Bellaire or The Woodlands? (Howe: school, estimate, drive)

[sallybell]

One other neighborhood near Bellaire you may want to consider is Braes Heights. It is mainly older homes but many are being torn down and rebuilt. You can definitely get more for your money there and a larger lot. Most lots in Bellaire are about 5000 sq ft. Not sure what size yard you are coming from now or if that's important to you.

And yes, the Woodlands is a loooong commute. It just depends on where you want to spend your time.

[Canadian]

Please help! Moving from Calgary Canada to Houston. I have checked homes in Woodlands and was impressed with what you get for your buck but the drive to the city centre seems too extreme for me. I have also checked out Sugarland and have found a few nice homes there too. I have not checked out Bellaire yet but will. Does anyone know the difference between cost of living from Calgary to Houston? We pay approx. 40% in income tax, approx. 1.5% property tax, and 6% sales tax. We are looking at homes in the price range of $550,000 to $600,000 does anyone know the approx cost of running a home like this?

[Nanner]

Originally Posted by Canadian

Please help! Moving from Calgary Canada to Houston. I have checked homes in Woodlands and was impressed with what you get for your buck but the drive to the city centre seems too extreme for me. I have also checked out Sugarland and have found a few nice homes there too. I have not checked out Bellaire yet but will. Does anyone know the difference between cost of living from Calgary to Houston? We pay approx. 40% in income tax, approx. 1.5% property tax, and 6% sales tax. We are looking at homes in the price range of $550,000 to $600,000 does anyone know the approx cost of running a home like this?

Canadian--just dropping in, so I can give more info on cost of living later, but I wanted to give you another option to check out--Kingwood. Out of all of the far-out suburbs, it will give you the best commute to the city. 59N was expanded a few years back, so there is very little congestion compared to the other suburbs. New homes aren't as abundant as they are in other areas, but the existing homes are really nice, and you can get a nice large house for a decent price.

[Canadian]

Nanner thank you for suggesting Kingwood as a possible area. I did check out some of the houses and really like it. Any more info like this would be greatly appreciated. We are planning our move this Mar. to Houston from Calgary AB so it is a fairly big move. We are very excited about the weather, as I am sure you all know it can get pretty cold here in Calgary AB like -41c with the wind-chill.

What is a preferred area to live in Houston? Do you break it down to North, South, East or West? I am thinking it may be North of Houston?

[modster]

Generally the West side is the most popular & most expensive. But, Houston has no zoning so things can get rather jumbled up. For example just west of Bellaire is the "Gulfton Ghetto" with thousands of apartment units along Gulfton that are not so nice. The due west section of Houston from I-10 south to Buffalo Bayou is the Memorial Drive area, which is Houston's silk-stocking suburbs. The inner-loop areas to the west and Southwest are some of the city's priciest real estate. River Oaks, Royden Oaks, Southampton, West University, etc. Tanglewood & Briargrove on the north side of Westheimer & south of Buffalo Bayou are also really sought after areas near the Galleria.

[luv80s]

Are you sure you want to move to Houston??? This city is a hell hole nightmare. My husband and I are looking for a much better place to live and raise our family (we have a 16 month old boy). Yes, the cost of living here is excellent and we have about a million Walmarts, Targets, and tons places to eat and shop. Oh yeah, we have alot of taquerias too that will be sure to give you the runs. We have great museums, concerts, festivals,etc. But they tore down our only theme park Astroworld.

Downside, the weather sucks here. Its not "warm", its HOT!!! We have no seasons and its seems like it is constantly raining or flooding, so be careful where you buy your home. The summer is neverending and the humidty is unbelieveabley high. If you like living in a swampy, always flooding mosquito land, then this is your place. You'll hear on the news constantly about Westnile Virus or someone dying of heat stroke. Lets not forget the thousands of illegal immigrants we have here and gangs. Murders, rape, burlaries, etc. Yes I know most city have these problems but these things are a big problem in our city. What else...Are city is flat and ugly. The only hill we have is probably the one at Miller Outdoor Theater. Oh, and we are a very obese city (too many restaurants and not enough outdoor activities because its too **** hot to do them anyway)

I don't know much about the Woodlands but have friends that live out that way and love it there. But the commute will be bad like the other posters said. Traffic is a nightmare anywhere around Houston and its surrounding areas. Be prepared for the neverending construction, road work, and the ugly billboards all around town.

