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Old 12-30-2006, 12:15 AM
 
Location: Bend, Oregon
30 posts, read 109,812 times
Reputation: 23

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Hello!

My family and I are going to be relocating from Portland, OR to Houston, TX. I will be the Studio One to One photography studio in the Willowbrook Mall.

I had a couple of questions that I would REALLY love your input on!!

1. I have 3 kids ages 5, 3 and 18 months. Are there any particular school districs or schools that you would HIGHLY recommend? I hear Sugarland has great schools... and I am willing to commute so that my kids can have a great place to go to school. Our 5 years old is currently enrolled in a charter school here in Portland that is AMAZING!! By the 3rd grade most kids are reading at a 6th or 7th grade reading level. The class size is smaller and the teachers give more personalized attention. Each class is divided into smaller groups so that kids can learn at a pace that is more comfortable for them. ie. kids who are excelling in Math can be in the group within their class that moves along faster for Math.

I would LOVE to find something similar to that in Houston, but so far from what I've read about Houston's charter schools--- most of them are not that great. Most of all I would put a priority on GREAT teachers. So if there are any schools that are known for having the BEST teachers... i would really love to hear about those.

2. Working at the Willowbrook Mall, are there any NIGHTMARE commutes I would want to try and avoid? Is is reasonable to live in Sugarland and commute to Willowbrook Mall?

Thanks so much for any thoughts/suggestions you have---
I GREAT appreciate it!!

Lance
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Old 12-30-2006, 06:56 PM
 
Location: The house on the hill
1,148 posts, read 3,557,502 times
Reputation: 1007
Lance,
We just moved here from Portland, OR in October. I am familiar with the Willowbrook Mall because I have shopped there a few times. However, I am not sure about that area and the schools/housing etc.
Here is where we live:
http://www.fallcreekhouston.com/
But I think it might be a little bit of a commute to the Willowbrook area.

My best suggestion would be to find a good realtor in the area and let them know your needs. Unfortunately - you are going to find that the emphasis on education is not what it is in Portland. There are still some good schools, but overall, disappointing (compared to what you would find in Portland)

Good luck to you! ~K~
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Old 12-30-2006, 07:17 PM
 
2,628 posts, read 8,833,187 times
Reputation: 2102
If you are working at Willowbrook, then why would you consider commuting to Sugarland when Klein & Cy-Fair Schools are right there? That doesn't make any sense. Klein & Cypress Fairbanks are two of the most sought after districts in the Houston area. The other good one is in the Woodlands, due north of there. I believe Tomball schools are good also. Count on Mr. Football chiming in as he lives NW and can probably give you more details.

The best places out there depend upon who you talk to. The areas near Willowbrook Mall are Champions area and Cypress. There are very nice subdivisions thru out that are beautifully maintained, but the main roads are not zoned and are cluttered looking. This is the most common objection. The Woodlands is "master-planned" with strict land use and green-belts, etc. However, it would be farther out and typically you don't get as much bang for your buck, so it depends upon what you are looking for.

The subdivisions in Klein ISD that are zoned to Klein Forest High School are typically not as popular as those north of Cypress Creek. Newer subdivisions like Gleannloch Farms are very nice, but personally there is a significant price disparity between it and the older established neighborhoods around it like Champion Forest, Wimbledon, Memorial Northwest & Spring Creek Forest. A lot of these homes are 70's -80's vintage with more "divided up" floorplans, rather than the more open concept being built today, and usually have 8' ceilings instead of 9'. But, you can get a lot more for your money and update in these older subdivisions, plus the trees are usually better.
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Old 12-30-2006, 07:58 PM
 
1,336 posts, read 6,446,206 times
Reputation: 1070
Yes...lots of good choices in this area.

What is your price range?
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Old 12-30-2006, 08:52 PM
 
Location: Bend, Oregon
30 posts, read 109,812 times
Reputation: 23
Default I like how Klein and Cypress Fairbanks sounds

GREAT feedback--- Thank You! Initially I had heard/read such great things about Sugarland that it was on my list of places to strongly consider. But I didn't realize there were such great options in NW Houston. Thank you!

As far as the house budget--- we'd like to be able to find something for 150K (4 beds, 2 bath or better). We'd prefer something on the newer side but value and convenience would win out. Meaning if we could find a good home that would be near a GREAT school and near the Willowbrook Mall--- that would weight more heavily then getting a newer home if we had to choose between the two.

Our priority list would be:

1. Great schools
2. Good home (nice area, good value, newer, more open floor plan, good access to hwys)
3. Near Willowbrook Mall

I'm still trying to feel out how reasonable this list is with our $150K budget.
But so far I have the impression that we should be able to find something that would be a good fit for us in that price range.

Thanks again for your GREAT thoughts!

Lance
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Old 12-31-2006, 09:47 AM
 
4,875 posts, read 10,072,540 times
Reputation: 1993
Yeah, if you work in Willowbrook, Cy-Fair is the best option as far as schools go. Cy-Fair is not the only mostly good school district out there, but it is the closest to your place of employment.

