Hidden Lakes Townhomes 77008

[margokorin]

I have always loved these townhomes. Now there is one available in my price range. Anyone know the scoop? I realize that they are right on the bayou and most likely flooded during Allison but what about Ike, or before? Also read on har that they are "pet friendly". What does that mean?

[diggity]

are you looking to rent or buy?

if it's a rental, I would imagine that "pet friendly" just means they allow pets.

[west20th]

I have always loved these townhomes. Now there is one available in my price range. Anyone know the scoop? I realize that they are right on the bayou and most likely flooded during Allison but what about Ike, or before? Also read on har that they are "pet friendly". What does that mean?

I was interested in those townhomes also. Great location, pretty complex and outstanding pricing, usually less than 150K. I saw the price and thought "this is too good to be true". It probably is because of flood issues. You will notice that there is a pretty dramatic grade change when you enter the property. Also my partner asked a lady from work who lives in the immediate area about flooding in that neighborhood. She said that complex floods pretty easily. But I would check the HCFCD district maps to be sure. I'd bet this complex is in the 100 year flood plain and possibly in the the floodway.

http://www.hcfcd.org/

Edit: Did a check based on a HAR listing for 782 Worthshire. It listed for 114K, an unbelievable price, however that address shows to be straddling the the floodway and the 100 year floodplain. Pretty risky.

[Original Timmy Chan's]

I'd bet this complex is in the 100 year flood plain and possibly in the the floodway.

Check www.tsarp.org for 723 Worthshire.

The entire property is in the 100-yr floodplain, half the site's in the floodway. Not only is the property in the floodplain, but it appears to be deep in the floodplain. According to the TSARP website, existing ground elevations are approximately elevation 47'-48', with a 100-yr floodplain elevation of 53' in that area. That puts the property 5'-6' deep in the floodplain. I guess that's a little easier to live with if you're on the 2nd floor, not so good on the ground floor or for cars in the parking lot.

The floodway designation could become problematic in the future...according to current COH floodplain regs, for any structure in the floodway that suffers damages that exceed 50% of the market value of that structure, the entire structure must be brought to compliance with the current floodplain regs. In essence, that would require the townhomes to be rebuilt on pier and beam foundation and elevated nearly 10' above ground, and there would be some drainage/detention/floodplain mitigation improvements required.

[margokorin]

Looking to buy. The description of the home in har mentioned the neighborhood being pet friendly.

I am having the same, "this is too good to be true" feeling. Im going to head over there this weekend and see if I can find any residents out and about.

[Heights2Bastrop]

Maybe someone can help me out on the date, but there was a flood in Houston somewhere around

[Ross]

Those townhouses have floded on at least three occasions I am aware of. Most of the owners move their cars further up Worthshire if there's a hint of heavy rain. About half the houses are in th efloodway, with the rest in the floodplain. And that's after taking the stupid way the floodway was drawn into account (the back corner of my lot is in the floodway, at an elevation of 56 feet - that's just stupid). Timbergrove is a great place to live, but those townhouses should never have been built there. Old time residents say that the HOA had a chance to buy th eproperty for $15k to build a park, but no one thought it was worth doing.

[CityGirl567]

I live in the Hidden Lake Townhomes. It flooded during Hurricane Allison in 1995 because someone had tampered with the flood gate in order to steal a large copper part. Instead of the flood gate closing when the water rose in the bayou, the gate stayed open and the water flowed into the creek that runs behind the townhomes. The county replaced the part and put a locked grate across the opening so people can't get in there anymore. During Ike, the water in the bayou came within a few feet of the top of the levee, but we didn't have any flooding in the complex. Some people move their cars to higher ground during the hurricanes, but they don't do that every time there's a hint of heavy rain, as a previous poster stated. I live in the back in the lowest part of the complex and all of my neighbor's cars are here whenever it rains. It doesn't flood under normal conditions.

[Scharpe St Guy]

My first home purchase was in Hidden Lakes back in 2002. I loved the area, the location, the lake behind my townhouse 779, it felt like I was coming home to a home in the country on a lake with lots of wildlife all around. Back then and even now the price can't be beat but the fear of flooding will always be there due to being like New Orleans at the bottom of the toliet bowl!

However that being said the flooding has served to keep these properties updated and refreshed. The only reason I moved was due to attending a Dave Ramsey class and realized I was spending too much money both in mortgage and HOA costs, I reinvested my money into the East End and purchased a few homes for investments/flips/etc... and came out pretty well. Again great area and property however the first floor can and will flood every X or XX years so flood insurance is a must from the lenders point of view and hopefully yours too.

All the best,

Scharpe St Guy