As for Bellaire, I don't care how much people call it a "city", its still **** freaking Houston so get off your high horse. It is closer to Downtown and Galleria area but really expensive. Meyerland is close to Bellaire with its so called "good schools" but you'll be paying out the nose for a 1000sqft shack.
I'm sure the education at the Bellaire schools is good but everytime I drive by that area and the kids are getting out of school, I see nothing but a bunch of little hoodrats and ghetto thugs coming out of Bellaire High School and walking along Beechnut. Bellaire High also had some violent incidents these past few years. In January, a female student was accused and she admitted to killing her mother. A couple of other students were involved in a stabbing that took place at school and last year two of the students were murdered off campus. Wow, its almost as if I was writing about Alief or Aldine schools!
Anyway, Bellaire is too snotty and yuppy for my taste.

So there you have it, Houston in a nutshell. Yes, you can still have a good life here and I have had many good memories here but I still hate it (that is why we are trying to get out). If you have no choice but to move here because of your husband's job, then I wish you and your family lots of happiness and good times here. Just don't say I didn't warn you about Houston.

HOUSTON IS THE CLOSEST THING TO HELL ON EARTH!!!
You're better off moving to Miami; at least there you'll have a decent beach.

[sallybell]

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I guess it depends on your frame of reference and where you have lived before. I happen to live inside the loop in West University Place and I love it. It is ultra expensive to live here, but we have tree lined streets and our own police department and everything is so convenient. I also live in a restored old home so that makes it nice for me. I lived in the Midwest before moving here and froze my tail off 8 months out of the year. I was cooped up inside with over 5 feet of snow and did I say snow? So Houston seems great to me.

Canadian, what type of commute do you want? Do you want a larger yard? What size house do you want? All these are factors in guiding you as to where you may want to live. Do you want to be close to cultural activities like museums or is that not important to you.

[Canadian]

Wow! Thanks guys for your thoughts. Zoning in Houston concerns me a little. Our zoning here is well structured so when you pick a location to live you are pretty much guaranteed it will remain that way as long as you are paying taxes for it. Our lower housing is well thought out prior to building and the people pretty much have a say as to where it is going to be located. You never have to worry that they will put up apartment/condos in your area without voting. I guess it doesn’t really matter where you are going to live as long as you have the money to do so. I guess we really need to get down there and do our research. I have had the pleasure of visiting Houston once and did find it a little drab in some areas, we did not have time to drive all over but I am thinking this is what we will have to do. As far as the weather humidity and rain well both my husband and I were raised in similar weather me being from Vancouver Island (which is presently under water). It is the -40c that we can no longer tolerate, you are stuck inside for days, and it is life threatening, people freeze to death every night. As far as choosing where we will be relocating to is pretty much up to my husbands company Houston/Denver, they have not confirmed this yet but they are leaning towards Houston as all their clients live there. The ideal area for us would be a place that has some greener, trees, etc. We will miss our mountains for sure. We are also concerned about the commute, sounds a little scary there but then again our traffic does not flow as we would like either. During the freezing months it may take my husband 1-2 hours to get into the city, some people do not know how to drive on black ice, lol. He will accept 40-50 minute drive though. I personally would prefer an area in the country. I am not a big city person but do enjoy going into it from time to time perhaps to watch a game and dinner. We do enjoy our hockey here but I hear I am going to have to learn how to watch football. I told my husband to just picture ourselves lying in the pool watching hockey on satellite instead of watching it in the freezing cold.

Anyways, I am still interested in your taxes. I hear it is very expensive for property taxes? I would also like to know what percent of your income goes to Federal taxes. You do not pay state taxes there, correct? Are taxes taken out of your salary month or do you pay yearly? As far as property taxes, can you pay this monthly, is it incorporated into your mortgage? Can you please give me examples on a house that cost you say $500,000 and you take a mortgage out for approx. $200,000. What would your monthly payment be including insurance and tax?

[sallybell]

If you want the country there are plenty of areas that are quieter, but not a horrible commute. There is a small town called Richmond that you may want to look which is a little west of Sugar Land, and there is Spring, a little south of the Woodlands. It would also depend which side of town your hubby is working on.

We do not pay state taxes. Federal taxes are taken out of your paycheck. Sometimes you still may owe at the end of the year and sometimes they take out too much and you must file to get money back. It is not an exact science.

[billsearcy]

how far is it from the woodlands to downtown houston?