Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I will be relocating to Houston in couple of weeks. I am a straight single male in late 20s. I will be working in the downtown area. After doing some research on internet and after speaking with real estate agents, I am told that Washington ave is the best place to live since it's close to downtown and it's supposed to be a happening place. I've checked the reviews of couple of apartment complexes and found that crime (primarily car break-ins) is widely prevalent even within upscale apartment complexes. I am looking for a 1bd/1bath unit. Safety and proximity to work are my most important priorities. While my budget is <$950, I am willing to pay a little more for safety, like secure parking, safe neighborhood etc. Looks like in addition to Washington ave. I can also check out midtown and montrose areas. What are my choices here? Are there any complexes that are safe and close to downtown? I am not looking to walk to work but should be able to take a train or bus from walkable distance from apartment. anyone has experience living in such complexes? anyone relocated from the north east tri-state area? greatly appreciate any help.
In-town bus routes are not favored by many commuters. They tend to be rather sketchy. Most bus riders to downtown are coming from the suburbs on the remote park and ride busses.
I used to take the train often, that is a much more viable option.
Living off the rail, I'd either look at midtown or off of braeswood further south. But, don't go all the way down near Reliant, that isn't a good place either.
Washington is currently in the midst of being gentrified. Many new condo and apt complexes are going up. It's not a bad area, but I'd still not walk home from the bar at night.
Given the recession, burglaries and car break ins are up all over the city. My approach is just to make sure that you don't have anything worth taking sitting out in plain sight. If you do that, someone else's care will usually be a better target than yours. Though, if you look hard enough, you may be able to find a one bedroom and a garage for about $950.
Actually, there are several nice apartments in the Montrose area that have locked garages. Don't know if they have open units though. Check on 1612 W Main and the corner of W Main and Montrose for a couple. There are a few more apartments in Mid-town and along Washington w/ some lockable garages. You will do best in the areas you are looking into, but you are right about the car break ins...I always had problems if I street parked instead of parking in the garage.
baggiegenes & poltracker - thanks v much. I wonder how people commute (other than train) to downtown from washington ave and other areas within inner loop if bus is not convenient? I can probably drive to work and park at a nearby garage but they charge $300+! looks like train is my only viable option if I do not want to take my car out and in this case I'd look for apts near train stations.
btw, is it safe to walk around in midtown or montrose late in the night from a bar? I am just trying to compare late night nyc streets. new york streets are very safe, guess because there are just many ppl. who drink late and walk around to trains etc. I don;t want to get mugged or shot at!
btw, is it safe to walk around in midtown or montrose late in the night from a bar? I am just trying to compare late night nyc streets. new york streets are very safe, guess because there are just many ppl. who drink late and walk around to trains etc. I don;t want to get mugged or shot at!
You might run into some junkies. I do it frequently w/o a problem.
btw, is it safe to walk around in midtown or montrose late in the night from a bar? I am just trying to compare late night nyc streets. new york streets are very safe, guess because there are just many ppl. who drink late and walk around to trains etc. I don;t want to get mugged or shot at!
Here's the best advice: you cannot replicate NYC here in Houston. I've lived in NYC (Upper West Side/Lincoln Center area) and Houston. They are just radically different.
In answer to your question, "I wonder how people commute (other than train) to downtown from washington ave and other areas within inner loop if bus is not convenient?", the answer is: they drive their cars. They drive from their garages in Montrose/Washington/Midtown the few blocks to the parking garages attached to their buildings, park, and ride the air conditioned elevator to the skybridge/basement/whatever, walk through the air conditioned lobby, get on the air conditioned elevator and go to their air conditioned offices; then they reverse the process at 5. Baggiejeans's advice in a post above this one is correct: the bus inside the loop is probably not for you.
Washington is a "transitional" area. So's Midtown. They just aren't there yet. (You could be a part of the transition!).
Houston has traditionally been a "New" city; it is very car-centric. The pedestrian lifestyle didn't exist here until a very few years ago. Downtown is in process of reinventing itself, and there are some really cool lofts, etc on the north/northeast ends of downtown, but the bulk of "downtown" is primarily financial/oil industry offices. No residences in a huge part of it (like Wall St. was when I lived in the City; very few actually LIVED there and it was pretty deserted at night).
Regarding, "is it safe to walk around in midtown or montrose late in the night from a bar?", the answer is "no". Walking anywhere at night is not usually a good idea, other than in throngs of people (Astros game) or the burbs (not under consideration) (Oh, and you will find that, outside of "downtown", and I mean, "downtown", as in "skyscraper area", Houston is "suburban"-looking to a New Yorker. "Inside the Loop"--the Loop is 610--is what you'd think of as Long Island. There is no equivalent of "Brooklyn" or "Queens" at all). I'm not trying to paint a picture of "crime-ridden" here, but it's very spotty and you can't just sail off down the street at 2:00 am (bars here close at 2) like you can in NYC. I know what you mean about being able to walk anywhere in NYC; I walked all over the place at 2:00 am---but not west of 8th Avenue. And not Battery Park at 2:00 am. And not the Bronx anytime other than Yanks game or the Zoo, and certainly not at 2:00 am.
