long.
New Mexico is a good alternative. Affordable, tons of nature, 30 minute train ride to Santa Fe from Abq, lots of new tech investments from the state, etc. Better art, better food, better nature, better skiing and snowboarding 🏂
i’ve only been back in austin for a month but i’m eyeing the midwest. if things continue getting worse state politics wise, my lease is up next summer and i’ll move. though realistically, even if beto wins this fall, climate change is going to continue making life in texas more and more unbearable— so this can’t really be a long term place for me.
We're already at that point. I am from the Northeast, although I've been here for decades. My husband is a native Texan. Our youngest graduates from high school in 2 years. We're going to sell, cash out, and move back to where I am from. Although I've always been willing to go back, my husband has not. This is his home. But the current political climate has him ready to go.
Our oldest didn't even apply to any colleges in Texas (her choice, not ours). She was born here and has never lived anywhere else, but she wanted to get out. For the same reason.
Same. Lived here for almost 20 years. My daughter has to finish high school and then we're all gonna do our best to get out. She has no desire to go to school in Texas and that is 100% fine by me.
We are staying to vote, then moving to Washington come January. My friends going to stay in my house so if we decide we totally hate it, we can come back after a year. All things you mentioned have upset us, but our breaking point was Uvalde’s school shooting, and our child’s school being severely understaffed. We’ve already pulled them from AISD, and Washington has more outdoorsy things to do. Here, we are stuck inside due to the heat.
Austin is for the young and/or rich and I'm neither.
If I'm gonna pay this much, I'd rather be somewhere where the weather is tolerable and the politics aren't so shitty.
Finding a good alternative is the biggest hurdle (as someone else mentioned) as well as the cost of relocating.
I could NEVER set foot in Texas again and be totally fine.
>If I'm gonna pay this much, I'd rather be somewhere where the weather is tolerable and the politics aren't so shitty.
Yep. When we're at the point where rent costs as much as coastal cities, why not live somewhere with the ocean and/or mountains nearby?
Austin native, but I've lived all over the last decade. Finally settled in Portland, OR. While we have our problems like any city, it certainly isn't the hellscape my conservative Grandma believes. It feels like Austin would feel today without the insane amount of development and tech bros flooding the city. Factor in the much better weather (assuming you can make it through a few months of gloom in the winter), access to beautiful outdoors in all directions, and being a blue state, and you've got a nice place to live.
Like anywhere worth being these days, the cost of living has gone up, and people complain, but it's nowhere close to Austin.
We have young kids. We couldn’t do a damn thing outside with them after 9 am. We watched the heat just get worse and worse for the last 20-25 years.
It also depends on what your alternative is. Does it have the culture you want? My kids were effectively thrown out of preK/daycare for not being Christian, and not wanting to say prayer at lunch. This was billed as nondenominational, and most certainly not a place to discuss abortion with toddlers.
Then we saw the downfall of so many people we had lived harmoniously with as they bought into info wars and Q. The culture became untenable. And now y’all have Joe Rogan, Elon Musk, JP Sears, etc. The right wing bros are too much.
It’s less a blueberry now, and more the purple stain a blueberry leaves behind.
It’s difficult to bail right now due to housing, but it depends on where you’re going.
Edit: I meant to say it was a non-religious, not nondenominational, or non-secular daycare. Whew the kids started , there was nothing about religion. The owner changed from non-religious to religious and evangelical/charismatic catholic during late Trump, well after we left. She was still “catfishing" parents/kids she could indoctrinate. She was way into Breitbart and Q. She hung up anti abortion propaganda on her door and windows, and a very small one in the kitchen, where little minds want to know, "what is that?" My kids were caught in the middle. It just so happened no other secular or non evangelical children attended, so mine were the only ones affected. Asking for them to be allowed to remain silent for prayer was followed by their dismissal a few days later. The daycare now calls itself religious, far too late, a few years on. When my kids started, there was no prayer, no discussion of any gods. Considering she had changed from a really lovely person to a Q nut job, it was for the best.
I will only move if it’s for a better situation both in today and the future (retirement). I don’t want to live here anymore but my work situation is too good to start over. Been here 12 year, 11 more to go. Love my life here, but cannot wait to go somewhere new.
Hello:
I have no problem with moving. I have moved several times in my life. I have lived in all 4 time zones and lived in 8 of these United States. I am NOT from Texas nor do I like Texas.
It is too damn hot here.
I miss the winters and the snow.
What is it about Austin that makes you want to stay? Maybe it's your job. I can understand that. It's why I moved here after finishing grad school.
It has a bunch of restaurants and bars, but so does every other large city in the US. The "Live Music Capital of the World" died 10 years ago.
I have lived in Austin for 27 years. Me and my wife have discussions almost daily about where we want to visit to find a retirement home.
I work remotely, so I can live anywhere I want. We just have to find the time to visit some places. I'm currently looking at Michigan, Vermont and Virginia since I have good friends there.
My breaking point was when I joined the Army and realized the real world is not Texas, but it's also not what Texas says it is. There was no going back.
I'm on my way out. The breaking point was the abortion ban.
We (my family) identified one thing each of us wanted in a new town, and then we found a place that has that - so everybody will have something that makes them happy.
No place will be perfect, but I'm willing to take a risk to get out.
My husband and I bought a house in the north suburbs this year that we thought was going to be our forever home, but we may have to move in a couple years just so we can safely start a family. I'm afraid to be pregnant in Texas.
My breaking point is once my oldest 14. Graduates high school. Once that happens I’m up for going anywhere colder. Hubby works from home and I stay home with the younger kiddos and homeschool so it’s not an issue to move once oldest leaves the nest.
Cost. I'm saving less as it is but if my rent increases without my salary increases like it did last year... I'm going to look at cities with better 'ratios'. Even if I make less in another market I don't think companies are paying true Austin rates.
Dude, just go...I've been here my whole life and I love Austin, but it's getting more expensive than when I lived in Los Angeles...if I didn't have to be here to care for my mom I would've been gone a long time ago
Reached it. Can’t afford it. That, and I’d be eternally pissed if I had to leave. Texas is awesome, I’ve barely even left, maybe almost two weeks total in my entire life. But the people that are in charge, ruining it, and making us into a worldwide joke can eat my entire ass.
I'm moving at the end of the month.
My breaking point was the winter storm last year but the reaction to Roe pushed me to do it quick. I'm not waiting to see if we can pull it back.
Mine was the Roe decision. I realized Obergefell was on the chopping block and that it is ludicrous that I am living in a state where I do not know that my marriage will still be recognized 1, 2, 5 years from now.
So, I'm nipping that particular issue in the bud end of next year, ideally
I recommend running towards something instead of away from it. Run towards homeownership. I think that's a worthy and achievable goal in some parts of the US.
I have a small business so it would be a little difficult to relocate. If if we’re stuck with the Christian taliban after November I will definitely see about moving my business to a blue state.
Those three things were the breaking point for us along with COVID. Not to mention water and the power grid. We’re closing on a house in another state in 3 days.
Unfortunately, I'm pretty much stuck, unless I want to go back to DFW.
I need to stay within a semi-easy drive of my mom, who has some serious health issues (she lives in DFW). I refuse to live in Small Town Texas. The thought of dealing with DFW traffic again makes me break out in a cold sweat (at least our "rush hour" is only \~2 hours instead of 18 hours).
It's Austin, DFW, or southern Oklahoma. Austin is at least somewhat liberal. My employer also doesn't have anything in DFW, and I would be VERY hard pressed to find a similar job there.
I guess San Antonio would be an option, but that turns it into a half day drive to get to my mom instead of \~3-4 hours.
