I'm gonna second the LaGrange/columbus/schulenberg areas.
That area is indeed very nice. However, the Fayette Power Project near La Grange is supposedly the cause of a lot of environmental issues in the area. I've been reading news articles about hundreds of trees mysteriously dying and other weird environmental anomalies.
Another area of Texas you should look at is anything north of Conroe, TX in the Piney Woods area. Land is inexpensive, property taxes are low, and you can do just about anything you want on your land. I can't speak for the school systems, but most areas have high speed internet access unless you live WAY out there.
