Texas is not for everyone –

More people are moving to Texas than any other state.
But is it a good idea?

For many, yes, it’s a wonderful idea. But is it a good idea for YOU? Here’s what you need to consider before you decide.

1. If you love taking off for a week-end of snowmobiling or snow skiing, you might not like it. We do occasionally get snow, but not that much. If you want snow sports, you CAN take a short drive into New Mexico.

2. Instead of snow, we have sunshine – lots and lots of sunshine.
In fact, some areas get as many as 300 days of sunshine every year. And since we don’t have a lot of smog to block it, you might need to stock up on sun screen.

3. If you don’t like to drive over 35 MPH, you won’t appreciate Texas.
This is a big state, with plenty of miles between places. In addition, many of our roads are privately funded by Texas Toll Road companies. Some of them carry speed limits of 80 MPH. So if you prefer poking along in traffic, able to text and make phone calls while you wait to begin crawling along, you’ll be downright uncomfortable driving here.

4. Open spaces mean clean air.
If you thrive on exhaust fumes and smog, stay in California! In Texas, more than 95 percent of land is privately owned, and 83% of Texas land is part of a farm, ranch, or forest.

5. If you believe businesses should be regulated and taxed to the hilt… you don’t belong here.
Texas is business-friendly. In fact, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council ranked us #1 in terms of the lowest costs of taxation on entrepreneurship and small business.

We pretty much believe that people have a right to pursue their dreams, build businesses without jumping through dozens of hoops, and keep what they earn.

6. If you enjoy grousing about how bad the economy is, you’ll be out of luck here.
According to the World Bank and the U.S. Department of Commerce, Texas’s gross domestic product is $1.14 trillion – which makes our state the world’s 14th largest economy.

If you compare our success to the rest of the U.S., it’s clear that without Texas, there would be no recovery.

7. If you want an excuse for being unemployed, you won’t find it in Texas.
In the period from January 2008 through December 2014, we added 1,444,290 jobs. If you subtract our employment from that of the entire U.S. economy, the rest of the states, taken together, show a loss of 275,290 jobs. Even though our population is growing by leaps and bounds, our unemployment rate is far below the national average. As I said – without Texas, there would be no recovery.

And… contrary to what you may believe, the jobs in Texas cross every sector – even technology.

8. Texans get to keep more of their own money.
With no state income tax, we Texans have more to show for the hours we work. We get to decide how to spend it instead of letting the government do it for us. Of course that means we support fewer government employees, so if you’re looking for work in civil service, Texas probably isn’t your best choice.

9. We have energy …
Yes, oil is a very big deal here. We believe America should become independent of foreign energy sources and “grow our own,” so we’re doing it.

But that’s not all – we’re also big on wind and solar power. In fact, estimates are that Texas produces enough wind energy to power all the homes in West Virgina and Utah.

If you believe we should remain dependent on oil coming in from countries that hate us, you don’t belong in Texas.

10. If you hate guns and can’t figure out that an armed populace is safer than an unarmed populace, Texas is not the place for you.
We Texans believe in protecting our families and our property, and our laws give us the right to do so. Nearly half of all Texans own guns. So if you’re a criminal intent on easy prey – note that you won’t be safe here.

– Reference: Find a Tampa defender at Mike G Law.

11. If you think livestock stinks, you just might not like it here.
We have cows, horses, and even real working cowboys. We also have other things that smell good to Texans – like hay.

12. If you enjoy spending most of your money on housing, food, and medical care, then you might not like Texas.
Our state is bigger, but our cost of living is smaller – in fact, you can buy a house in Texas for about half of what a similar house in a similar location would cost in California. Combine that with our absence of a state income tax, and you’ll see that there’s just no excuse not to prosper in Texas.

Mike Clover

Mortgage Banker

Homewood Mortgage,LLC

O: 469.621.8484

C: 469.438.5587

F: 972.767.4370

18170 Dallas Parkway

Ste. 304

Dallas, TX 75287

NMLS# 234770

Apply at: www.mikeclover.com