Texas is cheap (except for Austin, but even Austin is better than California) but the job market is in the toilet right now, so it's a toss up. Even Houston is cheap for a big city unless you insist on living right in the middle of it; my parents live in the suburbs and they have a spacious, VERY comfortable, older 4-bedroom valued at about $150,000. Car insurance runs kind of high but food and gas prices are good. You might not care for our climate, though . . .