Riverside Terrace/South MacGregor/288/med center-nice? (Houston, Pearland: apartment complex, renter, houses)

[Texas Mack]

Good for you! Hope you enjoy it.

[jgathe]

I purchased a home off North MacGregor in 04 for 113 and now my value is at 296 and I have made NO repairs to the home. I have no landscaping, leaky roof and an unfinished bathroom. It is an amazing area and the value is going up slow and steady because there are older owners on fixed income. As the older generation dies off the property will shoot up because your younger generation has the money to restore these homes or rebuild. I have no plans to remodel my home within the next few years so I can continue to save. Im waiting until the next generation gets in here and remodel before I put money into my home.

To make this excellent investment you will give up a lot. None of the homes are up to code, cosmetic repairs are needed, cloth wiring, ect.. The bonus is there is no foundation problems in the area and the homes are constructed better than you can imagine. My home was built in 52 and has never had any structural work. This is the best place in the city, hands down.

I am a Realtor living and working in the area. Let me know if I can assist you.

[houstonlandlord]

Well, I have completed the home and the area is great and the neighbors are fantastic. I can't say enough good things about the area. I have just purchased another home in the neighborhood and can't wait to get started renovating! I have posted a pic of the home.

[jmore99]

I have come across a home in Riverside Terrace, south of MacGregor near Parkwood Park. The home is a seemingly nice home, decent square footage, newly renovated with modern upgrades. You would think this home should be at least a $300,000 home, but it is selling for way less. Is there some kind of catch to this area that I do not know about? I have read the above threads, but most of them were posted in 2006, so I am just curious as to if this area is beginning to appreciate in value by now, or if it's still labeled as sort of a property gamble? I am a young buyer and this will be my first home, so I want to make sure I am going to be making a good investment in purchasing in this location. Am I missing something? Should I continue to look elsewhere for areas that are more up and coming, or does anyone know if property values in this area are on the rise? Thanks for your help!

[City Love]

My husband and I have personally looked to purchase an investment home in that area. My opinion is that it's waiting to explode! That's a good thing. There are many foreclosures in the area and it's still a little sketchy for most. But with time, new owners will move in and remodel these older homes.

I think it's a great bang for your buck. But it's not for everyone, at least not now. I would stay in the 77004 area and closest to 288 if possible.

We literally go check homes out there every other week. There was one I saw a couple weeks ago that we thought about making into an office front. We just got busy and didn't have time to start working the numbers and possibilities.

[bamba_boy]

That is a REALLY nice area with some fantastic houses. I've lived in Houston for years and while looking for a home 5 years ago came quite close to buying a beautiful house in that area that fell through because of poorly repaired fire damage. There are some very beautiful properties there with very large lots for Houston at a huge discount to many planned subdivisions way out in the 'burbs (with huge commutes) let alone prestigious west side communities. The reason for this is two-fold: a couple of dozen of the biggest homes are TSU and UH frat houses (the "Belushi Factor"). Also, the history of the area: basically a "River Oaks" (the wealthiest neighborhood in Houston) for wealthy Blacks and Jews who were made to feel unwelcome in River Oaks.

If you don't mind a neighborhood that's a bit edgy (the surrounding 3rd Ward does have some pretty scruffy apt compleses) and a neighborhood that's primarily minority, I think that you will love it. I bought a home in a similar neighborhood (big spectacular homes in a minority majority area) and have had a great experience as a white middle-aged man, totally welcomed by the neighborhood association. This was in Lakes of Fondren in SW Houston.

[travelguy_73]

Originally Posted by jmore99

I have come across a home in Riverside Terrace, south of MacGregor near Parkwood Park. The home is a seemingly nice home, decent square footage, newly renovated with modern upgrades. You would think this home should be at least a $300,000 home, but it is selling for way less. Is there some kind of catch to this area that I do not know about? I have read the above threads, but most of them were posted in 2006, so I am just curious as to if this area is beginning to appreciate in value by now, or if it's still labeled as sort of a property gamble? I am a young buyer and this will be my first home, so I want to make sure I am going to be making a good investment in purchasing in this location. Am I missing something? Should I continue to look elsewhere for areas that are more up and coming, or does anyone know if property values in this area are on the rise? Thanks for your help!

The Riverside Terrace area has a complex history, and while gentrification has certainly taken over in parts, continued gentrification is not assured. Just like all transitional areas, it's a gamble. There are some large, beautiful homes, but those homes take a lot of work and that costs a lot of money, and so there will (naturally, IMO) limit the buyer pool. You want to stay as far from the fringe area (3rd Ward) as possible, that's for sure.

