Rylie Schroeder

Hot take but stay with me.

There’s 3 loops that make up Houston —

→ 610 (referred to as the inner loop) is really the only place with a “Houston” city address that’ll get you pockets of walkability. This is where you will find the best restaurants, the med center, tons of meuseums, entertainment and things to do. If you’re sending your kids to school in the inner loop, it’s likely private. And it’s also the most expensive to live and buy here, too, for all of the reasons listed above.

→ The Beltway (which is Sam Houston Tollway) gives you places like Memorial, Bellaire and Oak Forest. You’ll get more space and bank for your buck here, but it’s still not cheap with an avg home price of over a million. And yet, still a shorter commute if you work in downtown, the med center, or energy cooridor.

→ 99 (another Tollway) is where a lot more families land considering there are higher rated schools and more affordable homes. Longer commute times, yes, but the cities within 99 have everything you need to not travel into the city if you don’t have to. Think places like Cypress, Sugar Land and Pearland.

If you live outside of 99, meaning you leave on the outskirts of town and all of the loops we just talked about, you get even more space, even more affordability, and even longer commute times.

If your quality of life depends on walkability to coffee shops and the ability to Uber 5 minutes to a good dinner, but you live outside of 99… you’re not experiencing the right version of Houston.

If your dream is to have coffee on your front porch and hear nothing but the outdoors, but live in Memorial… you’re in the wrong loop!