Advantages & Disadvantages of Moving to San Antonio

You consider moving to San Antonio but are still not entirely sure whether this city is a good place to live for you or not?

Great! This article is exactly for you since I will show you all the pros and cons of living in San Antonio in the following chapters.

Living in San Antonio – Overview

Advantages of Living in San Antonio

1. Property prices in San Antonio are still reasonably low
2. Rents are affordable
3. Housing shortage is still not a serious problem
4. Easy to find a good place to stay
5. You don’t have to spend lots of time searching for a place to live
6. Average person can make a decent living in San Antonio
7. Population in San Antonio is growing
8. San Antonio is among the 10 biggest cities in the US
9. San Antonio is an important economic region
10. Many big corporations are located in San Antonio
11. Highly-qualified people can find good jobs in San Antonio
12. Overall unemployment rate is fairly low
13. Crime rate is lower compared to other major cities in the US
14. Better air quality than in other big cities
15. Many leisure activities in and around San Antonio
16. You can enjoy great weather
17. You will have relatively mild winters
18. Opportunity to spend lots of time outdoors in San Antonio
19. Many nature activities to choose from
20. You will never get bored with living in San Antonio
21. San Antonio is a pretty tolerant city
22. Most people are relaxed and friendly
23. Easy to socialize in San Antonio
24. You can watch interesting sports games in San Antonio
25. Decent public transport in the center of San Antonio
26. You will find most things for daily life within walking distance
27. You can enjoy the comfort of a big city
28. Relatively low living costs compared to other major cities
29. You can use a big international airport
30. Decent nightlife in San Antonio
31. San Antonio offers a decent art scene
32. You can visit many museums
33. Decent shopping opportunities in San Antonio
34. San Antonio offers decent medical infrastructure
35. Decent future outlook for San Antonio
36. You can try a variety of different foods
37. You will have more than enough entertainment
38. San Antonio is a great city for every age group

Property prices in San Antonio are still reasonably low

One advantage of living in San Antonio is that property prices are pretty low compared to other big cities like NYC or L.A. and this means that you don’t have to spend lots of money paying off your home but can rather spend your money on more other nice things instead.

Rents are affordable

San Antonio can also be a good choice if you don’t want to buy a home but rather want to rent an apartment or a house since also rents are pretty low and you will therefore have more than enough options in this regard without having to spend too much money on housing.

Housing shortage is still not a serious problem

Compared to living in San Francisco or other big cities in the US, housing shortage is not a big problem in San Antonio yet and this implies that you will not have to compete with too many other prospective tenants or home buyers from the same property and will have a rather relaxed time in this regard.

Easy to find a good place to stay

You will also have the opportunity to choose between many short-term and long-term rental options and once you move to San Antonio, you will often find a decent place to stay pretty easily.

You don’t have to spend lots of time searching for a place to live

Since the San Antonio housing market is rather relaxed, you will also not have to search for a long time to find a decent play to live and you will also have more than enough choice in this regard as long as you have reasonable amounts of money to spend on housing and also have a good financial standing.

Average person can make a decent living in San Antonio

Since property prices and rents are relatively low, the average person in San Antonio is still able to make a decent living and doesn’t have to spend too much money on housing.

In turn, the average person still has enough disposable income left to buy other things for daily life.

Population in San Antonio is growing

Another upside to moving to San Antonio is that population has been growing significantly over the past decade and it makes sense to buy a home in San Antonio right now before growing demand for housing may also lead to rapidly growing property prices in this region.

San Antonio is among the 10 biggest cities in the US

San Antonio is also a pretty big city and important for the US economy.

Consequently, the state will take many actions to make this city a nice place to live for many decades and you don’t have to worry that too many people will leave the city anytime soon.

San Antonio is an important economic region

San Antonio is also a place where significant GDP numbers are generated and will therefore be a solid place to live and work for many years to come.

Many big corporations are located in San Antonio

Another reason to move to San Antonio is that you will also find many big companies from various sectors present in this region and you can therefore choose among many reputable companies to work for.

