I am trying to get as much info about Houston as I can. Can you help?

Question

I am considering moving to Houston and I am looking for information on Apts, Housing, Living areas, shoping, schools, etc.

Answer 1

cityofhouston.com

Answer 2

Houston can be a cool place to live. I'm not sure where you live now, to compare different aspects, but it is unique.

Houston is the definition of urban sprawl. In the center of town, you can drive 50 miles in any direction and still be in Houston (that's a bit of an exaggeration). Given its area, you have to split it up into sections to define it.

Think of a bull's eye.

The center is made by the intersections of I-45, I-10, and Highway 59. This is downtown, about a mile in diameter. Skyscrapers, light rail, high rises, clubs, theatre district, and the stadiums (baseball and basketball). Very pricey to live. UH-Downtown and HCC-Central campus are close to here.

The next circle is the I-610 loop. It's about 12 miles in diameter.
The east side has quite a few high crime areas UH-Central campus and Texas Southern are in this area.
The west side of the loop is the opposite. A lot of Houston's old money in in River Oaks (multi-million dollar homes). Montrose is known for its gay, artist, and bohemian communities. The museum district, medical center, St. Thomas U, and Rice U are in this area. The football stadium is at the south end. The Heights is in the north/northwest part of the loop area. Preserved older homes. The Heights and Montrose are my favorite places to live in Houston.

Next circle is Beltway 8 (or Sam Houston Tollway). It's about 20 miles in diameter. The east side is Pasadena, Channelview, home to chemical refineries and a rather pungent odor. Very industrial. Cheap rent.
The north side has a lot of business parks, strip malls, and some high crime area.
The west side has a high population concentration. Huge apartment complexes... one after another. Richmond strip has the club scene. Young area and large asian populations. Most people I know lived in this area before moving to the suburbs or inside the loop. The upscale Galleria area (with the Galleria mall) is on this side.
South side is still developing. Some bad patches, but mostly good. Hobby airport (Southwest Air hub) is in the southeast corner of this circle.

Next circle isn't really a circle. More of a teardrop shape, 30 miles across at it's widest. The point of the drop would be pointing southeast, touching Galveston (beach town). The westside is Highway 6, the north side is 1960, and the eastside is 146.
The southeast point includes Clearlake/League City, upscale NASA area (UH has campus here). Texas City, chemical plants. Galveston Island, tourist spot (UT Medical Branch), about 60 miles from downtown Houston.
South is Pearland. So far a suburbs go, not bad. Plus Highway 288 has less traffic.
Southwest is Sugarland and Missouri City. Ritzy 'burbs.
West is a lot like the West from 610 to the Beltway. Big apt complexes, but with a lot more subdivisions with houses and townhomes too.
Northwest gets nice after to Beltway. HP/Compaq is located around here.
North is spotty. Some nice areas, more crime than other areas. Houston's major airport is here, Intercontinental Airport (Continental Air hub).
Northeast is less developed. Pretty open, slightly rural.
East is heavily industrial. Loads of chemical plants. Deerpark, La Porte, Baytown are all on this side. San Jacinto CC is around here.

Check out www.har.com. This is Houston Area Realtors and lists property for sale and for lease. You can also search for apartment locators (there are hunderds in Houston). Houston has tons of strip malls for shopping. The Galleria mall is for the truly serious shopper. Houston is also home to Trader's Village, the largest flea market in Texas. As for schools, I listed the colleges above. For grade/high schools however, I'd say the best schools are either inside the loop (Poe, Lanier, Pershing, Lamar, Bellaire), or in the suburbs (Clearlake, Sugarland, Katy).

Hope this helps....

Answer 3

I lived in Houston for 15 years until I moved about 50 miles away.

http://www.houston.tx.us/

http://www.houston-guide.com/

You do want to get as close to your work as possible - traffic here is bad.

You should avoid at all costs living in SE Houston and most of NW Houston.

Downtown is actually a great place to live and lost of housing and things to do are there.

I love Houston.

Restaurants are great, lots to do

The city is very well organized and in a lot of places housing is very inexpensive compared to the rest of the country

Weather is great

We were at the beach today in Galveston and people were in the water and wading today

Answer 4

either write to the Chamber of Commerce of Houston or write them an email from their online website. Tell them what you plan to do and ask for what you need. They have the statistics, list the large companies, provide a map, tell you what's in the area, would give you basic brochures. They usually have on hand all kinds of brochures. Also if you belong to AAA Auto Club, they have books on certain areas, also tells hotels, gives free maps, etc. Or just search online under "Houston TX" or rent.com or apartments.com, or realtor.com.

Answer 5

oooo
the best schools...it depends on if its elementary.middle,or highschool.
u might wanna check the houston chronicle for real estate listings
website:chron.com
i disagree with jinx: ITS NOT A TOWN AND DOES NOT SUCK

Answer 6

there are a cluster of movie theters around Houston.

one problem is Texas can have Hurricanes, Tornados, and droughts

Answer 7

You can find most of the info here at the Houston Chronicle. (Look at the orange tabs up top)


http://www.chron.com/


Welcome! I hope you enjoy yourself.

Answer 8

Awful town to live in, the heat sucks and humidity. Driver suck.

Answer 9

http://www.houston.org/

Answer 10

google.com