Moving to Texas: What It Costs and What the State Expects From You

0:00A $3,500 quote and a truck that drove away

Moving to Texas? Here's a story every Texas mover should hear first.

In December 2017, a woman moving from Florida to the Fort Worth area was quoted about thirty-five hundred dollars. Once her things were on the truck, the price went up. At delivery, the crew refused her cashier's check, demanded cash, and drove away with everything she owned. She got it back two and a half months later.

Texas regulators fined that company six hundred forty-eight thousand dollars. The man investigators identified as its owner was sentenced to six and a half years in federal prison.

In the next ten minutes, I'll show you what a move to Texas really costs, the tax trade nobody explains, the thirty-day clock that starts the day you arrive, why Houston and Dallas make you shop for electricity, and how to spot the movers Texas calls organized crime.

I'm Daniel, from Majestic Moving Companies. Let's get into it.

0:51What a move to Texas costs

So what does moving to Texas actually cost? A move from another state is priced by weight and distance, not by the hour. Here are fair-price ranges for a two-bedroom home, if you do your own packing.

New York City to Austin is about seventeen hundred and fifty road miles. That's forty-six hundred to about seventy-two hundred dollars, October through April. In summer, about fifty-four hundred to eighty-five hundred.

Los Angeles to Austin, about thirteen hundred and seventy-five miles: forty-two hundred to sixty-six hundred off-season, and about five thousand to seventy-seven hundred in summer.

Chicago to Dallas, about nine hundred and twenty-five miles: thirty-seven hundred and fifty to fifty-eight hundred off-season, forty-four hundred to sixty-nine hundred in summer.

Want the movers to pack for you? Add about a third.

And remember how big Texas is. Dallas to El Paso is about six hundred and thirty miles. A move inside Texas can be a long-distance move too, and as you'll see, it follows different rules.

Want real numbers for your move? Get free moving quotes at majesticmovingcompanies.com. The form takes about thirty seconds, and we match you with professional movers who cover your route. Want a gut check first? Our free calculator shows a fair price range. So when a quote comes in way under it, you'll know it's not a deal. It's a warning.

2:09No income tax, but read the property tax

Here's the trade most people moving to Texas don't hear about until the first bill. Texas has no state income tax. It's written into the state constitution.

But Texas cities and schools are paid for with property tax. In 2025, a home inside Austin paid about two percent of its taxable value a year. Dallas, about two point two. Houston, about two point one. And newer suburbs, especially around Houston, can add a utility-district tax on top. If you're buying, the seller has to give you a written notice with that district's tax rate. Ask for it early.

The good news is the homestead exemption. Since the 2025 vote, it takes one hundred and forty thousand dollars off your home's value for school taxes. The state's own example: a three-hundred-thousand-dollar home pays school tax as if it were worth one hundred sixty thousand. Over sixty-five, you get sixty thousand more.

It isn't automatic. You file with your county appraisal district, by April thirtieth, and your Texas driver's license has to show the new address. So get the license first, then file.

Sales tax is eight and a quarter percent in all three cities. Groceries are exempt. Whether Texas saves you money comes down to your income and your house.

3:23Your first 30 days in Texas

You made it to Texas. Here's what the state expects from you, and the first clock starts fast.

Your car has thirty days. Get Texas insurance, pass an emissions test if your county requires one, and register at the county tax office. If you do it within those thirty days, you pay a flat ninety-dollar new-resident tax instead of sales tax on the car. That deal is for new residents who handle it on time.

Your driver's license has ninety days. But the state won't issue it until your cars are registered in Texas. So the car is the real deadline. Book an appointment, bring two proofs of your Texas address, and hand in your old license. No written test, no driving test.

And those inspection stickers? Texas ended safety inspections for most cars in January 2025. You pay a seven-dollar-fifty fee instead. Austin, Dallas and Houston-area counties still require an emissions test, and San Antonio's county starts in November 2026.

One more: get a toll tag early. Without one, Dallas toll roads bill you double by mail. Austin's toll roads bill about half again as much, plus extra fees for out-of-state plates.

4:34Houston and Dallas: pick your power company

Here's something that surprises almost everyone moving to Houston or Dallas. Nobody turns your electricity on for you. You have to pick a power company.

In most of Houston and Dallas, the lines belong to one utility, but you choose who sells you the power. The state's official site for that is Power To Choose dot org. Before you sign, open the plan's fact sheet and compare fixed rates with variable ones. A variable rate can change every month, and Texas bills peak in August and February. And do it before move-in day.

In Austin and San Antonio, it's simpler. The city owns the utility, so there's nothing to shop. Some suburbs are served by co-ops, so check your zip code.