Look, you live in NYC. You know where you can walk safely and where you can't. All cities are like that, including this one. Houston, however, is very, very car-centric compared to NYC. When I lived in NYC, I didn't even OWN a car (very foreign concept to me, having been raised in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, where a car is practically a birthright). I thought it was GREAT riding the subway. I still enjoy it, but I like having my own cars even better (I, alone, am a two car family ).
When I lived in NYC, after a night of bars on Christopher St./Sheridan Square, I'd fearlessly walk down the street, get on the "1" train and go back uptown. You can't do that here. You drive your car to the bar; you park as close as you can get; you put all valuables in the trunk or leave them at home; you don't wear expensive jewelry to the bar; you walk quickly and carefully (NYC walk) to your car, get in, and drive carefully home (so as not to attract the attention of the local gendarmes, should you have consumed any "refreshing beverages" at the bar).
You do understand that Montrose is still the gayborhood in Houston, right? That's changing somewhat, but it is the Houston equivalent of Chelsea. Just wanted you to be clear on that. You will find a big mixture of people in Montrose, but it is still the gay area. Midtown is far more geared toward young straight guys.
With your budget and some careful shopping, you should be able to find a nice apartment in Midtown, Rice Village (a possibility for you, though a bit of a drive to downtown vs. what you're used to), or the Museum area that will meet your requirements for "safe" and "nice".
As I've told someone else on this board, don't try to re-create your old city in your new one or you'll be miserable. I've moved from Houston to Dallas to Los Angeles back to Dallas to New York back to Dallas to Nashville to Atlanta to St. Paul Minnesota to Little Rock and back to Houston. Each one of those is radically different. I kept trying to recreate Dallas (I'm from Dallas originally, with childhood in Little Rock) in those places, and was miserable. It took a few moves to realize you have to appreciate each place on its own merits. If I were to move from Houston to, say, Seattle or Denver, I wouldn't try to recreate Houston in those cities; they're just too different. Instead, in Seattle I'd embrace the Pacific Northwest; in Denver, I'd re-learn how to ski. I have a palm tree in my back yard here; bougainvilla spills off my courtyard wall, and I enjoy frequent trips to Galveston/Gulf of Mexico. I drive my convertible to work with the top down in January (nice days only...) wearing a leather jacket---unimaginable elsewhere. I relish it. If I moved to Denver, I'd sell the 'vert and get a 4wd SUV with a ski rack and enjoy the winter lifestyle.
Consider this an ADVENTURE!
Get yourself on down here, trade in your black clothing (too hot!) for cool colors and shorts, and get yourself a nice pair of sunglasses, a nice car, a nice apartment, and laugh as you sip a refreshing beverage on your terrace while your friends in the City slog their way through the slush (trust me---it's fun to call them and tell them about the refreshing beverage you're consuming while breakfasting on the terrace as they face "winter").
btw, is it safe to walk around in midtown or montrose late in the night from a bar? I am just trying to compare late night nyc streets. new york streets are very safe, guess because there are just many ppl. who drink late and walk around to trains etc. I don;t want to get mugged or shot at!
There really is nothing wrong with the busses. I used to take them all the time. Can't speak for Midtown but I used to bike at night and walk in Montrose w/o a problem.
btw, is it safe to walk around in midtown or montrose late in the night from a bar? I am just trying to compare late night nyc streets. new york streets are very safe, guess because there are just many ppl. who drink late and walk around to trains etc. I don;t want to get mugged or shot at!
Yes. It's safe. Before my wife's pregnancy, I used to do it all the time. I've since slowed that behavior down quite a bit though. But, my experience is individual. I've heard stories from friends about muggings, but again, it's never happened to me. In fact, the only part of Houston I've ever been a victim of crime (I got mugged) was off 1960, which is waaay far from the city center. I've attributed my relative safety to my size as I'm over six feet tall and reasonably athletic.
As far as the mass transit question goes, a bus is absolutely safe within the loop, especially to get to work downtown. But, it will take longer than driving. That's just a fact. I used to live off the 78 line (W Alabama), and while reliable, it was slow. It made a ton of stops. The trip that would take ten minutes by car took twenty-five by bus. In contrast it would take me 35-40 minutes on foot. I'd personally recommend biking it. I've got several friends who bike to the Y, work out and then take showers and go to work. It seems to work for them.
And for the whole Montrose as a "gayborhood" thing, Montrose is a gay neighborhood as much as San Francisco is a gay city. It exists here. There's a concentration of gay bars here. But, it's by no means the predominant lifestyle here. It's just more accepted and in the open here than it is in other parts of the city. A straight man with an open mind won't feel out of place here. I don't anyhow, and I've even got a conservative streak that can be traced to my Southern Baptist upbringing.
apologies for my late follow-up... I was away trying to wrap up my stay here ...but thanks much for your replies ... Malvie, that was very useful indeed ... I think I'll take a short lease .... maybe 6 months .. maybe in midtown or near rice U along the train ... to experience houston and then maybe move in to an aprmnt for a longer stay .. I have a list of complexes to check out mostly in washington ave, midtown, galleria and montros ... let's see
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
). 
