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| Renting and Leasing |
Beyond the high-rise offices, hotels, fine restaurants and retail centers that draw 200,000 office workers, shoppers and visitors daily, Uptown is laced with tranquil lanes leading to magnificent homes, the majestic Post Oak Boulevard with its landscaped public spaces and the natural forest of Memorial Park. A combination of downtown vibrancy and soft, sophisticated graciousness, Uptown is a growing neighborhood with the ongoing construction of u
pscale homes and apartments that appeal to active adults and families looking for suburban comfort in an energetic urban setting. Since 1992, around 600 new single-family homes and townhomes have been permitted, which is 6.5 percent of the total single-family permits in Houston. Young adults are attracted to the area’s upscale, multistory complexes, which boast more than 1,700 high-rise condominium units, more than half of all units in Houston. Uptown also offers cozy and secure urban retreats in single-family homes, intimate patio homes on limited-access courts while luxury subdivisions feature in-town estates with a prestigious addresses.
— CITYCENTRE
The multimillion-dollar premier development called CITYCENTRE offers the feel of a city within a city. Located along Interstate 10 just northeast of Downtown Houston and north of the Uptown/Galleria area, CITYCENTRE has been described as “Houston’s hip new mecca for hot retail, upscale dining, hotel and conference, luxurious living and much more” with an expansive commercial center at its heart where visitors and residents can have it all in one place. Upscale luxury residents are also found in the CITYCENTRE complex. For lengthy but permanent stays of a week or more, The Residences at Hotel Sorella offer fully furnished and sophisticated living spaces with direct access to all of the hotel’s amenities and everything CITYCENTRE has to offer. Others rental residences include luxury boutique apartments like the five-floor, 160-unit The Ascent at CITYCENTRE; The Domain Apartments, full of designer details for the discriminating urban dweller; and the open and airy, light-filled rentals at The LOFTS CITYCENTRE.
— THE WOODLANDS
The No. 2 best-selling master-planned community in Texas and No. 4 in the United States, The Woodlands is home to more than 97,000 residents. A township that began 36 years ago by independent oil and gas entrepreneur George P. Mitchell, The Woodlands was intended to fill the need for a thoughtfully planned community where families and businesses could live in harmony with nature. Since 1974, The Woodlands has thrived under the guidance of The Woodlands Development Company, which keeps this vision intact. Despite its wooded setting, The Woodlands is only 27 miles from Downtown Houston and offers easy accessibility to I-45 and the Hardy Toll Road.
The Woodlands’ two districts and nine residential villages each are like their own small town. With a village for almost every income level and lifestyle, home styles including golf course and lakefront properties, patio homes and townhouses and homes customized specifically for active older adults with home prices beginning in the $100,000s and ranging into the several millions for estates. The Woodlands Business Complex is found in three development zones: the Metro center (The Woodlands downtown), the Trade Center for light manufacturing and the 1,000-acre Research Forest for academic, high-tech and nonprofit research institutes and industry.
The development of The Woodlands Town Center has built a thriving downtown in the forest that is home to high-profile companies and is a popular destination for residents and visitors alike. Today, more than 100 major companies are located in The Woodlands, and the Village of College Park offers higher education opportunities at Lone-Star College-Montgomery and Lone Star College-University Center. The area also features extensions of Houston’s finest hospitals, including Memorial Hermann TheWoodlands Hospital and St. Luke’s Woodlands Community Medical Center.
WHAT TO EXPECT
After searching and weighing your options and then deciding on the property you will rent, you need to get settled into your new home as soon as possible. Luckily, many of Houston’s rental buildings offer Virtual Leasing Offices on their websites that allow you to start the application process. Before applying for a rental, check out your credit score and clear up any problems or mistakes on your record. Identity thieves can wreak havoc on your credit without your knowledge, and correcting the damage will need to be started right away.
