A question about THE PEOPLE of The Woodlands

[Texas User]

Originally Posted by fordlover

Thanks for re-phrasing, and yes there are some snobs in the woodlands, which by the way is not a city, it's a CDP, or master planned community.

The median income as of the 2000 census was like $85,000 so your not talking about independantly wealthy people here. Oh, and there are families living in the woodlands are are below the poverty level, but I supose they are probably snobs too eh?

Below poverty level in The Woodlands? What are they doing living there then in first place?

[alwaysflyin]

Thanks everyone for this discussion. It's very timely for me as my husband and I are looking to purchase a home in the Houston area and in fact went out with a realtor yesterday to look at homes in the Woodlands. We're mid-30s, not particularly religious, and have no kids yet but are planning on them. We both work from home so the commute is not a concern. We love the trees and the amenities there, and this discussion has helped me determine that the Woodlands would likely be a good fit for us.

[rt2dz]

Originally Posted by Texas User

Below poverty level in The Woodlands? What are they doing living there then in first place?

Seriously? Really and truly seriously? Seriously? I don't know if I should laugh or cry at that. I am shaking my head. Misconceptions. Misconceptions. Misconceptions.

The Woodlands isn't some big rich community. I have no idea how that urban legend even got started. The Woodlands is actually very diverse. Diverse in income, diverse in politics, diverse in religion, diverse in family choice/status (kids, no kids, married, single, divorced, etc), and even more diverse in race than a lot of suburbs (ie, Kingwood/Champions).

[modster]

Originally Posted by rt2dz

Seriously? Really and truly seriously? Seriously? I don't know if I should laugh or cry at that. I am shaking my head. Misconceptions. Misconceptions. Misconceptions.

The Woodlands isn't some big rich community. I have no idea how that urban legend even got started. The Woodlands is actually very diverse. Diverse in income, diverse in politics, diverse in religion, diverse in family choice/status (kids, no kids, married, single, divorced, etc), and even more diverse in race than a lot of suburbs (ie, Kingwood/Champions).

There are a lot of adjectives I would use to describe the Woodlands, diverse is not one of them. According to these stats

http://www.city-data.com/city/The-Woodlands-Texas.html

It is nearly 88% white, with less than 2% of each group of other races except Hispanic with 6-something %.

Maybe that fits your definition of diverse, but not mine.

I agree it is not some big rich area. Although I am sure there are some people with money out there. Part of the original development plan called for some low-income housing out there. There are some developments for elderly people on fixed incomes that might technically make them below the poverty line, but that would be an extremely few people out there.

[Sampaguita]

I also agree that TW is not an area exclusively for the wealthy.

However, I have to agree with modster that TW is not that diverse. We just moved to MoCity bordering Sugar Land from The Woodlands and TW is not very ethnically diverse at all by comparison. Just walking through the malls is very telling when looking at the people staffing the stores and the clientele of each mall (The Woodlands Mall & First Colony Mall).

The ethnic makeup of the neighborhood we currently live in is very different from the one we lived in in TW. There we 2 "people of color" on our block (that includes me!) in TW whereas in our new neighborhood, I count at least 5 different ethnic groups within a few hundred yards of our house in any direction.

[Texas User]

Originally Posted by rt2dz

Seriously? Really and truly seriously? Seriously? I don't know if I should laugh or cry at that. I am shaking my head. Misconceptions. Misconceptions. Misconceptions.

The Woodlands isn't some big rich community. I have no idea how that urban legend even got started. The Woodlands is actually very diverse. Diverse in income, diverse in politics, diverse in religion, diverse in family choice/status (kids, no kids, married, single, divorced, etc), and even more diverse in race than a lot of suburbs (ie, Kingwood/Champions).

The Woodlands is considered people with higher income and home prices higher then Houston. Most people are educated there then Houston.
It is not Diverse in ethncity as most are Caucasians.

Champions is not even close to The Woodlands.

[Texas User]

Sugar Land and Katy are the most diverse.

