New to San Antonio--need objective advice (Alamo, Terrell: for sale, apartment, HOA fees)

[autiger92]

We recently relocated from Birmingham, Alabama. We were really excited about moving here, and we love it so far. We have been house hunting for 6 weeks, and I'm starting to get discouraged. I'm considering neighborhoods that are priced from 190's to the low 300's. I know it sounds like there would be tons to choose from, but the commute is a big issue for us. My husband's office is at 800 Isom Rd--sort of near the airport.

We started looking in the Deerfield/Inwood area, but everything in our price range was in dire need of updating. We don't mind at all buying a house that needs some work, but the prices were too high for us to buy and put more money in the house. We branched out a bit and have considered Roger's Ranch and Vineyard.

My realtor seems to be a tad biased in favor of the newer home communities. That's why I said in the title that I need OBJECTIVE advice. I'm afraid I might not be getting that from her. DH and I are having a really hard time getting used to the tiny lots and cookie cutter thing. I know we'll get used to it, but we want to explore ALL of our options. Soooo, most recently we looked at a few houses in Whispering Oaks (only 5 miles from DH's office), Hunter's Creek, and Park Forest. We drove through Northwood this weekend, and found some interesting houses in our price range. Looks nice-- Big lots/mature trees--short commute. Seems like in other large metro areas, the close in, older established neighborhoods go up in value/out appreciate the out-lying 'burbs--if it's a nice well kept area. Is SA like that or going to be like that?

What can you tell me about these older neighborhoods?

What kind of people live there? Ages? Mostly professionals or not? Mostly retirees or are there young families?

Are these neighborhoods on the way up or down?

Where would we get the best return on our investment if we remodel?

A few other concerns. My realtor won't show me anything that's in a neighborhood w/out a pool. She says it's harder to resale in those neighborhoods. It's not a big deal to me, personally. What do y'all think about the neighborhood pool thing? Is it really a big deal?

It seems like nothing new is coming on the market. My guess is people know the market is soft, and they won't sell unless they absolutely have to. We were hoping that when March rolled around we would start seeing a lot of new listings, but that's just not happening. Any advice is apreciated!

[smitty12]

Northwood is a good neighborhood, NEISD school district....

Demographic Map Catalog

The above link provides good demographic data. Northwood is in district 10, the maps break out much smaller pieces.... Looking at those maps it looks like Northwood is above average in household income, Better that 50% of residents have a college degree, and a low poverty rate.... You could do much worse.... You will not see data for Alamo Heights, Terrell Hills, Castle Hills, etc... only City of San Antonio data available from that link.

I agree that once this current market silliness ends in close neighborhoods will see better appreciation. Especially if gas prices continue to go up, and people outside of 1604 start paying tolls to go anywhere....

I don't think the pool thing is a big deal.... The Alamo Heights pool is a membership pool apparently open anyone willing to pay the $400 yearly Family Pass. I have never tried to join though, but I'm sure there are others.
I don't think Northwood has a HOA, so that is probably cheap.....

Welcome to The Pool

You could probably draw a 5 mile circle around your husbands work, and find a reasonable house, nothing really bad in that area....

[autiger92]

Thanks for the links! I'll check them out.

Actually, I read somewhere online that Northwood does have an HOA with voluntary membership --only 15 dollars a year. Not sure if that's accurate. I'll have to double check. Apparently it's a joint association with Oak Park??? I think that's what I read.

[rd2007]

I don't know how far that area is from the airport, but don't forget to watch the aircraft traffic.. I had a coworker a few years ago that bought a house right in the path of the incoming jets. He said it didn't bother him, but I'm fairly certain it would..

[autiger92]

My realtor has been really good to point out the neighborhoods that are in the flight path. None of the ones I listed have that issue. Where I am now is very close to the flight path, actually. We are in Walker Ranch Apt right next to Vista Del Norte and across Blanco from Churchill Estates. Those neighborhoods are directly in the flight path.

I feel sure your coworker probably knew what he was getting into, LOL. I was in Vista Del Norte (beautiful neighborhood BTW) driving around for maybe 5 minutes before a huge plane cast a LARGE shadow over my car! They fly over pretty frequently.

