General thought about moving to Northern Houston?

[TheNiche]

Except that I like living here, and do not choose to make myself miserable while realizing gains from appreciation. I'll just continue to bag those capital gains until such time as I choose to move. I left out the fact that I do not want to live in the Woodlands, because it is not germane to this topic.

I hope you get a job soon, as your posts have left the realm of debate and enter the annoying. Idle hands are a troll's workshop.

I don't know what to tell you. If you bothered to consider moving, it couldn't have been that miserable of a prospect. But I agree that we're off topic.

As for your personal attack, I'm going to spin it, keep it on topic, and use it as evidence to the effect that mean people can be found anywhere...urban, suburban, rural. It doesn't matter what your or their political affiliation is; they aren't a very good reason for an attempt at ideological segregation IMO.

[EMME]

Yep, I think this entire thread proves that you want to rent for awhile before deciding where to live. We are many, we are different, we are humbly (on occasion) opinionated, but in the end, we are worth it.

Good luck to you!

[mfowler]

Yep, I think this entire thread proves that you want to rent for awhile before deciding where to live. We are many, we are different, we are humbly (on occasion) opinionated, but in the end, we are worth it.

Good luck to you!

Hi all,

Thank you all for your replies. A lot to think about thats for sure. So I know HAR is the main site for buying homes, does anyone know of a good site to possibly rent a place?

We currently live in a large 4000sq foot house with 1.5 acres of land in Upstate NY so we are looking to moving to a place that is larger, and with a pool. We want to downsize from what we currently have a bit (maybe 3 bedrooms compared to the 5 we have now). But want a modern, fully finished house as well. This is why I was thinking that the Woodlands would be more our style. Neither of us are big city people. We are ok with traveling into the city to check things out but like a laid back setting in general.

Does any of this information help out? You mentioned about going with rush hour traffic from the woodlands. If we took the toll highway do you see a significant slow down? How long would it take to get to the airport there from the southern part of the woodlands roughly (with traffic)? About a half hour/45 mins? That is our current drive into work so that wouldn't be a big deal to us.

Again thanks for all your comments, they are very helpful for us before we go house shopping.

[EMME]

Hi all,

Thank you all for your replies. A lot to think about thats for sure. So I know HAR is the main site for buying homes, does anyone know of a good site to possibly rent a place?

We currently live in a large 4000sq foot house with 1.5 acres of land in Upstate NY so we are looking to moving to a place that is larger, and with a pool. We want to downsize from what we currently have a bit (maybe 3 bedrooms compared to the 5 we have now). But want a modern, fully finished house as well. This is why I was thinking that the Woodlands would be more our style. Neither of us are big city people. We are ok with traveling into the city to check things out but like a laid back setting in general.

Does any of this information help out? You mentioned about going with rush hour traffic from the woodlands. If we took the toll highway do you see a significant slow down? How long would it take to get to the airport there from the southern part of the woodlands roughly (with traffic)? About a half hour/45 mins? That is our current drive into work so that wouldn't be a big deal to us.

Again thanks for all your comments, they are very helpful for us before we go house shopping.

www.houston.Craigslist.org www.theGreensheet.com www.houstonpress.com

I am sure there are others, but these come to mind rather quickly. HAR does have rentals as well, but probably not as many.

[TheNiche]

HAR has probably the best stock of rental listings. When you arrive at their homepage, just click on 'Find a Home', then select 'Residential Lease'.

Given your preferences with respect to lot size, I sense that maybe a master planned community isn't quite right for you after all. You might consider looking around Lake Conroe. The commute will be worse, but I think that you can get something that fits the bill for size, acreage, proximity to a recreational body of water, and that is within your budget.

[mfowler]

HAR has probably the best stock of rental listings. When you arrive at their homepage, just click on 'Find a Home', then select 'Residential Lease'.

Given your preferences with respect to lot size, I sense that maybe a master planned community isn't quite right for you after all. You might consider looking around Lake Conroe. The commute will be worse, but I think that you can get something that fits the bill for size, acreage, proximity to a recreational body of water, and that is within your budget.

We aren't so much interested in acreage anymore, just a pool and an area for our dog in the back yard. Dealing with 1.5 acres was a lot of work, we are looking forward to less work

[rsb320]

Okay, we've gone full circle here. Spring, Kingwood or The Woodlands sound right up your alley. I believe Kingwood/Humble is closer to IAH, though. There's also another area called Ravensway near 290 and Beltway 8. It's an older, established and well-maintained neighborhood, also an easy commute to the airport.

Edit: When I said older, I meant by Houston standards. I'm guessing Ravensway was established in the 70's. Lots of 3 & 4 bedroom homes and is heavily wooded.

[MaggieMay]

Hi all,

Thank you all for your replies. A lot to think about thats for sure. So I know HAR is the main site for buying homes, does anyone know of a good site to possibly rent a place?

We currently live in a large 4000sq foot house with 1.5 acres of land in Upstate NY so we are looking to moving to a place that is larger, and with a pool. We want to downsize from what we currently have a bit (maybe 3 bedrooms compared to the 5 we have now). But want a modern, fully finished house as well. This is why I was thinking that the Woodlands would be more our style. Neither of us are big city people. We are ok with traveling into the city to check things out but like a laid back setting in general.