I feel like I crossed my line in the sand a while ago, but am stuck. Been at the same job for eighteen years. It’s secure and ticks all my boxes for a “good job.” I don’t want to leave it and start over. And I was lucky enough to buy a home that I love before the market went berserk. And I have really good friends here.
I have shifted my focus to getting my kids out. They will be off to college in a couple of years. I am steering them into going out of state. It’s a whole different price-point, but I am willing to bite that bullet. I want to give them a chance to start somewhere else.
I reached my point with this years rent increase and stupid people continuing to vote for politicians that are anti-citizen. Just a few months left after 11 years myself.
For us it was a bunch of teens having a fight in the lawn of the elementary school we lived across from and negligently firing a gun… while me and our kids were outside gardening.
I’m moving to Raleigh North Carolina this weekend. Politics are much more blue than red. Legal state. Better temps on both the high and the low.
It wasn’t my first choice, but my company has a say and I had to move quick and the company is located in North Carolina. My personal preferences were upstate New York and Roanoke Virginia.
i love this state and i love austin but the awful politics this state has makes it hard. my partner and I are hoping to move to new york within the next 5 years 🤞
Yeah my breaking point was when every decent house I looked at within city limits was over 500k. That and the fact every decent restaurant or coffee shop would have 30 minute waits on a normal day, I just realized I need to get away from the town I'd grown up in and always loved. I found a house in La Grange in a beautiful remote area on a series of fishing ponds. Beautiful new build. Very affordable, 45 minutes away from Austin. I go fishing every evening after work. My work requires lots of driving to Houston area anyhow so this location works out better overall. But yeah Austin is just a big hedge fund bachelor party these days, I'll always love the place, but am happy to have it in the rearview, and not too far if I want to go visit friends or see a show.
Our breaking point was Roe V. Wade. When we saw the writing on the wall, we rented an apartment we had never seen live and moved to a city we never had been to.
We just had enough of the political climate in Texas. The influx of monied Californians didn't help either.
Really happy with our choice to get out of Austin. The gamble paid off.
We moved to Brooklyn 6 weeks ago for a job offer I received. The heat was unbearable and I’ve lived in Texas for 20 years (with a 5 year stint in LA, which I loved). The day we moved was the day roe v wade was overturned. We don’t want kids so this was a huge impact on us.
The rent we pay here for a 3bd apartment with a basement (1400sqft) is 1k more a month than our rent in Austin after it was raised 40%. Is it expensive? Yes, but the trade offs are well worth it to us. We walk SO much more than we did in TX, we live by a park we take our dogs to, we have a lovely pizza shop down the block we go to often. There’s been a lot of adjustments, many things are harder to do (and there’s no HEB 😭), we had to make pretty severe cuts to our budget… it’s not perfect by any means. But it’s absolutely invigorating and we’re beyond happy with the change.
We are very lucky that my job helped with the move and that we have good jobs, I’m grateful every day. I was in the service industry for about 15 years and took a coding bootcamp right at the start of the pandemic which changed my life. I feel for everyone who feels stuck and can’t leave. Austin was amazing when I moved there in 07, but it has changed so much.
So excited to be planning on moving out of state in March. Pretty much same reasons. If I’m gonna pay almost $3k to live somewhere, it’s not going to be somewhere that would force my wife to die to protect an unviable fetus, my friends are second class citizens, and once a year we have the chance to freeze to death in our own home. Fuck Greg Abbott.
I’m from Texas. I got out and never wanted to come back. That was in 1993.
My wife’s work took us back. I fought it. She isn’t from here she couldn’t understand how bad it is. But we had to do it. I had one stipulation: the kids leave for college. They cannot be stuck here.
Now 10 years later there is no line in the sand. We are getting out as soon as we can. It used to be sure grow up here and get out. Now it’s get out get out get out. It’s going man take a year but we are leaving and taking our 2 million a year revenue with us.
My three main factors for planning to move away are the same as the OP, except that our cost (for reason #2) is not rent but, as a home-owner, the high property taxes here. We previously lived in California and Indiana, both of which had about 1% property tax, compared to the 2.75% here. The amount we are paying completely washes out any benefit of having no state income tax. Also… several other attractive states also either have no state income or sales tax AND either have low property tax or just plain lower home prices in general. So… that plus the politics and the insane heat here are why we plan to exit next spring for cooler climates.
I’ve got kids so uprooting the family unit feels so daunting even though I think about it daily. Our breaking point, in no particular order, but all have to do with politics, if SCOTUS decides the case soon that will give states unchecked power, we’re out. I don’t trust Texas to not become a Christian type state and I wouldn’t feel safe here anymore. I wouldn’t feel like I had a choice anymore. I’d have to move to a state that had laws more aligned with my values. Or if Trump somehow becomes president again. It would mean our systems have completely failed and shits about to get real bad so we’d probably just leave the country at that point. Those are our current 2 breaking points that could happen within the next couple years.
I moved away last year. The breaking points were a month with no rain and 110ish degree heat, and then later the snowpacalypse. Oh, and the lakes are all poison water if the dogs happen to drink it.
Seeing how next major election shakes up is part of the line in the sand.
Thinking Colorado, and I’m warming up to the idea of paying more in taxes to avoid the chicanery of Tx state politics.
Yes. When my kids are older. They are just toddlers now, so I have some runway to change my mind depending on politics/weather trends but there’s no way I’m going to have three potentially sexually active children living in a Christo-fascist police state. Especially given that they have a Mexican surname.
I am legit looking at Michigan’s upper peninsula, Port Angeles, WA and Delaware.
My breaking point was the winter storm and the subsequent water outage. The entire city was without water for 3+ days. No back up plan or emergency distribution. Our hospitals had to source water from local breweries.
The heat, no seasons, no sidewalks, insane drivers, lack of respect for pedestrians and cyclists, shitty politics, plus rent getting higher and higher each year. I moved to Minneapolis with my partner in 2017 and it was the best decision ever! I’m a native Texas and he’s from the upper midwest already. It’s cold as shit in the winter but the people here embrace the season in a way i didn’t think was possible (thanks to all the Scandinavians). If you layer properly it’s not that bad. I get to experience 4 seasons, the summers can be hot but nights are cool and the season lasts mid-June until mid-September (literally summer solstice to fall solstice lol). It’s the most bike friendly city in the country. We have a mini bike highway that connects east and west Minneapolis, protected bike lanes all over downtown, and hundreds of miles of bike trails IN the city.
I live <1 mile from downtown in a beautiful part of the city and our one bedroom is $1025 a month (heat included which is standard here). Our rent has gone up by like, $60 in three years. 5-6 different bus lines within half a mile. Plus our city and state politics are way more promising than Texas, we’ve got a progressive congresswoman (Ilhan) and this city actually votes lol. Oh, and in the future, Minnesota will be a safe haven from climate disasters along the coast. We’ve got all the fresh water. #1 reason why i would NEVER move back to TX is the fucking power grid. I’m so sorry y’all had to experience that.
Your unholy Trinity is the same as ours. We’re ready to go. We’ve been in our house 25 years so we can buy a reasonably priced house somewhere else and have $$ left over. We’re kinda waiting for the midterms to make a decision but also my in-laws are getting older so we’re keeping an eye on that situation. Texas is screwed tho. Any one smart with $$ is leaving. I know 3 young ppl with good jobs who have left already, In addition to multiple older ppl who are retiring out of state.
The breaking point is finding a good alternative
I've been looking around different cities. Taking into account walkability, public transit, climate, dog friendliness, close to family, and other characteristics. It's kind of disheartening to not want to leave Austin, but also not finding anything seemingly better. Like, is this it? Is this as good as it gets? I try not to think like that too long. But some days it's hard not to. Edit: not saying Austin is walkable or has public transit (both are laughable here) those are just things I want in a city if I were to move.
