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Inwood Forest Developments


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also is there a chamber of commerce over there im not really sure how that all works and who is it if there is one.
IF has a neighborhood association, and they have a COP program as well. Not sure if that was what you were asking.

In all the years GF lived in Inwood, she never once had a break-in, nor any vandalism whatsoever, and she was on the fringe being on Victory. For the 3 years I lived with her, I only know of one incident that happened on her street, and it was just some kid stuff.

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Guest danax
well thats is about all i can affored imean a 60,000 townhouse at 2000 sq feet on the golf course is a good deal but yes yall are right the area around it sucks i mean i am only 19. is it so bad everyday you comehome your house is broken into and yes there are a lot of forclosures in that area there where three right next to each other.Does any one know of any develepment in the area at all.If there is no develepment there where is the closest develpoment at? There area has a lot of potental i dont see why there wouldent be any develpment at all.Its not like i wont shoot someone trying to brake in my house but i dont wanna do it every day lol.also is it is aloso really close to uptown as well 7 miles if i am right.also is there a chamber of commerce over there im not really sure how that all works and who is it if there is one.

well thanks for any help

It might not be a bad time to buy there, as long as you're not needing to make a profit in the short term. We all have stories of places that we once knew when they were cheap and watched as prices got crazy, Midtown in the 80s and early 90s, for example. So buying when an area's near the bottom of its life cycle can be good in the long run. Picking that bottom is the hard part, and dealing with the riff-raff element, for what could be decades, is the other.

I think an area's negative image is often exagerated so daily life there for you and others might not be that bad.

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well thats is about all i can affored imean a 60,000 townhouse at 2000 sq feet on the golf course is a good deal but yes yall are right the area around it sucks i mean i am only 19. is it so bad everyday you comehome your house is broken into and yes there are a lot of forclosures in that area there where three right next to each other.Does any one know of any develepment in the area at all.If there is no develepment there where is the closest develpoment at? There area has a lot of potental i dont see why there wouldent be any develpment at all.Its not like i wont shoot someone trying to brake in my house but i dont wanna do it every day lol.also is it is aloso really close to uptown as well 7 miles if i am right.also is there a chamber of commerce over there im not really sure how that all works and who is it if there is one.

well thanks for any help

I don't know that we can.

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ajl1986d

If you have a job and are a first time homebuyer, you might think of contacting one of the Community Development Corporations in areas that interest you. For no charge, they will work to get you qualified including working with the credit agencies to get your score up if required. The best part is that they can help you access various down payment assistance programs. The down payment assistance can be as much as $20k depending on the situation/income level. etc. The CDC we work with typically has some houses available or they have lots you pick out and builders with plans that are prepackaged and priced.

Acres Homes isn't far from Inwood and I think it has better long term development/appreciation opportunities. It is well located and the City is focusing lots of bucks on infrastructure improvement. Crime is an issue. Schools are an issue. That said, I'm amazed at the amount of new construction activity. We've been working in there for about two years and land prices moved up 15-20% since we started buying lots.

We are currently building a house for Acres Homes Community Development Corporation right across the street from Lincoln City Park. It's a Harris County Park with a pool, tennis courts, community center and jogging track. The county spent several millions of dollars upgrading a year and half ago. There are at least three other new constructions within two blocks of us, five more behind us that were built within the last five years.

If you're prepared to take a long term view, I think it's a great option. You are exactly the type of buyer CDCs love to work with, young, employed and willing to live with the trade offs of a neighborhood that is turning around.

I've looked at Inwood off and on as a builder/developer and I like the area. I always hesitate to try and do anything up there because of the flooding issues.

If you want more details, send me a message and I'll give you some folks you can talk to. If you don't like Acres Homes, 5th Ward, The Near Northside, 3rd Ward, 4th Ward, Sunnyside etc. all have active/competent CDCs too.