Highly-qualified people can find good jobs in San Antonio

You can also make decent money from your job in San Antonio if you are highly-qualified and also provide important skills needed in the job market right now.

Overall unemployment rate is fairly low

San Antonio also has a pretty low unemployment rate and this means that you will most likely find a decent job as long as you have decent education, a good track record and are also willing to work hard.

Crime rate is lower compared to other major cities in the US

Another benefit of living in San Antonio is that crime rates are lower compared to other major cities in the US.

Hence, while you might have to worry quite a lot in this regard if you move to Los Angeles, you will have a more relaxed time in San Antonio since your risk of getting involved in serious criminal activity will be rather low.

Better air quality than in other big cities

Since San Antonio is not as big as other major cities in the US, it also has better air quality and this not only increases your overall quality of life but also reduces your risk of suffering from serious pulmonary diseases sooner or later.

Many leisure activities in and around San Antonio

Another upside to living in San Antonio is that you will have more than enough leisure activities to choose from.

In fact, there are many interesting events taking place in San Antonio and chances are that you will always have something to do.

You can enjoy great weather

People also often move to San Antonio due to the good weather and the many hours of sun you can get in this nice region.

In fact, weather is pretty great if you are a sun lover and want to have as many warm days as possible.

You will have relatively mild winters

Not only summers are great, but you will also have pretty mild winters in San Antonio and if you don’t like cold weather, San Antonio will definitely be an interesting place to live in.

Opportunity to spend lots of time outdoors in San Antonio

Thanks to the good weather and the many hours of sun, San Antonio is also a great place to spend lots of time outdoors and this can be really beneficial for your overall mood and your well-being in the long run.

Many nature activities to choose from

Another advantage of moving to San Antonio is that you will also have more than enough leisure activities to choose from.

For instance, you can go fishing, hiking, swimming and do many other things outdoors so that you can really unplug and relax from your stressful life.

You will never get bored with living in San Antonio

Since there are so many things to do in and around the city, chances are that you will never get bored with living in San Antonio and can just enjoy every minute of your life.

San Antonio is a pretty tolerant city

People in San Antonio are mainly pretty tolerant and people are welcome from all over the world.

Hence, it doesn’t matter what ethnicity you belong to or what religion you have as long as you are a decent human being and a tolerant character yourself.

Most people are relaxed and friendly

Since people don’t have to spend lots of money on housing yet, they also don’t have to make that much money to afford a decent lifestyle and this means that people have enough time to spend with each other and also to help each other out.

Moreover, people in San Antonio are often also more relaxed compared to other cities where people are often in a rush and have to work long hours just to survive.

Easy to socialize in San Antonio

Since most people are friendly and outgoing, it is also pretty easy to get in touch with people from different social classes and you can therefore build a solid circle for friends and make many new social connections pretty easily.

You can watch interesting sports games in San Antonio

San Antonio is also the home of many renowned sports teams and if you are interested in this regard and want to watch many of those games, San Antonio can also be a great place to live in this regard.

Decent public transport in the center of San Antonio

Another benefit of living in San Antonio is that you will also have decent public transport in the city center.

Hence, if you live in a pretty central neighborhood, you can get around by bus or train and don’t necessarily have to rely on your car.

You will find most things for daily life within walking distance

Since San Antonio has decent public infrastructure, you will also find most things for daily life at almost every corner and can just get what you need within walking distance without having to drive to different cities as would often be the case if you lived in a smaller town.

You can enjoy the comfort of a big city

San Antonio also offers many nice things that come along with living in a big city.

In fact, you can spend your time in a pretty efficient manner and can also be sure to find everything you need to live a happy and comfortable life in this region.

Relatively low living costs compared to other major cities

Not only property prices and rents are pretty low, but overall living costs are also much lower in San Antonio compared to other major cities in the US.

For instance, if you go to a bar, you will have to pay much more for a drink in NYC than in San Antonio on average and this is true for many other parts of daily life.

In turn, you can save lots of money by moving to San Antonio compared to living in San Diego or other expensive cities.