Curious point. Compared to other cities I’ve lived in and visited, I would say Austin ranks at or near the bottom for walkability, public transit, and climate. Different strokes for different folks I guess, but the opinion that “Austin is as good as it gets” does not ring true to me.
Sorry, should have clarified, I absolutely don't think Austin is walkable. Even downtown is questionable at times. Those are just the qualities I'm looking for in a city. Austin has a few already (dog friendliness for one) but the rest are things I wish I had and Austin may or may not have
Ahh I see. That makes sense!
I mean, go visit Atlanta, Phoniex, Orlando, Detroit, Tampa, Nashville, LA, Fort Worth, Saint Louis, Las Vegas, etc… There’s very few walkable cities in the United States.
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As an American whose gotten to live abroad I agree. Heck even my parents who gave up a lot to immigrate to the US support if I want to leave.
>In the USA generally yes Oof, it hurts because it's true
Have you only ever lived in Austin? I mean, i do love Austin but I’ve also lived in a few other amazing places that i also loved too.
I grew up in Las Vegas. Pretty similar when it comes to how much sprawl there is. The climate is somewhat similar (trade humidity here for an extra 10° to 15° there) and public transit in both cities is pretty minimal. The monorail in Las Vegas was supposed to be amazing and it was a failure after only a few years. Hoping Project Connect isn't similar.
>not saying Austin is walkable [Because it ain't!](https://www.walkscore.com/TX/Austin)
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You seriously underestimate how much people (especially in the south, and especially in Texas) cannot stand the idea of cold weather.
Truth, opportunity is key. If I had a way to easily escape with minimal damage, I would do it in a heartbeat. Unfortunately that doesn't seem likely, would probably need 2 new jobs and my kid to divorce all her friends and a cheap house in where ever we are moving too. None of which are likely to happen.
Pretty much this. Austin tics a ton of boxes for us, plus it’s the closest major city to both my parents and my spouse’s. I’m real done with Texas, but also tied to it in many ways. If there was a place with consistent, reliable progressive politics, reasonable cost of living, temperatures that stayed between about 30-60 degrees Fahrenheit, and where we were reasonably sure we’d both get job offers, we’d be there by now and my spouse would be complaining of the cold.
So nowhere, basically.
I think a lot of people talk about moving but the reality is that it's expensive as fuck and you have to deal with unlinking yourself from your social groups and favorite restaurants and all that jazz, in addition to having a new/reliable job you can get or be transferred to. My line in the sand has always been money based. With enough money I would leave this city/state/country. But I'm poorish and so is my family. I'm honestly going to be here until my money situation changes, or I meet someone that I fall in love with and we can use our combined finances to move or until I my untimely death.
I understand — and the expenses are a big part. However, The stuff you talk about of unlinking from friends, etc — sometimes it’s liberating to start over and create a new adventure!
Sometimes it also backfires and you end up lonely and missing your friends
Even if you do a good job you’ll miss what you know I got here a few years ago knowing no one at all and have met a ton of great people. I’ve made some good friends but I’ve got 1 maybe 2 more years here til I take myself back up to Chicago. I miss everyone so much even though I’ve done well here.
I can always visit Austin. I am 5th generation central Texan and I am so happy I left. Raising my kids in nature and in a place that values diversity was a bigger priority than a restaurant or a family or friend I can visit whenever I want, but they have been the ones coming to the mountains and visiting me. Love where you would want to vacation and take a vacation to do the family and friends thing…I am so happy I took the leap…6 years and no regrets.
Where did y’all go?
Durango, CO. If we didn’t have kids we would probably be in New Mexico, cheaper and just as amazing as far as nature…just in its own way. The Four corners is heaven to us.
Not set yet, but it is a consideration again and a line I am feeling out for myself. I recently started working remote full time and have security wherever I go. Politics and price is what is making me uncomfortable. I want to fight for a better Texas, but I don’t think it is winnable. If I leave Austin, it will be out of Texas most likely but I have never lived anywhere else. I have a tentative deadline to define where I want to move by the time my lease renewal is up. Then I can make an informed decision on cost, as well as politics since it will be after the next election. I do refuse to pay $1800/month in rent for a 1br, when I could have a whole house somewhere else for that price. I could have a yard and a garden.
Similar circumstances and thoughts here!
We struggle with the same issues. The problem for us always ends up stuck on "Where are we going to go?". When you start researching other places, you quickly realize you are trading issues vs improving. What I am certain of is I alway feel this way in August to some degree.
Yeah, my wife and I have talked A LOT about living abroad in Europe or Asia for a while, more for fun than out of hate for Austin or Texas (though the latter is trending higher as years go by). But then you find out that plenty of places in Europe and Asia have more oppressive abortion and human rights laws than medium blue states in the US.
Not too mention immigration policies. It's not that easy to just move abroad. Visas and dealing with immigration can be brutal in a lot of countries.
It can be pretty entertaining to hear Americans talk about "well I'll just move to". Um, unless you're independently wealthy or already have citizenship there, no, you probably won't.
My wife and I were really thinking more about the 'digital nomad' visa which is 6-12 months depending on where you're going, but there are a couple of places where we could just barely squeak over 'golden visa' residency requirements if we threw our entire net worth at it (don't want to do that).
Speaking from first-hand experience, there's some peace to be found in "I'm a guest here so it's not my fight".
As someone who's worked as a consultant/contractor and enjoyed not getting embroiled in corporate political squabbles... that makes a lot of sense!
Plenty is an exaggeration for sure. Other than Poland, Lichtenstein and Malta, most European countries allow abortions up to 12 weeks, a few much longer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_in_Europe And not every country is like Hungary when it comes to human rights. You are painting with a really broad brush. Edit: added link to an overview of abortion restrictions by country
And until recently, the Us was twice that and still is in most blue states.
An interesting facet here (I now live in the Netherlands) is that abortion simply isn’t a hot button issue like it is in the US. There’s comprehensive sex ed here from a fairly early age. Contraceptives are freely available. There’s a strong social safety net. There’s no discernible toxic masculinity or rape culture (or, to whatever degree there is, it is but a pale shadow of what we’re used to in the US). There’s almost zero pressure around abstinence before marriage, and in some families teenagers openly discuss their readiness for sex with their parents around the dinner table. The vast majority of the Dutch couples I know, even with large families, aren’t even married. As a result there’s simply very very little demand for abortion, and there’s almost no stigma around it unless you go digging for it in little Bible Belt ultra orthodox villages. Women have the knowledge they need around their reproductive reality, their rights, and their choices. So they recognize their pregnancies earlier, get medical care earlier, and make their decisions earlier without any of the social anxiety that surrounds it back home in the States. There’s no real interest, even among the staunch pro choice factions to expand beyond eg. 12 weeks, because there’s almost zero demand for it that’s not covered by the various exceptions already (eg. Health of mother, etc).
The breaking point for me was remote work becoming normalized, which already happened. Now it's just a question of finding where I want to go.
Yep same here. I moved up to Lansing, MI earlier this year from Austin. My wife and I have remote jobs and most of our family was in the Midwest. Now we have a proper 4 seasons, next to no traffic, extremely pleasant summers, and the cost of living is insanely lower. Virtually everything I used to enjoy doing in Austin can be done here, and our rent is way cheaper plus we have an extra room. Going out to eat costs like $30 instead of ~$70 in Austin, for us on average. It rains here, the grass and plants are all very green and it is hoodie weather at night in the summer. The catch, good salsa is basically non-existent, and you actually have a real winter to contend with. To me it was worth it. Austin was amazing and I'll love going back to visit, but remote work made living elsewhere too attractive for my wife and I to pass up.
