I might have a job offer in Longview. 3 sisters live in Pittsburg, TX, about an hour away. Dallas is where other relatives live. I'm wondering between living in these two cities. Tyler is closer to Dallas and just 20 minutes further than Pittsburg. Wife works at hospitals.

Rock vs. Hard Place.

Yikes…. I'm gonna go with Rock.

22 years ago (when I graduated from a HS a in Longview) I would have said Tyler. Today? Longview has become a lot better so no idea.

Not even a comparison apples to apples, it's Tyler hands down. What's the commute? Longview is a good hour away from Tyler, Longview is much improved but it's still a depressing blue collar town

FTAggies said:

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Not even a comparison apples to apples, it's Tyler hands down. What's the commute? Longview is a good hour away from Tyler, Longview is much improved but it's still a depressing blue collar town

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Longview is 25-30 minutes from Tyler

Depending on what side of Tyler you live, south Tyler is almost an hour, south Tyler is also where most things are

Let's compare the tittsburg sisters instead.

South Tyler (the nice part of Tyler) might be an hour or more commute to Longview with traffic on weekdays. Something to consider.

North and Northwest Longview (Spring Hill area) and east out toward Hallsville are nice and growing but are high demand.

I'm biased but I hate Tyler.

Tyler, if you don't mind driving to your job.

Pirate04 said:

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I'm biased but I hate Tyler.

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Good friend moved around the country for different jobs every 4-6 years. Athens, GA. Midland, MI. Lake Jackson, TX. Longview was a stop for several years before they moved back to the Houston area.

His wife wasn't crazy about moving around. But she liked most of the places and they made good friends at each stop.

About Longview, she said "We don't have to stay here forever." They had good friends there when they moved, but they did not want to stay there.

Could be worse. Could be Marshall.

I view East Texas as Tyler and Longview and the 900 midgets.

PeekingDuck said:

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Tyler, if you don't mind driving to your job.

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we can drive to anyplace, day or night across this state

We live in Tyler. Not south Tyler but inside the loop. It's not bad. Nice areas, bad areas. But much better than Longview.

How old are you? Do you have kids? Are you more interested in the country, small towns, large towns, or cities? What do you like to do for fun? How do you feel about traffic? How do you feel about highway commutes? How much money do you plan to spend on a house? Do you expect to stay there for a long time, or is this just a stop along your career that will soon take you elsewhere?

I grew up about halfway between Longview & Henderson (went to school in Henderson but spent much of my time in Longview & some of it in Tyler). I'm sure a lot has changed since I left East Texas in '94, so any advice I give you will likely be too dated to be accurate. But without answers to those questions above, nobody at all will be able to help you.

By the way, East Texas has lots to offer, regardless of what most of what others on this thread say. I will definitely retire there when the time comes, and I'm looking forward to it.

Both have plenty of meth, vandalism, and the sun sets at 3pm

All other considerations aside (commute, etc), there's really not much conversation to be had. Longview is a place you only live if you have to for whatever reason. I think it's improved some over the years, mainly due to some investment from a single ultra-rich oil family, but it's still kinda dumpy.

Tyler is nice. Depending on life stage and interests, it can actually be a great place to live. If you have a family and like to get out on the lake, it's perfect. If you're single and want a bunch of incredible restaurants and night life, it's not as great. There is a deceptively high concentration of wealth there, so critical facilites like hospitals are quite good for a town of its size. We lived there for several years up until 2016, and enjoyed most aspects of it.

I spent 2 yrs commuting back and forth from dfw to Tyler doing a job. I really liked the place. Big enough but small enough at the same time. I interacted with a very diverse group of folks while there…..local govt officials, business owners, local college staff & students, the general public, healthcare folks…..and would consider moving there at some point in the future with the right opportunity.

Check out Hideaway Lake. Gated community, private golf courses and Lindale schools.

How about find a different job. My wife's family is from Henderson county and I have to say that part of Texas from Athens to Tyler is a complete **** hole. Drugs, dry towns, no liquor stores, Bible Belt Baptist weirdos, etc.

Pretty much a giant turd covered with wet turds on top of dry turds.

This thread makes me more sad than the over 35 thread. I love my hometown. Did I fit in as a single woman? no. Did I need the opportunity to live outside of the East Texas bubble? yes. But do I love going back? Absolutely. Longview is a great place to raise a family however, go with the school districts on the outskirts (White Oak, Spring Hill, Diana, or Hallsville…hell even Kilgore). Like I said, I'm biased. But I spent 28 plus out of 36 years of my life there so I'm allowed the opinion.

Do you like a hard body? The view might be the last place you don't have to keep your hands to yourself.

Hell

It all depends on what you are looking for.

Hospital & Medical - Tyler
No Drive to work - Longview
Schools - that's probably a push (we homeschool so I can't speak with authority though) Tyler has a very active homeschool community - sports, co-ops, choir, band, etc. Longview has homeschool sports, I know.
"Personality" - I always think of Longview as a bit more blue-collar. (I grew up in Henderson and live in Tyler now, so I've seen both communities over my whole life.)
Arts - a push. Tyler has the Cowen Center. Longview, the Belcher Center
Retail - a push. Tyler is closer to Dallas, though, so you can get there in an hour and a half.

Depending on your budget and needs, check out Hide-away as mentioned or Lake Cherokee.
There are plenty of small town around, too.

what's wrong with longview?

Nothing really wrong with Longview or Tyler. They are different towns with different things. We live in a Longview (for the second time)and have been here for about 5 years this time. I hated Longview when we lived here from '08 to '10 but it doesn't seem as bad this time. It can be difficult of you're not from here because it is cliquish but I think you'll have that in most smaller cities.

As others have stated, schools on the outskirts are best. Longview ISD is pretty bad and Pine Tree has certainly taken a step or two backwards since we left in 2010. Hallsville is very highly sought after as well as Spring Hill but housing in those areas are going to be higher. I've been told to stay away from Kilgore but I think Henderson, Sabine, and White Oak are pretty good. DO NOT put your kids in Gladewater.

My GF's mom lived a few doors down from Patrick Mahomes in Tyler...

So, this hits close to home...uh...

Seems like Longview is a pretty great school district

Their lowest campus rating is a B.

"Tyler" > "Longview"

No children. I'm leaning towards Tyler or a small town, ideally getting a couple of acres. First I have to win the job. Thanks for your suggestions.

Anchorhold said:

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Let's compare the tittsburg sisters instead.

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You've been on a roll lately

Paul Dirac said:

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No children. I'm leaning towards Tyler or a small town, ideally getting a couple of acres. First I have to win the job. Thanks for your suggestions.

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If you're looking for some land near Longview I would check out north in the Diana area or out northwest toward Gilmer. Acreage really isn't that expensive by Texas standards.

I was born and raised in Tyler….
And if I have the chance to retire before I die, I hope to get back there to do just that - retire AND die there…

Just let me know when you retire