Can Houston really be considered a cheap city anymore?

[jek74]

Originally Posted by nilkn

Did you really just compare the entire metropolitan area of Houston, including very far-out suburbs, to the ultra-urban Manhattan and San Francisco? You'd have to restrict yourself to the more exclusive areas of the inner loop for this comparison to make sense, and I think you'll find the numbers aren't so convincing in that case.

Have you ever lived in a nice burb in Philly, NY, Boston or Chicago. Even if you go 30 miles out you are going to pay through the nose. I just saw on the news today that Short Hills, NJ (a suburb), about 25 miles outside of NY is the most affluent zip in the entire nation. You guys simply don't get it. On the northeast corridor, it's the SUBURBS that are expensive. The urban area is actually more affordable in most cases. THIS is why Houston is so cheap.

[NewJeffCT]

Originally Posted by jek74

Have you ever lived in a nice burb in Philly, NY, Boston or Chicago. Even if you go 30 miles out you are going to pay through the nose. I just saw on the news today that Short Hills, NJ (a suburb), about 25 miles outside of NY is the most affluent zip in the entire nation. You guys simply don't get it. On the northeast corridor, it's the SUBURBS that are expensive. The urban area is actually more affordable in most cases. THIS is why Houston is so cheap.

You're right - the suburbs of NYC in northern NJ, Westchester County, NY, Long Island and Fairfield County, CT are the homes of many of the business executives, doctors, lawyers, high level professionals, etc that work in NYC. (Fairfield County, CT is called "The Gold Coast" for a reason).

The suburban areas of Houston (Katy, Sugar Land, The Woodlands, etc) that I researched a bit recently on a possible relocation are very nice, but are still much cheaper than suburbs of NYC and Boston. The median home price in Scarsdale, NY is $1.26 million and nearby Rye, NY is $1.215 million, and I'm guessing that the homes there are smaller & cheaper than what you could get in most areas of Houston & the surrounding areas.

I definitely think Houston is catching up, though.

[LocalPlanner]

I agree, it's really the prices in the "desirable" suburbs that make the big difference. In coastal CA or in the northeast you're talking $400K+ usually - even in middle/outer burbs if they have good school reputations. Here you can get in such places for less than $250K. And that won't be changing that dramatically soon, as long as supply can keep up (it's a little behind right now).