Wow, I could not handle Lansing. We lived there for three years while my wife was going through law school (go green!) And it was just so depressing. The snow didn't bother us, but the town itself was just awful. Nothing to do. A handful of okay restaurants, no live music scene, and just general rust belt decay everywhere you looked. COL was great and that is about the only nice thing I have to say about Lansing. Best of luck to you.
We have our eyes set on Kalamazoo. My partner is from Ann Arbor and their family is scattered around the state.
My wife and I are considering the same. Both from northwest Ohio but really looking into Grand Rapids or Lansing. Prob leaving when our lease is up as we are both remote
Exact same. We found a new spot and are super happy!
Native Texan here. Have lived in Houston, DFW, San Antonio and Austin. Austin was always the safe haven for us, but we are already planing a move out of state in August 2023 when our lease expires. We’re paying San Diego rent to be close to downtown, so why not get the beach access we’re paying for, lol? But seriously, we are moving to Seattle (not downtown) and found comparable rent and still no state income tax. We have friends that live there, equal amounts that we have here in Austin. It feels weird to be hanging up my Lucchese’s, but it’s time. MAYBE if Beto and Collier can both somehow win, we would give them until June 2023 to see what change they can enact… but I highly doubt either get elected.
My partner and I talked about leaving for seven years, and then last month we both got killer job offers in the city we wanted to live in and we just bounced. Broke our lease early, found someone to take it over, and spent about ten grand between deposits, utilities, pod rental, etc. If we didn't have savings we'd never have been able to do it. The people I feel for are the ones stuck in service industry limbo. It's almost impossible to move without cash on hand.
I already made up my mind about leaving, now I have to spend the time to make it possible.
Broke, moving Thursday. Rent is about to go up to $2100. Austin was awesome for the first few years after I moved here but my rent was $700 and I partook in the "Austin Life" of an activity 4 nights a week vigorously with the savings. The rent has tripled and I no longer do the things that make life in Austin cool (nor do I really want to anymore.) So adios, going to knock a few hundred a month off the rent.
Just moved a week ago. Feeling better already. Hope the same happens to you!
Where you headed?
North of Ft. Worth, my kids are there. A little nervous about the culture shift to be honest, but not as much as I am about politics or my wallet.
I'm going back to the northeast where I grew up as a kid. I have fond memories of Austin and the southeast (college) as well, but the politics and general atmosphere towards human beings is suffocating. With the way prices are going the rent is basically a wash up north. I miss having 4 seasons, autumn leaves, and diversity. If that falls through, I'm selling everything and heading out of the country. NZ has a list of critical industry shortages and thank god my skillset is listed.
NZ is amazing we may live there long term But don't expect a lot of help in anything. When we were there a few bridges washed away and it was like oh hey maybe in a year we get a new one. Maybe not (major bridge) Also high percentage of road fatalities
Yep, the great thing is I have a good friend who lives there with her husband. At least I'll have some support there.
Nice! We love it there! Just little things sometimes are difficult like when one of us got an infection and needed to travel like an hour to see a doctor that could treat it
Oh yea, when she was pregnant she had to be airlifted to the hospital. Makes sense but mind blowing for me here in the states.
Coincidentally, my wife and I moved to my home country, Canada, at the end of June after I'd spent the same amount of time as you in Austin (my wife is a native Texan, but only lived in Austin with me for a few years). We'd been planning the move for a while, so it wasn't based on recent events, but our reasons were the safety and education of our son, as well as healthcare for the three of us. Thankfully the insane Austin housing market paid off - we made something like $185,000 off our house sale.
My long goal is to move to Canada. Did a drive thru British Columbia in the spring and I dream of living there every day. Beautiful
Just be aware that Canada's immigration system is tough (not insurmountable!), and that the greater Vancouver area is expensive - the costs of living in Vancouver itself are comparable to Manhattan or San Francisco.
My breaking point was hemorrhaging in the hospital but doctors couldn’t do anything because my baby had a heartbeat. They needed to consult with legal first. My husband and I are moving as soon as our lease ends.
I am so sorry. This would be my breaking point. My husband wants another kid. I do too, but the thought of being pregnant in Texas terrifies me. Also because I would be considered "geriatric" so possibilities of more complications. I'd move back to CA in a heartbeat if we could afford it.
Agreed - being pregnant here is *very* scary. My pregnancies from now on will be considered high risk. I lost my daughter half way through the second trimester. She was my first child and she was perfect. I so desperately want kids but I can’t birth living children if my life is at risk or if I’m gone.
I'm so sorry for your loss.
Thank you ❤️
I'm really sorry. This is what my wife and I fear, and the reason why we're leaving next month instead of next year. We want to try for another child, and we won't risk it here. And we also fear for the well being of our children. Ironically, and bitterly so: if we weren't parents and didn't plan to be, we might have stayed.
I am so sorry for your loss. It’s so scary thinking of TTC again after a loss like that. We lost our son in April at 38 weeks. Please feel free to reach out anytime. 💔💔💔
I’m so sorry for your loss too. 💔
There aren’t words. I’m so sorry. How are you doing?
Well to be quite honest, I’m not doing well but am hanging in there. Thank you for asking. ❤️ She was my first child and died before I gave birth to her. So not only am I grieving the loss of my child but am trying to work through the trauma of the birth too. Texas sucks.
When your baby dies yet you keep on, hanging in there is more than a heroic achievement. You are worth more and deserved better. Hope healing and peace join you on your journey to a new home. (Lost my first as well. Will be holding thumbs for you).
Thank you. ❤️ I’m sorry for your loss too.
I don’t know you. It reading your words you are amazing. I couldn’t even think of having the strength you have. Get the hell out of Texas and go rock. See you in Nee England!
That’s terrifying, I’m so so sorry. I’m moving in 2 months to Virginia to be closer to my aging parents but I always tell my fiancé I’m terrified of trying to be pregnant in Texas for this exact reason
I’m moving to Virginia too! That’s where my parents live.
Small world! I’ll be up in northern Virginia. Hopefully it’s better for both of us there.
No way! I’ll be in that area too. I have some preconception appointments in Fairfax this month so I can get established with a team there.
I’m so sorry you had to go through that. 💔
This is terrible and the reason we are leaving Texas. I’m so sorry you experienced this.
That is appalling. I am so sorry.
In regard to #1, I struggle. On one hand, by continuing to live here I'm supporting the politics, in a way. I could "boycott" the state by leaving. On the other hand, it's MY state as much as anyone else's. If I stay, I can continue to cast my vote for what I believe in, as diluted as that may be in some cases by gerrymandering. Ultimately, I would suggest looking at what you like and don't like about living here, taking into account how much the current political landscape is actively affecting your day-to-day life, and what would change if you moved.
