Advice on moving to Austin from SF Bay Area

February 17, 2008 10:10 AM

Moving to Austin from the Bay Area-filter: We're pondering a move to Austin from Sunnyvale in about a year. Have you done this? What were the surprises? What should we be thinking about?

One extra question: As long as you don't leave central Austin, what's your exposure to racism? I've noticed some very aggressive rednecky types populating some Austin message boards, but how bad is it in real life (hoping it's just the Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory at work)?

posted by bananafish to Travel & Transportation (7 answers total)

You're right. As long as you stay in central Austin, you won't encounter those types.

I lived there for six years, and quite literally NEVER strayed from the central part of Austin. When my wife and I used to drive through thirty miles of the northern suburbs of Austin (Pflugerville and Round Rock) when leaving for holidays, we'd marvel at how much of the metropolis we had never seen and had no knowledge of. Most of the hicks are up there (and down south, too).
posted by jayder at 10:55 AM on February 17, 2008

There have been umpteen threads on moving to Austin. You might want to read some of them.

I lived in different areas of Austin for 14 years and didn't find a lot of exposure to redneck racist types.
posted by grouse at 11:36 AM on February 17, 2008

My experience moving here (from Pittsburgh, not SF) was that people were fine about race but noticeably weird about gender. I've had my share of conversations that just didn't make any sense until I realized the other guy was casually assuming my wife would pop out some kids and stay at home for the rest of her life. Up north, I'd meet people who preferred it that way, but never anyone who so strongly assumed it would be.

It hasn't been upsetting or threatening so far — just a bit of culture shock. The gender weirdos are still firmly in the minority. YMMV.
posted by nebulawindphone at 11:53 AM on February 17, 2008

I grew up in the Bay Area, lived in California my whole life, and moved to Austin almost four years ago. Austin is pretty much the Texas version of California. It's ethnically diverse and liberal. I've been all over the state, pretty much sticking to the major highways and metropolitan areas, and I haven't run in to any crazy redneck types.

Don't be afraid of the suburbs, either. There has been a major housing development boom in Austin in recent years, and the suburbs like Round Rock, Georgetown, and Pflugerville are no longer considered to be in the sticks -- it's where a lot of young homeowners are getting their first place.
posted by puritycontrol at 1:45 PM on February 17, 2008

I made the opposite move from Austin (5 years) to the Bay area (2 years).

The main difference is weather. Austin is much hotter and is humid so adjusting to summers will be a challenge. The first thing you do when you walk outside is sweat. I took a friend who is a native Californian home to visit and she said it was like walking in someone's hot breath. This means that you will be considering a much larger electricity bill for air conditioning in the summer but not so much of a heating bill during the winter.

Housing is much, much cheaper in Austin than anywhere in California. I lived there 3 years ago in a nice, secure one bedroom apartment near the university for $700 a month. You probably know that won't get you much in California.

If you have kids, I have found that the public school systems in Texas are better funded and staffed. There are obviously many, many variables to this statement but I have heard many more horror stories about the California education system than any other state's.

You'll probably drive more because everything is spread out. I know very little about public transportation. The next largest city is an hour and a half away as opposed to right next door (that's how I feel about the Bay area at least).

Austin is obviously the most left-leaning of the cities in Texas but it has its faults. Recycling was almost nonexistent while I was living there. There is a much greater state pride than in California. You will most likely run into one or two off handed racist remarks but this really depends on your company. But that aside, the food is damn delicious and the music scene is amazing.
posted by thehmmhmm at 1:05 AM on February 18, 2008

The weather is hot. As a result, I find that everything in Austin is slow. People just aren't interested in getting anything done at a good clip. This has its advantages, but sometimes it can be annoying.

Racism can be found, but it's pretty rare inside of Austin proper. Stay out of the suburbs. Places like Round Rock and Pfluggerville are weird. Over the past decade or so Austin has spread out into what were previously little small, conservative Texas towns. So now you have all of these people who try overly hard to be professionals in the style of a "metropolis" like Austin, but end up looking mostly like Eliza Doolittle halfway through her training. So there is a lot more entrenched small-town attitude (racism, sexism, etc.) in those suburbs.

I think what it boils down to is, Austin is a blue dot in a red state. As a result of this, the red around Austin tends to be more red than average, in response to the blue next door.

Don't let this get you down, though. I live in Austin and really like it.
posted by nushustu at 7:59 AM on February 18, 2008

Make sure both of your cars have functioning air conditioning. You'll both need cars to get around; nothing resembling the BART is available.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 3:18 PM on February 18, 2008