My husband has been offered a transfer from UK to Houston. Home life in the UK is very settled and we are all happy. I am reluctant to give this up for a move to Houston. I have two boys - one 13 year old who has already shed tears at the prospect of leaving his friends and school and one 7 year old. I have worked all my life and am in a job I love - cannot imagine life without working. Views would be appreciated.

Talk about culture shock! If you go, get ready to live in a place that considers any building with a dry coat of paint to be historic. Houston was no more than a wide spot in the road until the first part of the 1900's; after the hurricane that decimated Galveston Island (50 miles soouth) the ship channel was dredged, giving Houston port access and leading to development. And it is still the land developers who rule in Houston - no zoning whatsoever, resulting in an odd mix of buildings at times. While Houston can claim lots of dollars passing through its business, the local culture is more trailer park than urbane. The climate is beastly - it is, after all, essentially a swamp - and traffic is horrendous, with no viable public transport. Air quality is horrendously bad, with no relief in sight. On the upside, real estate is cheaper than other cities (mostly because of the aforementioned!), the array of restaurants is staggering, and there are good connections out through the international airport about 30 miles north of the city.
I left because it was just not a plesant place toi live anymore, but it could be an exciting change for you!

Tina, twenty years ago, I moved with my American husband from the UK to a small town outside New Orleans. The climate is about the same as Houston and you will hate it. You will also hate the huge, flying cockroaches and the flocks of mosquitos. If you are unable to work-because of visa restrictions or whatever, your identity will be as "Mrs John Smith". In other words, you will have no personal identity. If you do make this move, you must, for you own sanity, get involved in your kids' schools, do volunteer work, anything that will give you the opportunity to make friends and get to know people. When you do that, you will begin to feel part of the community. Education in Texas is not very good, although they have plenty of standardized tests. Texas people are kind-hearted, fun and welcoming, in my experience, but the place and the culture is so extremely different to what you are used to.. Would this be a permanent move, or just for a couple of years? For a limited time, it could be an interesting experience for all of you.

I live in Manhattan. I have a friend who moved with his wife to London to work for Deutsche Bank. It was a hard transition moving out of the country where you are so comfortable. They are now acclimated but still homesick at times.

My question to you is where in the UK you live? From Manhattan to London (or vice versa) is an easier transition than London to Houston because NYC, London, Paris, etc are "world cities" with the big city culture and feel (and distractions), etc that makes transition easier. No insult to Houston, but if you live in the heart of London, it would be difficult to move to Houston. My friend's wife was not permitted to work immediately and the fact that she was in London (as opposed to rural areas or a smaller city) helped greatly.

People who say change is good I guess aren't as settled or happy as you are.

I wish someone had something positive to say here about your pending relocation. While I think the relocation to a foreign country would be fabulous and enlightening, unfortunately, Houston is one of the least popular big cities in our country. It's a flat, over built city with little appeal (the shopping mall is great and is probably the highlight of the city). All that said, if this is a temporary move (maybe a few years), then I say go for it. When else will you and your family get to experience a totally different culture? While initially opposed to the move, your kids would definitely benefit from the experience. I moved around a lot when I was young due to my father's career. Looking back, it was a great experience. I love travel and seeing new cultures and meeting new people. I got to see things that most kids never got to experience and I am far more out-going and adventureous due to the moves in my childhood.

And hey - you'll have great Tex-Mex recipes to take back to your friends and family in the UK.

Now I just wish I could head over and take over your job in the UK...I would love to live over there for a few years and try something new.

Life is an adventure - live it to it's fullest while you're here.

Houston is awful. I moved there from NYC about 20 years ago, and left after 5 weeks. (Only stayed that long so the movers could deliver my furniture from NY and Icould sell it). There were cockroaches everywhere! And they are huge. If there's anyway your husband can avoid taking this job offer, I would say he should do so. There are alot of great places in the U.S. but Houston isn't oneof them.

I must speak up because Houston is getting a bad rap here! i grew up in Houston, and like any city, there are its good and bad areas. Yes, it a large metropolitan city, however it is a very diverse city as well. Humidity in the summer can be a problem if you are not used to it, however the winters are cool and mild. No snow! Houston has every convenience you could possibly want. If it is within your budget, homes in the Galleria area, the Heights, Rice Village, and Bellaire city are desireable and beautiful. If you prefer a quieter more surburban lifestyle, move to the outer perimeters. The Woodlands and Kingwood are both great suburbs to move your family to. Lush, green, good homes, good schools and a sense of community. Houston has all the conveniences of a big city like NYC, but we have the hospitality that most cities don't offer.

Tina, I think you have your answer. While I appreciate that DT is trying to say something nice about Houston, even he/she couldn't in good conscious suggest that a person from the UK would be happy there. Thanks to DT for sticking up for Houston in that it may not be a "hellhole", unless you grew up there, you may be miserable.

I moved from the UK 3 years ago to Indianapolis. Both me and my husband wanted to move to the US very much and are still very glad to be here. Having said that it was and is still very hard at times. I think you have to want to be here a lot, to put up with the green card process, which we still haven't got yet! And communication is a small problem too, different words and accents etc.
You need to be very clear about wanting to do this move.
Good luck whatever you decide.

I have a pretty good perspective - I'm a Californian, spend some time in Texas and lived in the UK for 5 years. If you had a chance to go some other place the transition might be better and possibly worth it - San Francisco, New England, the northwest, a few other places. But Houston - NO! Unless you spend a lot for private schooling, your children's education will be a mess. It doesn't matter if they currently go to public school (translation for Americans - Private school) or state schools - they will have been exposed to so much more (but that goes for anywhere in the US).