You can use a big international airport

Since San Antonio also has a big international airport, you can also get to many exotic places of our planet pretty soon without having to deal with layovers and this means that you can just get around in the most efficient manner and can save lots of time and effort in this regard.

Decent nightlife in San Antonio

While you will not find the same variety of bars and clubs in San Antonio as you would in NYC or other major cities, San Antonio still offers decent nightlife and you will find many nice places to spend your leisure and to socialize with other people after work.

San Antonio offers a decent art scene

San Antonio also has a decent art scene and you can find many good artists and other like-minded people from all over the world to hang out with and to share your ideas with.

You can visit many museums

If you love art, you will also find many nice museums and exhibitions in San Antonio and chances are that you will never get bored in this regard and can spend your time in a really joyful manner.

Decent shopping opportunities in San Antonio

Since San Antonio is such a big city, there are also more than enough shopping malls and other stores where you can get everything you need and also keep up-to-date with latest fashion trends.

San Antonio offers decent medical infrastructure

San Antonio is also a great place to live since you will also find decent medical infrastructure and will have many good doctors to choose from.

This can be quite important, especially for the older generation that has to deal with health issues of many sorts more often than the younger generation and if you belong to this age group, you don’t have to worry in this regard at all since you will find good medical treatment and specialists.

Decent future outlook for San Antonio

Since San Antonio is growing and has become increasingly attractive to people from all over the US, it also has a pretty decent future outlook and chances are that San Antonio will stay a popular place to live for many years to come.

You can try a variety of different foods

Another reason to move to San Antonio is that you can also try foods from many different parts of the world and you will often be surprised by how well many of those foods really taste and this will also give you some inspiration for cooking at home.

You will have more than enough entertainment

Since San Antonio is such a big city, you will also find more than enough entertainment opportunities and most people will never run out of ideas in this regard since they always experience something new in this interesting region.

San Antonio is a great city for every age group

Since living costs and rents are fairly low while the city still has a lot to offer, San Antonio is popular among people of many different age groups.

Hence, students, professionals and retirees can spend a great time in this city and you may therefore move to San Antonio and may never leave this region ever again.

Now that you know all the upsides to moving to San Antonio, we also have to talk about all the unpleasant things that come along with it to give you a better picture of reality so that you can make a more profound decision regarding whether you still want to live in San Antonio or rather want to move to a different region instead.

Disadvantages of Living in San Antonio

1. People in San Antonio often live an unhealthy lifestyle
2. Crime rate is above national average
3. Homelessness has become a serious problem in San Antonio
4. Gap between the poor and the rich has increased
5. Social tensions have increased as well
6. City of San Antonio becomes increasingly crowded
7. Housing shortage may become a serious problem in the future
8. Rents and property prices may increase significantly
9. Average person may no longer be able to afford a home just a few years from now
10. Many locals may have to leave the region
11. Not many good jobs in San Antonio for low-qualified people
12. San Antonio is not that popular among tourists
13. San Antonio is not located at the sea
14. Not as many national parks and recreational spaces as in other cities
15. You may get stuck in traffic jams in San Antonio
16. Finding a parking lot is a problem
17. Public transport is relatively poor in the outskirts of San Antonio
18. San Antonio is not as glamorous as other big cities
19. Not as many bars and clubs as in NYC or L.A.
20. You will not see many celebrities in San Antonio
21. San Antonio may run out of drinking water
22. Wildfires are a serious problem
23. Other natural disasters may destroy your home
24. It is pretty hot in San Antonio
25. You may miss real seasons
26. San Antonio is not considered bike-friendly
27. You may need a car to get around
28. It takes time to get from one part of the city to the other
29. You will not find the same big city life as in other major cities
30. Many people have too high expectations
31. Some neighborhoods are rather dodgy
32. San Antonio is a landlord-friendly city

People in San Antonio often live an unhealthy lifestyle

One downside to living in San Antonio is that people often live an unhealthy lifestyle in this region.

