KnowYard Community

Any medical facility. Not as a doctor — as everything else. Phlebotomy cert takes 4 months and pays $18-22/hr. Medical billing is similar. Hospitals are desperate for support staff.

Pressure washing. You can get a decent setup for $400. Driveways, fences, patios. Post on Nextdoor and you'll be booked within a week. $100-200 per driveway.

Counterpoint: standards are what make Texas BBQ great. If we stop caring about quality we end up like every other state's mid BBQ. Gatekeeping has a purpose.

Factor in ALL costs not just mortgage. Property tax, insurance, HOA, maintenance, and the stuff that breaks. My first year I spent $8K on things the inspection missed.

$200/month HOA and they can't even maintain the common areas? Request a financial audit. You're entitled to see where that money goes.

The unequal appraisal argument is your best weapon. If your neighbor's identical house is appraised at $50K less than yours, that's hard for them to justify. Use their own data against them.

Protested 5 years in a row. Won every time. Average reduction of about $20K in appraised value. The informal hearing is where it happens — bring your comps printed out and be polite.

Brisket gatekeepers are the worst. My dad has been smoking brisket for 30 years and some guy who watched one YouTube video tried to tell him he's doing it wrong.

Their email list + Prekindle alerts. Most shows sell out in a few days so you gotta be quick.

Buc-ee's is an experience, not a restaurant. You go for the vibes and the clean bathroom and you leave with $40 of beaver-branded impulse purchases.

I stop every time I see one and I'm not sorry. The kolaches are solid, the bathrooms are spotless, and the beaver nuggets are crack.

Furniture flipping. Grab free stuff off Facebook Marketplace, clean it up or do minor repairs, resell. A truck is your biggest advantage. I clear $500-800/month doing this on weekends.

The insurance situation in Texas is rough right now. Get quotes BEFORE you make an offer on a house. Some areas are seeing 40-50% premium increases after recent storm seasons.

Nobody ever includes property tax and insurance when they compare mortgage to rent. With those factored in, my "cheaper than rent" mortgage is actually $500 more than my old apartment.

Bought last year at 6.8%. Monthly payment is more than my old rent but I'm not throwing money away anymore. You can always refinance when rates drop. You can't un-rent money you already spent.

It's both. It's a tourist trap AND it's good. Those things can coexist. The prices are high but the quality is real.

Check your city and county job boards directly. Government jobs don't always post on Indeed. The benefits package is usually better than private sector even if the pay is slightly lower.

Kessler is the truth. Saw Strand of Oaks there last year and was 10 feet from the stage. $18. Try getting that experience at AAC.

Bought a home warranty for $600/year. Covered the AC repair and a plumbing issue in the first 6 months. Paid for itself twice over. Get one for the first year at least.

My church potluck sweet tea made in a 5 gallon cooler with approximately 4 pounds of sugar. Nothing in a restaurant comes close.

The freedom is worth every extra dollar though. I can paint walls, have a dog, play music at midnight. After 6 years of apartment living the privacy alone is priceless.

Utility companies are almost always hiring and pay decent with good benefits. Check your local electric co-op or water district. $22-28/hr starting for field positions and you don't need a degree.

The fudge and the jerky are genuinely high quality. Everything else is overpriced gas station food with cute packaging. Fight me.

Emergency fund before you buy. At least $10K set aside for repairs. The AC, water heater, or roof WILL need attention in the first 2 years. Guaranteed.

That Shakey Graves show OP mentioned — I was there too. 365 people in that room and it felt like a private concert. Changed how I think about live music.