is it real? (Houston, Missouri City, Spring: apartment complexes, foreclosure, rent)

[descovy]

A new house 100-125k, sure not the best neighborhood. But an older house in the suburbs, yes it is possible.

We sold our house in the Cypress area (houston zip 77065) last year for $107k A 3/2/2 new carpet, paint, updates etc... It was in the Oak Cliff Place Subdiv, a nice quiet neighborhood built in the early 80's People there are either "original" homeowners or young families coming in. The zoned elementary, Millsap was rated exemplary this year and has several teachers that have taught at that same school for 20 years.

So yes, it is possible... in the suburbs... in older communities. I would shy away from new homes in that price range though. Do a HAR search for zip 77065 and see what you can get for $125k or less. It is a safe part of town near good schools

[crbcrbrgv]

Originally Posted by houstoner

There's also AISD's Kerr High School. Alief Kerr High School - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Their are two issues with Kerr:

1. You have to test in to get into Kerr. If you don't get a high enough test score, you are stuck attending the atrocious Alief high schools (Taylor, Elsik or Hastings or of course private or Charter are always an option.)
2. You have to endure the Alief schools for many years in order to qualify. Yes the AIMs (Alief's gifted program) program is very good, however your child will be interacting with some pretty rough kids within the school. I remember teaching kitty-corner from AIMS. Across the hall from AIMS was the "dump" class. There were fights IN THE CLASSROOM a few times a week, kids calling each other "rhymes with witch, ho, n-word" constantly (audible from AIMS and my classroom) and an administration that was more concerned with covering their butts as opposed to helping the teacher/classroom out. This is VERY COMMON in Alief. One thing to consider also is the fact many Alief teachers who live within the distict do not have their children attend Alief schools. Oh, and this was in 6th grade.

[tweety34]

Thinking of moving to katy, tx. I hear the property taxes are quite high, what's the deal there? Should i not purchase there will i ever be able to own my home or will there forever be a tax lien against it yearly?

[jlnperez]

Real prices but not always in the best condition and/or best location.

[tweety34]

Thanks, need a little more input on the taxes, why don't the people of houston stand up for themselves and protest against those high taxes?

[HookTheBrotherUp]

Originally Posted by xmod

Do the Alief schools have competitive magnet schools? Where kids have to take entrance exams for?

My advice is to stay away from Alief at all costs for many negative reasons. Think of them and you will most likely be correct. Usually people who recommend Alief are people that lived there, or currently live there. I lived there, and DONT recommend it to anyone. To be honest though, many years ago it was a hot spot, but those days are long gone, trust me.

[chris_ut]

Originally Posted by tweety34

Thanks, need a little more input on the taxes, why don't the people of houston stand up for themselves and protest against those high taxes?

Because we enjoy having roads and schools and police?

[professorsenator]

Originally Posted by tweety34

Thanks, need a little more input on the taxes, why don't the people of houston stand up for themselves and protest against those high taxes?

You realize there is no state income tax, right? Government funding has to come from somewhere. Property taxes primarily fund schools, police, and fire departments. Most people want those services.

[usc619]

Originally Posted by chris_ut

Because we enjoy having roads and schools and police?

...and with the exception of some schools it's still below avg.

[Wysiwyg]

Originally Posted by HookTheBrotherUp

Usually people who recommend Alief are people that lived there, or currently live there.

or Asians that migrated from metro LA, SF, Boston, NYC etc. This is a walk in the park Houstonians love to say their city is a melting pot, well Alief is it. This is where many if not most of Houston's fresh-of-the-boat, just-crossed-the-border, we-quit-new-orleans transplants start off mostly because of cheaper, simpler housing arrangement. The bad rep of Alief keeps prices down, personally we're here for the food and proximity to work so it works for us since we don't have school age kids yet.