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well i know flooding really anit an issue anymore as thay have made volge creek bigger.another thing is my limit is 60,000 i know that anit much thats all can affored.and i have a found a few townhouse over there.also how far away is acors homes from there coulde the development in up pushing into inwood forest. another thing is i dont want to move to far from the airport as t hats where i work i live in kingwood know and thats not to far from iah."live with parents" alos jgs1419 do you work for a landeveloper or something iv been wanting to do something like that as of right know i have no idea what i wanna do for a for the rest of my life lol.

i also found the crime rate its not vary bad at all?

thanks http://www.inwoodforest.net/SECURITY%20REP...TY_2005%20.html

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i live in inwood north right now. right behind the golf course. in the last year, i've had my truck broken into, someone on my street was broken into in broad daylight.

i don't know that the crime is 'increasing' but i know that home values are not.

you can get a nice place in inwood... i don't think you can get closer to the city and get a better $ per square foot home... (because if you can, then it's time for me to move.)

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Acres Homes isn't far from Inwood and I think it has better long term development/appreciation opportunities.

I've noticed an uptick in new home construction in AH myself, especially on the western edge. What AH also needs to make the area more attractive outside of the issue of crime and schools is more neighborhood-intensive retail, like grocery stores, dry cleaners, clothing stores and so forth. Take a look at your typical predominately white (or even Hispanic) middle income neighborhood and there is a healthy amount of retail. In many predominately black middle income (or near middle income0 communities, retail opportunities are much lower.

As for Inwood Forests, both Inwood North and Inwood Oaks, the individual subdivisions are well-kept with lots of caring neighborhoods, but the issue (as is often the case in "at risk" neighborhoods in Houston) is the nearby low-income apartment complexes. They breed crime and it lowers the value of the homes nearby because a) people don't want to live in high-crime areas and B) the original property owners ask for even less than what they would normally just so they can move when they're ready.

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ajl.... Inwood Forest doesn't even begin to compare with Kingwood... punk teenagers in KW... crackheads in IF...

well we live right next to porto a lota meth houses pver there but not so many there at least on a week in the paper kinda normal really but this is what i can affores and i like it so expect a new white boy in inwood lol ?well i founf out the house had mold in it so now im on the look agine! what do house normally go for at acres home my limit is 60,000 tops unforenitly

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What AH also needs to make the area more attractive outside of the issue of crime and schools is more neighborhood-intensive retail, like grocery stores, dry cleaners, clothing stores and so forth.

It would be nice for the commercial development to follow right on the heels of the new residential, God forbid it be planned. What I've seen after living in the Heights for fifteen years is that it's rarely the case. Even without the retail, the new construction in Acres Homes is going strong.

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It would be nice for the commercial development to follow right on the heels of the new residential, God forbid it be planned. What I've seen after living in the Heights for fifteen years is that it's rarely the case. Even without the retail, the new construction in Acres Homes is going strong.

I must be driving through the wrong part of Acres... I don't see construction 'going strong'.

I gotta move. My wife just pulled the "if we stay here, I want to get a gun, because of the amount of travel you do for work."

It's a nice neighborhood. I guess it's time for me to do some make ready and get this thing on the market.

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We are building in the "Lincoln City" section of Acres Homes. We are one of three or four builders each building four or five homes per year each in that area. It is one of the few parts of Acres Homes that is platted in residential lots (typically 7,200sf). Much of the western part, toward T.C. Jester, also has a lot of new construction but it is kind of hodge podge since most of the lots started out as acreage tracts.

Find Lincoln City park on your key map and drive the streets that surround the park. There are lots of new houses being built and some really scary shacks that need to be torn down.

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Acres Homes is a plague on Inwood. I've been told by former Inwwod residents how Acres Homes residents slowly migrated into the large apartment complexes off of DeSoto in the mid 80's. Since then Inwood has been Acres Home owned & operated.

You should definitely get you wife a gun - no matter where you live. I too would move out of Inwood. Some places are just not meant to be. Sadly, this is one of them. I hate saying that because I love the look & layout of Inwood. But hey, if the crews from the "fo-fo" didn't get it, mother nature would eventually (flooding from White Oak bayou).

