Dan Scott said:

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I found a nicely renovated house that has thick greenery between backyard and Woodlands Parkway. How much do the trees guard against road noise?

https://www.har.com/homedetail/3-n-timber-top-dr-spring-tx-77380/10854350

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Honestly not much. My neighborhood backups up to woodlands parkway with trees buffering between the road and the houses. I'm prob 10 houses down from the houses that actually backup to woodlands parkway and can still hear cars that have loud exhausts or are hauling ass down the parkway.

Go see the house in the highest traffic times and just sit in the backyard and listen. I highly doubt you will like it. Additionally, traffic generally increases and not decreases so I would only bet it would get worse. Just my 2 cents.

It doesn't help at all

Why the concern and opposition to Magnolia and Montgomery ISD?

Idk what the poster's reasons are, but the few houses in The Woodlands zoned to Magnolia are far away from the schools, particularly the high school.

Nothing in The Woodlands proper is zoned to Montgomery ISD. You'd have to go outside the boundaries. I've heard good and bad about Montgomery ISD schools. The high school has the same problem, in that it's pretty far away if you're trying to be close to The Woodlands to minimize a work commute.

Bottom line is, the demographics are very different for all of the ISDs (including Conroe) once you move outside of The Woodlands proper (The Woodlands basically has its own full set of elem, jr high, and high schools). There are pros and cons to it, but almost all of the schools in The Woodlands (with the exception of maybe one elem school in the oldest section) have reputations as being VERY good with VERY involved parents.

The con is that makes the two high schools VERY competitive. Both schools are huge (>1000 kids per graduating class). It can also be expensive. For example, parents pay around $1500-$2k/year in fees/dues for kids to be in band at TWHS. And there are usually more kids than there are spots. In comparison, Tomball High required band fees are only about 1/3 of that. My son's graduating class this year is 550, and it's the biggest ever. Montgomery and Magnolia High are both significantly smaller than Tomball.

I've known people who have moved out of The Woodlands to take advantage of the smaller high schools in the surrounding districts. But it's definitely not as convenient if you need to be in The Woodlands for work.

Yea the distance to high schools is/will be pain depending where you live. I am on the line between Woodlands and Magnolia. The trek to Mag High is not easy but there are bonds ongoing for a new HS to be built off the 2978 area so by time my little one gets there shouldn't be issue.

TBH, Creekside has the same problem with Tomball High. It's a PITA to get there. But they built 3 elem schools and a jr high specifically for Creekside, so it's a trade off.

TISD just approved a third high school. I'm thinking once that's open, Tomball high might drop back to 5A, which I think is preferable. We moved up to 6A last year, and it's tough to compete against the huge 6A schools. Pro is we don't have to travel as far for away events.

I would buy that house on account of the agents ARBITRARY capitalization alone.

Quote:

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I found a nicely renovated house that has thick greenery between backyard and Woodlands Parkway. How much do the trees guard against road noise?

https://www.har.com/homedetail/3-n-timber-top-dr-spring-tx-77380/10854350

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When we started looking at homes in the Woodlands, we found that road noise was a big deal. We looked at houses that were 2 or 3 streets off of a major road and it was still loud, so I would say the trees provide little, if any, attenuation of the noise.

My house backs up to the main road in my subdivision. The speed limit is 35. The road noise can be annoying at times, especially when the sports car owners rev their engines. After 10 years, I've kind of gotten used to it, but there are times when it is really loud. The loud sounds from the speeders are pretty much intermittent.

Acquaintance has a house that backs up to 2978. He could not sell it pre-Covid (not sure if he's tried since).

Woodlands Pkwy speed limit is 45 but people routinely drive 70+. And that particular stretch, over the bridge towards 45 is where people speed the most.

That house is probably set back from the road a little farther than most, but I'd still be hard pressed to purchase. I walk a lot in East Shore and the road noise from both Woodlands Pkwy and Grogans Mill is very loud. It's also pretty much constant.

Anything that backs up directly to Woodlands Pkwy, Lake Woodlands, 242, Research Forest, Gosling, or Kuykendahl is going to have a fair amount of road noise. The house posted on this thread looks like it would be particularly bad. That has to be one of the highest volume stretches of road in all of The Woodlands.

Its also zoned to one of a handful of Conroe ISD Elementary Schools in The Woodlands that are a bit lower rated. Even if not important to you, that will have an impact on resale down the road.

Is Shenandoah Drive a heavy traffic road? I imagine it sees a fair bit of traffic since it has direct access to 45. Just curious since it isn't one of the "main roads"

YNWA.2013 said:

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Is Shenandoah Drive a heavy traffic road? I imagine it sees a fair bit of traffic since it has direct access to 45. Just curious since it isn't one of the "main roads"

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Not high speed traffic like woodlands parkway. Probably a little loud considering proximity to 45. I cut through here regularly (twice a week) when the feeder is backed up, so it can get a little congested, but it does not seem like it would be loud from traffic on Shenandoah.

We are in Montgomery (off Honea Egypt) and love it. Moved here from Tomball/2920 area and love the extra space, MISD schools and reduction in property tax rate. May be too far out for you, but just wanted to offer another option/suggestion.

They don't guard against the road noise at all.

We just moved to carriage hills in May and we love it. 1488 isn't that bad. Sometimes it gets backed up but it's not nearly as bad as I expected it at first. Helps that we got on 6 acres there. I cringe driving through Jacobs Reserve seeing how close the houses are to each other.

I would love to live in Carriage Hills. I like the location with privacy at the same time. Future goals, probably

Continuing to look at homes and I'm just not seeing many 3 bath homes in our price range. It isn't a "must have" but we have a 3.5 bath home now and would like to have 3. Is a 3-4 bed/3 bath house for under $450,000 realistic right now? Or am I asking to much with my current budget? Like I don't need a beautiful high end home, but also don't want to live in a sh*thole that looks like it's stuck in 1970.

