Renting, then buying in Houston suburbs. Advice appreciated! (houses, shop)

[Need2Relocate]

Originally Posted by ZeroTX

This morning on the radio, at 8:10am, the Sugar land -> Downtown drivetime was quoted at 30 minutes on AM950. That's tyipcal, 30-45 minutes, depending on how heavy traffic is from Sugar Land. Typical from The Woodlands is 1 hour.

Wow! Almost like a commute to NYC

Are most businesses and colleges located downtime?

[AK123]

Where will your wife be studying? Because that will be a factor; not all campuses are in one location. Rice and a few others are in the West U area (just southwest of downtown), UH Main is southeast of downtown, UH Downtown is, well, downtown. UH also has a campus in Clear Lake, in Sugar Land, and Katy.

I wouldn't go with Spring or the Woodlands if she needs to be near a college. Unless there's a campus in the Woodlands I don't know about...

My favorite part of town is Memorial (specifically Bunker Hill). Not many can afford that though (including us, though we used to live in that area in small, old townhome.) We're in Sugar Land now - IMO the best 'burb for that lifestyle plus accessability into Houston. The Woodlands is very nice but far out. Katy can be far, depending on where in Katy. Clear Lake is nice for those who like being near water recreation.

[Need2Relocate]

Originally Posted by AK123

Where will your wife be studying? Because that will be a factor; not all campuses are in one location. Rice and a few others are in the West U area (just southwest of downtown), UH Main is southeast of downtown, UH Downtown is, well, downtown. UH also has a campus in Clear Lake, in Sugar Land, and Katy.

I wouldn't go with Spring or the Woodlands if she needs to be near a college. Unless there's a campus in the Woodlands I don't know about...

My favorite part of town is Memorial (specifically Bunker Hill). Not many can afford that though (including us, though we used to live in that area in small, old townhome.) We're in Sugar Land now - IMO the best 'burb for that lifestyle plus accessability into Houston. The Woodlands is very nice but far out. Katy can be far, depending on where in Katy. Clear Lake is nice for those who like being near water recreation.

Thanks for the detailed response!

My wife is deciding if she's going to be an art teacher, spanish teacher, or since she loves animals, perhaps a vetrinarian (although not nearly as likely)

We just received confirmation this morning that the contract has been signed on our house so Houston, here we come!

[gold dust]

Good luck to you! I am also a NYer living in Houston! We rented for a few months and then purchased a home. We are in Northwest Houston ... Cypress area.

[Need2Relocate]

Originally Posted by gold dust

Good luck to you! I am also a NYer living in Houston! We rented for a few months and then purchased a home. We are in Northwest Houston ... Cypress area.

Thank you!

I'm guessing you liked Houston enough to buy a house.

How long have you been in Houston? May I ask why you decided the Cypress area?

We're thinking of waiting until the summer to buy, maybe longer depending on the housing market.

Have you noticed the housing prices going down in Houston suburbs due to the foreclosures?

[texas7]

Originally Posted by ZeroTX

This morning on the radio, at 8:10am, the Sugar land -> Downtown drivetime was quoted at 30 minutes on AM950. That's tyipcal, 30-45 minutes, depending on how heavy traffic is from Sugar Land. Typical from The Woodlands is 1 hour.

although the month of December does tend to be a little less typical. So many people start taking time off and using end of year accumulated vacation throughout the month. I love driving to work between Thanksgiving and Christmas because traffic is always much lighter than usual for me during this time.

[usc619]

Originally Posted by Need2Relocate

Hello!

I hope everyone had an excellent Thanksgiving!

My wife and I are relocating from the NY suburbs to the Houston suburbs. We plan to rent for 6 months or so and use that time to get familiar with the Houston area.

I do most of my work from home, so it's not really necessary for me to be a certain driving distance from anything. My wife will continue her college studies so not being too far from a major college is somewhat important.

I "think" the areas I'd like to live in would be Sugarland, The Woodlands, South Katy area, and possibly Spring. Suggestions are welcome

We'd like a 3+ bedroom, 2+ bath, 2000+ sq ft home with a 2+ attached garage and an inground pool. Some fenced land for our dogs would also be great!

Unfortunately due to time constraints my wife and I cannot visit the areas before we move.

I'd like to find a realtor that can recommend a very safe, nice area with good schools to rent. Hopefully we'll be buying from the same realtor once we're more familiar with Houston.

Any suggestions, guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Can't go wrong in South Katy Peroid.

[jfre81]

Houston TranStar Real-Time Traffic Map

Wherever you'd be coming into the city from, this will help you figure out how long it's going to take. Click on those yellow and red <!> icons and you will get a description of why things are held up.

[texas7]

U of H, RIce and St. Thomas are centrally located all very near the downtown area. U of H has some suburb campuses - the oldest one of those is U of H Clear Lake which at this time offers the most programs because their locations in the other parts of town are still evolving but they are pretty quick to add new programs. You might want to check out their web sites and see which campus offers what you are looking for and then sort of determine where you would like to live based on that.

[westhou]

Originally Posted by texas7

although the month of December does tend to be a little less typical. So many people start taking time off and using end of year accumulated vacation throughout the month. I love driving to work between Thanksgiving and Christmas because traffic is always much lighter than usual for me during this time.

not for me. i live uptown so traffic becomes 100 times worse during the holidays.