I've lived here 2 years now and can vouch for the high Austin prices. I used to live on Maui and it didn't seem as expensive as Austin.
very sorry to hear. ****s all around and sounds like youve taken all this head on. i imagine its tough moving here like you did...big props for that. ...something you dont hear bout too much but lemme add that, as an austin native, i fight being priced outta my own home town at least every year. been unemployed before, dont even really do what i went to schoool for but who cares. i get by, rent a 'lil duplex w/no garage. in fact, i sold my truck and got out completely...NO CARS because of my last move. respect to you for puttin your family first. so in a way, WE start over, too (austinites). right here at home. every year or every lease renewal it starts all over again. home owners have their concerns, too. you'd know firsthand. good luck and sorry to hear about your family and your move. i, for one, dont wanna leave my home because "they" need me here in austin...for special purposes i tell myself. but i consider moving away regularly.
+1 from a lurking JJournaler. I moved down to San Antonio after I graduated from UT and had a hard time finding a job as an entry-level programmer in Austin. If you don't have the experience to make yourself more marketable than other people in your field or you're in a field that's not in demand (see all of the liberal arts graduates serving coffee), Austin's probably a pretty hard town to live in. Come down to San Antonio. The cost of living is lower, you're still in the Hill Country, and you aren't surrounded by hipsters.
Austin is Texas' San Francisco. Pick up a Houston job listing, you'll be suprised at how many jobs are out here. "Austin, the hippie capitol of Texas."
The San Antonio,Corpus Christi,Laredo area is the cheapest place to live in the country, Austin is one of the more expensive..not sure exactly why..maybe live elsewhere and visit Austin..what with fires,earthquakes and high costs to the West and hurricanes to the East does seem like everybody wants to live here, you can tell by the traffic..I moved here from San Antonio and worked some pretty menial jobs to get started, Hope you give it another try, sounds like we need more of your kind here....
The Jalopy Journal