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We are building in the "Lincoln City" section of Acres Homes. We are one of three or four builders each building four or five homes per year each in that area. It is one of the few parts of Acres Homes that is platted in residential lots (typically 7,200sf). Much of the western part, toward T.C. Jester, also has a lot of new construction but it is kind of hodge podge since most of the lots started out as acreage tracts.

Find Lincoln City park on your key map and drive the streets that surround the park. There are lots of new houses being built and some really scary shacks that need to be torn down.

Ah, yes... I'll go take a look. I'm familiar with Lincoln City. As a pre-teen in the 80s, I was not allowed to go there - bad things...

I was just sitting here talking to my wife about Acres Homes and wondering what might be going on... I'm going to get on the motorcycle and go scout out the area this week...

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  • 4 weeks later...

I have some investment advice for you. Follow this simple 5-step plan:

1. Stay in Inwood North.

2. Obtain a reasonable security system. Cost = $2K.

3. Obtain a used cop car at an auction...and simply park it in your driveway at all times. Cost = $5K.

4. Have your wife start a German Shepherd rescue out of your home, with at least 3 or 4 German Shepherds in your yard at all times. Cost = less than $1K.

5. Obtain at least 1 lifeboat (in case of flooding). Cost = $1K.

Total cost = $10K...which is a lot less than paying $300,000 for a home in Garden Oaks.

I also recommend taking your wife to a gun safety class and firing range (for target practice) on weekends. And what woman doesn't love a new Kevlar vest for an anniversary gift? Assuming, of course, it matches the rest of her wardrobe. :)

Seriously, if you're going to have kids, I recommend making your #1 priority what kind of life you want your kids to have and how you want them to be raised. While it may seem unreasonable now to shell out absurd amounts of money on a house...having kids will turn that perspective upside down real quick! :) Another thing that you may find is that you'll find yourself willing to live somewhere you couldn't imagine wanting to live, like in suburbia or even a small town. I grew up in the city, and I never thought much of the burbs, and I even despised the burbs at some points in my life. But when I had kids...look where I wound up! Now I strongly endorse it as the best place for families. I think a lot of the people on this forum would probably agree with that notion as well.

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don't worry... we'll eventually move to the suburbs... i hear that i must "chase the good schools," although based on what i've seen in Houston (i went to SBISD, HISD and Humble ISD) doing so is futile - what's good now will not be good in 15 years.

as for your plan... we have two dogs now - one is a white german shepard with teeth and nails from hell - it works. we have a security system - works. i live on a bayou and outside the flood plain (didn't flood during allison when surrounding area did) - works. we have a cop car on our street...

actually, what's funny (or not), is that the neighborhood itself is actually nice. i live in the part that is south of W Gulf Bank. Small neighborhood. Friendly. Quiet. Clean and well kept.

i do not have the income to support a $300k house. the 'numbers' say i do, but i like having no debt, some savings, investments, and a little money to spend.

if i can afford a $300k house, i should be able to buy two more houses like the one i have ($100k) - and have them sit empty. better yet, i should be able to afford 12 more houses like i have now and keep them as rentals (assuming 2 months vacancy per year.)

or move to the suburbs :-)

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"don't worry... we'll eventually move to the suburbs... i hear that i must "chase the good schools," although based on what i've seen in Houston (i went to SBISD, HISD and Humble ISD) doing so is futile - what's good now will not be good in 15 years."

IMO choosing a closer-in school may be a good idea. Schools in gentrifying neighborhoods may become better as riff-raff moves outside of the schools' attendance zones.

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The truth is that most schools are good enough to get your kid into a position to achieve so long as the parents are doing their job at home and providing the right kind of motivation, discipline and diligence. It's one thing to look at a poorer school in HISD and talk about a lack of materials or what have you but it's another to think that your child, with proper instruction at home as well at school, won't be able to perform and be prepared to go to pretty much any college in America.

Part of the failure of some public schools is with the parents, including the parents who give up on the school and take their child (and their influence) away, leaving behind a system that has an even larger percentage of kids who come from homes where the parents a.) don't care and/or b.) don't know. Discipline problems ensue. The school's zone funding is reduced and the infrastructure breaks down. Good teachers elect to go to "better" schools. Supplies are harder to come by. And so forth.

