Houston

[Turk]

Another option for land would be Montgomery and Liberty Counties.

klpeake- Avoid Woodlands and Kingwood if you want to avoid HOA's. I can give you one area that meets you needs, but 3000 sq foot may be hard to find. probably find a good amount of 2500 sq ft ones though. Outside Cleveland is Tarkington (ISD). Most the area is within 15 minutes of Cleveland. Cleveland is about 8,000 people, so no malls or big box stores as of yet. Huffman might also apply, not sure how good the schools are. Also area to the north, east and southeast of Conroe. Mont Belvui (wrong spelling, near Baytown) is in Barbers Hill ISD and is well respected school district

Millie- same could apply if you want country living, if not then Woodlands, Conroe, Kingwood, Atascocita, Klien, Katy and such would be area's to consider. Montgomery is a little more rural, but not far from Conroe.