In Lubbock, we grew up with two main things: God loves you and he's gonna send you to hell, and that sex is bad and dirty and nasty and awful and you should save it for the one you love.
-Butch Hancock
One of the best things about Lubbock is how big an influence a school like Texas Tech has on the energy and growth of the city. A big healthy university drives; population stability and growth, business stability and startup growth, an active social and cultural scene and maybe more important than anything a sense of local pride that is at least partly based on education. This educational spirit and quality extends beyond the university to an excellent elementary and high school. These combined factors make a college town like Lubbock kind of ideal for everyone from the college kids, to young families to retirees. So good for retirees in fact, it was named the top retirement destination in the U.S. in 2019 by Where To Retire magazine.
One other note about Lubbock. When you ask locals the best part about the city an awful lot of them say “the people”. That’s hard to quantify but there seems to be an overwhelming vibe that people in Lubbock are nice, friendly and welcoming. Some make the point that they have the college spirit, art scene and growth economy of an Austin, but without any of the attitude.
Here's a local on the positives of living in Lubbock:
The cost of living is low, you can get anywhere (from one side of town to the other) in about 15–20 minutes, lots of opportunities for entertainment & dining, good medical facilities, a very safe environment, good schools.
But the very best thing about Lubbock is the people. People here are pretty nice, if you have a flat tire or your car dies, strangers will stop to help you, and probably more than one. If there is a funeral driving down the street, everyone will pull over and men will remove their hats. This is that kind of place. Strangers will talk to you and make conversations in elevators, lobbies, wherever you happen to be.
Lubbock is rated among the cities with the worst weather in the U.S. Most of these cites achieve their rankings the old fashioned way: terrible cold and snow, suffocating heat and humidity, or pounding rain and overcast. Lubbock stands alone as a city that is brutal for a combination of extreme temperature swings, tornadoes, dust storms and fire storms. It’s just kind of an angry city in terms of weather (which is countered by nice residents). If you’re moving here there’s plenty to like but the weather ain’t one of these things.
Here's the pov of a former student on living here: Lubbock isn't as bad as people say. I personally really like living there. The weather is actually really great most of the time, other than the occasional haboob. As for distance, it is pretty far from the big cities. I drive from DFW to LBK fairly often and it's 5-6 hours.
Downtown Lubbock and the areas surrounding Texas Tech have a slew of bars and restaurants, an arts district and several parks with another downtown civic park on the way. If you’re looking for action you can find it downtown. For those who want to go out but also avoid the college kiddos that is absolutely available as you move away from the Red Raiders and closer to the center of downtown.
Aside from the downtown social scene there are also a pretty wide variety of interesting museums including the Buddy Holly Center, The National Ranching Heritage Center, the Caviel Museum of African American History and the American Windmill Museum (largest on the planet!!!).
Outside of the more “touristy” things to do in Lubbock you can expect an interesting mix of a heavy art scene crossed with suburban energy running throughout the city. The arts side of Lubbock can trace its roots to being the birthplace of Buddy Holly, combined of course with the influence of a college town. https://roadtrippers.com/magazine/lubbock-texas/
The suburban vibe comes from the fact most people here own their homes and the great schools pull in young and established families. Tons of parks and great kids sports drive a lot of the weekend and summer activities.
Lubbock calendar of events: https://visitlubbock.org/events/
They call Lubbock “Hub City” due to it being the economic center of a 26-county region serving not only Texas but also border states. Top industries include of course education, but also research, healthcare, agriculture and manufacturing. Big employees include: Texas Tech, United Supermarkets, X-FAB (silicon wafers) manufacturing, Reese Technology Center also houses plenty of specialized engineering, and technical companies including Wyle Aerospace, Zachry Group, and Vestas, a wind-turbine manufacturer.
If you’re looking for work this is a pretty good place to look. If you’ve got a job but want a nice, inexpensive place to set up roots and work remotely, this is a pretty good place to choose. If you have a young family and want to buy a home this is an affordable place with really good schools to send those beans to while you build the next egg. One side note on the move: Lubbock is rated the second most conservative city, over 100k people in the country. If that sounds good to you then come on down. If on the other hand that ain’t your scene then you know, don’t move here. At least if you aren’t coming here for the school or the arts part of the city scene.
All of the neighborhoods surrounding Texas Tech have apartment opportunities for college kids. They also have home rentals for those looking for stand-alone living options. Expect inexpensive, short walks to campus but also a good free bus line scooting kids around the large campus and the closest neighborhoods.
Downtown has several neighborhoods that pull young professionals. The Overton neighborhood has a mix of college and young professionals. If you’re out of school but still want the social life this could be your spot. The Depot and Arts District and surrounding blocks also pull in the youngsters looking for a slightly groovier vibe. Downtown in general is the place to be if you want a good walkscore and easy access to nightlife.
Depending on your point of view on housing costs there are lots of different neighborhoods in Lubbock for that first home. Housing is inexpensive in Lubbock by many national standards but there certainly are neighborhoods in the $400k range that young families coming from California, New York or Austin would find very reasonable but others would find a big leap. We’ve pushed those neighborhoods into the established families category.
If you’re looking for big homes, a variety of architectural styles, country clubs and a path to a great high school then Lubbock has you covered. Growth is driving a lot of building in many of these neighborhoods, so if you want a home designed from scratch that’s probably available. Alternately there are historical districts with beautiful old homes, including downtown spots near Lubbock High School.
