Anyone Who Moved from Chicago to Houston ??

I didn't move from Chicago to Houston, but I have lived in both cities, so I can give you my perspective.

First - I lived in Katy, Texas and I also lived in the city of Chicago (Wicker Park neighborhood).

All things being equal - I would live in Houston hands down. it's a much "easier" place to live. But I guess that depends on WHERE you live in Chicago - the suburbs might be easier to live in than the city (where parking is $20, there are few parking lots, traffic is a nightmare etc).

As far as heat.... I guess that's personal preference. I would rather have the heat and a year round pool than the winters in Chicago, which all but do me in. I hate them. I hate shoveling. I hate the whole set up a lawn chair thing. I hate the snowplows that don't plow the side streets until the afternoon of a snowstorm and never plow the alleys. Houston is HOT about 1 month of the year (mid July - Mid August) other than that it's 70-85.for 8 months. Chicago snows from October to April.

Both cities are diverse. Both cities have an urban and a suburban component. Both cities have crappy schools and good schools based on where you move.

The cost of living in Houston is UNBEATABLE. You can get a TON of house for your money. It's easy to fly in and out of there (2 major airports) whereas O'Hare is KNOWN for being crappy, delayed and chaotic.

You have the same stores in both areas. There isn't a "Michigan Ave" in Houston, but there are GREAT shopping malls. Woodlands is fairly equal to Woodfield. Houston Galleria has the same upscale shops that you can find on Michigan Ave.

So, to summarize: Houston, Houston, Houston, Houston, Houston, Houston, Houston, Houston. Houston. :-)

A friend of mine grew up in Naperville and relocated to the Dallas area, so the climate change is what your friend would experience. She has no regrets about it--she loves TX and is trying to convince me to move there too.

Actually, I know LOTS of people who are moving from the Chicago area to Texas. Money goes much further in TX.

my brother works for BP. he got transfered from the naperville offices to tx. they bought a house in katy tx. they love it there. he has 3 kids. I dn't think he would move back here if you paid him lol. schools are good. he loves the neighborhood. it is hot there but not god awful hot all year long.

I did not move from/to those places, but I am no stranger to big and scary moves. I moved to Japan, to the UK, and then to Alaska. I had no idea what to expect when I got to each new place, and I actually grew to love that feeling of not knowing, the excitement of a new adventure! I now have a hard time living in one place for too long, 7 years in Alaska, inspire of all its beauty and wonder, is starting to feel like forever, lol. So in short I found the secret is to embrace change and always always find the good in whatever new place you end up, because there is always some good.

Chicagoans get stuck in the house due to the cold harsh winters for several months at a time. Texans get stuck in the house for a couple months due to the heat.

It's hard to enjoy Chicago anymore. The high cost to live here, cost to visit the city and museums, speed traps w cameras everywhere, the politics are disgusting, property taxes are ridiculous. I could go on and on about why this state is not good to live in.

Native Texans don't really cotton well with new comers.

I had a friend that was from Utah, cooler climate growing up and most of his adult life. He lived here in Oklahoma for a few years then his company moved him to Houston.

They lasted 2 months. He couldn't handle the heat and humidity. He hated every day he lived there. The new job he found was back towards Utah and he is always posting pictures of the family skiing and hiking and all sorts of other stuff. He's very happy being back in the cooler climate zone.