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Houston Info Required

Houston Info Required

Old Jun 28th 2010, 11:57 am
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Question Houston Info Required

Hi all

We (myself, hubby, 1 boy (6) and 1 girl (4) moved from North-East Scotland out to Perth, Australia 5 years ago (now hold Aus Passports). We love life in Perth but now find ourselves with the opportunity of being relocated to Houston for up to 2 years.

I am quite excited about this but need reassurance about schooling, safety of where we shall live, outdoor lifestyle etc etc.

Husband's work is based in Clay Road 77041-5597, which means nothing to me! He doesn't like to commute but we don't want to live in an apartment in the city if you know what I mean! I'm hoping for something similar to what we have here in Perth, a 4 bed house with garden and pool and relatively close and within easy reach of Hubby's work.

Does this place exist?!!!

All replies/opinions gratefully received!

Many thanks
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Old Jun 28th 2010, 12:28 pm
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

Hello and welcome to BE.

I'm sorry but I can't answer your questions because I live in New Jersey. There are loads of threads about Houston...please try the Search function located in the pink bar at the top of this page to search for them. Go to Advanced Search...type the relevant word/phrase in the box on the left hand side and search the titles. Highlight the US Forums...then press Search Now. This should bring up the relevant threads. If you have a problem give me a shout and I'll walk you through it.

Also take a look through the BE Wiki...there's loads of useful info about moving to the US.
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Old Jun 28th 2010, 3:51 pm
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

Originally Posted by Scozzie456
Hi all

We (myself, hubby, 1 boy (6) and 1 girl (4) moved from North-East Scotland out to Perth, Australia 5 years ago (now hold Aus Passports). We love life in Perth but now find ourselves with the opportunity of being relocated to Houston for up to 2 years.

I am quite excited about this but need reassurance about schooling, safety of where we shall live, outdoor lifestyle etc etc.

Husband's work is based in Clay Road 77041-5597, which means nothing to me! He doesn't like to commute but we don't want to live in an apartment in the city if you know what I mean! I'm hoping for something similar to what we have here in Perth, a 4 bed house with garden and pool and relatively close and within easy reach of Hubby's work.

Does this place exist?!!!

All replies/opinions gratefully received!

Many thanks
There are several people on here that live in Houston that I am sure will help. I am heading back in Sept too and Weeze is moving from Aberdeen in the same time frame. There are lots of subdivisions in the area where you would be able to live without a huge commute. Try this website http://search.har.com/engine/dispSearchClass1.cfm It will give you and idea of what's available, prices etc. Just put in the first 5 numbers of your zip code and your requirements. My husband works near Clay Rd!

Good luck!
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Old Jun 28th 2010, 10:10 pm
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

I suggest you look at Lakes on Eldridge, Lakes on Eldridge North and Twin Lakes - all are gated communities which are very popular with expats and they are very close to your husband's work.
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Old Jun 28th 2010, 11:43 pm
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

Welcome to BE

Have a search, quite a few threads about Houston to get you started, and also city-data.com is another good place for specific info.
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Old Jun 29th 2010, 4:34 am
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

Originally Posted by newcomer
I suggest you look at Lakes on Eldridge, Lakes on Eldridge North and Twin Lakes - all are gated communities which are very popular with expats and they are very close to your husband's work.
Don't let the 'Gated Communities' bit scare you. While they are nice they are not necessary. The vast majority of people don't live in a gated community and are perfectly fine!
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Old Jun 29th 2010, 1:03 pm
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

I moved here from the North of Scotland (Buckie) 2 weeks ago. I live in Cinco Ranch, Katy. It is fantastic. Great area. Amazing facilities. Fab house. Great schools. Need I go on. It is quite far out and I have no idea where your husband's work is. My OH is Loop Central, so his commute is 30 minutes on the Westpark Tollway, which os more or less a direct line from here to there!

There are some really (and I mean really) great areas around here. Housing is cheap and you get a lot for your money.

If you want more detailed info message me.

OH has worked out here for 2 years, so knows Houston pretty well. I have 4 kids, 18, 17, 7 and 3. Only the 3 younger ones are here, as the oldest is at Uni back home.

I'll help you as much as I can!
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Old Jul 1st 2010, 4:10 am
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

Hi there - I'm another one based in Houston so am happy to answer any questions you may have. I live in Katy too and would highly recommend it - nice enough commute to Clay Road - probably about 30 minutes.

What are you thinking of doing regarding schooling in terms of public versus private? The School Districts here decide the school your children go to based on the house you are living in so if public is your way forward, that needs to be taken into consideration before you decide where to live. If you're looking at private then you can live wherever you like!

Safety in the US is always something people are concerned about - I know I was. That was until I got a grip on myself and realized there's "dodgy" areas all over the place and although there are different crimes you'll hear of here (due to the guns etc), you will be fine with your normal common sense/wits about you.


Feel free to IM me with any and all questions - am happy to help!
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Old Jul 2nd 2010, 2:40 am
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

Originally Posted by Scozzie456
Hi all

We (myself, hubby, 1 boy (6) and 1 girl (4) moved from North-East Scotland out to Perth, Australia 5 years ago (now hold Aus Passports). We love life in Perth but now find ourselves with the opportunity of being relocated to Houston for up to 2 years.

I am quite excited about this but need reassurance about schooling, safety of where we shall live, outdoor lifestyle etc etc.

Husband's work is based in Clay Road 77041-5597, which means nothing to me! He doesn't like to commute but we don't want to live in an apartment in the city if you know what I mean! I'm hoping for something similar to what we have here in Perth, a 4 bed house with garden and pool and relatively close and within easy reach of Hubby's work.

Does this place exist?!!!

All replies/opinions gratefully received!

Many thanks
There are lots of nice neighborhoods around the Houston area offering large 4 bedroom houses. A popular area is Katy and isn't too far from Clay.
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Old Jul 5th 2010, 9:06 am
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Default Re: Houston Info Required

We too are enroute to Houston from Aberdeen.

Katy is 70,000 people plus and growing - its a city unto itself. We went on a house hunting day there, and got stuck in the 3:30 pm school pick up traffic jams. As an American, I wasn't impressed with Katy as I like the mom & pop stores and restaurants - Katy is all chain or box restaurants (like Starbucks, Chilis, etc.) Add this to a 30 minute commute for Cinco and 45 min plus for the new western neighborhoods - we did not choose Katy at all. If you have kids and family, then yes, great schools and lots of kids around.

My husband is energy corridor too. If you can afford it, Memorial is only 15 min commute, but get a GOOD realtor for that area.

With that zip code - post codes mean not much in the USA - they can range for miles. But 77041 and Clay Road is well up North of I-10. Look at Twin Creeks, Lakes on Eldridge and the newer community, Lakes on Eldridge North. Here as well, a good realtor with deep knowledge of the area is important. One street over can be the death knell of house value.

In the end we did choose a gated community. (Most of Katy is not. Cinco Ranch is a development, not a gated community.) Only because of the location and 15 minute commute to husband's work. Commute times in Houston can be large! This must be a requirement to any realtor worth his or her salt.

Again, depending on WHERE in 77041 you are - Clay Road gets awfully congested at rush hours. If you are further NW up Clay, then Cypress is an idea. Lots of great houses and new builds up there.

Bellaire and Galleria are nice areas too, but better for those working Shell, Chevron downtown.

Our realtor was phenomenal. PM me if I can help out with anything. We move permanently at end of July.
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