Lifecycle of Master Planned Communities

[TheNiche]

interesting. are you arguing that the woodlands as an investment is already in decline.....on the downward slope of a master planned community's life cycle? my consideration regarding the topic is longevity (stability) rather than an ever increasing home investment. i do not see the woodlands, perhaps just the eastern side, diminishing any time soon. do you? as to whether or not home values will more likely increase or decrease (in the long term), who can say.

The developers of The Woodlands sensed in the early 2000s that their community was maturing and in need of a branded make-over. Having The Woodlands Mall in their pocket simply wasn't enough anymore. Thus, the Town Center concept was born. It was a marketing gimmick to prevent stagnation of the brand. It was a good idea that worked. However the effect is as impermanent as retilers are fickle. As demographics transition, so do storefronts.

Westbury Square was nice once.

If you're looking to age-in-place and you don't mind being behind the leading edge of affluence, then you've probably got nothing to worry about. The essentials will always be available to you, and there will always be decent places that cater to office workers. You'll be fine.

[bachanon]

As for HOAs disappearing? Try reading The Woodlands Township's website. I did. And, I still have no idea what a "Town Center Effect" is, as you are the only one I've ever heard use the term. However, I do know that the lowest home and property values in the entire township are in those neighborhoods closest to the Town Center, so perhaps this "effect" is not a good thing. And retailers who do not expect a profit won't be there long.

when the township was the town center improvement district, there was a study they were required to do that compared home values in close proximity to "tcid" as compared to homes 5, 10, 15 miles away. comparable home values within one mile of tcid showed to be about 20% higher than their counterparts elsewhere. the study was either titled "town center effect" or used the term in the report. it was on the old website. i do not know if they are required to do this study anymore and i have not been able to locate a current version on any of the websites. perhaps the data is no longer valid; however, my home value has appreciated 30% or more in less than ten years, unlike similar homes three miles away. i'm less than a mile from the woodlands pavilion. i think the "town center effect" is valid for homes close enough to walk to the amenities in town center and under 300K, especially when owning in town center costs considerably more.

regardless, the woodlands in and around town center will not suffer the same "lifecycle" of "past" master planned communities, imo. exxon announcement coming this month......

[bachanon]

The developers of The Woodlands sensed in the early 2000s that their community was maturing and in need of a branded make-over. Having The Woodlands Mall in their pocket simply wasn't enough anymore. Thus, the Town Center concept was born. It was a marketing gimmick to prevent stagnation of the brand. It was a good idea that worked. However the effect is as impermanent as retilers are fickle. As demographics transition, so do storefronts.

Westbury Square was nice once.

If you're looking to age-in-place and you don't mind being behind the leading edge of affluence, then you've probably got nothing to worry about. The essentials will always be available to you, and there will always be decent places that cater to office workers. You'll be fine.

as i've said before, i'd much rather live in the loop, especially now that the kiddo is gone. i would have to give up a lot of house in exchange for culture and diversity........and, the older i get, it doesn't seem like too bad of a trade off.

where would you say the leading edge of affluence is going to be? further out, more difficult to commute? more centralized, in and around the loop, industrial areas becoming residential?

[TheNiche]

as i've said before, i'd much rather live in the loop, especially now that the kiddo is gone. i would have to give up a lot of house in exchange for culture and diversity........and, the older i get, it doesn't seem like too bad of a trade off.

where would you say the leading edge of affluence is going to be? further out, more difficult to commute? more centralized, in and around the loop, industrial areas becoming residential?

As far as the northern suburbs are concerned, it'll be rural western Montgomery County, where there are lots of mini-estates and ranchettes that are too small to subdivide en masse.

In the urban core is a different kind of affluence (or perhaps several different kinds in close proximity). I'd suggest that you just do a tour of the various Krogers, as each of them has a unique clientele mirroring the neighborhood. You'll figure out where you feel most comfortable.

I so miss walking to and from Battle Kroger for my King Cobras 40oz malt beverages...

[dbigtex56]

Those of you old enough to remember the early 80s should recall that the apartments that sprang up in southwest Houston were all the rage back then. Those apartments were the newest, most luxurious apartments in Houston. They were located near a burgeoning shopping and business area called the Galleria...even closer than the Woodlands businesses are to their residents...and were every bit as popular as Midtown is today. The oil bust and subsequent real estate bust gutted those apartments of tenants. Rents plummeted, and lower income tenants arrived. The spiral began.

And such was the case in other parts of Houston. Southwest Houston, the Antoine area, and Greenspoint were thriving areas at that time. How quickly neighborhoods can fall to ruin! In the early 80's the popular lifestyle for young people was moving to Houston, getting a job and renting an apartment in one of these areas; your Camaro, furniture and stereo were easily financed ("your job is your credit!").

Then, in the mid-80's a non-discrimination act was passed; apartments could not maintain a "singles-only" policy. [reference requested]. Coupled with a downturn in the local economy, these cheaply built apartments suddenly became less glamourous. I was amazed, to see reports of ten-year old apartment complexes being demolished, because they had outlived their usefulness. How astonishing to see real estate treated with the same regard as disposable lighters!

