Might be escaping Kommiefornia soon

[glassparman]

Ok so my last kid to turn 18 is currently in south Dallas for an 8 week certification course. She already has a job. My wife and I are prepared to get out of the commie state and buy a place with at least 2 acres outside of the city. She is our baby girl so we gotta go with her! It's our chance to escape to OKC

Any pointers about Oklahoma? Hunting? Fishing?

Come on fellas, lay it on me, what am I in for if we do this?

Mike

 

[smokeywolf]

There is little to no public land in TX, so you hunt on your own land or a hunting lease. We really like TX and the Texans, but property taxes are a bit high, plus chose to avoid border states.
My 22 year old will graduate with his BS in mechanical engineering this spring and has mentioned that Texas is high on his list of places in which he'd like to settle.

Popper, Ian and at least 2 or 3 others can offer much more info and detail than I can.

 

[fiver]

they got fishin there, but it ain't cheap.

 

[Ian]

Two acres outside of Dallas is a hundred miles from downtown. Gun Barrel City and Seven Points is a nice area, crowded but still country.

Everyone I know who has moved here from CA is floored at how comparatively inexpensive living is here, but it is probably average at best nationally. No state income tax.

We have constitutional carry and no permits needed for ammo and no purchase restrictions on firearms. If it's legal Federally, it's legal here. If you want to hunt, bring your checkbook or make friends. Lots of good lakes in the north Texas area, but you need a boat. Get to know southeast OK, nice area to visit and play.

The whole DFW area is called the "Metromess" for a reason, sprawling and dense, hard to get anywhere anymore, but probably tame compared to LA.

That's all I got off the top of my head.

Oh, and the weather sucks unless you like nine months of hot and humid interspersed with blasts of wind (cold or hot depending on when), driving thunderstorms, and glaze ice.

 

[RBHarter]

When you leave Ca make sure you notify the state that you and your autos are leaving . My daughter is currently jammed up sort of with this . She traded in her truck and Ca won't release her title because she owes back registration and penalties for 2 years even though the truck had been licensed in Texas most of 3 years .

Vets are well liked , so she says , with numerous perks she claims .

Smokey you might want to check on that registration title release thing too .

Also if I read the California gun laws correctly , Im no legal wiz but where things are written clearly I do ok , if a firearm is ever bought or sold into the state of Ca it has to be transferred via their FFL even if it is legally sold in another state between 2 legal residents of that state . I don't know it could be enforced but I'd hate to get hung up in it and be the guy trying to sort it out .

 

[Rick]

Took me two years in a row fighting with the CA DMV to get them to stop hitting my bank account for license tags on a 5th wheel trailer I sold before I left the state. They don't inform you, don't notify you in any way, checking my bank statement and wondering why the balance is short I find out the CA DMV whacked my account again. Don't even know how they got my bank account numbers but they had it. Was in Arkansas for nearly three years before I finally got a refund and they stopped stealing money from me. But that's CA.

 

[hporter]

My wife's mothers family have lived in the Canton/Emory area for over 150 years. It's midway between Dallas and Tyler, which is nice because you can go to Tyler for any major medical issues and avoid DFW. The only downside (upside?) is that Canton hosts First Monday Trade Days - which is one of the largest open air market events in the country - so traffic gets bungled up one weekend a month.

My wife's father lives between Waxahachie and Midlothian, which is almost directly south of Dallas. I've always thought it was a nice area when we go for visits. It is an easy drive to Dallas with freeways heading in all directions from there.

Our daughter has been looking at smaller houses with acreage along Highway 19, which runs North-South from Huntsville through Canton. I have been surprised at some of the low prices she has found in the country areas between the smaller towns.

The last time I lived in Dallas was in 1985. And it will remain the last time that I lived in Dallas. Too much traffic, and this is coming from someone who endures the traffic mess in Houston on a daily basis.

Welcome aboard if you do come! We need more "right thinking" Californians among us.

 

[glassparman]

Thanks for all the replies fellas! We have actually been to Dallas-Fort Worth quite a few times for rodeos and such and when we're passing through as we do a road trip every year. We really like Texas and it won't be a hard sell. I'm a Veteran and take advantage of as many of those perks as I can - thanks for that RB.

Gonna be 59 soon and I want to retire by 62 so I got to do this move while I'm still working.

Gotta have at least 2 acres for the daughters horses. She is getting her PATH certification as a therapeutic horse trainer. Not for horses, for people with special needs. She already has a standing job offer to be a trainer at eQuest which is just off the 175 south east of William Blair Park. Another offer is in Waxahachie. Someone else told her there was an opening in Austin but either way, gotta live in the country.

We own 5 acres here in the Mojave desert. It's 10 miles to town or 30 to the city so we like our space and privacy.

It sounds like a much better life than her in Cali so I'm ready!

Bringing the guns, fishing stuff and the boat! I'll be looking for some casting friends to share some lead with!

