Relocating to Houston (Pearland, Friendswood, Alvin: foreclosure, to rent, condo)

[willb8073]

My wife and I will be relocating to Houston in the very near future and need a little guidance on where to live.

We are looking for a "smaller" town. We have a 6 month old son, so family friendly and safe are very important. We do a lot of things outside, so preferably a town with a good park system. We are interested in renting for awhile to get a feel for everything and then eventually purchasing a home. We like older homes with a little land.

I will be working at Reliant Park and wouldn't mind a 30 - 45 min. commute. We will be coming from NC, so aside from online research, we are unfamiliar with Houston. Any input/ help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[cheryjohns]

What is your budget - and when you say a little land, how much do you mean?

[chris_ut]

Houston is a giant city. You can't live in a small town and be a 30 minute drive to work downtown unless by smaller town you mean a suburb.

[crone]

Jersey Village. Small town, any price house 100-500K, 30 minutes to Reliant and 1/2 to 1 acre lots.

[kittenflower]

I agree with Chris. I used to work in Jersey Village and work downtown, so I went against traffic. It was a 30 minute drive, and unless crone is talking even further west (which would increase the time), I can't think of an area with that much land in looking at an hour for a decent area (maybe Crosby, Porter, Hockley) Stay away from far Eastern houston. You can get land/house and have a 30 min drive but not a good area. Try har.com. Maybe you can talk your boss into the 4, 10 hour day workweek

[willb8073]

We are looking to rent in the 850-900 range, and purchasing in 150-175 when the time comes. Around 1/2 acre would be sufficient, we have a jack russell terrier that needs a little room to run.

What would the commute from Pearland or Friendswood be? Again, I am completly new to Houston, so in saying small town I guess I am meaning suburb.

Thanks again.

[DanielWayne]

I would guess the commute to Reliant from Pearland would be less than half hour under good conditions. Somebody on here is bound to be a resident there. Personally I like Friendswood because it still has a small town feel despite the fact it has a larger affluent population. Pearland is very nice, but it is bursting at the seams with new development.

[Malvie]

Originally Posted by willb8073

We are looking to rent in the 850-900 range, and purchasing in 150-175 when the time comes. Around 1/2 acre would be sufficient, we have a jack russell terrier that needs a little room to run.

What would the commute from Pearland or Friendswood be? Again, I am completly new to Houston, so in saying small town I guess I am meaning suburb.

Thanks again.

Yeah, Pearland and Friendswood are both suburbs, meaning there's no "small town" feel at all---you're in the city, with strip centers, big box retailers, and subdivisions with regular-sized lots. Friendswood would be much closer to the more "small town" feel, but the commute to Reliant would involve the Gulf Freeway through Clear Lake = murder (or the "back way" to 288, but that's a lot of traffic too these days).

You're going to have difficulty find 1/2 acre lots within a 30 minute drive of Reliant. You can increase your drive time or decrease your lot size (while increasing your price range). There is one neighborhood if I can think of the name of it; larger lots, older (1950's) houses but charming, that would work. I'll think of the name of it in a minute.

[Trae713]

You can try Manvel, but in five to ten years, it'll look almost like Pearland. I say stick with Pearland, for your commute won't be that bad to Reliant Park. You could also look into areas around Fresno, Texas (with is a little NW of Pearland). It would involve taking the Fort Bend Tollway, but you'd get to Reliant Park quicker.

[bamba_boy]

Something is going to have to give, either the rent/mortgage price or your price expectations - sorry but that won't get you anything , even without any land, that would be safe 30 minutes +- Reliant except a condo or tore-up foreclosure with no yard. An hour drive down to Fresno or Alvin or someplace farther out (Pearland has no reasonable acreage subdivision) would get you everything you want for the dog to run but a bit more money, unless it was some old shack. You have to kind of decide on whether you want the land or the short commute - Houston is very built up for probably at least 15-20 miles or more in any direction from Reliant. I agree with prev posters that going due south on the 288 (you're luck in that it's a good freeway for the most part except middle of rush hours) is your best bet. Pearland is the place for 30 minutes (if you leave early), Fresno or Alvin or neighboring Brazoria county land for the land. Also, better put Sparkie on 50-lb dry chunk dogfood instead of moist Alpo in cans so you kick in some more money to the housing kitty. Houston is very cheap for a Top 10 City but not THAT cheap for a big yard with decent semi-modern house.

I'm jealous if you're coming to work for the Texans. What an organization! They just DESTROYED Peyton and his D-line today.