Moving To Houston, TX - Tips for a Young Professional

I will be moving to Houston, TX as an analyst in the near future. I have been looking at different areas to live in: Midtown, Downtown, The Heights, Montrose. As a young professional, I want to live in a place that is close to work, safe, has a good population of young professionals, things to do (bars, restaurants, etc.)

From what I've heard, Midtown is the place to go? Does anyone have any opinion on this? Or other places to live that would be better and the reasons why?

Thanks! 

 

Bump. Interested as well. Would love to hear the perspective of this.

 

If you're going to be working downtown, Montrose/Heights/Upper Kirby is best. Avoid Uptown/Galleria -- traffic is horrific and always busy and you will then see said traffic at all hours from your apartment. Midtown is filled with U of H kids and 22-year-old postgrads who don't work past 5. Downtown traffic isn't bad if you're coming from inside the loop and not from I-10/610. Bars and the best restaurants are all in different neighborhoods so the likelihood of walking to one isn't that great, so I chose my apartment based on feeling safe and being close to work for a quick commute. My favorite bars are Kirby Ice House, Handlebar, Boheme, Okra, or McIntyre's. Can also do Heights Bier Garden/multitude of other breweries. Feel free to PM/happy to answer any other questions here.

Array
 

O G1722

If you're going to be working downtown, Montrose/Heights/Upper Kirby is best. Avoid Uptown/Galleria -- traffic is horrific and always busy and you will then see said traffic at all hours from your apartment. Midtown is filled with U of H kids and 22-year-old postgrad who don't work past 5. Downtown traffic isn't bad if you're coming from inside the loop and not from I-10/610. Bars and the best restaurants are all in different neighborhoods so the likelihood of walking to one isn't that great, so I chose my apartment based on feeling safe and being close to work for a quick commute. My favorite bars are Kirby Ice House, Handlebar, Boheme, Okra, or McIntyre's. Can also do Heights Bier Garden/multitude of other breweries. Feel free to PM/happy to answer any other questions here.

you say as itf its a bad thing. whats wrong with that lmao? actually one of the reasons i liked midtown was if i go to a bar i would meet people from non-banking non-o&g backgorund and same age rane. if youre under 26-27 midtown is a nice place to live. no hesitation in recommending.

 

have been out of houston for a few years now so maybe updated but usually montrose, midtown and heights are the most popular spots. close enough to downtown and good feel with bars and restaurants and parks.

also in the last year or so downtown was becoming a bit of a hot spot. certainly theres enoguh bars which had popped up and it was lively. and some really nice high rises which should be affordable for anyone in banking. dont know how covid has impacted it because in a wfh scenario downtown would be dead/ bit of a homeless problem too

 

do you need a car to commute, or is public transport good enough?

 

Do not live in the Galleria/Uptown if your office is not there. Traffic is horrendous. I prefer Montrose as a young professional. It's centrally located between downtown and all the good stuff on the west side of houston and is a relatively safe area. The bar scene and restaurants in montrose are excellent. Midtown honestly can get a little dicey since there's a fair amount of riff raff in that area and outside of the bars within a 2 block radius of each other there isnt anything that makes living there worth it. Dont live in the heights... that's mid - late 30's with 2 kids yuppieville.

You could also live off of memorial and Allen Parkway near Washington since I would say Washington and Montrose/Westheimer are tied for bar and restaurant scene. I live about 15 minutes from most of everything inside the loop on the west side and I find myself going to Montrose more often than anywhere else to get grub or a drink.

Also, you absolutely need a car to live in Houston.

 

The Uptown/Galleria recommendation is complete garbage unless you work there. Enjoy 1+ hour commutes each way every day until they get the West-East rail up (maybe next decade?). All so you can be near SOME decent restaurants/bars during the weekend? Cool, stick with the $10 15 min Uber from Midtown.

You're young, go live in Midtown with all the other youngins. You'll outgrow it in a few years like everyone else does and move to the Heights, Montrose or off Washington in the Rice Military area come 25/26 ish. Downtown was seriously getting better, and then COVID hit and it's basically gone backwards a decade, i.e. awful. All the guys in their early 20s that went straight to Heights ended up moving after a year to be closer, the DTers end up in Ubers to meet you in Midtown along with the Galleria/Uptown clowns.

Source: HTX long-timer

 
Most Helpful

Just moved down to Houston post undergrad a few months ago here is my take.. Midtown is for a younger crowd (21-26ish) great nightlife, view of DT, good restaurants, etc. If that is something you are interested in I would definitely live there. If you are working DT, living in Midtown would be an easy commute. If you are not looking for the per se "post-college" atmosphere I would say the Height/Montrose/Washington area is great (24-30ish). It has a mix off everything. There is great nightlife scene but also doesn't feel as crowded as midtown/downtown. One perk about living in these areas is that it is decently easy to get to whatever part of Houston you are trying to go (10-15 min drive without traffic). I would stay away from DT because it is very expensive and not much to do besides go to the "clubby clubs"

I would say this is my top 3:
1) Midtown
2) Washington/Memorial Area
3) Heights

Feel free to PM me as well if you have any other questions. 

 

Midtown: 77 degrees, Dogwood, Woodrows, Electric Feelgood
Heights: Mcintyres, Drift, Heights, Henderson
Washington Ave:  Kungfoo, Clutch, handlebar

These are some of my favorite bars in these locations

PS. my favorite restaurant is DT called Moonshiners. Amazing southern food

 

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