Considering relocation to Houston.... (Spring, Orange: real estate, houses, find a job)

[eribear]

HI, I'd love some advice concerning a relocation to Houston. My husband and I are 32 and 30 respectively. We don't have kids yet, but plan to start a family shortly after our relocation. We are in the biotech and IT fields, and plan to move only after at least one of us finds suitable employment. We moved to Orange County, CA about a year ago from Madison, WI and are looking for something with more character, lower cost of living, and less superficiality.

We are interested in a home (3 bed/2ba) thats somewhat central in the 300-450k range that is in a good family friendly neighborhood with good schools. Can anyone give me some suggestions of neighborhoods to research that might be a good fit?

[EasilyAmused]

Well, recommendations for where to live, even central, will be based on where you work. Houston is MASSIVE in size, and a majority of the population is driving into work and home again from 30 miles away. It creates nightmarish traffic, LA style.

Anyway, more centrally located areas with a family vibe in your price range would be Meyerland (SW Central), Oak Forest (NW Central), Spring Branch (W Central). There are more but those are the main/most recommended ones to get you started.

[eribear]

So, how do two income families ever choose where to live? This is part of the issue with the orange county/LA metro area we dislike.

I think that part of our issue with orange county is that we decided one of us should find a job and then a place to live versus focusing on the place to live and then the job. I'll take a look at those neighborhoods you suggested. Are there a decent amount of companies in a 30 min or so radius?

[EasilyAmused]

I'm not top familiar with the IT/Biotech companies in Houston. But, if you do live in, it's certainly easier to commute out against traffic.

[cheryjohns]

The neighborhoods mentioned above will be centrally located - to downtown and the medical center (Spring Branch further from the Medical Center than the other two). At least they will continue to appreciate due to location. If you ever decide to go for the huge McMansion in the suburbs down the road a years later, at least the centrally located house will have been a good investment.

[txtransplant2010]

The Spring Branch area (on the west side of town) is maybe a little farther from downtown, but there are lots of jobs on that side of town and in the Galleria area as well. That would be my choice, having 2 small kids myself, since the schools there (Spring Branch ISD) are top notch. Most houses are older, but many have been redone and the mature landscaping is nice. You can do a search on Houston Real Estate - Houston Homes, Houston Home Value and Houston Relocation which is an awesome website for house hunting all around houston to see what you could get in different areas. BTW, we live in Katy and LOVE it, but it's really far out as far as commuting goes.