Master BR - 2nd floor? (Houston, Sugar Land: buying a home, neighborhoods, buying)

[ByWayofNYC]

Hello,

I've been looking into Sugar Land and the homes for the most part checks all the boxes. I understand the reason for no basements (flooding) but why are master bedrooms all located on the first floor?

In my opinion, this layout doesn't seem ideal for families with young children especially if infants and toddlers are involved.

Am I overlooking an area in or around Sugar Land that have all BR's upstairs? What's the experience of those with young children in a 2 story home with the master BR downstairs?

[Mr. Clutch]

Originally Posted by ByWayofNYC

Hello,

I've been looking into Sugar Land and the homes for the most part checks all the boxes. I understand the reason for no basements (flooding) but why are master bedrooms all located on the first floor?

In my opinion, this layout doesn't seem ideal for families with young children especially if infants and toddlers are involved.

Am I overlooking an area in or around Sugar Land that have all BR's upstairs? What's the experience of those with young children in a 2 story home with the master BR downstairs?

Basements are surprisingly not particularly common in Texas as a whole, even in other parts of the state where flooding isn't a concern.

As far as the first floor master bedrooms are concerned, I find that this is definitely a design element that's more popular with newer construction. Older houses (pre-1990ish) tend to have master bedrooms on the second floor. Newer houses its a bit more of a mixed bag. I'd check some of the older neighborhoods in Sugar Land first (assuming you're ok with older housing).

[lhafer]

Originally Posted by Mr. Clutch

Basements are surprisingly not particularly common in Texas as a whole, even in other parts of the state where flooding isn't a concern.

As far as the first floor master bedrooms are concerned, I find that this is definitely a design element that's more popular with newer construction. Older houses (pre-1990ish) tend to have master bedrooms on the second floor. Newer houses its a bit more of a mixed bag. I'd check some of the older neighborhoods in Sugar Land first (assuming you're ok with older housing).

Actually builders don't really build basements because: In some parts of the state the water table is too near the surface of the ground, making leaking and flooding an issue. In other areas the bedrock is too near the surface, making digging a basement difficult and costly. In still other areas, what’s known as “expansive” soils—clay and/or shale that shifts around in excessively wet and excessively dry conditions, which is to say normal conditions in Texas—make a basement unworkable. And then there’s the matter of the frost line, the depth at which water in the ground freezes in wintertime, which is pretty much nonexistent here in largely subtropical Texas but is a big deal in the frosty north. See, a foundation set in ground that freezes and thaws can move around, which is not a good thing.

As for the main bedroom being on the second floor - it's just a preference here. Instead of having basements, we have "Texas Basements" which are basically just big open gamerooms upstairs. This would be in place of a master bedroom upstairs. Most homes up north do not have those - they have they typical basements, which leaves room to put all the bedrooms upstairs.

A single story would solve your issue of having all bedrooms on the same floor. Most people who buy homes here prefer the master on the bottom floor, unless the buyer is from a different state which are used to masters upstairs. But there are some homes that have all the bedrooms up. They do exist.

[mkwensky]

I would say most new constructions have the master bed upstairs. Maybe only 1 out of 5 houses we looked at have masters down. I was looking in mostly Spring Branch and Katy.
What OP found was likely a quirk in Sugar Land.
People with young kids can just live in one of the upstairs bedrooms until the kids are old enough, then move downstairs and enjoy the peace and quiet of having some distance with the kiddos.

[Waffleton]

Originally Posted by mkwensky

I would say most new constructions have the master bed upstairs. Maybe only 1 out of 5 houses we looked at have masters down. I was looking in mostly Spring Branch and Katy.
What OP found was likely a quirk in Sugar Land.
People with young kids can just live in one of the upstairs bedrooms until the kids are old enough, then move downstairs and enjoy the peace and quiet of having some distance with the kiddos.

I have the opposite experience. Looking for a house now everywhere from Richmond to Fulshear to Katy to Cypress and every single home we've seen has a first floor master, including the 100s of listings we've been through on Zillow. This is for 2500-4000 sq ft, 300-700k.

Where in Katy? Even the older homes in Green Trails and Nottingham Country have the masters (or owner's suite, rather) on the first.

(Personally I'd prefer it on the second...)

[Failed Engineer]

In Sugar Land, you'll find second floor master bedrooms scattered around First Colony, New Territory, Sugar Lakes, and Sugar Creek (still the heavy minority though). You'll also find them in some of the neighborhoods north of 90 but when most people ask for Sugar Land here it's generally assumed to be south of 90 for perceived school quality I believe. In the new or new-ish tract construction second floor masters are basically non-existent. Overall, the older the neighborhood here, the better the odds you'll find a home you like with a master up.

[HTownNearNative]

Originally Posted by Waffleton

I have the opposite experience. Looking for a house now everywhere from Richmond to Fulshear to Katy to Cypress and every single home we've seen has a first floor master, including the 100s of listings we've been through on Zillow. This is for 2500-4000 sq ft, 300-700k.

Where in Katy? Even the older homes in Green Trails and Nottingham Country have the masters (or owner's suite, rather) on the first.

(Personally I'd prefer it on the second...)

Greenway Village sections next to Fielder Elementary has many homes with master bedroom upstairs. This would be just east of 99, south of Highland Knolls, north of Cinco Ranch Blvd and east of Cinco Ranch Golf Course. It makes sense for elementary school families to have a master bedroom upstairs.

If you are interested in Nottingham Country, near the elementary school, north of Kingsland, they do have many homes with master bedroom upstairs. If it is 2-story and only 2,400 sqft, master bedroom will most likely be upstairs (from what I saw back when we were looking).

Some larger homes in Kelliwood Gardens (south of Highland Knolls/west of Fry Rd/north of Westheimer Parkway) have master bedrooms upstairs.

[hbcu]

Break a leg and see how a second floor master holds up lol

[RVD26]

Originally Posted by mkwensky

I would say most new constructions have the master bed upstairs. Maybe only 1 out of 5 houses we looked at have masters down. I was looking in mostly Spring Branch and Katy.
What OP found was likely a quirk in Sugar Land.
People with young kids can just live in one of the upstairs bedrooms until the kids are old enough, then move downstairs and enjoy the peace and quiet of having some distance with the kiddos.

Definitely not my experience. We were searching for new construction homes in the Katy area and pretty much all of them have the master bedroom downstairs. The home we ended up purchasing has the master downstairs, which will be a change from our current home (built in 2009) which has all the bedrooms upstairs.

[fnh]

We moved to NW Houston with a new baby and encountered the same issue. We ended up buying a home with two bedrooms/two baths down and used the second bedroom as a nursery suite for the first three years or so. Once the kid(s) moved upstairs the room became our TV den.