Lafayette vs. Shreveport Louisiana

[the dufferz]

In wanting to move to Louisiana, if there was an option between moving to Lafayette or Shreveport, which would have the higher standard of living, had more job opportunities and would be a better overall place to live?

[kimbercuddles]

Actually, I cannot really answer your question completely. We lived in Bossier City, which is the sister city to Shreveport and were continuously told that Bossier City was the better place to live. More job opportunities and higher class of living? Well, I am not certain regarding jobs, but the 'higher class of living' was not apparent in either city, to me. There are a lot of very nice, fairly educated military people in that area and we never had any problem with feeling like we didn't belong.

The housing in both places was very affordable...in fact, we bought our first house in Bossier City (near Barksdale AFB) for about $62,000 and were very happy with it (3bdrm, 1.5 bath, 1300 sq ft) and ended up selling it (after remodeling a bit) for $78,000 within two years. Not bad for a first house and only two years.

There is not a LOT to do in that area unless you are an avid fisherman or boater. One of the places that we frequented in the summer was the Blue Bayou/Dixie Landin' amusement and water park. It was a nice size and fun for a city with a smaller population.

Bossier City really did seem to be growing quite a bit when we left in 2003, so maybe things have changed a bit since that time. Whatever you do, don't plan on going swimming in any lake and having a white swimsuit stay white...it will turn into a terd-colored brownish-red within a matter of minutes! And watch out for the gators!