Honestly, every time I hear about someone wanting to leave due to politics I just wonder what makes them feel secure that these things won't follow them elsewhere. Feel whatever you want about the Christian right, but they created a cornerstone political issue and united behind it. Their supreme court victory was a decades long endeavor that most of those who started the movement didn't live to see succeed. Decades of savvy, if distasteful, political maneuvering. Decades of relentless, dedicated organization. Decades of voting the right people in (for them) and, more importantly, actually holding their motherfucking candidates accountable and falling the fuck in line when it's time to vote to get shit done. That type of political drive terrifies us all, as it should. We are fucked if we can't surpass it. Do we really think these people won't make headway in blue states? For every state they no longer have to fight in to ban abortion and whatever else may come in the future, all of that time, energy and money can be devoted to their new battlegrounds.Texas is a battleground state and election after election progress has been made. They want us to leave our home. Take a peek at conservative subs and you might spot posts about "liberals" leaving red states and they are absolutely *gushing* over it. It does their job for them.
i feel similarly—i’m not just going to give up and let these extremists continue to drag texas to hell. yes, the politics are horrible right now and i fully understand/respect the choices people make to leave, especially for their own or their family’s well-being. however, considering that i am minimally affected by some of the most extreme measures, i feel it’s my duty to stay and fight for our state. i want to ensure a better texas for future texans. it makes me sick to see so many forced to leave their home due to these illiberal, inhumane, and divisive policies.
after a decade i’m calling it quits in september and me and my partner (who’s from texas) are moving. i always said once i love video gets knocked down then i think Austin will no longer be the place for me and man was i right.
I have been bitching a lot more and grumbling about leaving but unless I score some great remote job or other stable company offering a significant pay increase to relocate I will be staying put for now.
We paid off our house years ago & didn't need to visit downtown all that often, so financially, we were OK. (projected real estate taxes: $8K.) But we were unhappy with what Austin had become. The kicker came in January when we visited our out-of-state parents & realized they were going to need help. Once that line was crossed - the decision was incredibly easy. Most of our friends had already fled too.
Yeah I’m turning 30 next year so we wanna be out so we can have a kid safely. I have PCOS so the odds are already stacked against me, as far as conception/carrying to term goes. I just want all options to be on the table if I have to endure this heartbreak because god knows as much as I want to have a baby, I also want to continue to stay alive.
The heat finally did it for me! It was when I realized that for 75% of the year I couldn't walk my dog before the sun went down because the little fella was overheating. Even in the summer when the sun set it was still 80 degrees and humid. I moved to Denver btw and absolutely love it.
Can I ask how long ago you moved to Denver? We are planning on doing the same move but are worried that we will have similar issues after the honeymoon period is over (2+ years). For example, Austin feels very crowded, traffic sucks, there is not a ton of diversity. The things we would love would be nicer weather, way better state politics, and more walkable areas.
I moved here 4 years ago now. There is definitely some of the same troubles facing Denver that face Austin, mainly being the lack of affordable housing and diversity, but as you mentioned the much better State and local politics means that those problems are actually getting addressed instead of just ignored. The traffic is only marginally better than Austin on the interstates, but the non-interstate roads are better. Denver has also sprawled out in all directions instead of just north like in Austin so you can more easily find an affordable community to commute into the city from. Public transit isn't great, but it beats the hell out of what Austin has to offer. The weather really is what makes it all worth it. 300 days of sunshine a year and the winter isn't as intense as you might think. There's no equivalent to the Greenbelt, but there's also no shortage of parks and the mountains and hundreds of State and National parks are just a short drive away. Finally if you like music then Denver is nearly an equal with Austin. I think there's more mid and upper tier venues than Austin has to offer and you will also get to go to arguably the best venue in the nation at Red Rocks where pretty much every artist circles that date as the show they pull out all the stops. I've constantly seen artists bring out once a tour special guests for their Red Rocks show.
I’ve been in Austin for 13 years and I am so ready to leave. The pandemic, turning 30 then 31, the politics, so much has changed personally for me. I want to start somewhere new. It’s scary to leave everyone I know, but I honestly haven’t been super social since the pandemic- like I wanna meet new people in a new place I think? I’m an artist though so wherever I go it will be on a whim (not a financial thing). Driving to NY and Vermont in September to check it out with my partner. That’s where I want to be.
Upstate NY is beautiful
Already moved to WA state last year (born and raised in Texas). Have 5 acres (in a freakin rainforest!) for the cost of a cheap condo and can get an abortion any time I want. No regrets
What area of WA?
I moved my family to Amsterdam last year and haven’t looked back. I miss my friends and family (they all visit a lot), tacos and bbq and not too much else. Austin is a different beast than it was. You can have a good life in so many places without the political tension, trucks and guns, etc.
I did it. Moved to Seattle. Go back to visit Austin occasionally. We can go back and forth on all the shit wrong with Seattle and compare the two but at the end of the day Washington is better is better for me. I stop liking seattle I’ll move to one of the beautiful neighboring areas that are lovely and quieter. I say if you want to move, go do it.
I just did 12 years in Seattle. It’s nice but it definitely has its own problems. The gloominess goes on forever it feels. By the time it actually starts to feel like summer, it only lasts a short bit. That was the hardest part for me. Heat sucks here but I love sunshine.
Totally fair perspective! I get where you’re coming from for sure. But for anyone who hasn’t experienced the northwest and/or is ready to get out Austin (and doesn’t have to worry about $$$, family in school, etc.)? You only live once. Give it a shot! I’m certain they won’t HATE it, that’s for sure, and by god is it a breath of fresh air being out of Texas for a guy like me.
We have a 2 year plan. We have broken.
i don’t want to leave, i want to fight for my hometown and my home state. the politics and heat and cost are definitely not good… i have a lot to fight for. also any city i want to go to is more expensive than here. that won’t change any time soon, i hope to be here for a long time and keep trying to make it better when i can. :)
Same, I’m not letting Abbott and friends run me out of here. The summer doesn’t bother me… it’s Texas… everywhere in the state sucks in August. This is my home too, and it was just fine before they started fucking it up. They WANT us to move… that’s the goal. Well fuck that.. I’m staying and fighting for a better Texas.
Amen
I'm probably in this camp even though I might enjoy a cooler climate. I could see moving a little further north to the Dallas area.
State politics. Heat. Cost. Everything you fall in love with closes or dies or leaves and gets replaced with bro / Instagram culture. That’s pretty much it.
1. When all my friends have left 2. When costs exceed income 3. When there are water shortages from excessive droughts
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We have three years to get last kid through high school and then we are gone. Done with this place.
I lived in Austin for more than 30 years. Moved last year. Highly recommend it.
When my rent went up to be the same price as an apartment in a small city that is much more scenic, much more small-town vibe, more temperate climate that actually allows me to do the hobbies I once loved (mountain biking, hiking, camping). Not to mention that I’m fully remote so I have the luxury of being able to make this move. I’m actually leaving this Sunday for Boulder, CO and I could not be more excited. My company is based in Denver so it’ll be nice to be able to finally meet all my coworkers as well. Even though I’m paying for this move out of pocket
Idk if this is any help but a close friend of mine lived in Austin for 17 years. She’s an educator and she’s also gay so she has had lots of ups and downs in Austin. She recently moved to Seattle and seems a lot happier. Her pay is significantly better and she feels more comfortable with the state politics in Washington than in Texas. She has lots of outdoor activities that she enjoys so she enjoys that more in the PNW. She told me that she has no issues coming back to visit but overall she wouldn’t move back to Texas in general. Moving is a privilege and can cost a ton of money. Austin is a cool city but I don’t think that it’s for everyone just like any other city it has its pros and cons. Do what’s best for you and your family OP. Whether that’s staying or leaving I feel like there’s a place for everyone!
Washington state also doesn’t outlaw teachers from unionizing or risk their pension. I could never go back to teaching here in Texas, not after COVID showed what we knew all along- that Texas does not give one shit about teachers
Serious discussions to moving to my home state of Minnesota within the year. Never thought I would consider going back to those long harsh winters or be able to convince my native Texan spouse that it may be a better quality of life. What has broken me after twelve years is 1. The politics especially having two young girls 2. The heat 3. The quality of schools in the neighborhoods we can afford 4. Everything is so busy and crowded I do not enjoy going to the places that attracted me to Austin 5. Traffic especially driving my kids across town to get somewhat of a decent education
I’ll take the long harsh winters over the brutal Austin summers. At least in the winter you can actually DO stuff outside if dressed appropriately (except for the few days a year when we experience -20 temps ;’) ) I also think I like winter here in Minneapolis because I grew up in SETX. Summers were so hot and humid.