[smuboy86]

I don't think anyone could go wrong with northwood. It has an excellent elementary school, you get the 78209 zip code without actually having to live in Alamo Heights. The neighborhood is very diverse age wise. You have retired military officers, and you have families with younger children too. Northwood does have a voluntary HOA with Oak Park, but it just mainly goes to bat with the city over zoning issues. The pool thing is a non-issue. A lot of homes in Northwood have their own pool. We had a membership with the AH pool for years, as did some of our neighbors. Northwood has defiantly appreciated in the past 10 years you used to be able to buy in for around 100K now it looks like the average is about 250K.

[ShaneSA]

It sounds like your realtor is showing you what she wants, not what you want. You either need to be emphatic with her on what YOU want in a house or find another realtor who will listen to your needs and wants and show them to you. A pool does not make or break a deal and does not add value to an area. It's a preferance, not a need.
The airport approach and take off is over Northwoods when the wind is right. (Planes take off into the wind). Check the noise level on any house your considering. Other than that and the construction of 410 in the area, it's a great area.
there may be others. My concern is about the realtor. Your not getting good information or assistance in finding what you want.
Let us know where you decide. There are lots of good choices.

[Chaka]

I think you need a new realtor. One who listens to YOUR needs and wants and works WITH you, not telling you what you she thinks you need. Remember the realtor works FOR you. I can't tell you how many people I know who bought in SA being new to the area who later said "My realtor never showed us these areas!" when they finally see other neighborhoods after living here awhile.

I can't comment on the neighborhoods you mention, but have you considered Castle Hills? Not a far commute, wonderful older established neighborhood. Loads of excellent trees.

[kevcrawford]

I agree with the others. I'd at least speak to your Realtor first to air your concerns and see if she changes her ways. As a Realtor, I know that it's not uncommon for people to not be entirely open if they're not liking the direction that things are going. People feel like they're going to offend, when in reality we really need that guidance from the buyers. If you haven't been completely transparent with them, try that. If you have, get a referral for one that'll help you find more of what you're looking for. That's a great price range to be buying in, because there are so many different options.

[autiger92]

Thanks to everyone for your input. I had a honest conversation w/ my realtor just last week. She was showing us houses on the upper end of our price range and not much else. I told her that after crunching numbers including the property taxes and HOA fees, we were becoming discouraged. I said, "What if we decide that getting the 15yr mortgage is THE most important thing. Where do you take people who come to you and say they can't spend more than 250K?

She said Stone Oak (because of the schools). That frustrated me because I don't want my husband spending 2 hours in the car everyday. I expressed my concern that there are so many houses for sale out there that are sitting on the market. (not just Stone Oak, but in Comal County, too) My husband's coworkers say those people want to move close in to avoid the traffic. I asked my realtor, "Where are all these people going to move?" She said, "Here." We were standing on a nice street in Roger's Ranch.

My next question was, "All those people can afford this? Is there nowhere to live close in for less than 250? No good schools? Where do people live for 250 who want to be close in?"

She named off Park Forest, Churchhill Forest, and I think she mentioned Whispering Oaks. She did NOT mention Northwood or anything else in that area. Probably because we told her we need 4 bedrooms. There don't seem to be many 4 bedroom houses there--especially in our price range. I'm willing to sacrifice sq footage to be in a nice area IF that's what it takes. My husband might not agree, so we'll see!

I drove through Churchhill Forest and was not impressed. It was down right depressing, honestly, if that's the best S. A. has to offer in the 200's. I know that's home to some perfectly wonderful people, but it looked run down--not well kept. Park Forest looked more well kept, but I've driven through there several times, and have yet to see anyone under the age of 50. My husband and I have decided to back off for awhile and see if anything new shows up on the market. We are just SO anxious to be settled and get out of this little apartment!

Still haven't heard anyone comment specifically on any of the neighborhoods in the 78230 zip code. Not sure why.

Anyway, I really appreciate our responses. Thanks again!