For new(er) construction that's in the boundaries of The Woodlands…probably. Unfortunately, that's where we've been since early 2021.

There is 2300 sq ft 3/2.5 in my neighborhood that just listed for $595k. No pool.

There is a 3/3 that also just listed. It's a little bigger at 2600 sq ft, and it's $525k.

I have a 2/2 that's roughly the same square footage as the first house posted above and it would probably sell for $450k-$500.

$450k is the new $300-$350k, which was pretty much entry-level pricing pre-Covid (3/2, 2000-2500 sq ft). New construction has been higher than that, though, just because there isn't a lot of it in The Woodlands (most new construction is outside the boundaries).

If you find something, it's most likely going to be older/need a lot of work or have a major flaw (like backs up to Woodlands Parkway). Or both.

I'm not saying you won't find anything. Inventory at that price point is just really low right now (and has been for a while) and it might take some time. Other option would be to start looking on the east side of 45 or to the north towards Conroe.

Are your kids old enough for public school? If not, you may want to consider renting in the general area until prices come down and/or you find something. I actually know of a 3/2 rental that's almost ready for move in. It's zoned to Klein ISD, though, so if you have kids in school, I wouldn't recommend it.

Edited: I just did a quick search a saw a couple of options that fit your criteria (and aren't in a 55+ community - have to watch for that, too). At least one has been "reduced for a quick close". One is updated, but they are both 30+ year old homes.

Could you list those here? Or please DM me them? Whichever is easiest. TIA

Sure! These are the two in my 'hood.

https://www.har.com/homedetail/98-kendrick-pines-blvd-spring-tx-77389/12191034
https://www.har.com/homedetail/19-canoe-bend-dr-spring-tx-77389/3811762

This one is also in my 'hood and in your price range.

https://www.har.com/homedetail/93-s-rocky-point-cir-spring-tx-77389/11958923

These are the ones I saw in the "original" part of The Woodlands that meet your criteria.

https://www.har.com/homedetail/34-firethorn-pl-spring-tx-77382/10819022
https://www.har.com/homedetail/3-thorn-berry-pl-spring-tx-77381/5329398
https://www.har.com/homedetail/22-s-belfair-pl-spring-tx-77382/8787911
https://www.har.com/homedetail/66-ardsley-square-pl-spring-tx-77382/5331135
https://www.har.com/homedetail/15-e-copper-sage-cir-spring-tx-77381/5332619

This is the one that's updated (partially)
https://www.har.com/homedetail/161-n-rainbow-ridge-cir-spring-tx-77381/5331709


These are a little bit above your max price.

https://www.har.com/homedetail/10-sandprint-ct-spring-tx-77381/7734818
https://www.har.com/homedetail/30-southfork-pines-pl-spring-tx-77381/5340869

THANK YOU SO MUCH! I have so much of these already "favorited" and are in the discussion between my wife and me for potential homes. I appreciate the help!

I think the wife and I are going to put our home buying process on hold. Interest rates are just too much right now and have really knocked down our budget. We have a lot going on right now and we have become disillusioned with the whole process at the moment. From what I am reading on TexAgs and other websites, I shouldn't expect too much of a decrease between now and the summer. But maybe there will be some stability and the housing market/prices will reflect that. (Wishful thinking on my part, probably)

Watching what's been going on here the last year or so, I don't think that's a bad decision. Rising interest rates are just making a bad situation worse. You should be able to find a rental no-problem. Your choices should open up if you don't have kids in school, yet, and don't have to be tied to a specific district/school.

Our son is 18 months old. So we are only really concerned about elementary school but, at the same time, not really bc we only plan on living in our next house for 4-5 years.

I think renting sounds like a great plan for your situation.

let interest rates and market corrections be someone else's issue.

Right. You could rent for a couple of years before you have to make a school decision. Like I said, I have a friend with a rental right off Gosling. Happy to give you the info, if you're interested.

YNWA.2013 said:

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Wife and I are looking to move to The Woodlands in Nov/Dec from Katy due to work. Any recommendations? Neighborhoods to look at or to avoid? New construction vs older homes? Real Estate agent recommendations?

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We lived in the area from 2017-2019. Loved it and loved the people there. Looking back we wished we lived in the Township. My only complaints are specific to the neighborhood we bought in which was Stillwater and I would recommend avoiding that neighborhood.

We were very happy with our realtor who sold our house, Jacci Kilgore https://www.compass.com/agents/jacci-kilgore/.

Zach Richmond is a realtor to also look at. He grew up there and his dad played a big part in the development there. He knows a lot about the area and is a good guy. Always assumed he would be a good realtor to buy a house there.

I would not recommend Haley Garcia for a realtor.

We looked seriously as Stillwater but I ended up backing out. Loved the look of the neighborhood but was worried about the section they sold off and it annoyed me that they had pretty minimal amenities compared to others. Location was great though.

Why didn't you like it?

Stillwater ALWAYS has homes for sale. For a community of that size, to always have a dozen or so homes on the market seems like a red flag.

You end up moving to the Woodlands or still waiting?

I ended up buying new construction from Perry Homes in Grand Central Park off of 336. But I quickly became disillusioned with the house (which is a shame bc we loved our Perry Home in Katy) as so many little things continued to pop up and getting them taken care of was worse than pulling teeth. (See: TexAgs Thread on My Perry Homes Experience). I finally got them to fix everything on my list, put the house up for sale, and got a full price offer that same day. So we are now finally moving to The Woodlands and have found a house in Panther Creek. We close on both the sale and the purchase at the end of this month.

Sorry to hear about the experience, but "all's well that ends well it seems". Congrats!