Would you move to Texas for USD 5k more a month

[Constance17]

DH has been offered a job in U.S, we have children aged 6 & 8. What concerns you most?

I knew someone who did this, after a few years one of them wanted to come back to the uk and the other didn’t .

It made thins very difficult.
They also struggled with the idea of selling a 5000sq ft massive house for 300k and only being able to buy a 2 bed terrace that needs work for that same money over here where they lived before

They went there pre trump, I would wonder why anyone would go there now

God no!!! I’m way too British and want my children to grow up in Britain. The guns and racism scare me too much too

Healthcare; education; racism; poverty; guns; Trump; obesity.

So no, I wouldn’t move there.

The gun culture, the religious zealots and the pig headed closed mindedness of the people would be my main concerns.

That’s my experience of Texas too, but would add, that I don’t like DS to live in a place where your worth in life is only appreciated by the size of your house and the cost of your car. Disgustingly superficial and racist.

Texas it is still cowboy country, they don’t carry revolvers any more but automatic rifles... you can even buy bazookas over the counter.

The racism is heartbreaking as well. Americans are probably the most creative people in the world in general but the country is really let down in this respect.

The country could harness the abilities of all and be truly great but instead the powerful prefer it that the poor people are fighting amongst themselves over crumbs.

The country is almost entirely full of the descendants of immigrants but so much time and effort is focused on hating others.

Imagine what could be achieved if all the people who claimed to be Christians actually lived in a Christian way and helped all rather than punching down? I don’t see what racism achieve other than diminishing everyone.

I hadn't read all the thread but going back there is an awful lot of stereotyping going on. There are plenty of people in Texas who are left leaning and it is gradually turning more blue (Democrat) Beto O'Rouke is Texan.

Hilary got 3 million more votes than Trump, she was much more popular. He won the Electoral College which gave him the Presidency.

Both the East and West coasts are heavily Democratic, as are most major cities and university towns. Just like the UK, urban areas are generally more likely to be left leaning. I am surrounded by a very well educated, knowledgeable and curious population where I live. You would have no shortage of friendly and interesting conversations about politics if that's what you wanted.

Boris Johnson is now PM, does that mean that the entire country unthinkingly support him? Please be a bit more nuanced and do not talk about hundreds of millions of people in a very diverse population in such a stereotyped way.

No.

I would not want to live in a country where you feel you need to buy bullet proof backpacks for school children (yes that is an actual thing).

Yes.

Definitely.

Texas bans the possession of or promoting the use of more than six dildos which means you can legally own more guns than sex toys.

It's a no from me

I would never want to be a “trailling spouse” but 5k is very little and the cost of living for families is much, much higher in the US so you would be worse off in terms of money and living standards.

Eg health and other insurance, food and household goods, housing costs, extra curricular activities, utilities.

All way more costly.

Petrol is cheap.

5k extra won’t come near to covering it.

Loved Texas; been there a couple of times. Interesting shift in attitudes in the cities (Austin etc.) Vs what you get in the country side.

Overall, though, do not be misled by the fact that they speak English (or "American"). The culture is very VERY different. I can only speak for what I have seen, but based on that:-

1. American culture seems to be more insular than the UK. Unless it is a war, involves the Royals, very little else from abroad seems to get in the news
2. Politics is even more polarised over there than it is in the UK
3. Health care - until you have actually experienced just how fucked up the US health system is, you may have rosy tinted view of it from TV series. Truly.... the purpose of insurance seems to be to NOT pay out, and everything from booking appointments at GPs (oh God, if you cannot find one "in coverage" for your area) to being charged for emergency ambulances to the closest hospital, is surreal.

/rant - This for me would be the absolute deal breaker - I genuinely think most people do not appreciate just how good and valuable the NHS is, until you see what they have in the US. Classic example:- mostly, you get insurance through your workplace. If you get ill, you will probably get it sorted. You then have a "pre-existing" condition. Now, if you want to move jobs, you will almost certainly need to move medical insurance.... but you now have a pre-existing condition... so it either will not be covered, or you will be paying so much more it is insane. rant/

Hit enter by mistake....

Anyway - so you have a pre-existing condition, meaning you cannot afford to move jobs, as you are too scared to find out the new job insurance wont cover it. As a result, you end up being tied to the same job in the same company... If you think this is an edge case, please do not; Obamacare helped a lot with pre-existing conditions, but Texas is run by Republicans, and their attitude to Obamacare is.... not good.

Depends on where in Texas.. Austin? go for it. Houston, meh. Anywhere else in Texas, definitely no.

I’ve been to Houston: absolutely not for a million dollars. In fact while my colleagues and I were there we encountered a very senior British executive and played (behind his back) “how much would you have to be paid to live here like he does?” It was a lot.
Also visited small town Texas which was full of lovely people but not anywhere I could face living.
Austin sounds nice though. If I were offered a job there I’d ask more questions and do some sums.

Having looked at the homicide stats, Austin’s reputation for loveliness is upheld: it’s less than twice the rate of London (not the Uk, London). El Paso also has a civilised European-level murder rate. Dallas and Houston are properly grim. However, ex pats are far more at risk from the roads. Texas has less than half the population of the UK but kills twice as many of them on the roads each year.

Alongside all the reasons already mentioned, I would never lived somewhere which considered the death penalty acceptable.

Well, Texas is fucking huge so it would be helpful if you could give more of a hint where it might be?

For me, the only place I'd move to in Texas is Austin, as otherwise you're firmly in Trump territory, but even then - I've been sitting eating Sunday brunch and realised I'm surrounded by people openly carrying weapons.

But for 5k extra - Austin is fantastically expensive so I don't know how far that would get you in terms of property and area.

So on balance - erm, fuck no. It is beautiful and lots of things to do. But the gun issue I find almost impossible to get over.

No. But my kids are mixed race, and dh has had bad racist experiences n America.

Not in a million years.

Guns, Trump and his racist rhetoric, health insurance, expensive education.

Quite a few people in my (Irish) family are engineers and move to Texas for work after graduating, apparently the opportunities are better there. Without an exception they have all returned to Ireland or the U.K. once they have families. A combination of too many guns, very extreme right wing attitudes and healthcare being so expensive have meant they don’t want to bring up children there.

Under COBRA, the ex-employee can choose to continue their health insurance package after employment is terminated.
www.investopedia.com/articles/insurance/11/intro-cobra-health-insurance.asp
I've done it myself. We stayed on the plan till the end of the year, then switched to a different plan during open enrollment.

Even COBRA is beyond a lot of people. Sure you can continue on the same plan but you are now paying the employers contribution as well. Can be VERY $$ Also, it isn't an option if the company goes bust.
People go bankrupt due to health care costs. It's not something to take lightly.

OP I don't know why you are listening to a load of people on here with narrow minds , preconceived/wrong ideas and the lack of desire to better themselves . Moves like this are a very personal decision . I used to live elsewhere than the UK and people have openly said to me " Oh i wouldn't live there .." Imagine if I had said back " Yeah I would rather be doing your crappy job too..." We take risks based on our own situations. I have never regretted it and the same people tell me how "lucky" I am now