Why does this matter so much? In February 2021, Winter Storm Uri hit Texas, and the state counted two hundred forty-six deaths. Afterward, Texas banned electricity plans tied to wholesale prices for homes, starting September 2021.

And if the power goes out, never run a generator or a grill indoors.

5:36Moving day in a Texas summer

If your Texas move lands in July or August, plan for the heat, because it's part of the job.

Normal highs in Austin, Dallas and Houston sit in the mid to upper nineties. August 2026 ran hotter. Austin and Dallas averaged about one hundred and two degrees, and Dallas–Fort Worth hit one hundred or more on twenty-seven days.

So start at sunrise. Keep cold water for everyone, including the crew. Things that can melt or fail in a hot truck, like medicine, candles and vinyl records, ride with you. And never leave a child or a pet in a parked car, not even for a minute.

Know the signs of heat stroke: a body temperature over one hundred and three, hot red skin, a racing pulse. Call nine-one-one.

Moving to the Houston area? Hurricane season runs June first to November thirtieth, and it peaks in September. Flood insurance usually takes thirty days to start, and most homeowners' policies don't cover floods. So buy it before you need it. Texas landlords and sellers have to tell you if a home is in a flood plain or has flooded.

6:38Moving into Texas or within Texas?

Here's a question that decides which rules protect you. Are you moving into Texas from another state, or moving within Texas?

Coming from another state, your mover is under federal rules. Check its U.S. D.O.T. number, and know your rights on delivery day. We covered those in our New York to Florida video.

Moving within Texas, say Houston to Austin, the federal rules don't apply. Texas does. Your mover needs a license from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. You can look it up in a minute on the state's Truck Stop tool.

Before loading, a Texas mover has to give you a written price. Either binding, which is the exact price, or not-to-exceed, which is the most you'll pay. After loading, the price can only change if you both agree in writing.

Read the liability part carefully. A mover can limit what it pays to sixty cents a pound. That's thirty dollars for a fifty-pound TV. The state says it plainly: that is not insurance.

If something breaks, file a written claim within ninety days. The mover has twenty-three days to answer, and ninety to pay, deny, or make an offer. If the offer is bad, Texas offers free mediation.

In one year, 2017, the state received three hundred seventy-nine complaints about movers. Almost half were about companies with no Texas license at all.

7:57The movers Texas called organized crime

What does a Texas moving scam actually look like? For nearly three years, a crew in Houston advertised on Craigslist. Two movers, thirty-nine ninety-nine an hour, no hidden fees.

Once everything was on the truck, the bill came out. Ninety dollars per item for plastic wrap. One man, a week before his wedding, got a bill for seventeen hundred dollars. He refused, and they drove off with everything, including the couple's wedding rings. A single mom was told to bring cash to Louisiana if she wanted her things back.

A Houston TV station set up a fake apartment and hid a GPS tracker in the furniture. The crew loaded it in under an hour, turned a thirty-nine-dollar move into more than twelve hundred, and drove it to a storage unit in north Houston.

At first, police called it a civil matter, because customers had signed a contract. The state's enforcement director called it organized crime, worse than a burglary. Three men were convicted. One of them got twenty years in prison.

So if a crew holds your things, don't argue on the curb. Call the police, and call the Texas DMV for a move within Texas, or the federal FMCSA for a move from another state. The numbers are on screen.

9:07Who is actually picking up your stuff?

Before you book any mover, ask one question. Who is actually coming to pick up my stuff?

In 2024, newlyweds moving from Garland, near Dallas, to Oregon booked a company with near-perfect online reviews. They say it handed the job to another carrier. The delivery dates came and went. They'd hidden an AirTag in a jewelry box. They'd been told the truck was in Montana. The tracker showed their things were in a storage unit in Dallas. Police got a warrant and found them there, next to two other families' belongings.

A Texas movers' trade group put it simply. If the company you hire isn't the one coming to pick up your load, that's the first red flag.

And watch the weight. In 2018, a woman moving from Indianapolis to Austin says she was told after loading that she had two thousand more pounds than estimated. Nearly two thousand dollars more. She paid to have her things weighed herself. Two thousand nine hundred and forty pounds.

So get the name of the actual mover in writing, check its license, drop a tracker in a box, and if the numbers change, get a signed new estimate before anything goes on the truck.

10:13The short version

So here's the short version. Know what the move should cost before you sign. Register your car within thirty days, then get your license and file your homestead. In Houston and Dallas, pick your power plan before move-in day. Move early in the morning in summer. And always know who is actually picking up your things.

If you want help, go to majesticmovingcompanies.com. Get free quotes from professional movers who cover your route. It takes about thirty seconds, or you can chat with Robert, our moving assistant. And while you're there, there's a lot more to help you plan: guides on moving costs, delivery windows, car shipping and more.

I'm Daniel. Welcome to Texas.