should I move to Houston...
Couple of my friends have moved from NYC area to Houston for better jobs and are raving about the big houses they are living in now... I am tempted too by the lower cost of living ( greater saving potential) .. but wifey dear thinks I am silly to even consider working in any other place .... She loves Manhattan and all its trappings a bit too much ....
Give me some ammo that will at least allow me to start a conversation instead of being laughed out of it ...
= new reply since forum marked as read
But the good news is the fire ants are being displaced with crazy ants.
I would give my right arm to live in NYC.
Yes, homes here are huge, but it's a seller's market. I just sold mine for way more than I ever imagined. It might be better to move in December when people are trying to unload when no one is buying.
This is not a walking city at all. You must have a vehicle. The metro area is about 50 miles, so driving an hour or more to and from work is normal. There is no subway and there is a bus system, but it doesn't go to all the suburbs.
There is no zoning, so the city can be really unattractive. You house could be next to a car mechanic or something.
It's hot, but there's AC everywhere, so it's not an issue if you are inside. Outside is different. 
Cost of living is low; Houston is blue, oil, gas and medical are good fields, and there's lots of arts and entertainment and restaurants, so there are pros.
What part of Houston are you looking at?
Sorry, if that is a dumb question, but could you set up the business in NYC and farm out to a contractor here?
The driving is a problem. Down here, it's an art. Although, I think it is a very easy city to navigate. It's hard to get lost because there are many landmarks. Plus, there are three loops around the city and if you get lost on the other freeways you just exit and make a u-turn. Unfortunately, you do have to get on the freeways if you want to get anywhere.
I have to say, that would not be on my top 40 list of places I'd consider moving... 
I was born and raised in Houston.
There are four million people in the metro area.
Car expenses, insurance, sales taxes, etc. are pretty bad. Property taxes, license fees, are high because of no state income tax. Traffic is brutal. You will spend your life commuting if you buy a cheap house in the far suburbs. The city is huge. Forty or more miles across. It usually takes an hour to get anywhere. Real estate anyplace close to town is not cheap. The traffic will drive anybody nuts. Even if you are fairly calm.
They have some light rail which is expanding. The bus service is horrendous.
It is possible to get across town on surface roads but you practically have to be a native, like me. 
They are tearing down 1960s suburbia and putting up yuppie castles. The lots are expensive and this is ten miles from downtown.
It's competitive and hardworking. The state courthouses, where I used to work, are a snake pit & a madhouse. Houston has more courthouse and govt buildings than a small state capital city has. Between 10,000 and 15,000 people PER DAY go in the doors of the main criminal courthouse.
You must have AC in your car and house or you will DIE. I mean that. It's 90 degrees at night in August. It does NOT cool off at night.
There is plenty of culture. The symphony, opera and ballet are WORLD-CLASS. Plenty of clubs and live music. Big name concerts at several venues.
Excellent med center with 2 med schools. The doctors in Houston are five years ahead of most of the rest of the country. Lots of research.
Four major universities with lots going on: Rice University, University of St.Thomas, University of Houston(big state school) and Texas Southern University (big state school).
Thriving art scene. Lots of workshop and exhibit spaces. Art Car Parade is a huge party. I've been in the art scene, the community orchestras and the live theater scene. Festivals and a large Gay Pride Parade. Cultural centers for Chinese, Italians, French and so on.
Vietnamese and Chinese ethnic neighborhoods. Huge numbers of restaurants of all kinds.
There are plenty of conservatives but you can avoid them usually by hanging out with Democrats and other liberals such as Unitarian-Universalists. I was raised in the Harris County Democrats which is more progressive than the official county party.
There is still not as much culture as Boston or NYC.
Your wife would go into complete shock over having to have a car. I've been to NYC and Boston. They are on a different planet from Texas.
I'd guess probably not. 
As long as you can handle the heat, you should be ok. The high temperature today is going to be close to a hundred degrees. That's not uncommon, either. If your job is outside in the sun, it's going to take a lot of getting used to.
Houston's a major city, so it's going to be not too unlike where you're from. It's not like you're considering moving to a town of 2000 that have fifty churches, ten gun stores, and one library that's never open.