For instance, people eat lots of fast food and may be at great risk of getting overweight and suffering from all sorts of health problems related to it and if you live in this region, chances are that you will adapt to this lifestyle and will live unhealthily as well.

Crime rate is above national average

You should also know that crime rate in San Antonio is above national average and while it is still lower compared to other major cities in the US, you may just not feel safe in San Antonio if you are a careful person and in such a case, you may rather want to move to other regions instead.

Homelessness has become a serious problem in San Antonio

Another reason not to move to San Antonio is that homelessness has become a serious problem and may become even worse in the near future.

If this trend continues, overall quality of life may drop significantly and many people may leave the region.

Gap between the poor and the rich has increased

While it is still not as severe as in many other big cities, also the gap between the rich and the poor has increased substantially over the past years and San Antonio may therefore turn into a place where the poor will have a pretty hard time and the rich may no longer feel safe since crime rates will likely increase significantly.

Social tensions have increased as well

Social tensions have increased quite a lot in general in the San Antonio region and if this trend continues, people may longer be that friendly and may rather care for themselves instead of helping out others.

City of San Antonio becomes increasingly crowded

While San Antonio is still less crowded compared to many other big cities, it has still become increasingly crowded over the past decade since population has been growing significantly.

In turn, overall infrastructure may collapse sooner or later or may just become worse and quality of life may therefore drop significantly due to that.

Housing shortage may become a serious problem in the future

Another disadvantage of living in San Antonio is that housing shortage may become a serious issue in the near future.

While it is not a big problem yet, population is growing and with growing population, also demand for housing increases and this means that you will have to search for longer to find a suitable place to live just a few years from now.

Rents and property prices may increase significantly

Due to increasing demand for housing, also rents and property prices have increased significantly and if this trend continues, many people who don’t make good money from their jobs may really struggle to pay their bills and poverty may become a serious problem in general.

Average person may no longer be able to afford a home just a few years from now

If property prices continue to increase, we may even get to the point in San Antonio where the average person is often no longer able to make a decent living and needs to work a second job to survive as it is already the case for many people who live in California or other more expensive places.

Many locals may have to leave the region

Another problem with moving to San Antonio is that many locals may have to leave the region sooner or later since they simply cannot afford to live in this city anymore and this will take the city’s charm in the long run and may further increase social tensions.

Not many good jobs in San Antonio for low-qualified people

While highly-qualified people can often make a decent living in San Antonio, unemployment rate among low-qualified people is pretty high and those people often really struggle to pay their bills.

San Antonio is not that popular among tourists

Since San Antonio is also not the most popular place among tourists, you will also not meet that many tourists and will not be able to have as many interesting conversations with people from all over the world compared to other more popular cities.

San Antonio is not located at the sea

Another reason not to move to San Antonio is that the city is not located at the sea and while people who live directly at the coast can take a swim or surf before or after work, you will often miss out on these opportunities in San Antonio since it would take you much longer to get to the coast.

Not as many national parks and recreational spaces as in other cities

You will also not find as many nice national parks or other recreational spaces in San Antonio compared to other major cities in the US and this may be quite annoying since you may have a harder time to relax from your stressful daily life and may also not be able to enjoy that much beautiful nature.

You may get stuck in traffic jams in San Antonio

Another downside to moving to San Antonio is that traffic is a big problem and that you will often get stuck in traffic jams which will take away lots of time from you in the long run.

Finding a parking lot is a problem

Since traffic is pretty bad, the city is also pretty crowded and finding a parking lot is a real problem, especially in the inner city of San Antonio where demand for parking is huge but supply of parking lots is pretty limited.

Public transport is relatively poor in the outskirts of San Antonio

While you will have decent public transport in the city center, it will become pretty poor in the outskirts of San Antonio and if you are not able to afford to live in the center, you may not want to rely on public transport but rather have to use other means of transport to get from A to B in an efficient manner.

San Antonio is not as glamorous as other big cities

You should also know that although San Antonio is well-known all over the US, it is still not as glamorous as other big cities like New York or L.A. and if you want to be at the heart of the universe, San Antonio may just not be a great place to live for you.

