Opinions on Different Areas of Houston

[PatentLaw]

To all,

Got a job offer from a great company in the Houston area and am considering moving to your neck of the woods. New Jersey is dead as far as the economy. Houston, however, is amazing. Saw more businesses in a 30 minute trip from IAH to the city center than in all of New Jersey.

People I have talked to say that they like Sugar Land and Katy (for the schools). The job is a little south and west of the loop, near Sugar Land. Any areas that I should stay away from at this point? Anything I should be concerned with on a move to Houston (other than it being hot)? Going to rent at first to get the lay of the land and see what is available. Any opinions? I know that I will get unbiased answers from people on here instead of others already employed in the area. Thanks in advance.

Plaw

 

[JHill9]

Houston is a great place to work and cost of living is cheap.

As far as the city and where to live it all depends on you and how far away you want to live from work. If the job is on the SW side of Houston then that is where I would live. My job is on the East side of town but I still choose to live in the SW area.

Sugar Land was rated as one of the best places to live in the US. The houses range from range from old to new and depending on your budget you can go from 100k-2million+. But it is like that everywhere in Houston.

Katy is really nice too but it is a ways out. You can get a really big house for cheap out there. Actually you can get a big house for cheap on any side of the city if you are willing to drive a little bit.

If you are just outside the loop (I am assuming 6-10 not Beltway 8) for work then I would live in the Westbury area. I grew up in that area and now live in the area too. The houses were built in the 50s and 60s but are built very well. Homes are going to range from 100k to 400k depending on the size and if they have been remodeled ($80-150sq/ft).

If you want land, than I would look at Pecan Grove area and pick up a house with a few acres. I would live out there but since I work on the East side of town that would make my drive around 1 hr each way.

Since work is SW do not look at the Woodlands (N side), Kingwood(NE), Cy-fair area(NW side). Traffic would kill you.

Hope this helps. If you need more info let me know.

 

[Tiago]

I live in Sugarland area, if your job is in the area I recommend you just make home nearby, its the best area of Houston, just my opinion

 

[LaViper]

Houston is a Great area to move into. A lot of High End Cars in that area. I wish the New Orleans/Mid South VCA was Half as active as Houston. Always have something going on.

 

[hou99gts]

I agree with the above, if you are working in the SW side of town, stick to the Sugarland area. You will learn quickly that traffic is not your friend, so living near your work will help your stress level tremendously!

p.s. - if you are wanting to live closer to downtown Houston, you may want to consider Bellaire also. Very nice area of town and it can get pricy depending on where you live.

 

[JHill9]

Houston is a Great area to move into. A lot of High End Cars in that area. I wish the New Orleans/Mid South VCA was Half as active as Houston. Always have something going on.

Half as active? I have been starting to think that everyone in the Houston area is inactive.

 

[Tiago]

Half as active? I have been starting to think that everyone in the Houston area is inactive.

yea the club doesn't seem to do much

but there is a LOT Of other automotive events....

 

[JHill9]

but there is a LOT Of other automotive events....

Where do you find out about the other events? I heard there is a car meet every saturday in the Kemah area.

 

[PatentLaw]

To all,

Many thanks for the information provided. You guys are great. Getting the unbiased views really helps. I will check out all of the areas that you provided me with. Hope to see you at a future event really soon. Might not have the car down until the end of the summer, but would still like to check out the collective rides. Thanks.

Plaw

PS If you want to go "inactive", just check out the Jersey section and join there. Zzzzzzzzzzzz (One post all year? maybe two?)

 

[JHill9]

When you make it down to Houston let me know so we can go for drinks.

 

[B & R]

Welcome to the area. Not active? I just got back from a great weekend at Texas World Speedway with Viper Days and had a blast. This is the third one I have enjoyed and by far the most well attended, thanks to NARRA. If your in the area by June 12th our next Houston VCA event will be at Tomball Dodge. We will be talking over some post track tasks with the Viper Techs and touring the Viper Toybox Ben and Bernie have there. Come join us if you can. In July we will be cruising out in the Lake Livingston area ending at a members house for a fish fry. A BBQ for the family in August I believe. Check out Events for the years events. Drop us a line at [email protected] to get on the mailing list.

B&R

 

[JHill9]

I guess that is the problem, I am not on the mailing list. Email sent to the Houston VCA.

 

[LaViper]

Half as active? I have been starting to think that everyone in the Houston area is inactive.

Take my word,Houston has more Vipers than my area (New Orleans). One of the reasons I sold my 99 ACR years ago was I could never get any Viper owners to get together for anything. At a Viper/Vet meet @ the local Dragstrip, there would be around 5 Vipers to 100 Vets. I almost bought a Vet to go driving with the local Vet clubs but love the Viper too much. The Corvette guys usually have at least 20+ crusing on weekends. Enjoy

 

[hou99gts]

There are plenty of things to do here in Houston Viper wise, c'mon down!

 

[Smokin' 2]

yea the club doesn't seem to do much

In the meantime NARRA is practically pleading members to come out and hit the track and Houston had a large group this weekend, much larger than Austin.

We schedule at least one activity a month but it seems to be the usual suspects when the date arrives. Then after the fact there is a lot of,"Wish I could've made it, but I was busy." when we run into less active members.

