relocating - what can you tell me about Longwood (Houston: real estate, HOA)

[jersey2texas]

My husband is transferring to Houston. We looked at some neighborhoods in Cypress and really liked Longwood. Can anyone tell me about that area? Best parts of Longwood, schools, shopping - any info would be appreciated. We have 3 young kids and live in South Jersey now. Thanks!!

[modster]

Find Mr. Football on here, he lives there and has lots of posts and pics about it.

[Mr. Football]

Longwood is my neighborhood (I'm not a realtor), tucked away here in Cypress which is in far NW Harris County. We are surrounded by dozens of other nice neighborhoods in an area collectively known as the "HP Corridor" which sits roughly b/w Hwy 290 & Hwy 249 . Longwood has nearly 1500 homes (built b/w 1995 and 2001) and is heavily wooded with Pines, Oaks and other hardwoods. Prices range b/w $170K to $1M. There are a number of other great choices in this area, some featuring brand-new homes, Longwood has always performed well due to a combination of several factors that make it stand out (some of which I cover below). Homes are selling at a pretty good pace.









Longwood features a 27-hole daily fee (memberships available) golf course that's cut out of a thick forest bordered by Cypress Creek. The original developers, Cypress Real Estate Advisors, cleverly designed the golf course to also serve as flood retention, and I'm told by a friend who's a civil engineer for a major firm here in Houston that its one of the most intelligently designed neighborhoods in the Houston area (he recently bought a home here and worked with one of the lead engineers).



There are miles of tree-lined hike & bike and jogging trails. A fishing pond, two main clubhouses each with swimming pools, tennis, parks and children's playgrounds.

I go into further detail in some of my previous posts, but you can't go wrong in Longwood. We have two young children ourselves and moved here for the greenery, trees, great schools and overall nice area. Today, you just don't find many newer neighborhood developments that have gone through such lengths to preserve and protect the naturally wooded character of the area. Longwood has an active HOA which holds several community wide events including Fall and Spring Festivals, a Christmas Party complete with Santa and Snow at the golf club and a Casino Night for the adults.



http://farm1.static.flickr.com/100/2...80d041e9_o.jpg

The schools are some of the highest rated in Recognized Cy-Fair ISD and we're zoned to one of the best feeder patterns in the Houston area with Hamilton Elementary (Exemplary), Hamilton Middle School (Exemplary) and Cy-Fair HS (Recognized). There are some really good pre-schools as well nearby like Lakewood Montessori, St. John's Lutheran, etc. The two area Methodist churches (Lakewood UMC and Cypress UMC) are popular for their Mother's Day Out programs.

Demographics for the HP Corridor area are roughly 80% Anglo, 10% Hispanic, 5% Asian and 5% Black with $120K Avg. Household Income. The neighborhood is surrounded by nice neighborhoods for miles and miles in every direction. It's not directly located off any major freeways or roads, so its pretty quiet. According to the Harris County Sheriff's Dept, Longwood is consistently among the top 3 safest neighborhoods in Harris County.

There are several new hospitals nearby, with Methodist Willowbrook, North Cypress Medical Center, and a new St. Lukes Emergency Center opening in The Vintage.





There's a nice little shopping center directly outside the neighborhood that has a few restaurants including a popular Italian place, Mezzanote Ristorante that you may wish to try on your next visit out here. Of course there's all the usual stuff, post office, hardware, blockbuster, etc. accessible nearby along with the new Vintage Park shopping center off 249 & Louetta which has a slew of cool new restaurants. There are some very good locally owned restaurants over off 290 as well. Lots of big box retailers and shopping along 249, 290 and FM 1960 as well as Willowbrook Mall which is about 15-20 minutes away or Memorial City Mall which is about 20-25 minutes away.

There's also a new gym right outside the neighborhood as well as a Lifetime Fitness, LA Fitness, 24-Hour Fitness in the nearby area.


You'll find more pics and detailed info in some of my other posts about Longwood:


https://www.city-data.com/forum/houston/23110-longwood-cypress-neighborhood-pics.html

Link to my Cypress area Photos on Flickr

Let me know if you have any specific questions about Longwood or any other area neighborhoods.

[jersey2texas]

Thanks Mr. Football! That's a lot of great info. What can you tell me about the different sections of Longwood?

[lesliemc]

Is this close to NASA/JSC??

[CDeb]

Originally Posted by lesliemc

Is this close to NASA/JSC??

No, it's on the complete opposite side of the Houston area, in NW Harris County.