House hunting next week... (Houston, Sugar Land: for rent, buying, new construction)

[haudi]

Parts of Cinco and those Katy neighborhoods were underwater. Telfair and other Sugarland neighborhoods were under mandatory evacuation because of rising water. There are others on that list that were also affected, with plenty of photos and videos around showing it. That's not drama, that's fact.

Originally Posted by chris_ut

Only one on your list I'm aware of with flooded houses is Greatwood. People are being dramatic again on here.

[fnh]

Honestly I don't know much about neighborhoods so far out on the southwest side but here is the neighborhood evacuation list from yesterday:
List of flood impacted Ft. Bend Co. neighborhoods released | abc13.com

[ClaraC]

Originally Posted by chris_ut

Only one on your list I'm aware of with flooded houses is Greatwood. People are being dramatic again on here.

I think you're just not aware, chris. I have family in Katy and they are housing neighbors who have water in their homes. There are STILL people calling to be rescued by boat throughout Houston, and now there's a google doc to fill out so they can more easily coordinate boat rescues.

And this just in, moments ago: 4,000 homes near Barker and Addicks reservoirs inundated:

http://www.khou.com/weather/hurrican...ands/468348109

This also might be helpful. A map of the city, with a red dot for each person who has called requesting rescue.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...ne-harvey.html

[cBach]

Originally Posted by metaphysik

My new company will definitely continue to do business. Their Houston office is very small (~200 employees) compared to the company as a whole so they are not exposed to a risk of shutting down from this.

Our budget is $600-800K

We're looking to see homes in:
Spring (Champion Woods, Gleannloch Farms)
Cypress (Bridgeland, Lakes of Fairhaven)
Katy (Cinco Ranch SW, Cross Creek Ranch)
Richmond (Lakes of Mission Grove)
Sugar Land (Telfair, Greatwood)

(And yes I am fully aware of the commutes before someone brings it up!)

Spring - flooded with 1-5 feet of water
Cypress - flooded 6"-2'
Katy - flooded with 5-10 feet of water
Richmond - flooded 5"-5'
Sugar Land - flooded 1"-10'

My advice would be to get an upper level floor apartment and sit it out. I wouldn't come for a scouting trip until mid September a few days before you start. It just *may* be better then.

Right now most of the roads are impassable in Houston.

[fnh]

While I think chris_ut is guilty of downplaying and dismissing much of the damage, I think cBach is exaggerating it here. In our northwest corner of Houston there was no overtopping of bayou banks, no flooding of homes or even streets, roads are clear, stores and restaurants are open. DH went cycling this morning on what he said were dry roads.

There certainly are parts of town which were and are still devastated for the foreseeable future, with impassable roads and hundreds or thousands of homes underwater. There are also parts of town which simply got wet and are back humming.

[texas7]

You will find a home. A friend said she has 5 children spread across every side of town and amazingly, not one Got water in Their home.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by cBach

Spring - flooded with 1-5 feet of water
Cypress - flooded 6"-2'
Katy - flooded with 5-10 feet of water
Richmond - flooded 5"-5'
Sugar Land - flooded 1"-10'

that's what fake news looks like
You are talking about those towns as if they were 2000 people towns
you are talking about towns around 50-100k people

Use this links and stay away from the flood zones
https://www.harriscountyfrm.org/
http://www.harriscountyfemt.org/

I did that, and water didn't even touch the sidewalk in front of my house (water from the street)

[Blondebaerde]

Look, I don't live there. Fellow Americans who do, my condolences: rest of the country stands ready with donations as you need them!

I live in a disaster zone called Seattle. We may be wiped out one day. That will be quid pro quo, people saying "how could you live in a quake zone" or "near active volcanos". Well, we do, and we're seismically active but many...perhaps most...infrastructure is overbuilt for that situation. Sufficient large temblor, though, and we're thousands dead and 1/4 of downtown annihilated because it's built on fill. I get that. I live on rock and well-compacted glacial till, eastside, so have high hopes I'll live through it.

So "next time," I hope people study county and other maps and build on truly "high ground", and/or have clear plans for GTFO when necessary, as I do here in the PacNW. High ground and safe zones should be obvious now. That's how we learn, as a society and species: repeated catastrophe is educational, as my scientist mentors in undergrad used to say.

Showing up to a major disaster zone a week or few weeks later "house hunting" sounds like a dice roll at-best, I think a few clear heads get that in this thread. Won't local markets be in turmoil, will anyone be underwriting ANYTHING without clear insurance riders in place, for at least few months? How will that latter industry be impacted, can you even get any?

I don't know what a Galleria is...yep, not a local...but assuming this is a professional move, I'd be in touch with them like yesterday to discuss corporate housing, rentals, temp everything at reduced or subsidized rates until further notice. I have never made a major move, metro-to-metro, and not rented for a year or so prior to a purchase but that's me. I've done that twice as an adult and professional.

How about: month in corporate housing, see lay of the land, grab a one year lease on rental, take a look at how market fluctuates and make a strike summer to fall of 2018 on a buy?

Were Houston my current or shortly-to-be hometown, that's surely what I would do.

[Chrisrock]

The homes in Greatwood that are in your range fine. I think there are only 3 streets with homes that fall in this range.

[rdz1979]

OP, best of luck and welcome to Houston. I don't normally tout my neighborhood, but we haven't flooded in any of the flooding events ever in Houston. I figure that if we didn't flood this time, we probably won't flood ever. We are right on the line between the Buffalo and Brays Bayous water shed. The neighborhoid is beautifully located, we are literally just south of Galleria by the way. The only thing is that we are surrounded by humongous apartment complexes and it's not what many would call a "desirable" neighborhood. I live in the Shenandoah neighborhood which is completely surrounded by Gulfton. I love this area and have lived here for years. I have had no major problems here, but I do understand that not everybody is as "outgoing" as I am so take the neighborhood with a grain of salt. However, it doesn't flood.