5 Reasons to Move to Longview, TX
Sometimes you find a gem of a city you hadn’t thought much about before. That describes our discovery of Longview, Texas. It may be hours away from Houston or Dallas, but don’t worry, there’s plenty to do here in this city of 82,000 residents.
We found many excellent reasons to move to Longview and consolidated them into five major reasons.
Affordability
Let’s start with how affordable it is to live in Longview. The median household income in the city is about $62,000, about $3,000 higher than the state average. However, the median home cost is cheaper at about $167,000. By contrast, the median home price for the state at large is $208,000.
You’ll find a wide variety of professional employment opportunities, too, in fields like construction, finance, healthcare, insurance, and manufacturing.
Plus, there’s a lot of free stuff to do!
Free Music
In Longview, these events are all about music and food, and a lot of both types are covered.
If you enjoy classical music, check out Bach’s Lunch. These Friday lunchtime recitals are free to attend and you can eat your meal, perhaps with friends, while listening to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, one of the greatest composers of the baroque era. There are six per symphony season from October into March, and they take place at different sites in Longview, so check the Longview Symphony Orchestra website for details.
Another popular music series is Downtown Live, which takes place on Heritage Plaza. This event is every Friday at 5:00 pm during the spring and fall. Local bands headline, so you’ll get exposed to all sorts of music you may not have heard before, and the event goes until 8:00 pm. You’ll find hundreds of food trucks along the streets for Downtown Live competing for your dinner dollar. Yes, attendance is free!
Events and Festivals
Those events are only a taste of the fun things to do in Longview. Residents here love their events and festivals, as you’ll quickly learn.
The Downtown Longview Wine Swirl and the Harvest Festival Crawfish Boil are both in April, but the events aren’t all about food and drinking. In June you’ll want to check out the Great Texas Balloon Race, featuring the world’s best competitive hot air balloon pilots. In March, there’s the Chautauqua Festival, which honors diversity in Longview.
There are also various music festivals (in addition to the two we covered above); the 4th of July Fireworks and Freedom Celebration, which presents various popular music acts in addition to the fireworks; races, and more.
Fitness
In addition to being able to sign up for a gym membership if you like, Longview has a couple notable alternatives. If you’re a member of the Longview Museum of Fine Arts, you can participate for free in their yoga class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Get a good stretch and build strength in these sessions.
If you enjoy waking, jogging, or biking, you owe it to yourself to head to the Paul G. Boorman walking trail, a three mile stretch through parks and playgrounds. Every quarter mile is marked so you’ll know how far you’ve gone and how far it is to the end. Get in your steps in out in nature in the middle of the city.
Museums
In addition to the Longview Museum of Fine Arts, where you can not only look at the exhibits, you can take art workshops and much more, the city has several other excellent museums,
These include the Longview World of Wonders, or Longview WoW!, a great place for kids to learn about science and explore their creativity; the Longview Arboretum and Nature Center, a place to enjoy being out in nature and learn about plants and trees; the Gregg County Historical Museum, where you can learn about local history; and R. G. LeTourneau Museum and Archives at LeTourneau University, dedicated to its founder, R.G. LeTourneau.
Of course, Longview also has its share of movie theaters, restaurants, and nightlife. It’s a great place to live where you never have to be bored. We encourage you to check out some of the places we mentioned, take a virtual cruise around the city with Google Maps, and think about if it’s the right place for you to live.
So if you're looking to move to East Texas, with so much to do and a wonderful place to raise a family, give Longview consideration. Superior Storage is here to help you with your moving needs and to answer any questions you may have about the area. Not sure what size unit you may need while you're between homes? Check out our video storage guide to help you find the right one!
