Midtown vs. Montrose vs. Village vs. Upper Kirby (Houston, Richmond: apartment complex, rent)

[madmartigan8]

Please share your knowledge of these neighborhoods. I'm about to move to Houston for law school, and I've narrowed my neighborhoods down to those listed.

Walkability, young (20 & 30 somethings), and lots of bars/coffeeshops/restaurants/stuff to do nearby. Oh and I'm hoping to keep my rent under 900. I used to live in manhattan, so deep down I'm probably looking for the closes neighborhood to nyc.

[theSUBlime]

Originally Posted by madmartigan8

Please share your knowledge of these neighborhoods. I'm about to move to Houston for law school, and I've narrowed my neighborhoods down to those listed.

Walkability, young (20 & 30 somethings), and lots of bars/coffeeshops/restaurants/stuff to do nearby. Oh and I'm hoping to keep my rent under 900. I used to live in manhattan, so deep down I'm probably looking for the closes neighborhood to nyc.

What neighborhood in NYC did you live in? Obviously nothings going to be close in terms of infrastructure, but you might be able to find something with the demographics/crowd and businesses you are looking for.

[madmartigan8]

Originally Posted by theSUBlime

What neighborhood in NYC did you live in? Obviously nothings going to be close in terms of infrastructure, but you might be able to find something with the demographics/crowd and businesses you are looking for.

I lived in the Upper East Side, but I hung out everywhere in Manhattan. I know nothing will be like Manhattan, but I'd like to live in (or close to) whichever neighborhood comes the closest.

[houston-nomad]

Personally I would choose Montrose. It has more character than the other areas. Plus you can walk to the Museum District, Hermann Park and light rail station (as long as you don't live too far north in Montrose; you could still walk but it would get a bit long).

Second choice for would be the Rice Village area.

[theSUBlime]

Originally Posted by houston-nomad

Personally I would choose Montrose. It has more character than the other areas. Plus you can walk to the Museum District, Hermann Park and light rail station (as long as you don't live too far north in Montrose; you could still walk but it would get a bit long).

Second choice for would be the Rice Village area.

I personally would choose Montrose and Rice Village second and I think all of the neighborhoods character, which is what makes this choice much easier.

I think Rice Village and Upper Kirby are more UES than Montrose and Upper Kirby.

[houstonfan]

Geez, that's a tough one. It really goes down to the exact block b/c in all of those areas you listed, there are trendier blocks and less desireable blocks. I'd say U.K or Montrose, closely followed by midtown. Rice village has a lot of families, but in certain pockets, lots of Rice U students and med students. I like RV but personally i find it over rated for a young person.

[EasilyAmused]

Upper Kirby. I just don't know if your rent is realistic. Everyone is going to have different opinion. RV is more 30's, Midtown is more late 20's professional, Kirby seems more 20's and making it. Montrose is very Houston.

[potato head8]

Originally Posted by EasilyAmused

Upper Kirby. I just don't know if your rent is realistic.

Under $900 is certainly doable in Upper Kirby.

[madmartigan8]

Wow, ya'll have been super helpful.

Here's what it sounds like to me... Montrose > Upper Kirby > Midtown > Rice Village. This is mostly due to the "character" of the respective neighborhoods. And each has pockets of walkability with restaurants/bars/coffee shops/etc. Of course this is all dependent on my price range. Does that sound right?

The "character" of the neighborhoods ya'll speak of... how would you describe the character of each? My ideal atmosphere (when I'm not busy with law school) is more of a bar/lounge scene as opposed to the club scene, I prefer an intelligent non-materialistic crowd, but I'm also in no rush to settle down so I wouldn't really enjoy an up-tight settled-down neighborhood.

Do any of these neighborhoods have bigger pockets of walkability and the atmosphere I'm looking for, in relation to the others?

[dv1033]

Originally Posted by madmartigan8

Please share your knowledge of these neighborhoods. I'm about to move to Houston for law school, and I've narrowed my neighborhoods down to those listed.

Walkability, young (20 & 30 somethings), and lots of bars/coffeeshops/restaurants/stuff to do nearby. Oh and I'm hoping to keep my rent under 900. I used to live in manhattan, so deep down I'm probably looking for the closes neighborhood to nyc.

I know people already said this but, you will not find anything remotely similar to Manhatten.

Public transportation is generally well served by Houston standards in these areas and walkablity is so-so depending on the distance and where you are trying to go. A car isn't something you would absolutely need, but I would highly recommend it.

Upper Kirby and Midtown is probably the more expensive of the two generally. Rice Village and Montrose would probably give you more selection for your price range.

I live in Montrose and would recommend that neighborhood above the others. It certainly does have a neighborhood feel with a diverse mix of families, college students, hipsters, artists, and everything in between. There are lots of restaurants and bars in the area, but they may not necessarily walkable.

I live in apartment complex, 1301 Richmond (managed by Andover), that is a garden style complex. I pay $645/month for a 1br (trash and gas included). You may want to google it as I've really enjoyed living here.