For instance, if one stated that he worked in downtown, I would ask him to look into sections of Houston ISD (I.E. River Oaks/West U area, Bellaire/Meyerland) and Spring Branch ISD south of Interstate 10.
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Old 12-31-2006, 09:49 PM
 
11 posts, read 55,143 times
Reputation: 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by lance View Post
Hello!

My family and I are going to be relocating from Portland, OR to Houston, TX. I will be the Studio One to One photography studio in the Willowbrook Mall.

I had a couple of questions that I would REALLY love your input on!!

1. I have 3 kids ages 5, 3 and 18 months. Are there any particular school districs or schools that you would HIGHLY recommend? I hear Sugarland has great schools... and I am willing to commute so that my kids can have a great place to go to school. Our 5 years old is currently enrolled in a charter school here in Portland that is AMAZING!! By the 3rd grade most kids are reading at a 6th or 7th grade reading level. The class size is smaller and the teachers give more personalized attention. Each class is divided into smaller groups so that kids can learn at a pace that is more comfortable for them. ie. kids who are excelling in Math can be in the group within their class that moves along faster for Math.

I would LOVE to find something similar to that in Houston, but so far from what I've read about Houston's charter schools--- most of them are not that great. Most of all I would put a priority on GREAT teachers. So if there are any schools that are known for having the BEST teachers... i would really love to hear about those.

2. Working at the Willowbrook Mall, are there any NIGHTMARE commutes I would want to try and avoid? Is is reasonable to live in Sugarland and commute to Willowbrook Mall?

Thanks so much for any thoughts/suggestions you have---
I GREAT appreciate it!!

Lance

With working out in the suburbs, and driving against traffic, I doubt it will be much of a problem. I agree with the rest. The Cyfair and Klein school districts are good. And you could send them to a Montessori school also. They're in all areas of town, but you have to pay tuition. From what I understand though it's not too much. It's funny, because I'm in Houston, considering moving to Portland in the next couple of years.
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Old 01-03-2007, 09:41 PM
 
Location: Tomball / Rosehill, Tx
4 posts, read 11,927 times
Reputation: 11
Tomball is another great option. It still maintains a small town feel, has an excellent school district and is an easy commute to Willowbrook via Hwy 249. We moved here two years ago and absolutely love it! Best wishes on your quest!

Last edited by Yac; 01-04-2007 at 03:04 PM..
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Old 01-04-2007, 03:23 AM
 
Location: Connecticut
106 posts, read 583,205 times
Reputation: 81
Quote:
Originally Posted by lance View Post
Hello!

My family and I are going to be relocating from Portland, OR to Houston, TX. I will be the Studio One to One photography studio in the Willowbrook Mall.

I had a couple of questions that I would REALLY love your input on!!

1. I have 3 kids ages 5, 3 and 18 months. Are there any particular school districs or schools that you would HIGHLY recommend?

2. Working at the Willowbrook Mall, are there any NIGHTMARE commutes I would want to try and avoid? Is is reasonable to live in Sugarland and commute to Willowbrook Mall?

Thanks so much for any thoughts/suggestions you have---
I GREAT appreciate it!!

Lance
I agree with others that you should consider NW Houston... There is no sense in commuting that far to go to work.

Have you checked out these sites?

http://www.realtor.com (broken link)
http://www.greatschools.com

Great schools will give you all the stats you could possibly need.

After you have done all your own research, I would personally visit the communities the members have talked about before you decide to move. Seeing is believing.

By the way, if you have to do any commuting, think about going against traffic and using the Sam Houston Tollway. It can jam up on the westside at times but it's far better than taking any of the other freeways in town. I think people are nuts for commuting into Houston. Going five miles during peak times can take over an hour.

So living in Sugarland is not inconceivable... I would still consider it but if you can live in the NW it would be better. Just don't lose your job or you'll end up using the freeway system at it's worst!

I've lived in the NW, W, S, and in Houston... Yeah, I move a lot...
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Old 01-04-2007, 09:32 AM
 
3 posts, read 14,561 times
Reputation: 12
Default Sherri Heitz

Hi,
To answer your question, you don't want to live in the Sugarland area and go to WillowBrook....that is too far of a commute.

I am a Realtor with Keller Williams and have lived in and out of Houston for over 30 years......moved in and out with my husband who worked for an oil company. I have lived all over Houston and currently live in the Katy area.
I used to live in the Copperfield area before we were transferred and am very familiar with all of that area.

The Katy area offers wonderful schools; the Katy Independent School District is well-known and if you go to my website, sherriheitz.com, you will find a place on it regarding schools; go in there and compare the schools and demographics of each area.

The Cy-Fair School District is a good one and the Copperfield area is a great one to buy in. The person who wrote you before was right; find a good realtor and let them help you. If you don't want to use me, I would be happy to refer you to someone from my office who works exclusively in that area.

Also, my husband and I have a place on the Oregon coast at Depoe Bay that we go to for the summers.....love Portland and the west coast.

Good luck to you.

Sincerely,
Sherri Heitz
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