Moving into - Greater Innwood area (Houston, DeSoto: real estate, apartment complex, condos)

[_firsttimebuyer]

Hello all

Am a first time home buyer, looking at houses around Greater Innwood area. We chose that area because it seemed to be ideal for our commute (15 miles to work for me, 18 miles to UofH for my wife) and the prices of the houses seemed affordable as well within my budget.

Am wondering about the profile of the neighborhood like crime\schools\lifestyle etc. I have searched city-data website and have the stats for that location

//www.city-data.com/zips/77088.html

Almost on every important stat, the location seems to be doing below par the state average. Is this something that should concern me? Am having a difficult time interpreting these data and their relative importance.

Any ideas?

Thanks
Kay

[hendersj31]

Not from around here are ya?

[_firsttimebuyer]

That obvious huh?! Yes not from here. Although I have been living here in Houston the last eight years.

K

[ipuck]

Originally Posted by hendersj31

Not from around here are ya?

I need that for Monday morning.

Op, if you do a quick glance, the schools are not that good. The last time I drove by that area, the neighborhood looks somewhat ghetto imo.

Good part is it is close to the core, and you are almost a stone throw to garden oaks.

[hendersj31]

Ok, I apologize for my humor. The Inwood area has been known for crime and gang activity, especially in the run down apartments that pepper the area.
My brother in law who is an HPD sergeant with 30 years on the force spent about a third of his career working the area. The stories he tells... But I dis hear the crime has been slowing, not sure how true though.

That aside there are nice homes and nice streets. The area is expected to improve but it seems a consensus in the real estate world that it wont be soon. The schools will leave a lot to be desired.
But as you mentioned the location is quite convenient and that is why many expect the area to improve in time. Especially when you can get a descent sized home on a good size lot.

[_firsttimebuyer]

No worries, I did get a chuckle out of your remark.

Crimes would sort of explain why the prices were low in that area then. In that case let me ask you this then. I work around IAH area and my wife expects to go to UofH soon. Keeping commute in mind what would be a good area for us to live in. Obviously price is a bit of concern we wouldn't wanna stretch over 250K price range

Thanks for your responses

K

[cheryjohns]

I have a couple that comes in and out of Houston (he works for an oil company). Two houses ago, they bought there, against my advice. They lasted almost a year, before selling and getting out. Their particular subdivision is an oasis - but the surrounding area is so bad that you cannot stop at a nearby place to buy gas or milk. To quote them - "getting in and out of the area is like driving through a war zone".

There are people that do well in transitional areas and those that don't. This particular couple does do well - yet Inwood defeated them.

[gwarnecke]

From your interest in Inwood, I'd guess that you're more inclined to a quiet suburban area. You might want to take a look at Fall Creek, Atascocita or Kingwood. You can find decent starter homes in these areas for under $250k, easy commute to IAH and not too horrible to UH.

Hear that Inwood has been "5-10 years away from gentrifying" for many years now. It will probably eventually come around, with a great location, large and architecturally-interesting original homes, and proximity to booming Oak Forest/Garden Oaks, but poor schools and rough apartments in the area are a major handicap.

Folks who have lived in Houston longer than me can elaborate on this - but I've heard that Inwood, along with Greater Fondren SW and a few other areas, is considered a poster child for how overbuilding of apartments can destroy a neighborhood. Inwood was once a middle/upper class golf course community (course was shut down a few years ago, now is just "green space"), but too many apartments and condos were built in the early 80s boom (many of them originally fairly upscale complexes), and these contributed to a crime spike in the late 80s bust, families rapidly moved out of the neighborhood and the area declined sharply almost overnight.

[Failed Engineer]

Neighborhoods directly adjacent to the Fondren SW apartments are now starting to be in the starting phase of really taking off, like Maplewood West.

I think Inwood is going to see that too, and sooner than most think. It's not 10 years away.

[trbstang]

Yeah, Inwood area. We lived there, in a nice apartment complex on DeSoto and later in Inwood North. It was nice, way back then. After an attempted carjacking, and faced with the fact the schools were not good, we moved. There are still some nice homes in the area, but the surroudings do leave a lot to be desired. Hopefully it will turn around since it is a convenient area.

With a budget like that, there are plenty of other areas you could look at. The Humble/Atascosita/Kingwood area is good, with the Hwy 59 commute to UofH not being bad. Further west along BW8 there are a lot of nice neighborhoods west of 249 in 77040 and 77064. Still an easy commute to IAH, but a bit more congested heading down Hwy 290 towards downtown during rush hour.

Good luck!