welshgirlmovingtoUSA

Hi there My name is Nikki Morgan I am 24years old and myself, my mother and daughter are all in our final stages of our E2 visas. We are looking into moving to Houston and was thinking of maybe either Sugar Land, Katy or Cypress. My Daughter is 19months old so a good school area would be great, we want a lovely neighbourhood which is clean and safe and maybe where the are other britsih families as well as American citizens.

My Mother is a Hair Stylist and will be opening her own salon so a good commute area would be great. it is quite nerve racking moving to a new counrty so far away from the UK and would appreciate any information possible

Thanks so much

Nutmegger

Surely, with an E2, the business is the first priority, so that you will find a location for the business, and where you live will then be based upon proximity to the business. When you have your business location (which I believe has to be in place to obtain the visa), then you can work backwards, as it were, to find a place to live! Sorry if I am misunderstanding your situation.

welshgirlmovingtoUSA

No that is correct but we are looking for business some are coming up in all those areas so we wanted to know where abouts to look for a business out of those areas as there are salons in all 3areas

not only on business i wanted info on life in houston in general too

thanks

Nutmegger

Gotcha! Then I'm sure some folks from the area will be along to help.

Duncan Roberts

How are you in the final stages of getting a visa if you haven't even got an idea of the business it will be based on? I'm confused. I'm also guessing that a hair salon is not going to cut it as a viable business for the visa and even more confused about how you think you will all be getting E-2 visas.

Bill_S

Me too

tonrob

And before we even get into all this visa nonsense there are more pressing issues to consider.

welshgirlmovingtoUSA

Yes Hair Salon is a Fine Business we are hoping to go to Houston within the next few weeks to start looking at salons we have got 4 that we are well Graham at a new life abroad is looking into the finances of them ect, we have paid all the money and are ready to buy a salon i just wanted a bit of advice on the four areas we have looked at sugarland, cypress and katy ..... thought this place wold be a plavce to have some addvice weren really expecting sarcastic digs sorry if anyone else is confused we just have 4 salons to decide on in different areas and any help would do - we know that all areas are good but we thought maybe someone that would be on here from the uk who is now living in houston.

snowbunny

Hello:

I'm in Austin, but I do know Houston and environs pretty well.

Unless your mother is willing to face a horrid commute, you will want to live
nearish her salon. In my experience, the expats in Houston are concentrated
in West Houston because of corporate HQs in that area. So Katy and
Sugar Land aren't bad choices. I would choose Katy for the schools, and there
are a couple of expats here who live in Katy.

Here's one expat group:

http://brit.meetup.com/cities/us/tx/houston/

Why not join these and others to ask questions? If your mother has a speciality, the business location might be key.

The upside to having the business in the Houston city limits is that there is NO zoning, so any piece of land can be used for any purpose. Easy to open a business that way, but of course, not so good if an unattractive business moves in next door.

Nutmegger

No, whoa there, people are trying to help. What do you mean, you have "paid all the money"? To whom? Red flags are popping up. Have you given someone money to find a business for you? Please be very careful of scams!

welshgirlmovingtoUSA

thank you so much for your reply we have 4 salons in mind and our visa advisor abd the team are now looking into the finances ect its exciting but scary also

thanks again

Duncan Roberts

No one is having a dig but what you are saying doesn't add up. For instance, what money have you already paid? The only money you should be paying would be in relation to making sure a selected business is sound and then the filing fees. The final stages of the E-2 visa would be after you have done all that and have been to the embassy for your interview and been approved. It sounds like you haven't actually started the actual visa process. I'm also not saying that a hair salon isn't a fine business, just that unless it is a large one that employs a good number of people and makes a good amount of money it may not meet the requirements to get the visa. Also, the only visa that can be tied together is yours and your childs so it makes it confusing when you add that your mum is the one opening the business, how are you getting a visa? It almost sounds like you have paid money to an agent who has promised you the world.

welshgirlmovingtoUSA

Hi yes i understand people are helping and i am very gratefull but the last message with all them sarcastic questions was slightly off putting - we have paid our Visa fees to a comapny A New Life Abroad those are the fees i ment is that wat you was thinkign of

snowbunny

I answered your question in a straightforward manner - but we have also heard of money people losing money in E-2 schemes. It is easy to grow hardened about this when you hear it so often, and you may be encountering that, but really, we want you to make sure you get what you have paid for.

Duncan Roberts

OK, no one is sarcastic. In all honestly, you may have lost the money you paid and may not get visas. This is one of the biggest immigration scams going, they can do nothing for you that you can't do on your own or with the help of a legit lawyer. The only people who can grant you a visa are the US government and based on what you have said, that is very unlikely.