[Fringe]

The developers of The Woodlands sensed in the early 2000s that their community was maturing and in need of a branded make-over. Having The Woodlands Mall in their pocket simply wasn't enough anymore. Thus, the Town Center concept was born. It was a marketing gimmick to prevent stagnation of the brand. It was a good idea that worked. However the effect is as impermanent as retilers are fickle. As demographics transition, so do storefronts.

Westbury Square was nice once.

Westbury Square was a victim to new fangled air conditioned malls and really poor management. Funny, with the new popularity of "town centers" and the demise of many indoor malls Westbury Square would probably be very popular today had it been kept up. As you stated, demographics do change and you have to wonder what the next big retail experience will be.

[rsb320]

Westmoreland Place was Houston's first, developed by W.W. Baldwin in 1902. Though 20 or so homes were lost to the development of the Spur, it still hangs on. Let's face it, things just aren't built like they were back then. Back then, by the wealthy and when craftsmen and builders took pride in their work.

[dbigtex56]

Westmoreland Place was Houston's first, developed by W.W. Baldwin in 1902. Though 20 or so homes were lost to the development of the Spur, it still hangs on. Let's face it, things just aren't built like they were back then. Back then, by the wealthy and when craftsmen and builders took pride in their work.

I lived in Westmoreland from 1985 through 2008. Although I lived in what are called "non-contributing" buildings, my appreciation for the area is immense. I'm grateful that my neighbors have preserved the architectural integrity of the neighborhood. It remains charming and unique.

Some parts of its history may be more palatable than others; it was a very "*** cruise-y" neighborhood at one time, and was also the setting for several movies and a TV show.

Be that as it may, its unique character is undiminished. It's a true Houston treasure.

edit: I used the word which starts with 'g' and rhymes with 'may', which implies men who are sexually attracted to one another. It was replaced by "***". Why?

[livincinco]

edit: I used the word which starts with 'g' and rhymes with 'may', which implies men who are sexually attracted to one another. It was replaced by "***". Why?

Seriously? I just lost a lot of respect for this forum, if that's the case. I'd like to hear the explanation for that also.

edit - I just flipped over to time.com and they have a front page story with the title - Are *** relationships different?

[editor]

No need for all the drama. It's just a mistake. Instead of taking it as a personal affront in public, it would have been more useful if you'd just sent me an e-mail two days ago and I would have fixed it then.

A couple of months ago I stumbled across a third-party banned word utility that plugs in to the software that runs HAIF. Previously, I think there were only five or six banned words; this new file promised to add hundreds more. I didn't look through the list of banned words, I just saw that it was rated five stars by other people who use the same software as HAIF. That's what I get for not being thorough.

I guess the people who wrote it intended it to be used in less mature contexts than on HAIF. I'll uninstall it today.

[editor]

Update:

Well, the bad news is that there's no way to remove it without also removing all the previously banned words. The good news is that there weren't that many filtered words before. I think the only one I really recall is changing one to "moo."

There are some other odd banned words in that file:

GAO (So, no discussions of the General Accounting Office?)

FCUK (No discussions of the British French Connection clothing line?)

Guidos (None of the Jersey guidos I know are offended by "guido." Not since the 70's.)

meatspin (I don't even know what that means)

MyExTheBitch (Seems very specific)

WebNoobie (huh?)

[Fringe]

So can I say GAO now?

edit: I can!

[Highway6]

It's still true, you just add that brick (or stone or steel, for that matter) can be done equally as crappy as any other materials. What I was thinking of were places I've been in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, or Dublin. Old, made of stone, and done right the first time. There were definitely crappy stone buildings built 400 years ago too, but those aren't still around.

I've been to Edinburgh. I stayed a couple months at the University of Sterling in the mid 90s. Locals there were b*tching about the quality of construction and paper walls even then.

You can't compare construction methods across decades or centuries. If the Scottish are building with stone today.. it's a 1/2" stone veneer, just like us.

[ricco67]

Update:

Well, the bad news is that there's no way to remove it without also removing all the previously banned words. The good news is that there weren't that many filtered words before. I think the only one I really recall is changing one to "moo."

There are some other odd banned words in that file:

GAO (So, no discussions of the General Accounting Office?)

FCUK (No discussions of the British French Connection clothing line?)

****** (None of the Jersey ****** I know are offended by "guido." Not since the 70's.)

******** (I don't even know what that means)

************ (Seems very specific)

********* (huh?)

I LOL'ed at ********. absolutely NSFW. I got Rick Rolled of sorts to that once. Google it at your own peril.

[20thStDad]

I've been to Edinburgh. I stayed a couple months at the University of Sterling in the mid 90s. Locals there were b*tching about the quality of construction and paper walls even then.

You can't compare construction methods across decades or centuries. If the Scottish are building with stone today.. it's a 1/2" stone veneer, just like us.

Today maybe, but I meant the stuff built centuries ago that is still there. Not just a veneer.

[livincinco]

Update:

Well, the bad news is that there's no way to remove it without also removing all the previously banned words. The good news is that there weren't that many filtered words before. I think the only one I really recall is changing one to "moo."

There are some other odd banned words in that file:

GAO (So, no discussions of the General Accounting Office?)

FCUK (No discussions of the British French Connection clothing line?)

****** (None of the Jersey ****** I know are offended by "guido." Not since the 70's.)

******** (I don't even know what that means)

************ (Seems very specific)

********* (huh?)

This is screaming for it's own thread. A list of the most obscure swear words that you've ever heard.