East Texas Thoughts?

[kumathebear]

This is a "SERIOUS" request for information so EAST TEXAS residents input please. If you "used" to live in the area, comments as to perhaps why you left would also help us make our decision.

Momma and I in our retirement years have decided we are ready for more country and privacy...with all the conveniences of course.

My wife grew up in Clarksville until she was 10 and moved to Fort Worth. I grew up in Lubbock but we have both lived in Granbury since 2003. The DFW craziness has finally started to change Granbury into what we don't really want for the years to come. We had 24 acres near Granbury before and miss all that country life has to offer. Not interested in horse or cattle property in our "ole age," been there done that.

After countless searches on several real estate engines, it appears you can get more for your $$ in this area. Our criteria includes a minimal 2+- acres up to 25+- within 30+- minutes of shopping, medical, etc. We want trees, privacy and most of all in relative good areas if that even exists these days. Not really interested in building so prefer existing "non city" locations. "We are also looking at areas from Abilene south to Lampasas areas as well.

With the GS method of "telling it like it is," well, thought we could get some beneficial information.

Share your thoughts and experiences. NO Black Panther's needed in our search!

[Sleepy]

Lived in the Tyler area all my life. While it is a busy city, it doesn’t compare to the metromess, yet it offers just about everything a man needs. 1.5 hours to DFW, 1.5 hours to Shreveport/Bossier so a day trip to the big city isn’t unreasonable.

There are lots of smaller towns outside of Tyler within a 20-30 minute drive that have lots to offer as far as beautiful country. These areas also get much cheaper as far as real estate goes. Right now we live in Whitehouse, but once the kids grow up and get gone, I might be interested in venturing even a little further out. East Texas is just a convenient place to live without all the madness. I love it here.

[kumathebear]

Lived in the Tyler area all my life. While it is a busy city, it doesn’t compare to the metromess, yet it offers just about everything a man needs. 1.5 hours to DFW, 1.5 hours to Shreveport/Bossier so a day trip to the big city isn’t unreasonable.

There are lots of smaller towns outside of Tyler within a 20-30 minute drive that have lots to offer as far as beautiful country. These areas also get much cheaper as far as real estate goes. Right now we live in Whitehouse, but once the kids grow up and get gone, I might be interested in venturing even a little further out. East Texas is just a convenient place to live without all the madness. I love it here.

Thank you! This is the feedback we are realistically looking for, bad or good!

[Sleepy]

Thank you! This is the feedback we are realistically looking for, bad or good!

You’ll pay above a premium in Whitehouse or Bullard which are south of Tyler. Great communities though. A lot of it has to do with the school districts, but since you don’t have any youngins, that’s irrelevant.

Troup, Arp, Mineola, Lindale, Van, Canton, Brownsboro, Chandler are all good little communities outside of Tyler that will offer reasonably priced real estate.

[Landrover]

Tyler and the surrounding areas are definitely NICE!!! Lived there for 3 years and bought 40 acres north of I-20 before we moved south. My wife is from deep NE Texas and basically hates it, but she "liked" Tyler but loves down here. I can understand it as she grew up in deep East Texas in the 70's and early 80's......and it is really hard for her to see the "forest for the trees!" Tyler has a exploding med center which has driven heavy retiree traffic to that area...…...which is good. Longview and the surrounding areas are not bad either. Being between DFW and Shreveport gives you lots of options also. Athens and Canton have really changed but that is getting you out of the pineywoods. Nacogdoches being a college town is not a bad choice either...…...

[Drycreek3189]

I live outside the metropolis of Troup, population 1600 give or take, next town SE of Sleepy. I have 80 acres, so my closest neighbor is my son who lives around 600/700 yards to my NE. We’ve been here 23 years so there must be something we like here.

If I weren’t so damm old I’d move to Wyoming, but I am, so this is the next best place for me. I can’t blame you for wanting to move somewhere with less folks and less hassle, but I have to say that ETexas has the most discourteous drivers I’ve ever seen. I’ve had the occasion to go to Richardson about six times in the last month to a canine ophthalmologist and I swear those guys drive better than they do here. Faster, (oh yeah faster), but better We also have more litter thrown out on the highways than almost anywhere else I’ve ever been. If you can get past that, it’s a fair place to live.

Real estate around the immediate Tyler area is pretty expensive now, but when I bought this place it wasn’t. You can still find some raw land worth the money, but it requires some patience.

If I had to relocate somewhere in ETexas it would be S of Lufkin in the “sho nuff” Pineywoods. Big bucks live there !

Good luck in your search !

[Maddox]

We just purchased 70 acres outside of Lufkin in Apple Springs. We like it there. The people are nice and Lufkin is close and has most everything we need.

[TWarren]

Get ready for the most miserable oppressive heat + humidity known to man. I grew up north of Tyler and despite all my family still living in the area it would take a cold day in hell to convince me to move back.

[nacohunter]

I could be wrong, so anyone please correct me if I am, but look at adjacent counties and county property to larger cities. For example, Nacogdoches city is in Nacogdoches County. Property is cheaper in adjacent Rusk, Cherokee, San Augustine, Shelby counties which do not have any city over 15,000 in population. We cannot really count Angelina County because Lufkin is in Angelina County and it's one of the larger cities in East Texas. The downside is with larger cities, you get Lowe's, Super Walmart, Home Depot, etc., which are generally not in counties with smaller cities.

[AgHntr10]

Lufkin, Tyler, Jasper would be my choices for retirement due to proximity to docs/hospitals and all of the good fishing!

[TxAg]

Shreveport wants you

[flywise]

Lampasas area is nice. I live in Kempner, there are properties between us and lampasas. Lampasas has a nice little hospital with an ER.

[White Falcon]

Message sent.

[deerplanter]

I grew up outside of Henderson tx, the only reason I left was for work. I'm considering moving back to the area after I retire in 6 years. My folks retired on lake Cherokee between Tatum and Longview, I would look in that area. My mother moved to Tyler after my dad passed and it's nicer but to busy for me but she loves it and they have great medical there.

[Captain39]

I grew up in Omaha, Texas 15 miles east of Mt. Pleasant. After college I never moved back because there just not many good jobs there. Many little towns are different. But my advice is check out each town your considering. I had friends who grew up in Winnsboro and Mt. Vernon, much nicer than the towns around Morris or Cass County where I grew up; but you get more real estate for your money in these places. Mt. Pleasant has everything you need, but the city itself looks pretty trashy now days; but if you fish, so many lakes in close proximity. I went to college at SFA, loved Nacogdoches; but most the towns on the outskirt are not that nice. Also check out Jefferson; if you still like to drink beer and have a good time.