We looked in the area in 2007 before we bought in Eastwood. We studied it a lot, and found a house that is similar to what we have now (1930's, about 1600 sq ft) for less money, but that needed more repairs. We were very close to putting in an offer, but I just could not shake the negative looks we got from the neighbors and all the random people wandering the streets, likely from nearby apartments. That was north of MacGregor, so YMMV.

I would definitely get on your bike this weekend and ride around the area. IMO, that is the best way to get a feel: You cover more ground than walking, but not too quickly (driving).

[modster]

Living in Glenbrook Valley, a few minutes southeast of there, I am about as open as anyone to transitional neighborhoods and the block by block adventure of our urban landscape.

To me, what you see is what you get in Riverside. If you like it, and there is plenty to like, then fine. I think that too often people look at both Riverside and Washington Terrace with expectations that it will suddenly "take off" and become a so-called hot area. The only way to become a hot area is to radically broaden the audience of buyers to include more people and more affluent people than what has been buying previously.

Forgive me for pointing out the elephant in the room but lets be real, for years there have probably been a lot of white or Hispanic buyers who would certainly be happy to live there, but wouldn't necessarily go out of there way to live in a predominantly AA neighborhood. It's not like it would be the priority that is might be with some of the AA elite. Add in the "looks" and issues like what Travelguy experienced, plus some of the road blocks thrown in by the area Realtors, and then why bother? For years the prices weren't that different than some other close in areas. You could go to other areas with better grocery stores and sometimes better curb appeal and not deal with it. So Riverside remained a somewhat hidden little secret known about mostly within the AA community. Change has also been frustrated, if not kept at bay, by Realtors entrenched in the area. They could make it very difficult for "outsiders" to show in the area. I have experienced all sorts of issues personally. Little roadblocks meant to discourage.

As prices have spiked in other close in areas faster than Riverside, many of the homes are now bargain priced considering the geographic location. This has made it more attractive to a broader inner loop audience. Town homes have been creeping into the sections close to 288. (Not a plus in my book, but whatever). The volume of foreclosures are fairly heavy in the northern sections with the listings usually given to Realtors specializing in REOs and from outside the area. This has loosened the grip on Riverside that some of the more entrenched Realtors had on the area.

These factors may be a game changer on some level, but there is still resistance to change in Riverside, and that resistance is not without its effectiveness & will continue to slow some sort of radical reinvention of the area.

Moral of the story, when you compare it to Eastwood, or 4th ward for example, where there is a lot less affluent profile that is more easily displaced by the newcomers, the audience of the last 5 decades in Riverside isn't and can't be "swept away." For many that is a plus. For some it isn't and the resistance is in place for the "benefit" of the latter. Again, what you see is what you get. If you like that fine, if you don't, don't move there.

[alsal29]

We bought a home here last year, and with the exception of some TERRIBLE existing wiring, I have been pleased with the purchase.

We are definitely in the minority, but most of the neighbors have been friendly and while we do get looked at, it isn't too bad. I do think you are dead on with your comment on the realtors though. You have to be VERY persistant to see the homes. We had to call one guy a minimum of about 10 times just to get him to answer, then he was late to the showing and was telling us about how bad the neighborhood was. This was Parkwood, so it couldn't have been too bad. Our home was a foreclosure, so we didn't have the issues with it, and the other foreclosures we looked at were also easy to get into as long as you had a realtor.

I hope the neighborhood continues to get better. It only will though if people battle through it and make it that way though, and be ok with it not being homogenized.

[hollasboy]

My partner and I just bought a fixer-upper in Riverside Terrace and our experience has been far better than expected. Note: I am white...I only mention because race was brought up in previous posts...

Within 2 weeks of moving in, every neighbor within 5 houses up and down the street came over to introduce themselves and to welcome us.

Crime on our street is surprisingly low because all the neighbors keep a close eye on each other's property. There is also a constant police presence, and in areas that are further away from apartments, there is minimal foot traffic.

As for the houses, many appear to be crumbling but were built so well that they have surprising staying power. We are well into our remodeling project now and I continue to be surprised at the solid construction of our home. Also, my home contains features that are rare in new construction, such as a walk-through stairwell, a full stairwell into the attic, a hand carved wood/marble fireplace mantel, and original arched french doors.

Like other posters have said, most of the dilapidated homes belong to elderly people who can't or won't overhaul their home. There are also lots of vacancies that for some reason are not on the market and just sit there rotting. But the occupied houses contain a mix of families with children, elderly, and young professionals.

I would love for the vacant houses on my street to fill up. I think the likelihood of a more "fair" gentrification is high in this neighborhood due to its suppressed property values, at least when compared with other areas with similar histories. This could become a very diverse neighborhood, both in race and socioeconomic status.