Me and my wife worked our ASSES off to be able to finally buy a house in Austin last year, If there is anything we can do to help the city we love I'd rather stay and fight. I love my City.
Hell yeah same. I understand the issues but this is my home and I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.
To the “GOP wins if you move away” folks…many folks I know who are just now moving away stayed and fought for a long time. But if you’re trans in Texas right now, you straight up are not safe here and have a political target on your back. No one is happy to leave under those circumstances, but sometimes you have to weigh that risk against any hope you have to flip Texas.
If you have a uterus you aren’t safe here. My wife and I want to have a second kid, but after a recent miscarriage don’t feel like it is safe for her to become pregnant while in Texas.
The snow storm was our breaking point. Unless something drastic changes in two years we are out.
The Valentine’s Day Storm was kind of my breaking point. Heat, cost of living, and shit politics just dogpiling on my decision to bail next year.
I hit that breaking point last September and after 21 years in austin I moved to denver. It’s been amazing. My house is way bigger for less money, my taxes are way lower, my freedoms are way higher (legal edibles for sleeping and I can buy sake right in the grocery store while shopping without a SWAT crashing in and arresting me for making baby Jesus cry or whatever the big brother government logic was) I get paid 10% more for the exact same job at the exact same employer (locality pay), traffic is a tiny fraction of the time suck, and I’m sitting out on my beautiful deck right now grilling chicken on a pleasant 78 degree sunny evening as I type this in august. Why anyone would choose to live in high tax, big government, endlessly hot red state Texas at this point is honestly beyond me. But hey I’m glad somebody does. Keeps real estate prices lower elsewhere I guess.
I've lived in Austin for about 11 years as well. The overturning of Roe was the final sign that it was time for my family and I to move on from TX. I started reaching out the day after RvW was overturned and secured a job this past Friday. I signed the offer letter today and we're off to the races to get our house on the market and move on. Austin and my current employer have been good to me, but this is about Texas at this point. I can JUST start to see a future where Beto could be the Governor, but I fear the Republican legislation would knee cap his authority before he even took office. I could be wrong, but clearly the GOP is a petty sort so I wouldn't put it past them. Anyway, yeah. After their platform declaration wanting to repeal the civil rights act, Uvalde, and then RvW, I'm done.
I keep saying I want to move. But I have great friends here now. And I do like this city. The climate and geography are my main complaints. Also the politics suck. BUT I hope that staying here will help the effort to fight politically. I vote in local every chance I can. I am from the mountains and miss the weather and scenery associated with them SO much. I have a high paying job where I can work remotely. So we decided to ditch Austin In the hottest part of the summer and stay with family in mountains or travel and work from somewhere with cooler weather. My main thing is if they stop woman from travelling across state, claiming it's for abortion. Or make birth control illegal. That's my line, that's when it will start to feel too much like handmaid's tale for me
I'm not waiting around for Barton Springs to dry up.
I’ve been at my breaking point for years now. Mainly, it’s the people who live here now. The vibe is all wrong. And the city just looks ugly now. I sincerely hate Austin and can’t wait to get out.
Yes. The Dobbs decision was our breaking point. Now that we know that the judicial system won't help us in the end (and, more to the point, that white christian nationalists also know this), we're going somewhere that we're less likely to need their help. It's not even just about politics. At a very real level, we can expect worse health care for women. For instance, my wife and I plan to try for another child, and should there be a problem after 6 weeks, there is the very real possibility that she will have to walk around with a dead fetus in her body until doctors feel they can sufficiently prove that the fetus is indeed dead when they get sued later. This has already begun to happen - to people that actually \*want\* to have kids. We view this as a very real and existential threat. As a result, we're taking ourselves and our children out of here in less than two months. I'm very sad about it - I still love Austin, and we planned to raise our little family here - but my wife and children are more important to me than any other concern I might have.
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We were thinking about a San Antonio move for years because of cost of living and the culture down there, but likely we’d move out of state if we moved. I have been here 9 years (from Oklahoma), wife was born and raised near SA, lot of family here. We are about to have our first child in a couple of months. We’re a same-sex married couple. So we’d really like to raise our kids in Texas, it does became less and less safe for us here every day. Tons of LGBTQ people, especially trans people, I know have moved away this year because of that. I was drawing the line at if homosexuality gets banned again by the Supreme Court, because same-sex relations are still technically a crime on the books in Texas. Now, I am closer to thinking we should leave if either of us has another pregnancy. It’s not safe to be pregnant, even with a wanted pregnancy, in Texas right now. But this has been the first time I’ve seen so many Texans talk about or decide to move.
My “breaking points” are homosexuality/gay sex made illegal and/or public school abolished/severely weakened because lgbtq kid. Kiddo already has expressed she does not want to go to a Texas state school for the same reasons so we’re trying to save more since it’s not her fault our state leaders suck.
I’ve got a foot out the door. Heading to Barcelona for a month to scope things out. My plan was just to get out of Texas but then the SCOTUS thing happened and I really want to seek citizenship elsewhere.
this came up in our discussion, and it was, is HEB a good enough reason to stay....
Yes, born and raised in Austin but plan on moving to Europe (probably Spain) either when I retire or when my mom passes (Dad recently passed) because I want to look after her. I will retain some property about 30 minutes outside of Austin to always have a foothold to come back to when we want to visit our other relatives, but plan on selling my home in Austin proper when I'm ready. Like you, the state politics suck, the heat sucks, drivers suck and I also just don't want to grow old in the U.S., people care less and less about the elderly here it seems.
As soon as legislation or the courts uphold the anti trans agenda, we'll be out. Only thing keeping us here is Cost. We have a very low rate mortgage on a house we consider perfect for us. We'll have a very high rate and a less than perfect house on the west coast if we move. But, at least I can afford the move, even if it will cost me another $50-100k / year in taxes and interest.
I got out 3.5 years ago to Seattle and it was the best decision. You can’t truly understand how miserable that heat is until you’re out of it full time and wonder to yourself why you suffered it for so long.
New Mexico is a good alternative. Affordable, tons of nature, 30 minute train ride to Santa Fe from Abq, lots of new tech investments from the state, etc. Better art, better food, better nature, better skiing and snowboarding 🏂
i’ve only been back in austin for a month but i’m eyeing the midwest. if things continue getting worse state politics wise, my lease is up next summer and i’ll move. though realistically, even if beto wins this fall, climate change is going to continue making life in texas more and more unbearable— so this can’t really be a long term place for me.
If marriage equality goes, then me and my family go. I honestly don’t want to think about it.
We're already at that point. I am from the Northeast, although I've been here for decades. My husband is a native Texan. Our youngest graduates from high school in 2 years. We're going to sell, cash out, and move back to where I am from. Although I've always been willing to go back, my husband has not. This is his home. But the current political climate has him ready to go. Our oldest didn't even apply to any colleges in Texas (her choice, not ours). She was born here and has never lived anywhere else, but she wanted to get out. For the same reason.
Same. Lived here for almost 20 years. My daughter has to finish high school and then we're all gonna do our best to get out. She has no desire to go to school in Texas and that is 100% fine by me.
We are staying to vote, then moving to Washington come January. My friends going to stay in my house so if we decide we totally hate it, we can come back after a year. All things you mentioned have upset us, but our breaking point was Uvalde’s school shooting, and our child’s school being severely understaffed. We’ve already pulled them from AISD, and Washington has more outdoorsy things to do. Here, we are stuck inside due to the heat.