Not as many bars and clubs as in NYC or L.A.

While you can enjoy decent nightlife, you will still not have the same selection of bars and clubs as in other bigger cities and you may therefore get bored with local nightlife sooner or later and may have to make trips to other cities to find what you are looking for.

You will not see many celebrities in San Antonio

San Antonio is also not the most popular city in the US and you will therefore also not see many celebrities and if you really want to meet as many famous people as possible, you should rather move to NYC or L.A. instead of moving to San Antonio.

San Antonio may run out of drinking water

Another problem with moving to San Antonio is that the city may run out of drinking water sooner or later due to climate change and this would greatly lower overall quality of life and would lead to many serious issues in the long run.

Wildfires are a serious problem

San Antonio is also vulnerable to wildfires and if you live in the suburbs instead of the city center, you may just lose your home or even your life to wildfires sooner or later if you are unlucky.

Other natural disasters may destroy your home

Not only wildfires are a big problem in and around San Antonio, but also tornadoes or other natural disasters may destroy our home and you should therefore get proper insurance in this regard to be covered in case of emergency.

It is pretty hot in San Antonio

While many people like the heat, others rather prefer to live in cooler climatic regions and if you belong to the second group of people, you will be better off moving to Chicago or other cooler places instead of moving to San Antonio.

You may miss real seasons

Since it is pretty warm even during winter, chances are that you will also miss real seasons in San Antonio and may just get fed up with the heat.

San Antonio is not considered bike-friendly

San Antonio is also not the most bike-friendly city and many people don’t use their bikes since they fear being hit by a car since bike lanes and overall biking infrastructure is still pretty poor.

You may need a car to get around

Since biking is not a valid option for most people, you may often have to use your car to get around and this not only implies that you have to spend lots of money on gas, but you will also hurt the environment quite a lot due to greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.

It takes time to get from one part of the city to the other

Since San Antonio is a large city, it also takes quite a lot of time to get from one end to the other and if you want to visit your friends in other parts of the city, you may have to spend lots of time in traffic and may get really annoyed with it in the long run.

You will not find the same big city life as in other major cities

While San Antonio is a big city, it doesn’t provide big city life as you know it from NYC or other major cities in the US since everything feels less glamorous and somewhat smaller.

Many people have too high expectations

Your expectations about living in San Antonio should also not be too high since you might get disappointed otherwise and should also not expect the same high quality of life as in other major cities.

Some neighborhoods are rather dodgy

While you will find many decent neighborhoods, some boroughs of San Antonio are also pretty dodgy and you may get in touch with many rough and unfriendly people.

San Antonio is a landlord-friendly city

If you don’t want to buy a home but rather want to rent, San Antonio may also not be the best region to do so since it is a pretty landlord-friendly city and you will not have as many rights as a tenant as in many other cities in the US.

Top 10 Moving To San Antonio Pros & Cons – Summary List

Should You Move To San Antonio?

Due to rather low housing prices and great infrastructure, San Antonio offers the comfort of living in a big city while you still don’t have to pay lots of money on rent.

However, San Antonio also has above-average crime rates and the city doesn’t offer as much glamor as NYC or other bigger metropolitan regions.

Hence, in the end, it is on you to evaluate all the advantages and disadvantages of moving to San Antonio so that you can decide for yourself whether you still want to move to San Antonio or rather want to live in a different region instead.

Alternative Cities To Live In

If you don’t want to move to San Antonio anymore, you should also have a look at the following articles:

Advantages and disadvantages of living in Philadelphia

Advantages and disadvantages of living in Oakland

Advantages and disadvantages of living in San José

Sources

https://www.sanantonio.gov/

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/sanantoniocitytexas

About the author

This site is about living, moving and traveling to various parts of our fascinating planet.

My name is Andreas and when I was younger, I traveled the world and learned a lot about different cultures and countries.

Thus, I want to share my experiences with you so that you can benefit from them and avoid common mistakes in this regard.

In my articles, you will find everything you need to find the best location for a happy and successful life.