Does any of this information help out? You mentioned about going with rush hour traffic from the woodlands. If we took the toll highway do you see a significant slow down? How long would it take to get to the airport there from the southern part of the woodlands roughly (with traffic)? About a half hour/45 mins? That is our current drive into work so that wouldn't be a big deal to us.

Again thanks for all your comments, they are very helpful for us before we go house shopping.

"Big City" has a slightly different definition down here; Texas tends to be laid back. Most of our Inside the Loop neighborhoods have a suburban feel--with pools & back yards & even new houses.

The Menu on this screen (under the ads) contains a Traffic feature. It might be useful in figuring out commuting times. (Don't ask me--I ride Metro to work!)

The Houston Press is our free paper, with many goings-on Inside the Loop. But, wait--there's a Crawfish Festival in Old Town Spring this weekend. Which is Up North! And the restaurant listings show that even newer neighborhoods have more to offer than chains. Besides, if you aren't being Soccer Parents on the weekends, you'll have time to explore the whole area.

Continue to gather information & ask questions as you become more focused on what we have to offer. You've probably noticed we've got lots of "experts" here.

Welcome to Houston.

[KinkaidAlum]

Maggie nailed it. Big city in Texas doesn't not equal big city in the Northeast.

Where in upstate NY are you moving from? I am a native Houstonian but went to college in Geneva, NY and then lived in Boston for years. Even the densest most urban parts of Houston are more laid back than anything you'd find in a NE city. Heck, parts of Geneva NY were more urban than most of the inner loop.

The best advice given in this thread is to rent first. Houston can be very hard to get to know so come on down and explore for yourself first. I will tell you that Southeast Texas doesn't offer the stunning beauty of upstate NY (Lake Placid, Finger Lakes region, Adirondacks, etc...) so you might find that living closer to the city's amenities is more important in the end.

[lockmat]

In that case, it is probably worth noting that The Woodlands is farther from IAH than the Houston Heights. Not only that, but since Woodlands residents would be driving WITH rush hour traffic, and Heights residents would be driving against it, the commute from The Woodlands takes longer as well.

I drive from the Woodlands area to Rankin road area for work and traffic is not bad at all really at 7am. I slow down a few times but other than that it's 65 mph. It takes about 30 mins to get to work.

[lockmat]

You mentioned about going with rush hour traffic from the woodlands. If we took the toll highway do you see a significant slow down? How long would it take to get to the airport there from the southern part of the woodlands roughly (with traffic)?

I guess the toll road to that area would be a little better. But I often drive past the entrance and already see cars backed up. It's only two lanes until you're to or past the airport area. I hardly ever take it to work but coming home at 4, it's much better and free flowing.

[OldHouseLover]

Hello,

My wife and I are going to be moving to the area in a couple of months. She is going to be working in Northern Houston and we were told to check into the Woodlands, Spring, or Kingwood up there by the HR rep for the company. What are your thoughts on these areas and or any other northern areas that may be better?

Thanks

We've just moved to the Woodlands after almost 40 yrs in our Houston home [just outside Loop 610/290]. If you are interestged in lease/renal our previous home will soon be available. It would be an ideal area to live in while you decide where to put down roots. [if interested in the house, send me a personal message thru HAIF....it's 1950s original kinda ranch style].

As for the Woodlands, has great trails, many pocket parks, convenient shopping/malls. What we miss about Houston is the lack of choices in restraunts. Most of the chains are in area, but miss Cleburne Cafeteria, Whole Foods & Mom/Pop restraunts. We live in Grogan's Mill & appreciate it's location near I-45 with easy choice of taking either I-45 or Hardy Toll Road to get to airport [we use toll road]. If 2+ in car, using HOV lane is great for going to/coming from areas between Woodlands & downtown during rush hours. BTW, there are many rentals in older sections of Woodlands also.

[Barbara]

Is the woodlands a nice area though? I am seeing things about malls going bankrupt there or something? Is it still an up and coming neighborhood or is it going downhill? Mostly making sure it is a safe environment.

Didn't read all the responses, too many but The Woodlands is one of the best master planned communities in the state. It is a township now with great tax rates.The mall is beautiful and is a tourist attraction.

There is alot to do in The Woodlands..shopping, restaurants, concerts, movies, dog park, walking trails..its all there..

[HTX]

I lived in Kingwood for 10 years and we were about in your age bracket at that time. If you don't have kids, we did, it can get pretty boring. Life centers on T-ball, swimming teams, BBQ parties around somebodies pool with screaming kids, you get the picture. The problem is the other neighborhoods out that way are going to be similar.

Kingwood and The Woodlands both offer walking trails, golf etc. Kingwood is probably a little closer to IAH and as another poster said has better freeway access to downtown via 59 simply because it is newer and a lot less traveled than 45.

Good luck.

[RedScare]

Didn't read all the responses, too many but The Woodlands is one of the best master planned communities in the state. It is a township now with great tax rates.

Great tax rates? Hardly. They have come down a bit in recent years as MUD bonds have been paid down, but Woodlands taxes are still higher than Houston taxes. Depending on the village, some are as much as 40% higher (Creekside). Most are 5-10% higher than Houston's combined rate.

[AtticaFlinch]

Great tax rates? Hardly. They have come down a bit in recent years as MUD bonds have been paid down, but Woodlands taxes are still higher than Houston taxes. Depending on the village, some are as much as 40% higher (Creekside). Most are 5-10% higher than Houston's combined rate.

I don't think it matters. I'm willing to bet in the year and a half since the original post, a decision has already been made.