It's not from a lack of trying. We have over 100 on the contact email list and rarely get more than 20 show up to an event. We've even been proactive in soliciting ideas from members and have come up with some great activities over the last few years. Instead of ideas, we get,"The club doesn't do much." If you want more....show up and give us ideas. Trust us...we want activity. Some people use the lame excuse of not wanting to drive!
I drive from The Woodlands and only miss events if there is a work issue.

June 12th at Tomball Dodge is the next event. Come on out. The more the merrier.

 

[Smokin' 2]

People I have talked to say that they like Sugar Land and Katy...
Plaw

Very nice and growing area. If you make the move let us know. We'd love to welcome you to Houston. Try to avoid all the traffic if you can!

Good luck.

 

[Tiago]

June 12th at Tomball Dodge is the next event. Come on out. The more the merrier.

I'll try to be there for that event, sounds fun.

 

[VIPER GTSR 91]

I'll try to be there for that event, sounds fun.

I too should be there for this event. Cant stay too long as Le Mans is happening that week end on SPEED. Best race of the year bar none.

 

[rpm9000]

I plan on being there also. It is about 70 miles from where I live here in Texas City.

 

[JHill9]

I plan on making the Tomball Dodge event if anyone wants to meet before and drive up together. I am right off 6-10 in the Bellaire area.

 

[Vip1]

To all Houston members that feel the club is inactive please feel free to step-up an plan an event don't wait on a select few to do all the planing, with a little help the club could be what you want it to be. As per our web site under events.
If you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email them
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events,
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter. email all suggestions.
ps. Anyone going to Sunshine kids Capital Cruise in Austin I'll be thier. Troy
pIf you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email tppppppljhem
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events.
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter.
Email all suggestions to and we will add them to the list.


If you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email them
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events.
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter.
Email all suggestions to and we will add them to the list.
If you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email them
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events.
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter.
Email all suggestions to and we will add them to the list.

 

[PatentLaw]

To all Houston members that feel the club is inactive please feel free to step-up an plan an event don't wait on a select few to do all the planing, with a little help the club could be what you want it to be. As per our web site under events.
If you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email them
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events,
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter. email all suggestions.
ps. Anyone going to Sunshine kids Capital Cruise in Austin I'll be thier. Troy
pIf you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email tppppppljhem
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events.
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter.
Email all suggestions to and we will add them to the list.


If you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email them
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events.
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter.
Email all suggestions to and we will add them to the list.
If you have any ideas for things that we can do as a club, please email them
to us at [email protected] and we will add them to the list of possible events.
Charity events, cruises, BBQ's or track days. It doesn't matter.
Email all suggestions to and we will add them to the list.

This is a great idea. Can't tell you how many times ideas came up elsewhere and the idea was shot down because it was not an "official" event. Having direct access to the planning goes a long way to making the club better.

 

[JHill9]

This is a great idea. Can't tell you how many times ideas came up elsewhere and the idea was shot down because it was not an "official" event. Having direct access to the planning goes a long way to making the club better.

After the summer I would be happy to hold a BBQ or something at my house. Don't know who I would need to talk to about setting it up though.

 

[Vip1]

JHill9, If you BBQ they will come, just send e-mail to the Houston Viper Club & Jamie can send out info. to all. Thanks for the support

 

[Austin]

I used to work in the Sugar Land area, but I live in Clear Lake which is South. I would take the belway to SL every morning. Kid you not, the drive is over an hour if you take 45 N to 59 and into SL, but taking the Belt to SL will only take about 25 mins and there are only 2 or 3 tolls on that stretch.

I still do that drive from time to time. It was nice to live on the water, but still have a quick way to get to SL.

BTW, SL is a nice place to live, but if you like the water, Clear Lake and Kemah are good choices with the access of getting to SL in less than 35 mins in the morning.

 

[FLATOUT]

I agree about the amount of events going on.

I was the Maryland Events Coordinator on the Corvette Forum before buying the Viper and moving to Houston, and we were not as active as the Houston Viper bunch.

You will get regular emails, and you will know what's going on.

Houston is a big place compared to other areas so you will cover some miles to get to different events. Thats is the only draw back for me sometimes, but I live on Lake Conroe which is roughly 65 miles from downtown.

Still fun getting out to events and the club really does try their best to plan all sorts of events all over the city.

Welcome!

Andy Wheeler

In the meantime NARRA is practically pleading members to come out and hit the track and Houston had a large group this weekend, much larger than Austin.

We schedule at least one activity a month but it seems to be the usual suspects when the date arrives. Then after the fact there is a lot of,"Wish I could've made it, but I was busy." when we run into less active members.

It's not from a lack of trying. We have over 100 on the contact email list and rarely get more than 20 show up to an event. We've even been proactive in soliciting ideas from members and have come up with some great activities over the last few years. Instead of ideas, we get,"The club doesn't do much." If you want more....show up and give us ideas. Trust us...we want activity. Some people use the lame excuse of not wanting to drive!
I drive from The Woodlands and only miss events if there is a work issue.

June 12th at Tomball Dodge is the next event. Come on out. The more the merrier.

 

[FLATOUT]

And I will second the non official event thing, when I moved to town we put together a small meet out here in my neck of the woods on the lake.

We had a couple cars show up and had a great time, no one gave me a hard time about it and it was nice meeting a few of the members.