Since there seem to be a lot of Texans on here, maybe I can find someone from the Corpus Christi area, familiar with Padre Island, as well, who can give me some information about the area.  

Specifically, I am looking for the "personal knowledge" type of info. regarding real estate.  One can get only so much, and skewed at that, from Realtor sites, for example.

The home prices seem quite reasonable, and that "bothers" me to a certain extent - cynicism, I guess, based on what I see around our area.  What are taxes like?  Auto issues, such as registration fees?  I'm looking for those "hidden charges" like personal property taxes some states sneak on one.  I don't believe TX has them, but it's best to ask.  From an earlier reading of TX firearm law, it almost seems that CHL issuance might be a formality since there is reciprocity (at least, the last time I checked) with FL.  

AS background, we live in Pinellas county, FL.  It is probably the most densely populated in the state.  Property prices have skyrocketed to the point where you'd think you are in the Northeast.  Who ever thought you'd see $500 K and more for a house.  Admittedly, that's on a canal, which I want.  But, not anything extreme, either.  The image one has of the fancy locations are heading over $1 mil.  Way out of my league.  And, it's not even that they are worth it.  The buying hysteria and seller imaginations are more behind that than anything else.  It's become somewhat of a bubble, in my view.  Please don't misunderstand, I expect to pay a fair price, and somewhat stiffer because of the water location, but don't want to lose a lot when a bubble bursts.  

Anyway, this may be somewhat familiar if you've read some posts on the legal section.  I had asked some there about CA, for the purpose of gathering "ammunition."  My wife is enamored with California.  And, I must admit it has a lot of nice areas, and good weather if you're on the Central Coast.  MAny of the people on the site were quite helpful about prices.  If it were the CA of 30 years ago, I might have headed out.  As things now stand in the Peoples' republic, I'm trying to avoid it like the plague.  Sorry, don't mean to insult the few "real" people out there.  Just trying to be practical, and I'm getting too old to "wait for (or, help bring about) change".  I'm 55, young enough to do things, but twenty years from now is not even on my radar.  

So, I'd appreciate someone telling me what's good and bad about the Corpus Christi area, weather, homes, taxes, etc.

Thanks a lot.

While living in another part of Texas, let me pass along a few ideas.  The Texas coast between Corpus Christi and Padre Island is the least populated seashore you'll ever see.  About 100 miles of it is the King Ranch.  Look on a map and you'll see that with the exception us US77 there aren't ANY public roads in Kenedy County.  Land around the lower Texas coast is pretty cheap even around the few cities.  Aransas Pass (Port Aransas to us) is nice if a little rundown but a legendary spring break locale.  You'll probably find your Florida beaches superior to the Texas coast, certainly there is more development along the coast in FL.  Somebody from South Texas can give you the best info.

I'm from Corpus. Still have family there, and was just there this weekend.

It's a great place to go to the beach, especially if you are into fishing,  (from my mom's driveway I can have the boat in the water in less than 10 minutes) the national seashore is awesome,  and a four wheel drive is a must. Many times you will be the only people from horizon to horizon.  However, I moved to Austin years ago, and am trying to get my mom to move as well.

Nueces county taxes, especally property taxes, are high.  My mom's house is appraised at 98k and her taxes are almost twice what mine is on a 130K house in Williamson county.

Shopping, night life opportunities, and general facilities are pretty thin.  Gun shops and ranges are woefully inadequate.  Decent gun shows are in San Antonio or Houston. Traffic is a living nightmare. Crime is high.  Medical care,  well, my mom comes to Austin for that.  If you are retired military, there is a small navy base with a BX.  (CCNAS)

The local political climate is a great source of amusement, it seems like the whole city council is on laughing gas.  The only thing they ever agreed on was putting a statue of Selena in a city park.  They spend their time chasing tourism, the latest thing that they think will save the city are gambling ships. Any jobs beyond service level are hard to come by, and don't pay much. Knowing Spanish is a necessity,  the local population is about 65% hispanic.  It's pretty much a border town.

Port Aransas is a fishermans dream.  Hotels and condos are inexpensive, right on the beach,   and access to the gulf is easy. Spring Break gets a little rowdy though. The population goes from 2,000 to about 100,000 for about 5 weeks a year.  You drive and camp on the beaches here,  and it'll be solid cars for miles.

Real estate.  Fairly cheap, lots of waterfront property, some of it really out in the countryside.  Some properties are not within the city limits, therefore no city taxes.  Hurricane insurance is pricey,  but coming from Florida you know more about that than I do. A lot of properties are built on canals that connect into the lagoon, and you can pretty much boat to Mexico down the intracoastal waterway. Quite a few places are mandatory evacuation during hurricanes. There is only one road off the beach,  and it closes when the water rises.  

Weather is pretty much what you are used to, but with fewer tropical storms.  Older folks still talk about the last time it they had a bad freeze,  sometime around 1988.
Cost of living is fairly cheap, gas is currently at 1.14 a gallon.  My mom's electrical bill is high, but that may be because she keeps the house like a meat locker.  You are going to get bit on car insurance, lots of uninsured drivers.        

The refineries that mark the entrance to Corpus are a dramatic sight at night.
No thanks.

I was born in corpus,

No thanks, I don't like refineries, don't like brown water and most of corpus is pretty run down.

The schools are not so hot either.

Stick to florida, much nicer.  Let me put it this way, my family used to drive from texas, clear over to florida (destin), instead of vacationing in corpus.

Interesting.  I wrote that off because I thought it would be more like the negative comments above, and closer to Mexico.  Could be I was mistaken about that.  ANy suggestions as to areas there?  My wife and I will be traveling over the next couple of months, and will look.  I appreciate the advice.(Yes, I agree with adaptability being the key to survival)

The Texas "Riviera" has the most "beautiful" brown water you'll ever see. And you can't miss the dead jelly fish and huge tarballs on the otherwise "pristine" beaches.