Mike

 

[hporter]

We are not supposed to talk about this type of issue, but I just want to add that you should pay attention to "which" county you are looking at for your property. County judges wield a lot of power in Texas, and the closer you are to DFW, the greater the chance that the "flavor" of that county may not be to your taste.

For example I live north of Houston, but I am still in Harris County. If I were just a few clicks North, I would be in a county where I would be much more at home.

Also, I can hook you up with a fishing buddy when you get here. Our daughter's boyfriend lives and breathes fishing and he travels up there with his boat a lot. My wife's uncle lives in Tyler and is retired and he loves to fish as well.

Good luck!

 

[Hawk]

I'm from 4 generation in a suburb north of Dallas.
East Texas is pretty nice if you like pine forests. Around Athens Is not too bad.
I've got a nephew that lives in Austin. If you move there, you won't find it much different from California. (My apologies to anyone living near Austin).
My daughter volunteered at eQuest every summer with her Girl Scout Troop when she was in high school.

 

[popper]

Go to truckerstax.com. Talk to David in Cedar Hill. H.S. buddy that raises thoroughbred horses. Fishing is fine, most lakes and rivers have private property surrounding but public access to the lake for boating. Its a long way from William Blair Park (used to be Rochester Park, southeast Dallas, down in the river bottom, i.e. not exactly the barrio but close, to anywhere you can get acreage for any decent price. South of Ferris might be OK and I45 goes close. Mesquite rodeo is still running I think, Ft Worth still has the livestock shows. There are a few WMDs where you can hunt but mostly private stuff. Good friend who is blind went through the equine training in Plano but all the farm land is gone now.

 

[smokeywolf]

Mike,
We reloacated from Kali over 2 years ago. I was born and raised in SoCal and was, for about 10 years, very involved in the horse culture.

We studied for most of 10 years before we made our move from Kali. We too, had children we were wanting to get through high school before we made our move.

You're wise to seek the advice of folks living in the state and area where you wish to relocate. Once we had narrowed our search down to north Arkansas, Winelover and Rick gave Mrs. smokeywolf and I very valuable info on this area.

Don't forget that, as you move into your senior years, your medical needs will almost surely increase and intensify. As we searched for property, we set a parameter or requirement of being not more than 20 minutes away from a sufficiently large or capable medical center. Our foresight paid off when, a little past one year after the move and at 47 years of age, Mrs. smokeywolf went into congestive heart failure.
If you are beyond 20 minutes by car or by ambulance, there is usually medivac chopper service. But, they could have been dispatched to another call a few minutes before your call.
While we are about 6 to 8 miles outside city limits (taxes are higher and more limitations in city), we are just under 15 minutes by car (our car) from a regional medical center.

R.J.

 

[fiver]

here just about any town over 3-K will have a hospital, it will serve an area of around 5-K residents which puts almost anyplace within the county within @ 20 minutes.
the only exception is if your in the middle of a blinding storm and are forced to drive like 5 MPH.

 

[RicinYakima]

In the rural West, we have a lot of hospitals. They have a couple of good docs, many good nurses and 10 year old tech. But they will take care of 99% of what you need. Remember, after three score and ten, you can die any second.

 

[harm]

I live in town, not a huge town, admittedly, but one of the things we liked about our chosen location was proximity to the ER. Bigger thing was being right off an emergency snow route. Having priority street clearing is a huge deal here. Bought the house and then not long after, hospital announced they were moving the ER location from half a mile away to the far end of town. Thankfully the walk-in-and-wait branch opened in its place. The two times I've had to call an ambulance, they got here fast, but it's no longer three minutes to the hospital itself.

Been looking at places outside town but I think the area might be priced out at this point, the market was nuts even before the past year or so.

 

[462]

Been looking at places outside town but I think the area might be priced out at this point, the market was nuts even before the past year or so.

Wow, a land rush! Can't imagine those notorious winters being such a huge attraction.

 

[Winelover]

here just about any town over 3-K will have a hospital, it will serve an area of around 5-K residents which puts almost anyplace within the county within @ 20 minutes.

The small rural hospitals have been shutting their doors in the Ozarks. It's been on the Springfield local news. One of the main reasons, we picked this area, is because it has the largest full service hospital in this area. They can handle most patient issues. They have better/newer equipment than some of the Detroit area hospitals we've used, in the past. If not, they will transfer you to Springfield or Little Rock..............both over two hours away.

 

[Hawk]

Remember, after three score and ten, you can die any second.

Thanks, I really needed that!

 

[Charles Graff]

My wife and I are 6th Gen Texas, kids are 7th and grandkids are 8th. You might say are here to stay. We live in Cameron County hard against the Rio Grande River and like it here. My Daughter lives in San Antone and my son in Houston. My son by marriage is the Fire Marshall in Richardson.

I just hope you are not one of those Californians who have swarmed the Austin area and turned it into Little California. Were I you, I would not tell people you are from California, that would be getting off on the wrong foot. Still, they will let you prove yourself. Just remember you are on probation for the first year or so. All things being equal, welcome.

 

[Ian]

"When in Rome..."