Atascocita Shore Area (Houston, Sugar Land, The Woodlands: real estate, rentals, low crime)

[bondi88]

I am looking at houses in the Atascocita Shore, Golf Villas, Pinehurst area. Information about those communities will be appreciated. I know the crime rate in that area is low, schools are good, and Atascocita is a growing community. Is there anything negative I am missing? Thanks.

[KatieKennedy]

The Atascocita Shores area is a little older and not as upscale as the nearby Eagle Springs and Summerwood areas. The neighborhood is well kept and you are very close to Lake Houston. There was some recent litigation involving the Atascocita Country Club golf course. A developer wanted to build houses on the golf course property. The country club is no longer in business. I think the litigation has been resolved. The schools are pretty good but not Exemplary rated.

[bondi88]

KatieKennedy
Thank you for the information.

[lhafer]

Pretty much everything KatieKennedy said. I think that golf course is now a public course?? Not sure though.

I live in Eagle Springs. Love the Atascocita area in general. Love the trees. I'm in Kingwood and much as I am in Atascocita most of the time!

Are there any specific reasons why you are just looking in those areas?

Right now 1960 and W. Lake Houston Pkwy is under construction. I think it's supposed to be finished in a few months. But that makes traffic there a bit of a bear at the moment.

Where will you be working?

[bondi88]

Ihafer, thanks for replying.
I am retiring into the area. I do not know Houston well, but am looking for a metropoitan city in a tax free state with reasonable cost of living, a warm winter, a good international airport to get away during the hot summer, and good health care. Houston seems to fit the bill.

I used to fly a lot into Houston to make airline connections, and I was struck by the views of Lake Houston and the beautiful houses in Kingwood/Atascocita lining the shores from the air. I cannot afford those mega houses in those Estate neigborhoods, but I heard that the Atascocita shore, Pinehurst areas have low crime, good school and decent houses at a lower price compared to the the Woodlands, Kingwood, Cinco Ranch etc. Definitively cannot afford the ritzy rich areas downtown, so the area sounds attractive. I just want to get to know more about the negatives of the area so that I am not looking through rose-color tinted glasses only .

[JilliO]

Hi, I'd recommend searching the "master planned communities" in this area--Fall Creek. Summerwood, Eagle Springs, and Kingwood. The others... well, for ME, not so much.

The pros for this area:
* really close to IAH (I live in Summerwood, and on Beltway 8 I routinely get to the terminal to pick people up in under 15 minutes). I commute for my job and I have relatives who work for UA, so I'm making this route all the time.
* relatively easy commute to downtown. During non rush hour, you're downtown within 25 minutes
* In eagle springs, fall creek, and summerwood, every day traffic is a breeze

The cons:
well.... I prefer the museums and restaurants downtown. I have to drive there. I've gotten stuck in Sugar Land, Spring, Woodlands... there might be many more things closer in terms of miles-to-drive in other parts of the metro-houston area, but the traffic there can be tough.... so time-to-drive (even tho it's further away) is about the same from NE Harris County. If you don't dine out much or you are happy with one or two good Tex-Mex, Sushi, Viet, Chinese, you will be more than happy in the Lake Houston Area. If you like LOTS of choice, you'll have to drive downtown, but that's not really too bad

[bondi88]

Jillio
Thanks. The houses in Eagle Springs look very nice. I am looking at slightly less expensive properties at this point because of affordability, as well as I do not want to commit large amount of money at this point because I had never lived in Houston before, just in case that I find out later that I strongly do not like this or that.

[lhafer]

Originally Posted by bondi88

Jillio
Thanks. The houses in Eagle Springs look very nice. I am looking at slightly less expensive properties at this point because of affordability, as well as I do not want to commit large amount of money at this point because I had never lived in Houston before, just in case that I find out later that I strongly do not like this or that.

If that's the case, then I would strongly suggest renting here for 6 months or a yar before buying anything. There is a demand for rentals, so they are available. Then you can see of you really like the area, the neighborhood, etc. check Houston Real estate, Houston homes, Houston Realtors: HAR.com and look for rental properties.

[bondi88]

Ihafer
Thanks for the very sensible advice. I am very adaptable. In my working life, I had been assigned here and there, and some of the places I stayed might have been found unacceptable to a fair number of people. I managed to stay content with a little bit of Zen sensibility, inner peace and some identification with Thoreau, and I had never got work up over those places. It will take a fair bit for me to say, the place is unacceptable. And from the research I have done so far, this area I am looking at for retirement is quite liveable. Like I indicated before, I was looking for negatives about the area to see what is the worst people will say.

[lhafer]

Originally Posted by bondi88

Ihafer
Thanks for the very sensible advice. I am very adaptable. In my working life, I had been assigned here and there, and some of the places I stayed might have been found unacceptable to a fair number of people. I managed to stay content with a little bit of Zen sensibility, inner peace and some identification with Thoreau, and I had never got work up over those places. It will take a fair bit for me to say, the place is unacceptable. And from the research I have done so far, this area I am looking at for retirement is quite liveable. Like I indicated before, I was looking for negatives about the area to see what is the worst people will say.

Well, I can't speak for atascocita shores, or the other communities you mentioned before in particular. But I will say that I do really really like atascocita in general.

The worst for me:
- lack of good mom and pop restaurants
- too many chain restaurants
- traffic seems to be getting worse as the area grows (but that's expected with growth)
- there is some crime in the area, but it tends to be sporadic for some reason

The best for me:
- the trees
- the small town feel, and running into people you know when you are out and about
- 99% of what I need I can get within a ten minute drive
- Houston is about 30 minutes away if and when needed
- my husband's commute is still decent even during rush hour.

When we looked for a house, I searched for 4 years to find the right area for us. My restrictions were where we worked, which was the medical center for me, and downtown and the ship channel for my husband. We chose the atascocita area for the reasons I stated above. We loved The Woodlands, but I hate 45, and the traffic is awful. I liked the Clearlake area, but again, I hate 45, and the traffic there is awful. I liked Pearland, but could see 288 becoming a serious problem with how fast the area was growing.