You can add West Houston also.

[splendor11]

My family is moving to the woodlands this October, and some of these posts can be a little overwhelming. My kids loves sports, although they may not be the best at all of them, nor am I the pushiest of parents. I am moving from a NY town where all of the moms were super moms, and I had to stand to the side and watch, it was ridiculous. I have a 9, and 11 year old also, and would love for you to look us up when you get there!! We love to sit back and relax also. jump in the pool, We make our own fun. I'm visiting for the first time this week, The Woodlands sounds beautiful. Anyone know if their are mixed religions, or if it is one primary religion?

[rt2dz]

Originally Posted by modster

There are a lot of adjectives I would use to describe the Woodlands, diverse is not one of them. According to these stats

http://www.city-data.com/city/The-Woodlands-Texas.html

It is nearly 88% white, with less than 2% of each group of other races except Hispanic with 6-something %.

Maybe that fits your definition of diverse, but not mine.

I agree it is not some big rich area. Although I am sure there are some people with money out there. Part of the original development plan called for some low-income housing out there. There are some developments for elderly people on fixed incomes that might technically make them below the poverty line, but that would be an extremely few people out there.

Originally Posted by Sampaguita

I also agree that TW is not an area exclusively for the wealthy.

However, I have to agree with modster that TW is not that diverse. We just moved to MoCity bordering Sugar Land from The Woodlands and TW is not very ethnically diverse at all by comparison. Just walking through the malls is very telling when looking at the people staffing the stores and the clientele of each mall (The Woodlands Mall & First Colony Mall).

The ethnic makeup of the neighborhood we currently live in is very different from the one we lived in in TW. There we 2 "people of color" on our block (that includes me!) in TW whereas in our new neighborhood, I count at least 5 different ethnic groups within a few hundred yards of our house in any direction.

Originally Posted by Texas User

The Woodlands is considered people with higher income and home prices higher then Houston. Most people are educated there then Houston.
It is not Diverse in ethncity as most are Caucasians.

Champions is not even close to The Woodlands.

If you read my post what I said it was diverse in religion, family choice, politics, income, and race **MORE THAN** a handful of other suburbs. I did not claim that it is more so than Houston--the 4th largest city in the country. There is no way than any suburb will beat a large city in diversity. You are not comparing apples to apples.

The suburbs I listed are suburbs I have lived in. And it was much more cookie cutter than in The Woodlands. Currently on the street I live in white is the minority (we have African-American, Indian, Hispanic, and mixed races), and so is Christian. The neighbors across the street are Buddhist. The neighbors to our left are Jewish. The neighbors to right are Mormon. On the corner, the neighbors are atheists. We experience the same thing at our pre-school, our church (well, not the religious part), and at the elementary schools. Now, I don't think every section of The Woodlands is like this, but there is enough out there.

And yes, The Woodlands has several retirement communities which does add a large population of the elderly. Another wonderful example of diversity. And that probably does add to some of the lower income, but The Woodlands has quite a few Title One schools. That means a large percentage of the parents make below a certain income (one that is quite low). I'm pretty sure that isn't from the elderly.

And if you want to talk about the mall clientele. Keep in mind who that mall clientele is. The Woodlands is the only mall from Dallas to Houston. That means a lot, and I mean A LOT, of that clientele is coming from some towns where there is nothing but homogeneous populations. It's not just the surrounding area shopping there that you tend to find in other places. On any given day you can find people from Huntsiville, Crocket, and other rural areas.

[ga gal in tx now]

I stand behind my statement that homes in communities with restrictions maintain their value as opposed to homes with no zoning or restrictions. Even with this latest economic downturn, my home has appreciated nicely. Yes! The Woodlands will only allow two dogs at a time outside in your good-neighbor privacy fenced backyard. The number of animals you maintain inside your home is also restricted (thank goodness). For all those who have suffered at the hands of tasteless house painting, animal hoarding, "English Garden" neighbors, welcome to The Woodlands. Peace to all who enter here.