Lived in Clear Lake all my life so here are my suggestions. Look at the neighborhoods only Kirby Dr. or Old Kirby. Kirby runs into Red Bluff so it would be really easy to get to work. Check out the neighborhoods along Bay Area Blvd between Clear Lake High School and Red Bluff. Also easy to get to work. La Porte actually has some interesting properties with lots of land (if you don't want to live in a neighborhood) and there are a few new neighborhoods being built, might be able to get more house for your money. It's very easy to get to downtown along 146 from La Porte/Shore Acres too.
... and it is easy to get to Red Bluff so no freeway. Clear Lake area to Pasadena is great via Red Bluff or even Space Center now. From Friendswood you can be at your parent's house in about 20 minutes... 45 + Beltway + 225 of course, luckily they live right off of 225/East. But I think you can find a nice place near Nassau Bay or in Clear Lake closer to Red Bluff.
http://www.chron.com/bayarea/news/a...Clear-Lake-tract-for-new-700-home-4196194.php Brand new community starting up shortly in the Clear Lake area. I believe the houses will run in the low to upper 300's.
I have nothing specific to add, but I don't understand the dogging on Clear Lake in the thread. Clear Lake/League City is the best suburban Houston area. It's nice enough, and it has more of its own charm than any of the other suburbs. I'd live there in a heartbeat if it weren't such a horrible commute.
I have lived in Clear Lake the past 5 and a half years and I can confirm it's not really declining, in terms of becoming a ghetto or anything.
Does it really have charm? Maybe I'm biased because I grew up in LC and may have just grown used to everything there, but when I think of charm or character in suburbs around Houston I think of Sugar Land or The Woodlands.
An good friend of mine has a house in an old neighborhood on the south side of the lake, between South Shore Harbor and Clear Lake Shores. It's a small peninsula you get to by taking Glen Cove Street off of FM 2094 (Marina Bay Drive) towards the lake. It's very nice, quiet, and there's a park by the water at the end. Wish I could remember the name of the neighborhood (Glen Cove?), but I can't, and my buddy is out of pocket. Worth checking out, IMO (unless it's changed a lot since I was last there, which has been a few years). Good luck! I think it's a very nice area. If I had to move back to Houston from Austin because someone put a gun to my head, it would be one of the areas I'd consider living in.
Thanks all for the input. We've been looking non-stop and have only come across a single house we both really like. It's in Oakbrook, which I know rage said is an older neighborhood, but we both really prefer older houses to the cookie cutters of many new subdivisions. It's a house from the 60's that has been fully updated, so hopefully it works out. It's near Space Center and El Dorado, so it would make the drive to Deer Park pretty easy. Also, on a semi-related note; I just came across news today that the City of Houston is planning to build some low income housing at Genoa Red Bluff and Space Center. Would make me think twice about moving to those Pasadena neighborhoods right next to it, as it could eventually impact property values.
I grew up in Oakbrook it's really nice -- good Elementary school right in the middle of the subdivision. They closed the golf course that runs through the neighborhood and turned it into a big park/ hike and bike trail. Clear Lake is definitely booming -- I can't believe how developed it is now. I'm not understanding the negativity in the thread.
Thanks, glad to hear about the trail. My wife is a big runner so I was worried there wouldn't be a good spot around there. Really hoping we get this house.
I don't understand how some people just "decide" to move. Do you have to leave your current job and look for a new one after you move? Or you already have something set. Just something I always wondered.
My wife and I both have jobs that allow us to work from home most of the time. Her company is actually located in Houston, but they started work from home for her team a few years ago, so they don't care where she is. I work in IT, and am dedicated to a few different customers throughout Texas. I do most of my work remotely though and just visit them once a quarter or so, so it doesn't really matter where I am either. We're pretty fortunate as far as the job situation goes.
Are you asking about me? I work at Microsoft, as a PFE (Premier Field Engineer). She works in IT Compliance.
Just your typical Katy, Cinco Ranch, Sugarland BS. Does any suburb of Houston have "charm?" The only place I know in Houston that has charm is the Heights, and at 150 bucks a square foot and an increase in crime, they can keep it. Every decent suburb in Houston is the same. You're not special because you live in a master planned community or because you have more trees or a fake lake, congratulations... you've been duped by marketing jargon. I was a plot planner for David Weekly Homes for two years, and every plot and home I laid out was nearly identical, from the same 10-15 configurations and choices. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake.
Ouch Spoiler Although FYI I don't live in a master-planned community. I live in an old townhouse south of I-10 outside the beltway. Not exactly Beverly Hills.
The only thing I'd be concerned about in oakbrook is if it has turned into a rental neighborhood. I remember driving through there years ago and it seemed that way. But going through there recently it didn't seem that way. It actually looks the best since I can remember. The rec center is also a nice feature