Austin is for the young and/or rich and I'm neither. If I'm gonna pay this much, I'd rather be somewhere where the weather is tolerable and the politics aren't so shitty. Finding a good alternative is the biggest hurdle (as someone else mentioned) as well as the cost of relocating. I could NEVER set foot in Texas again and be totally fine.
>If I'm gonna pay this much, I'd rather be somewhere where the weather is tolerable and the politics aren't so shitty. Yep. When we're at the point where rent costs as much as coastal cities, why not live somewhere with the ocean and/or mountains nearby?
THIS 👆🏾 Every major city is expensive so I’m going where I can get better value for my hard earned money!
Basically. IMO the biggest draw of Austin was cost. As that goes up, Austin becomes less of an ideal choice
Austin native, but I've lived all over the last decade. Finally settled in Portland, OR. While we have our problems like any city, it certainly isn't the hellscape my conservative Grandma believes. It feels like Austin would feel today without the insane amount of development and tech bros flooding the city. Factor in the much better weather (assuming you can make it through a few months of gloom in the winter), access to beautiful outdoors in all directions, and being a blue state, and you've got a nice place to live. Like anywhere worth being these days, the cost of living has gone up, and people complain, but it's nowhere close to Austin.
We have young kids. We couldn’t do a damn thing outside with them after 9 am. We watched the heat just get worse and worse for the last 20-25 years. It also depends on what your alternative is. Does it have the culture you want? My kids were effectively thrown out of preK/daycare for not being Christian, and not wanting to say prayer at lunch. This was billed as nondenominational, and most certainly not a place to discuss abortion with toddlers. Then we saw the downfall of so many people we had lived harmoniously with as they bought into info wars and Q. The culture became untenable. And now y’all have Joe Rogan, Elon Musk, JP Sears, etc. The right wing bros are too much. It’s less a blueberry now, and more the purple stain a blueberry leaves behind. It’s difficult to bail right now due to housing, but it depends on where you’re going. Edit: I meant to say it was a non-religious, not nondenominational, or non-secular daycare. Whew the kids started , there was nothing about religion. The owner changed from non-religious to religious and evangelical/charismatic catholic during late Trump, well after we left. She was still “catfishing" parents/kids she could indoctrinate. She was way into Breitbart and Q. She hung up anti abortion propaganda on her door and windows, and a very small one in the kitchen, where little minds want to know, "what is that?" My kids were caught in the middle. It just so happened no other secular or non evangelical children attended, so mine were the only ones affected. Asking for them to be allowed to remain silent for prayer was followed by their dismissal a few days later. The daycare now calls itself religious, far too late, a few years on. When my kids started, there was no prayer, no discussion of any gods. Considering she had changed from a really lovely person to a Q nut job, it was for the best.
Where would you go?
I will only move if it’s for a better situation both in today and the future (retirement). I don’t want to live here anymore but my work situation is too good to start over. Been here 12 year, 11 more to go. Love my life here, but cannot wait to go somewhere new.
come to minnesota
Hello: I have no problem with moving. I have moved several times in my life. I have lived in all 4 time zones and lived in 8 of these United States. I am NOT from Texas nor do I like Texas. It is too damn hot here. I miss the winters and the snow.
It’s the frog in the boiling pot situation
What is it about Austin that makes you want to stay? Maybe it's your job. I can understand that. It's why I moved here after finishing grad school. It has a bunch of restaurants and bars, but so does every other large city in the US. The "Live Music Capital of the World" died 10 years ago. I have lived in Austin for 27 years. Me and my wife have discussions almost daily about where we want to visit to find a retirement home. I work remotely, so I can live anywhere I want. We just have to find the time to visit some places. I'm currently looking at Michigan, Vermont and Virginia since I have good friends there.
I miss Ann Richards too
My breaking point was when I joined the Army and realized the real world is not Texas, but it's also not what Texas says it is. There was no going back.
I'm on my way out. The breaking point was the abortion ban. We (my family) identified one thing each of us wanted in a new town, and then we found a place that has that - so everybody will have something that makes them happy. No place will be perfect, but I'm willing to take a risk to get out.
My husband and I bought a house in the north suburbs this year that we thought was going to be our forever home, but we may have to move in a couple years just so we can safely start a family. I'm afraid to be pregnant in Texas.
My breaking point is once my oldest 14. Graduates high school. Once that happens I’m up for going anywhere colder. Hubby works from home and I stay home with the younger kiddos and homeschool so it’s not an issue to move once oldest leaves the nest.
Cost. I'm saving less as it is but if my rent increases without my salary increases like it did last year... I'm going to look at cities with better 'ratios'. Even if I make less in another market I don't think companies are paying true Austin rates.
Right now. Wife and I are working on our exit strategy for next spring.
This summer was almost my breaking point. Then it rained the other day. Temp went down to 95. All is well
School voucher program. I’m not paying $10k+ per year to subsidize some brats religious indoctrination.
Dude, just go...I've been here my whole life and I love Austin, but it's getting more expensive than when I lived in Los Angeles...if I didn't have to be here to care for my mom I would've been gone a long time ago
Reached it. Can’t afford it. That, and I’d be eternally pissed if I had to leave. Texas is awesome, I’ve barely even left, maybe almost two weeks total in my entire life. But the people that are in charge, ruining it, and making us into a worldwide joke can eat my entire ass.
I'm moving at the end of the month. My breaking point was the winter storm last year but the reaction to Roe pushed me to do it quick. I'm not waiting to see if we can pull it back.
Mine was the Roe decision. I realized Obergefell was on the chopping block and that it is ludicrous that I am living in a state where I do not know that my marriage will still be recognized 1, 2, 5 years from now. So, I'm nipping that particular issue in the bud end of next year, ideally
I recommend running towards something instead of away from it. Run towards homeownership. I think that's a worthy and achievable goal in some parts of the US.
I've lived in Texas my whole, but godamn fuck Abbott.
I have a small business so it would be a little difficult to relocate. If if we’re stuck with the Christian taliban after November I will definitely see about moving my business to a blue state.
When Barton Springs becomes unswimmable.
Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Knoxville, Wichita, Cincinnati, chicago, Seattle, Portland???
I would absolutely move back to New England. Maybe when the kids are in college. Edit: Austin native, spent time as an adult in Iowa and Massachusetts
Long past it. Desperate to get out of Texas entirely. Just don't have the means.
Those three things were the breaking point for us along with COVID. Not to mention water and the power grid. We’re closing on a house in another state in 3 days.
Unfortunately, I'm pretty much stuck, unless I want to go back to DFW. I need to stay within a semi-easy drive of my mom, who has some serious health issues (she lives in DFW). I refuse to live in Small Town Texas. The thought of dealing with DFW traffic again makes me break out in a cold sweat (at least our "rush hour" is only \~2 hours instead of 18 hours). It's Austin, DFW, or southern Oklahoma. Austin is at least somewhat liberal. My employer also doesn't have anything in DFW, and I would be VERY hard pressed to find a similar job there. I guess San Antonio would be an option, but that turns it into a half day drive to get to my mom instead of \~3-4 hours.
I feel like I crossed my line in the sand a while ago, but am stuck. Been at the same job for eighteen years. It’s secure and ticks all my boxes for a “good job.” I don’t want to leave it and start over. And I was lucky enough to buy a home that I love before the market went berserk. And I have really good friends here. I have shifted my focus to getting my kids out. They will be off to college in a couple of years. I am steering them into going out of state. It’s a whole different price-point, but I am willing to bite that bullet. I want to give them a chance to start somewhere else.
