Calling all Texans (and maybe those who aren't)

Lived in AZ and NV for the last 44+ years. Presently living in AZ but due to the massive invasion of communists of Southern California origin fleeing their self-inflcted mounds of feces, both physical and political, this state appears to be turning blue and fast. Same is happening to Nevada. I don't want to live in or support a blue state.

So, being retired and no longer tied to a job, I can pretty much go wherever I want.

Politically, Idaho, Alaska, Wyoming are a fit. But winters in those places tend to be brutal by my standards. They were bad enough in Northern Nevada.

New Mexico is beautiful but another liberal land. So I'm looking further East to Texas. I realize there are some leftist / communist / America-hating hotspots there (Austin), but there are also plenty of small towns that have got to still be somewhat sane.

So I picked one (or two or three). Fort Davis, Alpine and maybe Marfa (Marfa kind of artsy- fartsy) in the Big Bend country are on the radar. Not real serious yet, still in the internet research stage. They appear to be far enough out of the tornado / hurricane alley path to pretty much avoid the flooding and destruction.

Taxes in Texas, 8% sales tax and some possibly elevated property taxes are taken into consideration, but Texas has no income tax, so that could be a wash in my situation.

In addition, Texas seems to have has ample fossil fuel supplies and plenty of agriculture, almost a self-supporting state if it could only get rid of parasitic Austin
(I don't like Austin even though I've never been there. Can you tell?).

So, you Texans out there, I'm looking for feedback. If I'm lacking and have made incorrect assumptions, tell me I'm full of it. I used to work in the mining industry and am used to 'unrestrained' opinions. In addition, I've been married for well over 25 years so I'm used to verbal abuse as well. You can't hurt me with mean words.

Let fly, and I invite all Non-Texans as well.

 

Find the area (physical/weather) you like in Texas, then see if they have a newspaper or at least a internet rag of some sort.
Read and watch, check property taxes and make up your mind from all other sources.
Water is most important so check the aquifers and other needs.

 

Got to agree with you on the water. Weather was already a qualifier when I checked into those areas.
Any property without water reachable with a solar powered well or other water source is basically worthless

There are towns and places in northern AZ where water is in excess of 2000 feet below the surface. Without a commercial grade pumping site, many property owners have to have water trucked in and that sucks big time.

 

New mexico was a red/purple state.
NM has an out of cycle election, so at the height of trump hate and trump rage psychosis in late 2018 people voted.
They voted in a bunch of California type activists and got a bad case of instant buyers remorse.
Democrats tried to lock down NM as hard as michshitgain, but then they realized they like the power and were in serious danger of suiciding their reelection chances.
NM contains less than 1% of the US population. So there's no need to shutdown more than 3 or 4 counties out of the 33 counties here because of china virus. That would be definitely be Farmington which is weird because there ain't shit out there, the 2 counties that make up most of Albuquerque obviously, Albuquerque is gross and maybe Santa fe.
Albuquerque is so ghetto it has gotten noticeably worse since 2014, next time I'm taking the sawed off shot gun or peace carbine.
I would rather go to to Amarillo or Lubbock, plus they are closer to me.

Just look at the Wikipedia page for NM, it's pretty bad.
Per capa household income is 45k, 47th in the union. Hell I make that, by myself and my wife makes a lot more than I do.
But if you have money you're good to go.
If you come here poor you gonna stay po.
Electricity is cheapest or second cheapest in the country, natural gas prices too. Property tax is pretty cheap.
Income tax sucks but retirement income should be immune.

 

I had a great time there with online friends when there in 2008. .. I was tech support till 2020 Dec .
Many Gents i had met then are now no longer. Im out due to age . BD1950

 

Water...Look at around Sam Rayburn or Toledo Bend,Property tax's to my understanding and depending on what county you're in drop at age 65...Call ahead and ask about theses details first.

