Reason For Heights

[heightsfan]

Good Afternoon All,

hope all was okay with you and yours during this

hurricane weather . . . .

As a first time home buyer and strongly considering

a home near the Studewood area 13 1/2 and please

pardon my ignorance or lack of knowledge although

I do very much so appreciate all feedback,opinions, and facts.

Is the Heights area going to reach a max as far as investment wise ?

Does the debate still stand inner city vs suburbs is due to the

public schools , commute , or cost of homes and size of homes ?

What is the drive of the cost of homes in the Heights or is it

all inside the loop and Heights is a trend ?

All insight is appreciated as a first time home buyer

Thank You

"make it a great day"

[TJones]

If you are of the belief that "the real estate bubble is about to pop !" Then The Heights is not the place for you if you plan on "flipping" a house in a few years. Heights is without a doubt one of the coolest places in Houston to live, If you plan on being there forever, you will probably make a few bucks off of it in about 15 to 20 years. For most income potential though, IMO, look toward Sugarland or Pearland, fast growing, able to get a good home at a still decent low price, then in about 10 years when alot of the development will still be going, you can probably sell and make a tidy little sum. I also recommend before you buy anything asking the realtor, WHY the seller is selling, try to find a divorcing couple, I know that sounds bad, but these two are looking for a "quick sale" and will take a much lower than asking price, and if you are indeed a real buyer that has your loan in place already, they are gonna jump all over you.

[shady 75]

Houston...housing bubble come on....this is not the east coast or west coast...I don't see home prices going down again here unless the energy business gets hit like in the early eighties...and the energy business seems to be doing well for itself now....

Home prices in this city are relatively cheap compared to the rest of the country.

Actually I could see inner loop communities including the Heights increasing in value due to gas prices, time in the car, etc....with what it costs in extra gas to commute from the suburbs, you should add a couple of hundred dollars a month to your mortgage in the burbs to come out with the real costs...

As far as schools....Travis Elementary is a good elementary school in the area....

They are opening more bars, restaurants and a large shopping center on I-10 and Sawyer (will have a Target). If anything this area is going to increase in value over the next few years. Maybe to native Houstonians prices might seem higher here...but for people that move here from big cities across the country (there are many) they find the Heights very affordable.

Believe it or not...the appeal of living outside the loop is losing its luster to the younger crowd...most of my coworkers, friends, etc(mostly late 20s) have houses in the area.

[TJones]

I agree with you shady, i would even say that the cost of living in Houston, has to be in the top 5 lowest in the country.

[shady 75]

Heights Fan...where do you live now so I will know what to compare it to. I am a native Houstonian and know the city pretty well.

As far as space I would say a good rule of thumb in the Heights is to expect half the space for the sam price of the suburbs. We got a 2 bedroom 1 bath in the Norhill section of Woodland Heights and when we were looking we could have easily gotten a 4 bedroom 2 bath in most suburbs around town.

Deciding factor was that we enjoy inside the loop living (we are city people) and both of our jobs are close by.

[heightsfan]

Currently, reside near 45 south in the neighborhood called Houston Country Club near the Gus Wortham Gulf Course.

I was seeking input , pros & cons, and feedback from suburbia living and city living vs cost , travel , house size , schools . . . .

Thank You