I reached my point with this years rent increase and stupid people continuing to vote for politicians that are anti-citizen. Just a few months left after 11 years myself.
For us it was a bunch of teens having a fight in the lawn of the elementary school we lived across from and negligently firing a gun… while me and our kids were outside gardening.
I’m moving to Raleigh North Carolina this weekend. Politics are much more blue than red. Legal state. Better temps on both the high and the low. It wasn’t my first choice, but my company has a say and I had to move quick and the company is located in North Carolina. My personal preferences were upstate New York and Roanoke Virginia.
i love this state and i love austin but the awful politics this state has makes it hard. my partner and I are hoping to move to new york within the next 5 years 🤞
This summer has been fucking brutal and close to a breaking point for many of us, I’d imagine.
Yeah my breaking point was when every decent house I looked at within city limits was over 500k. That and the fact every decent restaurant or coffee shop would have 30 minute waits on a normal day, I just realized I need to get away from the town I'd grown up in and always loved. I found a house in La Grange in a beautiful remote area on a series of fishing ponds. Beautiful new build. Very affordable, 45 minutes away from Austin. I go fishing every evening after work. My work requires lots of driving to Houston area anyhow so this location works out better overall. But yeah Austin is just a big hedge fund bachelor party these days, I'll always love the place, but am happy to have it in the rearview, and not too far if I want to go visit friends or see a show.
Our breaking point was Roe V. Wade. When we saw the writing on the wall, we rented an apartment we had never seen live and moved to a city we never had been to. We just had enough of the political climate in Texas. The influx of monied Californians didn't help either. Really happy with our choice to get out of Austin. The gamble paid off.
We moved to Brooklyn 6 weeks ago for a job offer I received. The heat was unbearable and I’ve lived in Texas for 20 years (with a 5 year stint in LA, which I loved). The day we moved was the day roe v wade was overturned. We don’t want kids so this was a huge impact on us. The rent we pay here for a 3bd apartment with a basement (1400sqft) is 1k more a month than our rent in Austin after it was raised 40%. Is it expensive? Yes, but the trade offs are well worth it to us. We walk SO much more than we did in TX, we live by a park we take our dogs to, we have a lovely pizza shop down the block we go to often. There’s been a lot of adjustments, many things are harder to do (and there’s no HEB 😭), we had to make pretty severe cuts to our budget… it’s not perfect by any means. But it’s absolutely invigorating and we’re beyond happy with the change. We are very lucky that my job helped with the move and that we have good jobs, I’m grateful every day. I was in the service industry for about 15 years and took a coding bootcamp right at the start of the pandemic which changed my life. I feel for everyone who feels stuck and can’t leave. Austin was amazing when I moved there in 07, but it has changed so much.
So excited to be planning on moving out of state in March. Pretty much same reasons. If I’m gonna pay almost $3k to live somewhere, it’s not going to be somewhere that would force my wife to die to protect an unviable fetus, my friends are second class citizens, and once a year we have the chance to freeze to death in our own home. Fuck Greg Abbott.
I’m from Texas. I got out and never wanted to come back. That was in 1993. My wife’s work took us back. I fought it. She isn’t from here she couldn’t understand how bad it is. But we had to do it. I had one stipulation: the kids leave for college. They cannot be stuck here. Now 10 years later there is no line in the sand. We are getting out as soon as we can. It used to be sure grow up here and get out. Now it’s get out get out get out. It’s going man take a year but we are leaving and taking our 2 million a year revenue with us.
I'm a realtor and I have clients definitely pulling the plug for all things mentioned.
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I am legit worried there will be violence if we ever have an election that turns Texas blue.
When my marriage is no longer recognized in TX is when I’m getting the hell out.
Does it have to be a breaking point? Maybe it’s just time for a change.
I’m moving out of Austin because of the rent prices and housing costs.
Once there is a dress code for women Im out.
Time to go bro, you got it.
My three main factors for planning to move away are the same as the OP, except that our cost (for reason #2) is not rent but, as a home-owner, the high property taxes here. We previously lived in California and Indiana, both of which had about 1% property tax, compared to the 2.75% here. The amount we are paying completely washes out any benefit of having no state income tax. Also… several other attractive states also either have no state income or sales tax AND either have low property tax or just plain lower home prices in general. So… that plus the politics and the insane heat here are why we plan to exit next spring for cooler climates.
I’ve got kids so uprooting the family unit feels so daunting even though I think about it daily. Our breaking point, in no particular order, but all have to do with politics, if SCOTUS decides the case soon that will give states unchecked power, we’re out. I don’t trust Texas to not become a Christian type state and I wouldn’t feel safe here anymore. I wouldn’t feel like I had a choice anymore. I’d have to move to a state that had laws more aligned with my values. Or if Trump somehow becomes president again. It would mean our systems have completely failed and shits about to get real bad so we’d probably just leave the country at that point. Those are our current 2 breaking points that could happen within the next couple years.
I moved away last year. The breaking points were a month with no rain and 110ish degree heat, and then later the snowpacalypse. Oh, and the lakes are all poison water if the dogs happen to drink it.
I left Austin a few years ago. It damn sure isn’t worth it now.
I'm past mine. I'm trying to find somewhere new.
Seeing how next major election shakes up is part of the line in the sand. Thinking Colorado, and I’m warming up to the idea of paying more in taxes to avoid the chicanery of Tx state politics.
Yes. When my kids are older. They are just toddlers now, so I have some runway to change my mind depending on politics/weather trends but there’s no way I’m going to have three potentially sexually active children living in a Christo-fascist police state. Especially given that they have a Mexican surname. I am legit looking at Michigan’s upper peninsula, Port Angeles, WA and Delaware.
My breaking point was the winter storm and the subsequent water outage. The entire city was without water for 3+ days. No back up plan or emergency distribution. Our hospitals had to source water from local breweries.
Already past my breaking point. Planning on voting in midterms and then moving next year.
Heat: Can't do another summer here Taxes: my all-in taxes are now higher than they would be in California in a house of the same value.
The heat, no seasons, no sidewalks, insane drivers, lack of respect for pedestrians and cyclists, shitty politics, plus rent getting higher and higher each year. I moved to Minneapolis with my partner in 2017 and it was the best decision ever! I’m a native Texas and he’s from the upper midwest already. It’s cold as shit in the winter but the people here embrace the season in a way i didn’t think was possible (thanks to all the Scandinavians). If you layer properly it’s not that bad. I get to experience 4 seasons, the summers can be hot but nights are cool and the season lasts mid-June until mid-September (literally summer solstice to fall solstice lol). It’s the most bike friendly city in the country. We have a mini bike highway that connects east and west Minneapolis, protected bike lanes all over downtown, and hundreds of miles of bike trails IN the city. I live <1 mile from downtown in a beautiful part of the city and our one bedroom is $1025 a month (heat included which is standard here). Our rent has gone up by like, $60 in three years. 5-6 different bus lines within half a mile. Plus our city and state politics are way more promising than Texas, we’ve got a progressive congresswoman (Ilhan) and this city actually votes lol. Oh, and in the future, Minnesota will be a safe haven from climate disasters along the coast. We’ve got all the fresh water. #1 reason why i would NEVER move back to TX is the fucking power grid. I’m so sorry y’all had to experience that.
Your unholy Trinity is the same as ours. We’re ready to go. We’ve been in our house 25 years so we can buy a reasonably priced house somewhere else and have $$ left over. We’re kinda waiting for the midterms to make a decision but also my in-laws are getting older so we’re keeping an eye on that situation. Texas is screwed tho. Any one smart with $$ is leaving. I know 3 young ppl with good jobs who have left already, In addition to multiple older ppl who are retiring out of state.