The previous comments about the weather cannot be stressed too much - it is unbelievable in the summer - the heat/humidity will kill you. Think of 40 to 45°C and more with extremely high humidity so it feels like 50°+

And there is no culture whatsoever. A road show of some Broadway play is a big deal. There is a symphony - but otherwise not much.

Sorry we couldn't be more positive.

Thanks a lot for all of your replies. I live 17 miles out of London in a beautiful old town which was inhabited by the Romans whilst they were here. Your comments have helped me re-inforce my gut feeling - ie what we already have is good - as a family we are all extremely happy with our lot - I could not face the coachroaches or the heat - my husband flew out to Houston this morning and I suspect he will turn down the opportunity. There will always be a part of us that wonders did we do the right thing but my 13 year old's education is at a crutial stage and we do not want to jeopardise his future.

Don't do it under any circumstances. You'll hate the heat and humidity, not to mention the endless stream of modern
strip plazas. I'm not saying Brits couldn't be happy in the U.S., just not Houston, of all places!

I have to speak up for my home town.

It is a good place to live. for you, there is a large British expatriate population that lives here. Many I know do not want to retrun to the UK. For your children, a British school opened here last year to provide a traditional british education.

The weather is hot, but comparatively, I prefer our summers to Chicago's winter. Yes, you will need a car, but that is true for most cities in the United States.

Your experience in any place depends on your attitude. Before we married, my wife moved to San Diego, as close to Eden as you can find, yet moved back here within a month. She did not like it there because she did not make any friends.

I think Linz has the best perspective of anyone who has posted here. The first question to ask yourself is do you want to move to the United States? If that is no, then it doesn't matter what anyone says about Houston.

I had very close friends who moved from Chicago to Houston and literally cried when talking about their lives there. Add to the cockroaches, the rattlesnakes that used to "sun" themselves on their deck, just as it was time to start the barbecue. There are many places to move to in the U.S., but Houston would never be my recommendation for someone from the U.K. Best of luck.

I have lived in Houston on and off since 1970. My father was transfered from Phoenix when Houston was booming at the time. Many things said here have been true and accurate. We are also the fattest city in the U.S.A. now. I think this is due perhaps to the extreme summer heat, and high humidity. One can not just head to the park on a sunny day, it is profusely hot and miserable. I have been unhappy lately, wanting to get out more and be more active, but the heat holds one back. My daughter is in private school I did not like her education. We do have several excellent school districts here, not HISD though. We are very, very diverse. One poster was wrong, we are a cultured city with plenty of theater, broadway, symphony and such. We are only two hours from some lovely cities like San Antonio, Austin, New Braunfels (SP?), which have beautiful lakes and rivers to get cool.We do have a British community, British pub or two, and British stores. I live in the burbs, way out and run into the Brits every once in a while. I like the low cost of housing, I live in a middle class home, 1900 square feet in a decent neighborhood for around 600 dollars a month (I bought in the late 80's as the economy was beginning to recover here in Houston). I would jump at the chance to move to some where else but until my kids are grown i will stay. My boyfriend when I was young was around your sons age when he arrived in Texas and adjusted quite nice, he was from Leeds. I met him when he was 17, he was happy here and well adjusted. I remember leaving Phoenix, my best friend, and felt shattered. I survived and loved Houston as a teenager and child, it was exciting and I never felt the heat!! I love change, Houston would be a some what different and exciting change I think, but only if you knew your husband was to move on after several years. Lots to think about, keep us posted. I can't imagine life with work!! Staying at home with the kids is great. I went back to work since mine are older and I now know i never missed anything! Hope all works out, I know it will!!

Despite Lisa's valiant attempt to defend Houston - I'm sorry but it is NOT a cultural hotbed. Going from London - probably the most vibrant city in the world (better than New York even, since there is history to go with all the "culture") to Houston would feel like landing it purgatory.

In Houston, an amateur art show at the local suburban shopping mall is their idea of High Culture.

My husband's cousin and her boyfriend moved to Houston from the UK for his job transfer 2 years ago. They were very excited about it, and we didn't want to dampen their spirits, so we didn't say anything very negative about Houston.

This couple (no kids) are very adaptable, friendly people who really tried to make the best of their experience, but they truly hated living in Houston. They left after 1 year, even though John's company kept throwing money at him in a vain attempt to keep him in Houston.

Just before they left Houston for the UK, they stopped to see us in Washington, D.C. They absolutely loved it, and said had they been somewhere like D.C., they probably would have stayed indefinitely.

If you were asking about moving to NYC, Washington, Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Boston, or just about any other U.S., I would have been more than encouraging. But Houston just leaves me, and many many other people, cold.

Regarding your children's schooling: my husband's from the UK, and left after college. We have both reached the conclusion that while American universities overall have more to offer than their UK counterparts, the school system in the UK for ages 4-18 is superior to that the U.S. If you move back to the UK after your boys have lived in Houston for a couple of years, you will definitely find that they will have fallen far behind. My husband maintains that he studied much harder to get into university than he needed to at university.

I agree with most of the others, Houston is the pits. (I live in Austin and many of us can't imagine why people move to Houston...) It's ugly, hot, smoggy (I think its tied with LA for the most smog - or maybe they have moved to first place).

Even if Houston were paradise, sounds like you have 2 of the best reasons in the world to stay where you are - your sons and their roots to your community. I personally don't see how any job can be worth more than that.

Your husband just left for Houston? Perfect timing! I think it's been in the 100's there lately. 100 degrees, 100% humidity. I'm guessing you are "safe" where you are!

Try the following websites for perspectives from brits that have already made the move to the USA.
www.britishinamerica.com
www.britishexpats.com
www.expatforum.com