Top 15 Reasons NOT to MOVE to Houston
1. Air Quality
If you suffer from a respiratory condition such as asthma, emphysema, or bronchitis, or if you are particularly sensitive to greater ozone particle concentrations, it is recommended that you remain indoors until approximate lunchtime. Because the fog (clouds) helped to trap some of the fireworks, gun smoke, and ordinary pollutants overnight, the air quality has gotten off to an especially bad start today.
2. Natural Disasters
Unfortunately, natural disasters are common in Houston, as we experienced in August of 2017 with Hurricane Harvey. Hurricanes and other forms of severe weather pose a special threat to Houston because of its location on the gulf coast. In point of fact, Houston is in the top two per cent of regions in the United States that are affected by natural disasters. If you are considering moving to Houston in the near future, you should also consider purchasing homeowner’s insurance.
3. Flooding
The severe heat and humidity characterizing Houston’s summers bring them the possibility of hurricanes, cyclones, and other types of tropical storms. The months of June through November are normal for the hurricane season in areas like Texas that are located in the Gulf of Mexico. Flood insurance is something that the authorities in Harris County strongly recommend getting if you plan on residing in the metropolitan region.
The weather in H-Town can, to say the least, be difficult to forecast. It is not unusual for there to be a lovely day that is warm and clear in the spring, summer, or fall, followed by an intense thunderstorm and a deluge of rain. It’s possible that you could wake up to a clear sky and find yourself in the middle of a downpour at the same moment.
4. The Heat
This Texas hamlet has unusually high levels of both heat and humidity throughout the summer months. Temperatures in the late summer can climb into the triple digits, with humidity levels reaching up to 90 per cent. If you aren’t acclimated to the weather here, the muggy conditions could throw you off.
You should also prepare to deal with a significant number of mosquitoes, some of which are rather large. However, as soon as you get into the routine of slathering on insect repellent and burning citronella candles before hanging out on your patio, you won’t have to worry about being bothered by insects.
The beautiful winter weather in Houston is enough to sway many people into believing that the city’s hot and humid summers are a fair price to pay. In this particular region of Texas, the average high temperature from December through February never falls below 60 degrees.
5. Taxes
In spite of the fact that Texans are exempt from paying state income tax, the state’s sales tax rate of 8.25 per cent is among the highest in the country and must be paid on most transactions.
Your overall costs should still be manageable after coming here, given that there is no income tax and the cost of living is far lower than it is in big cities in the United States such as Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and other large cities in the United States.
6. Median Home Value
The monthly average sale price of a single-family house in Houston crossed the $400,000 threshold for the very first time in the month of March (HAR). The new average, which was exactly $410,923, was an increase of 11.4 per cent compared to the previous record-setting month of February, which had an average transaction price of $395,871 for the market.
7. No Zoning Laws
Even though they are known as the city without zoning, they do, in fact, control a wide variety of land use concerns through its Planning and Development Department. Some of these issues include density, buffering, lot size, and historic preservation. Through the use of subdivision ordinances, the majority of the city’s laws and regulations that have the effect of zoning are implemented. These are reflected on the property in the form of deed restrictions, which are a kind of property regulation that is analogous to zoning regulations. Deed limits are imposed on a piece of property at the time it is created or revised, and they serve to prevent problems such as the establishment of a corner store in an otherwise residential area.
8. You get Paid, Less
According to data from Indeed, when the annual wages of residents of a city are factored into the cost of living in that location, Houston is among the least affordable in Texas.
Affordability is one of the most marketable aspects of Bayou City; yet, a study that was conducted with salary data from Indeed found that Houston is one of the Texas cities where a person’s pay does not go as far as other cities in the state.
9. Poverty
The city of Houston has more newly poor neighborhoods than any other city in the country, except for Detroit. The number of neighborhoods in the city that are newly impoverished outnumbers the number of communities that have remained poor or are falling farther into poverty. The percentage of people living in poverty across the entire city increased from 13 per cent in 1980 to 20 per cent in 2018.
10. Transportation
The public transit in Houston is not very impressive in comparison to other cities. Because the majority of individuals in Houston possess their own vehicles, they are able to navigate the city at their own leisure, but this also means that the city’s roadways, especially during peak travel times, can become extremely clogged with traffic. Moving about in the city may be an exercise in pure aggravation.
11. The City
Because there are more than 50,000 acres of parks inside the city limits, Houston is commonly regarded as having one of the greenest cities in the United States. The city of Houston has been working hard to improve citizens’ access to nature trails and wildlife conservation zones, in addition to renovating older parks, constructing new parks, and improving existing park spaces. George Bush Park is the city’s most extensive green space, and it can be found on the outskirts of the city’s westernmost reaches. Within the boundaries of the Barker Reservoir lie the Bush Parklands, which are home to a plethora of wildlife-watching opportunities thanks to their location.
12. Road Construction
According to the Texas A&M Traffic Institute, Houston is the city in the United States with the fourth greatest amount of lost gasoline as a result of traffic congestion. Because the city is spread out across such a broad area, the average amount of time needed to commute is longer than the national average. When you add that to the fact that there are fewer people who can access public transportation, you have the makings of a formula for some serious gridlock on the roads. Ensure that you have access to certain podcasts at all times.
13. Prostitution
Because local law enforcement has noticed an increase in the amount of sex trafficking in southwest Houston, community leaders passed new legislation that will go has recently gone into effect to help minimize the amount of prostitution in the region.
14. Bad neighborhoods
Midtown Houston, which is home to Travis Street and Elgin Street, is one of the most dangerous areas in all of Houston. In this neighborhood, aggravated attacks, robberies, and thefts are all too common.
15. Unemployment rate
The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States reports that the unemployment rate in the Houston metropolitan region is 4.1 per cent, which is only marginally higher than the average rate found throughout the country. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the median income for a household in Houston during the years 2016-2020 will be $53,600.
Thinking about moving to Houston, Texas?
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