But even outside of the city, what continues to happen is that a good number of people are moving to the suburbs, where housing is cheaper, yet they're STILL electing to send their kids to private schools rather than public schools, because the cheaper housing affords them an opportunity to spend the "savings" on tuition at a decent private school.

It's not like suburban school districts aren't without the share of "ho-hum" schools. Maybe statistcially better than their urban counterparts but still nothing outstanding.

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  • 1 month later...

Hello. Just wanted to add my two cents in the Inwood Forest discussion.

I have lived in IF for about three years. I moved to Houston from the east coast in '01 and lived in an apt near Riv Oaks for two years. Surprised that I chose to move to "a place like" Inwood from River Oaks? Well, I looked in places like Timbergrove Manor, Oak Forest, Garden Oaks, etc. Basically, I found too little "cookie-cutter" 1950's-style houses for too much money.

Then a coworker of mine (office near the Galleria) said I should take a look at the house up the street from him in IF. I'd never been out that far before as I had been looking closer to the loop. The house for sale was a 3/2/2, 2300sf with a pool on the golf course. Compared to what I had seen in the other neighborhoods, I was amazed. It seemed to be a great value to have all this space and be able to look out the "wall of windows" in the living room of a custom-built home (1978) and instead of seeing the ubiquitous 6' privacy fence that boxes in just about every back yard in Houston, to have the lovely pool, the green open spaces of the fairway and friendly, smiling golfers waving as they wiz by in thier golf carts.

The community association has an active Citizens on Patrol proram and publishes a monthly news letter with crime statisitcs from Inwood Forest and the surrounding areas. IF crime is always 10% or less of that on the outside of the community. I can't say that I've heard of any serious crime (such as break in's, carjackings, etc) from any of my neighbors. (I have had my lawn mower stolen from my open garage. A pretty low-level and common theft from my experience.)

My daily commute on Antione Drive does pain me. How I long for a Starbucks or a nice restaurant or gourmet shop to appear! I expect it will be a long time if/when that ever happens. However, those things do exist nearby; at the Antione Dr. exit off 290, right on my way to-from work every day, there are a number of decent shops including a new Starbucks and a Randalls.

It ain't perfect, that's for sure and Inwood Forest has seen better days. Yet it remains something of an oasis in the midst the unplanned and umnplesant sprawl one frequently finds in staunchly and forever un-zoned Houston. And that will probably inhibit, to some extent, any gentrification that may take place.

I have heard the neighborhood refered to lately as "Lavender Forest" owing to the number of gay/lesbian people moving to the community. As in the past here in Houston and seen in other cities, perhaps this will be the first wave of an upturn in the fate of Inwood. Gay people are frequently the "urban pioneers" moving into neighborhoods considered to be less desirable by the more "main-stream" home buyer.

Not sure if I will stay forever. I doubt if there has been much if any appreciation in my home's value and not sure if should expect anything more than a few percent per year at that for the near future.

There are some lovely homes in IF. There is a strong neighborhood association, a healthy mix of people, reasonable proximity to the rest of the city and for now anyway, its home.

Thanks.

P.S. Why not extend T.C. Jester Park north beyond where it currently ends (near Tidwell, I think) all the way up to Inwood? There is a lot of undeveloped land along T.C. Jester that could be incorporated into the rest of the White Oak bayou greenway with bike paths and trails that terminate at Inwood. (Ashame to see the remaining open space developed into additional strip malls, Dollar Stores or God forbid low-rent apartments!)

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"don't worry... we'll eventually move to the suburbs... i hear that i must "chase the good schools," although based on what i've seen in Houston (i went to SBISD, HISD and Humble ISD) doing so is futile - what's good now will not be good in 15 years."

IMO choosing a closer-in school may be a good idea. Schools in gentrifying neighborhoods may become better as riff-raff moves outside of the schools' attendance zones.

