Galveston Real Estate (Houston, La Marque, Bayou Vista: mortgage, property taxes, homeowners insurance)

[islandFever]

Hello everyone. We are living in California but are considering a move to the Galveston area for school (UTMB). I am interested in buying a home in the area during our time there, but would like to get a better handle on the cost of home ownership out there. Please share your experiences so that we know what to expect.

I'm looking at canal front homes from $190K to $240K in Bayou Vista, La Marque, and Jamaica Beach. It seems like, besides the house payments, I should expect taxes of around $6500/year even with the homestead exemption? Wow. That's a lot! Also, it seems like homeowners insurance (2% dedectible, flood coverage, windstorm, everything) would be around $4500/yr? Is this about right? Will there be problems finding insurance coverage like the people in Florida? I hear some Floridians can't get insurance anymore. Also, how much is the tax and insurance on a 24 ft cabin cruiser type boat ($40K value)? Thanks.

[chs]

Yup - insurance and property tax about equal the mortgage itself!

But just think - similar house in CA would be $600K!

If you're still looking for a place, I might have one you'd be interested in. Check out Craigslist Houston under Tiki Island

[momof2dfw]

That is kind of high on the insurance side. My house is about $500K and we pay about $3500 yearly for 1% deductible and full replacement value. If you find a house that your interested in call a local insurance agent and get a quote from them. That will give you the best idea w/o much guessing. You may be able to do such online. Even check w/ your local agent now in Cali to see if they can get a quote for you.

Galveston property value is going up and probably has increased more than anywhere else in Texas in the last 2 years. All of the new developments going on, courtesy of Tillman Frititia (sp?), has really pushed a lot of developers to look at Galveston and go for it. I recently read that Boliver Island, Crystal Beach and all are getting ready to get some major developments going.

BTW, there is a Galveston website and forum w/ lots of locals that post on there. They can also give you a better idea of the situation. I think it is galveston.com?

[txgrl]

Property taxes in Galveston are very high, but not as high as in some other states. My home is valued at 172k and last year we payed 5k in property taxes. I cannot remember what the insurance is, but I know it's high. Mortgage with both included is roughly 1400 a month, keeping in mind I paid 130k for my home. This is in Galveston itself, I couldn't tell you about outlying areas.