 

Consider Lubbock. 4 seasons, river/lakes in town and more close by, reasonable home prices, great selection of restaurants, medical teaching university/hospital, all in all, a wonderful place to live. Plus you would already know someone here.

 

I can't think of Amarillo without hearing that song in my head "Amarillo by Morning".

Great feedback so far. Thanks people!

 

Or think about that Barb Wire Gap which holds back the Blue Northerners until someone forgets to close it.

 

a strong 2nd for Lubbock, I been here almost 20 years, it has grown considerably. I think it is far better than living anywhere east of the caprock. You can still get land off grid but not too far away.

 

Lived in El Paso area for a few years. Wages stink unless you work for national company, water is always big problem, and if retiring, major problem is health care or the lack of it. Hundred miles to doctor, hospital, and minimal care does not really handle a lot of age related diseases.

VA in Texas for example. https://www.va.gov/directory/guide/state.asp?dnum=1&STATE=TX

 

El Paso is too close to the border and Juarez for my liking.

 

I'll second Amarillo. I don't live there but it's close enough we do all our shopping and whatnot there. You can live in the city itself or move to any of the smaller communities that are far enough out of town to feel isolated, but close enough to get to medical facilities in a hurry. Traffic is no big deal, there's an airport that can connect you to any of the bigger international ones if you need to travel, and housing is fairly inexpensive. You can find whatever you need in town, whether it's a backhoe rental or a bikini wax. Nightlife is not the most exciting but if you're in the mood for a beer and a band there's plenty of clubs that can hook you up. Personally I think the medical centers here are great, and I grew up in Dallas Fort worth so I have some basis for comparison.

Amarillo alternates between drawing water off the Ogallala and Lake Meredith (which tastes nasty AF). Surrounding communities are mostly on the Ogalalla.

One advantage to the Amarillo area is that because it's up on the caprock, you are spared the summer misery the rest of the state endures. Once the sun goes down, expect the temps to drop a good 20 degrees or more rapidly. There are four seasons, though spring is extremely bi polar. One disadvantage, if you consider it to be anyway, is we do get snow up here. Sudden blizzards can come on fast, blinding traffic and burying cars in a matter of an hour. Not ALL the time, but it does happen. I think 2013 was the last time it really got hammered. Also, the winds can cause moderate snowfalls to become massive drifts.


Amarillo is split into two counties, with Potter being to the north and Randall on the lower end (which also encompasses the wealthy suburb of Canyon). Although overall moderate conservative, they do differ politically. An example is when Amarillo mayor Ginger Nelson issued a shelter in place order back at the start of the pandemic. Potter said Yes Ma'am while Randall went more with a middle finger response with regards to enforcement.

There are a few small colleges up here but they do not foster the crazy that you see in many of the larger universities. This area is also quite a long and boring drive from any of the major cities that seem prone to catching on fire lately.

 

Doing a bit of research.

I'd never heard of the Caprock Escarpment. Interesting stuff. If nothing else I'm getting an education.

 

Get a copy of the Texas Almanac. Useful for comparing areas of interest down to the town level.

 

Looks like there's an ebook version available for free. It's 2018-2019 but should be close enough to current for my purposes.

 

EastTexas, around the lakes. Land with road frontage can still be purchased for around $3,ooo an acre. Good water, fishing, hunting. I built my house, put in a septic system and drilled my water well all without a single permit, approval or fee. My district is still 75% plus Republican. I didn’t have a single Democrat to vote for up to the County level, in 2016 general election and no real contest at the State level.

 

THe area on the high plans is also called the Llano Estacado and if you dont like wind its not a great place to live. But if you dont mind wind its a great place to live.

 

Yeah there's a reason there's a bazillion wind turbines twirling and whirling up here.

 

Damned Californicators have just about ruined the state. Gov Good Hair kept telling them how great it is here, so they showed up! Perry is a “Former” Democrat, and I now think he always has been and will be a socialist.

Jim