I agree. There is a big shift in schools in certain areas. I think those are sustainable changes, since the people digging their heels in are bent on not chasing schools.

People in the 'burbs who move for good schools will move again and abandon the current schools they built. Houstonians who are the "I'm not moving from here and I'm gonna make it work" type, tend to create sustainable improvements: Travis Elementary; Oak Forest Elementary...just to name a couple.

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" Lavender Forest" - kinda funny.... i hadn't heard that... i think that is actually a good thing from a real estate POV.

i think i'm actually going to end up leaving the country, so this whole thread may be moot... (it is also mute ;-))

i like it here... i'm actually in Inwood North, looking at the IF course through my back window...

welcome lavendar people...

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have lived in Inwood Forest for a year now and so far it's been great. Some streets, including mine, are so beautiful. The houses are well-maintained with great landscaping. The golf course is very nice and a great place for an evening run.

My neighbors are absolutely incredible. Although they are borderline nosey, they certainly keep an eye out for me--bringing in my trash can, feeding my cats, calling the cops once because they were worried, as I had left my door ajar for my cats when I went for a short walk. My 80 year old neighbor always wants to help me mow my lawn and hates that I won't let him.

The Citizens On Patrol are great, too. I was helping a stray dog once and within 5 minutes a "COP" stopped to see what I was up to and if I needed help. He gave me his name and number in case I needed help finding the dog a home.

I wish Inwood Forest didn't have the reputation it does, because it really can be a great place to live. I think it's sad that people say the only reason to live here is if it's the only thing you can afford. I can afford to live somewhere else and have--The Heights, Garden Oaks, Oak Forest. And it was in the Heights that my car was broken into and a man was shot dead in the middle of my street. And in Garden Oaks that I had a bona fide stalker. Yeah, those sound like places that are worth paying $300,000 for a 1000 sq. foot 'bungalow' in need of renovation.

Perhaps if people stopped perpetuating the rumors, good people would move in and stay. I am single, 29, female, and live alone. I have always felt safe here. (The woman I bought the house from lived here alone for 30 years.) The only crime I have heard about (on my street anyway) is lawn equipment being stolen from an open garage. I sit in my lawn at night and never worry for my life or my property. My house is 2300 sq. feet and BEAUTIFUL. Recent updates, professional landscaping, sprinkler/alarm systems, the works. I love here and intend to live here as long as I live in Houston. I work downtown and it takes 20 minutes.

As for the flooding. It sucks sometimes, but so far I've only been trapped in my house once. And the city is starting a renovation project--replacing bridges, etc. to reduce flooding.

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.S. Why not extend T.C. Jester Park north beyond where it currently ends (near Tidwell, I think) all the way up to Inwood? There is a lot of undeveloped land along T.C. Jester that could be incorporated into the rest of the White Oak bayou greenway with bike paths and trails that terminate at Inwood.

Yes, yes, yes. We have a winner!! I don't see anything written in the Harris County Flood Plan (that is, the current bayou system renovation) that calls for an extension of TC Jester Park northward but it would be a really big boon to the area, especially with the number of people building their own new homes on the western edge of Acres Homes. It would fit in nicely.

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TC Jester does extend past Tidwell. TC Jester ends just past Victory, so it does extend to the Inwood Forest area (into Oaks of Inwood and Inwood Pines).

There is a neighborhood back there already... and if extended, TC Jester would go right to W Gulf Bank, and would have to snake around Eisenhower's 9th grade campus, and then proceed through Paradise North Cemetary.

There is still land all along TC Jester - between Little York and Tidwell - that is empty... it's actually part of Acres Homes.

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ah, my bad...

yes! extend the park! yes! YES! HELL YES!

follow the bayou as far up to the golf course as possible... so i can ride my bike from home to downtown/midtown pretty easily!

yes... yes... yes.

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Inwood Forest flooded yet again this week. My girlfriend talked to a number of her friends there. Most were lucky, but a few, especially on Vogle Creek, got a couple of inches inside their houses.

Michelle lived on Leaning Oak and Victory since

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