Most apartment communities use standard leases endorsed by the Texas Apartment Association (TAA) (www.taa.org) and the Houston Apartment Association (HAA) (www.haaonline.org) and require a security deposit ranging from a few hundred dollars to one month’s rent. Standard leases cover six or 12 months, but some communities now offer short-term leases or extended leases with seven- and 13-month terms. During the application process, it is best to have available your state or federal ID or driver’s license; current and former addresses; current and past employment with dates; credit references; copy of credit report (if available); and bank information.
pscale homes and apartments that appeal to active adults and families looking for suburban comfort in an energetic urban setting. Since 1992, around 600 new single-family homes and townhomes have been permitted, which is 6.5 percent of the total single-family permits in Houston. Young adults are attracted to the area’s upscale, multistory complexes, which boast more than 1,700 high-rise condominium units, more than half of all units in Houston. Uptown also offers cozy and secure urban retreats in single-family homes, intimate patio homes on limited-access courts while luxury subdivisions feature in-town estates with a prestigious addresses.
— CITYCENTRE
The multimillion-dollar premier development called CITYCENTRE offers the feel of a city within a city. Located along Interstate 10 just northeast of Downtown Houston and north of the Uptown/Galleria area, CITYCENTRE has been described as “Houston’s hip new mecca for hot retail, upscale dining, hotel and conference, luxurious living and much more” with an expansive commercial center at its heart where visitors and residents can have it all in one place. Upscale luxury residents are also found in the CITYCENTRE complex. For lengthy but permanent stays of a week or more, The Residences at Hotel Sorella offer fully furnished and sophisticated living spaces with direct access to all of the hotel’s amenities and everything CITYCENTRE has to offer. Others rental residences include luxury boutique apartments like the five-floor, 160-unit The Ascent at CITYCENTRE; The Domain Apartments, full of designer details for the discriminating urban dweller; and the open and airy, light-filled rentals at The LOFTS CITYCENTRE.
— THE WOODLANDS
The No. 2 best-selling master-planned community in Texas and No. 4 in the United States, The Woodlands is home to more than 97,000 residents. A township that began 36 years ago by independent oil and gas entrepreneur George P. Mitchell, The Woodlands was intended to fill the need for a thoughtfully planned community where families and businesses could live in harmony with nature. Since 1974, The Woodlands has thrived under the guidance of The Woodlands Development Company, which keeps this vision intact. Despite its wooded setting, The Woodlands is only 27 miles from Downtown Houston and offers easy accessibility to I-45 and the Hardy Toll Road.
The Woodlands’ two districts and nine residential villages each are like their own small town. With a village for almost every income level and lifestyle, home styles including golf course and lakefront properties, patio homes and townhouses and homes customized specifically for active older adults with home prices beginning in the $100,000s and ranging into the several millions for estates. The Woodlands Business Complex is found in three development zones: the Metro center (The Woodlands downtown), the Trade Center for light manufacturing and the 1,000-acre Research Forest for academic, high-tech and nonprofit research institutes and industry.
The development of The Woodlands Town Center has built a thriving downtown in the forest that is home to high-profile companies and is a popular destination for residents and visitors alike. Today, more than 100 major companies are located in The Woodlands, and the Village of College Park offers higher education opportunities at Lone-Star College-Montgomery and Lone Star College-University Center. The area also features extensions of Houston’s finest hospitals, including Memorial Hermann TheWoodlands Hospital and St. Luke’s Woodlands Community Medical Center.
WHAT TO EXPECT
After searching and weighing your options and then deciding on the property you will rent, you need to get settled into your new home as soon as possible. Luckily, many of Houston’s rental buildings offer Virtual Leasing Offices on their websites that allow you to start the application process. Before applying for a rental, check out your credit score and clear up any problems or mistakes on your record. Identity thieves can wreak havoc on your credit without your knowledge, and correcting the damage will need to be started right away.
Most apartment communities use standard leases endorsed by the Texas Apartment Association (TAA) (www.taa.org) and the Houston Apartment Association (HAA) (www.haaonline.org) and require a security deposit ranging from a few hundred dollars to one month’s rent. Standard leases cover six or 12 months, but some communities now offer short-term leases or extended leases with seven- and 13-month terms. During the application process, it is best to have available your state or federal ID or driver’s license; current and former addresses; current and past employment with dates; credit references; copy of credit report (if available); and bank information.
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