Woodlands vs Sugar Land vs Memorial Northwest (Houston, The Woodlands: best neighborhood, apartments)

[StephM]

Which area is the best, in terms of schools, home prices, etc.?

DH has job offers in all 3 towns. For the Woodlands and Sugar Land he would work at St. Luke's. If we chose Memorial Northwest, he'd work at Memorial Hermann.

We have 4 small kids, our home budget is around 325-350k with maximum taxes around 8500. Schools are very important, as are extracurricular activities like soccer. We want a larger house (prefer over 3500 sq feet) and hopefully a larger yard, about 1/3 of an acre. We would LOVE a neighborhood that has a good downtown.

Memorial Northwest has beautiful houses (I already have a favorite!) But I've read negative comments about Spring, which is that town? Is that just for Spring ISD? The home I like is Klein ISD with Theiss elementary and Doerre middle school.

[AK123]

I'm not familiar with Memorial Northwest but I can look it up and get back to you (I do know a lot about Houston in general.)

As far as the other two, I'm much more familiar.

Sugar Land = Very diverse, oak & pecan trees, lots of building restrictions / zoning (no billboards and other ugliness), good economy, good schools, compared to other suburbs it is reasonably convenient to interests in Houston such as the museums, Galleria area, Medical Center. It does have its own town center and mall. Plans are in the works for an entertainment district. Neighboring cities that you should also consider are Richmond and Missouri City (parts of them; some areas are much better than others; generally the parts that border with Sugar Land are the best.)

The Woodlands = Less diverse, mostly large pine trees, good economy (as far as I know), good schools, not very convenient to Houston (it's out about 35 miles as opposed to Sugar Land's 20 miles). It also has its own town center, mall and entertainment district. Not sure if it has its own police and government as Sugar Land and its neighboring cities in Fort Bend do; maybe someone else can advise on that.

Both are quite affluent (by Texas terms at least), probably the two most affluent outer Houston suburbs in general.

[AK123]

Okay, just looked up the location of Memorial Northwest.

It would be more similar to my description of the Woodlands, but you won't have a nearby town center or entertainment district. It is also probably slightly further out from town than Sugar Land and more difficult to get into Houston. The road FM 1960 (especially south of it) used to be nice but more recently has had lots of problems (schools going downhill, billboards and ugliness galore - take examples of Oak Creek and Olde Oaks subdivisions decline), but you will be just north of that.

[Indianspringsguy]

I live in The Woodlands. We are very accustomed to the drive to Houston. Locally, there are plenty of recreational and shopping opportunities. Many homes fall well within your budget. There are several scenarios with respect to schools. The new village is being built in Harris County on the south side of Spring Creek. I am planning to write an article on the master plan of that village within a few days. In Montgomery County where the villages are mostly built out now, the schools are mostly part is the Conroe School District (CISD), a very good district. This is a large topic and gets quite complicated. However, I chose this place because of its beauty, amenities and family friendly environment. I can answer a number of questions and write a blog on various local topics with photos. www.woodlandscommentary.com

[modster]

The Woodlands is master planned and is probably the prettiest of all of them, although that is subjective. There are a lot of amenities out there and they have great trees. It is also the farthest from the city center. Because it is a larger master planned area, it won't suffer as much from the jumble of signs, or have a glut of apartments being built that overcrowd schools, etc. Issues that have not helped the 1960 area for example. You will pay more for a house and I doubt you would get the larger lot. There have been postings on the board alluding to a severe "keeping up with Jones' mentality" in the Woodlands, but I don't live there and I couldn't tell you if that is accurate or not, although it doesn't take a lot of imagination to picture it out there.

Sugarland is closer to the city center. The trees/terrain is not as nice. It also has nice homes and the master planned concept. If you want better access to the city, this would be the best choice. There are a lot of amenities in Sugarland as well.

Memorial Northwest is probably the most bang for your buck. The areas around it are mostly built out, so there is little room for people to throw up some apartments or anything like that. The areas around Klein do have the junky signage, etc. that you do not get in the master planned areas. I have family in that subdivision and I grew up there. It is very nice and the schools are top notch. The area is well maintained and you can get an obnoxiously big house for a good price there.

What I don't like about it is the houses are architecturally horrid. Big brick boxes. One builder that did a number of larger ones over there really didn't have that hot of a reputation on construction. I don't think they are going to fall down or anything, but they are not particularly well built homes. The finishes inside look cheap to me. That is not all the builders, but one that did the lion's share in there. MNW is sandwiched between Gleannloch Farms and Champion Forest, which are both very nice areas and usually more per square foot on costs. Beyond that there is nothing wrong with MNW, it is low crime, a nice, well maintained area with great schools. If there is a house you like there, I don't think you would feel like you made a mistake moving there.

I am not a suburbanite, I am just not. But if someone held a gun to my head and told me I had to live far out, I would probably pick the Woodlands. That is a personal preference and nothing more. I just like the amenities and the master planned concept that is just pulled off a little better there.

If you want the most house for your money then MNW. If you want the best access to the city, then Sugarland.

[Topaz]

Originally Posted by StephM

We have 4 small kids, our home budget is around 325-350k with maximum taxes around 8500. Schools are very important, as are extracurricular activities like soccer. We want a larger house (prefer over 3500 sq feet) and hopefully a larger yard, about 1/3 of an acre. We would LOVE a neighborhood that has a good downtown.

I can't speak for The Woodlands or Memorial Northwest, but I do know that Sugar Land has great neighborhoods for schools and soccer. The Walker Station Elementary / Sartartia Middle School line up is top rated and New Territory is big on soccer. There are other good schools in Sugar Land...these are just the two schools with which I am familiar.

Sugar Land Town Square is nice...the area is not as forested as The Woodlands but there are definitely trees. Lots of parks and walking trails as well. It will be interesting to see what the new Sugar Land entertainment district ends up being...they don't seem to be making speedy progress on it, though.

We live in Sugar Land and we appreciate that it is a bit closer in than The Woodlands. That would only matter if you plan to go to Houston a lot.

[StephM]

As far as the billboards go, in an area that is not part of a MPC there would be billboards/strip malls on the major roads? With a master planned, can they control the renovations you do on your home?

I love the idea of lots of trees in my neighborhood, so the Woodlands may seem like a good bet. But I am really not into the keeping up with the Joneses sort of thing.

I've heard the New Territory is the best neighborhood in Sugar Land, os that true?

[modster]

The only one I really have any first hand experience with is Memorial NW, so I would defer to the other posters that actually live there for first hand accounts on the Woodlands and Sugarland.

On the areas outside the MPC set up, yes, it is REAL easy to see where their restrictions end.

At the end of the day, any of the three communities you mentioned are going to offer you a good quality of life and I don't think you would move into any of them and then think, "oh God, what have I done!?"

So, if a particular house really "speaks to you" in any of those locations, and it passes inspections, etc., and you can make a decent deal, you should be fine.

[Topaz]

Originally Posted by StephM

I've heard the New Territory is the best neighborhood in Sugar Land, is that true?

I'm not sure how you are defining "best," but there are many nice neighborhoods in Sugar Land, not just New Territory. New Territory, like First Colony, is one of the largest master planned communities in Sugar Land and is zoned to excellent public schools. I've posted pictures of New Territory in this forum if you do a search.

[blkgiraffe]

I'd take Sugar land. Woodlands is too far and undiverse, and I don't really go out to Memorial.