Relocating from NYC to Houston (Bellaire, Kirby: for rent, neighborhood, elementary schools)

[Prey521]

My company moved me from NY to Houston in December of 2012 and couldn't be happier!! I wanted out of the city life so we (wife and 2 toddlers) moved up to the burbs. Rented a house in Atascocita for a few years and we built a house out in New Caney back in July of '15. You'll love it here!

[harrydnyc]

Trying to understand something - I have heard a lot of nice things about Rice Village (both on here and from friend with knowledge of Houston), and I am trying to understand if that area is part of the Washington Ave / Memorial Park neighborhood. The reason I am asking is because when I try to do an internet search of rentals in that area, the neighborhood listed on the sites is typically "Washington Ave. Corridor" or "Washington Ave / Memorial."

Originally Posted by Altuve

Many of these are nice, upscale areas that I would recommend living in if the OP was single or didn't have kids. But, with kids, I'd recommend areas 4 and 7. ("Westheimer" is obviously a long road, with a ton of different areas, not sure which area you're referring to). Just not a ton of families in the other areas. Others will disagree, but this is obviously just my opinion.

I'd also toss in Bellaire, inside the loop portion, and Braes Heights as having nice walkable neighborhoods that are dominated by families; both are within 15 minutes drive of the Galleria where the OP works, on most days.

[harrydnyc]

Yeah, we are a little different - my wife and I were fine with living in the city even after the birth of our child. Maybe we are in denial and will change our tune once we have to deal with schools, etc.

Originally Posted by Prey521

My company moved me from NY to Houston in December of 2012 and couldn't be happier!! I wanted out of the city life so we (wife and 2 toddlers) moved up to the burbs. Rented a house in Atascocita for a few years and we built a house out in New Caney back in July of '15. You'll love it here!

[curbur]

In terms of walkability, it's West U/Rice Village or Montrose, Heights and Upper Kirby aren't far behind. If Uptown/Galleria or Washington Ave/Memorial Dr. areas were more pedestrian friendly then they would be nice also. None of them compare with NYC though.

[ipuck]

Originally Posted by harrydnyc

Yeah, we are a little different - my wife and I were fine with living in the city even after the birth of our child. Maybe we are in denial and will change our tune once we have to deal with schools, etc.

I felt that way till my kid till 3. Then i move down here and haven't look back since. Even pop another one out since I got so many rooms I don't know what to do with. I would have been one and done if I was still in NYC.

Most important thing for me down here was get a yard for BBQ and a pool. Hard to get a house with a pool inside the loop or the areas mentioned for that price, but definitely possible further out.

[d2mini]

Originally Posted by harrydnyc

Trying to understand something - I have heard a lot of nice things about Rice Village (both on here and from friend with knowledge of Houston), and I am trying to understand if that area is part of the Washington Ave / Memorial Park neighborhood. The reason I am asking is because when I try to do an internet search of rentals in that area, the neighborhood listed on the sites is typically "Washington Ave. Corridor" or "Washington Ave / Memorial."

You may be thinking of Rice Military, which is situated between memorial and washington.
Rice Village is a completely different part of town.

[d2mini]

Originally Posted by ipuck

I felt that way till my kid till 3. Then i move down here and haven't look back since. Even pop another one out since I got so many rooms I don't know what to do with. I would have been one and done if I was still in NYC.

Most important thing for me down here was get a yard for BBQ and a pool. Hard to get a house with a pool inside the loop or the areas mentioned for that price, but definitely possible further out.

We did the opposite! Couldn't take the commute any longer so moved the kids back to the city.
Much better lifestyle for us.

[ipuck]

Originally Posted by d2mini

We did the opposite! Couldn't take the commute any longer so moved the kids back to the city.
Much better lifestyle for us.

Only issue is the school. I don't want to join the race to prep my kid for the selective school. I know parents in NYC that have been preparing the school since the kid is born. They have to do this all the way through high school as it is pretty much a death sentence if you don't get in any of the top schools.


There is only couple schools inside the loop that most people would send the kids to and they are all highly competitive. I don't have to do any of that in Sugar Land. Maybe his education is not like TH Rogers or any of the private school, but I know it is very good and join by parents that share the same value with education as me.

[westres1]

Originally Posted by harrydnyc

Trying to understand something - I have heard a lot of nice things about Rice Village (both on here and from friend with knowledge of Houston), and I am trying to understand if that area is part of the Washington Ave / Memorial Park neighborhood. The reason I am asking is because when I try to do an internet search of rentals in that area, the neighborhood listed on the sites is typically "Washington Ave. Corridor" or "Washington Ave / Memorial."

Go to Texas Real Estate - 132,370 Homes for Sale and Rent- HAR.com and choose the market area of Rice/museum district, that will take you to the Rice University area. You are probably thinking Rice Military which is Memorial Park/Washington corridor area.
The West U/Rice University/museum district is more walkable than Rice Military which still has ditches and few sidewalks in parts.

[Dirt McGirt]

I lived on the UES and Murray Hill in NYC. Currently live in Southampton/Blvd Oaks. Would make the following comments on many of the good suggestions already:

By Rice University is probably the most walkable with family. Areas in Boulevard Oaks, Southampton, and Southgate would all work. You would generally want to be south of I-59, West of Montrose Blvd / Main St, East of Kirby, and North of W Holcombe. Depending on location within that area you can walk to Rice Village, Rice U, Hermann Park & the Zoo, and restaurants in south Montrose (neighborhood).

West U: to the west of the above area. Very family friendly and easy/safe to walk around, however West U is more of an inner loop suburb than urban in feel. I would not consider it too walkable for restaurants, coffee, etc. but it is very convienent via car for most everything in Houston. Bellaire is a more extreme example of this. Schools in the area are generally very good (particuarly at elementary level) and it has better city services. Also has its own community pool which is very nice.

Upper Kirby: generally very walkable but less family friendly. More built up and glitzier than the Rice area, but also lacks a bit of the character - a bit like LIC in that regard vs Rice area that might compare more like the UWS.

Oak Forest / Garden Oaks: nice, up and coming areas, but much less walkable. It's nice in that you're close to everything inner-loop but it's quieter, greener, cheaper, etc than most of the inner loop. There are places to walk to, but your choices are limited and the areas surrounding it are pretty crappy. Very good sense of community in the neighborhood. Same comments basically apply for timber grove.

Heights: Perhaps the most walkable area depending on where you live within it. A bit younger than the above areas though a good amount of young families (areas zone to either pretty good elementary schools (Harvard/Travis) or bad ones). Areas In the Heights can vary a lot with some areas not looking all that nice IMO.

Montrose: As walkable or more so than the Heights, best restaurants in Houston. Less families. Depends a lot on what area of Montrose you live in for how nice, walkable, safe, etc it is.

Galleria: Would not want to live there - very dense, but walkability limited by traffic, no sense of neighborhood, etc.

Very quick comments. I would say in general it is hard to overly categorize a neighborhood given the lack of zoning and differing proximity to areas of interest, best to look at at least a few areas and compare.