NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

Hi folks,

I've been visiting this forum on and off for the months and months it has taken to get my L1 visa sorted. We're pretty much there now - just waiting for our passports to be delivered back and then we'll be off!

Our office has recently moved from downtown to the NW corner of 610. I don't really know that area at all (except for a brief foray into the heights area nearer to downtown), so any advice would be much welcomed. During my previous trips, I started to rule out much of the inner loop due to our budget constraints (around $1500-1700/month) and went further west to the fringes of the Galleria/Uptown areas. They still seem pretty suitable, but I wonder now that we're not needing to go into downtown whether there are better suited areas.

Being British, the inevitable - it would be nice if you could walk to places - requirement seems high, but I'm starting to convince my wife that this isn't possible, no matter how much we pay! Having said that, a safe area where we can be out and about is pretty important. I'd like to be close to work. We would consider apartment complexes, so to be able to meet people, have facilities thrown in like pool/gym etc. although I'd also consider being a bit further house and having something a little bigger (although I'm sure my budget won't stretch to a house). We'd like to be able to go out for drinks, go to restaurants etc. although we're probably a bit past the really late night scenes. I've been to Katy/Cinco and am pretty sure that isn't for me as we don't have kids (although rather liked how much apartment I could get for my money).

Any thoughts/suggestions much appreciated. I was hoping our office move from downtown to NW 610 would help with some of the commuting worries and open up a few more possibilities regarding accomodation.

Advice gratefully received. Heading back to packing now!

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

Anyone any thoughts? :)

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

How about memorial/university/rice village? Rents are pretty high there, but i recon you'd get an apartment and you can walk to restaurants/pubs/memorial park.

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

I agree with Rice Village - mind you the walking is more geared in the neighborhood and of course the shopping area. (Although walking to the pub or restaurants is nice. You'll find a few Brits imbibing at the Gingerman.)

Houston just isn't a walking town. Where your office seems to be..Ella/TC Jester area? ....well its not that nice a part of town. However Heights is nearby and the neighborhood is walkable, just not that many pubs around. Same with Tanglewood and River Oaks, but in that budget, you'll find little and few apartment complexes.

Inner loop with that budget can be tricky, but done. Look at Highland Village area; tons of restaurants, great Central Market and compact in area. They have apartment complexes there.

I don't think you'll be happy way out in Katy at all.

Town and Country/City Centre in Memorial is all kitted out with lofts and flats for young urbanites, with pubs, restaurants, shops, gyms, etc. Its something to look at for the lifestyle. A lot of expats live in this area as its near the Energy Cooridor.

http://theloftscitycentre.com/ Is one of the leasing complexes there.

Also ask your question on City-data.com. You'll get alot of good advice there.

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

Ooooooh, town and country is a great idea. You get the gym and the shops/restaurants/cinema within walking distance. I wonder how expensive it is.

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

There are plenty of options but I don't think you'll find everything you want at that price range so a bit of a compromise will have to be found.

My office is in the Galleria area and I ahve lived:

- downtown, $1500/month all in (all bills) for a 1,100 sq ft 1 bed loft. Despite its reputation I found it more than safe, walking distance to ball games (though why you'd bother given the Astros form is debatable), rockets games and now soccer too. There are a few good restaurants downtown and some bars/pubs, $5 cab to Washington/Midtown but there's no shopping to speak of at the weekend. It's very quiet in that not much is open on sat/sun. Mainly lofts and condos - you'll have to shop around to stay in budget. It's a good commute to the west side of the inner loop - you have plenty of options (allen pkwy, memorial, I-10)

- Jersey Village (beltway and 290) - $1590 month for a 2,600 sqft house. Have to time your commute 7.30-8.30 is not great down 290. There's a lake and golf courses in walking distance but not much else. does allow you more space for a house rather than an apartment though.

Now I live out towards Cypress but that's because we wanted our own place with more space (and space for a pool) and because we have a little boy.

Town and country is a good suggestion. The midtown area is also a good option, it just depends on the space you're looking for.

I'm not sure that you'd get anything in Rice village for that money but I could be wrong. It's a great place - I used to play footy down there during the week and stop off at the pubs on the way home. It's a youngish crowd down there made up of students and young professionals but it's good.

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

There are areas where you can walk, most of which have been mentioned and are limited. For me the real question is will you walk? When it's almost 100 degrees and the humidity makes it feel like a sauna I have no inclination to walk anywhere. Pearland built an outdoor mall and I don't go near it during the summer - who wants to try on clothes when you are all sweaty? You can't walk to the shops and buy anything frozen or even cold and expect it to survive by the time you walk home. Oh yeah and the mozzies will drive you in after dusk!

We are more likely to drive to a park, go for a walk for an hour or so and then jump back in the car and blast the a/c.

The winter months are different, you can get out and about more.

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

Big huge smart point!!! I don't even like walking to the mailbox, let alone consider walking to a pub from June until September!!!

Re: NW Houston housing advice for young (ish) couple
 

Hi everyone,

That's really helpful. Town and Country seems promising. I hadn't considered that far out before given that originally I'd had to go into downtown. What would the commute be like from around there (or slightly further west into Memorial/Briarforest) to where I would work NW inner loop?

The inner loop suggestions are useful too. We'll go check them out. Just two and a bit weeks till we go and it's all starting to feel a bit real now!