Houston Associates: Where do you live? How much do you pay in rent? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

[Anonymous User]

How’s the commute from the heights? It looks similarly as far as the galleria area and I’ve heard awful things about that commute?

How long is a piece of string?

The Heights is pretty vast. If you live on the Eastern part of Woodland Heights you can be downtown in literally 5 minutes on a Sunday and 10 minutes on a weekday morning, whereas if you live up on the 20th street strip, it might take you 20, 25 minutes on a morning.

Regardless, the Galleria is outside 610 and physically / temporally further than almost all of the Heights, so maybe check your map…

Everything above is correct about the Heights. I live on the eastern side near N. Main and 45 and my commute is 5-10 minutes. It takes me a long to leave my desk, get to the garage, and get my car to the street as it does to get home once my wheels hit pavement most evenings unless there is a major wreck on 45. Good friend lives in Shady Acres (NW corner of the greater Heights inside the 610 loop) and his commute is 15-20 min usually, though he is close to the loop so he does not have to bother with many lights/stop signs to get on the highway.

I avoid the Galleria / Uptown / 610 West as much as possible. It is a zoo, the roads are always crowed (610 crawls from ~7:15-10 am every morning, and again from ~4-7:30 every night). The alternative routes into downtown involve stop lights or construction, and I don't trust the City to not eliminate 25% of the lanes of travel on many more major roads in favor of wider sidewalks and bike lanes that get used by maybe 50 people a day.

Would you recommend a certain part of the heights. I’ve been looking at both the west (shady acres) and east sides. Not very familiar with Houston at all but see it looks pretty safe overall. Any specific areas in the heights you’d suggest avoiding due to either crime or worse commute?

You know google maps? It tells you how long it takes to go from one place to another. You can make your destination “downtown” and then drag your starting point around the Heights to get an idea of how different areas/proximity to highway onramps will change your commute time. You can even select “arrive by 9:00am” to see what late-morning traffic will do to your commute.

In terms of crime, you can search “Houston crime map” and get wonderful tools like Trulia’s neighborhood guides.

https://www.trulia.com/n/tx/houston/gre ... hts/86420/

If you really want that anecdotal data though, the Heights is generally very safe, subject to the Houston-wide caveat that vehicle crime is rampant in all areas, and if you leave visible belongings in your car you should expect them to be stolen.

As a massive generalization, the closer to the center of individual Heights neighborhoods you are, the safer it is. Criminals enter the neighborhood via freeways and major thoroughfares, and opportunistic crime (the majority of crime) is more likely in those areas. If you live north of North Main, you are a gentrifier and should expect stray dogs and some sketchy people and houses, mixed in with million dollar builder homes waiting for people just like you. All of the fringes are a bit less “neighborly” and a bit less expensive, so live East of Shepherd, North of White Oak/6th, and south of North Main. if you want the real “Heights” experience, you want woodland heights or the area around the collegiate streets.

Thanks, appreciate the anecdotal data. Yeah I’ve been using the crime and and maps ETA features. Just wasn’t sure how accurate those were.

Is this also true for shady acres as a neighborhood of the heights? Not sure you were the above poster with a friend who lives there.

Yeah but shady acres isn’t super “heights-ey” in the way it feels. It’s got some upsides but I don’t really loop it into the heights in terms of vibe.

[Anonymous User]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

My in-laws are in Katy and we have stayed there on a Sunday night and made the drive in Monday morning. It’s BRUTAL. Stop and go traffic the entire way. I was exhausted by the time I got to the office. I would not recommend it unless you only have to go into the office 1-2 days per week.

[Anonymous User]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

My in-laws are in Katy and we have stayed there on a Sunday night and made the drive in Monday morning. It’s BRUTAL. Stop and go traffic the entire way. I was exhausted by the time I got to the office. I would not recommend it unless you only have to go into the office 1-2 days per week.

Driving from any suburb (Katy/The Woodlands/Sugar Land) to downtown is hell and really should be avoided at all costs. Terrible for your health both mental and physical.

With a BL salary, I'd recommend living in the inner loop or at most inside Beltway 8 even if you have to sacrifice home size. If you have kids, WestU/Bellaire/Memorial are good areas, if not then you can probably get a nice townhome in Rice Military or the Heights for under 400.

[Anonymous User]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

My in-laws are in Katy and we have stayed there on a Sunday night and made the drive in Monday morning. It’s BRUTAL. Stop and go traffic the entire way. I was exhausted by the time I got to the office. I would not recommend it unless you only have to go into the office 1-2 days per week.

Driving from any suburb (Katy/The Woodlands/Sugar Land) to downtown is hell and really should be avoided at all costs. Terrible for your health both mental and physical.

With a BL salary, I'd recommend living in the inner loop or at most inside Beltway 8 even if you have to sacrifice home size. If you have kids, WestU/Bellaire/Memorial are good areas, if not then you can probably get a nice townhome in Rice Military or the Heights for under 400.

I live in Memorial/Energy corridor (which is basically riiiiiiiight outside the Beltway) and I really like it. Traffic coming from this direction isn’t too terrible - my commute is ~20 mins normally and 30 in rush hour. 45 if one of the highways is fucked. We have a giant house for relatively cheap and it’s a really nice area. For context, we’re about halfway between Katy and downtown.

Then again, my firm doesn’t look like it’ll require us to come into the office anytime soon, and if they do it’ll be 1-2 times per week.

Btw for people new to Houston “the loop” and “the Beltway” are two different things. The Loop means highway 610 and the Beltway means highway 8, which essentially forms a second larger loop around 610 (but unlike some other cities, nobody says “inner loop” and “outer loop.”

[Right2BearArms]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

My in-laws are in Katy and we have stayed there on a Sunday night and made the drive in Monday morning. It’s BRUTAL. Stop and go traffic the entire way. I was exhausted by the time I got to the office. I would not recommend it unless you only have to go into the office 1-2 days per week.

Driving from any suburb (Katy/The Woodlands/Sugar Land) to downtown is hell and really should be avoided at all costs. Terrible for your health both mental and physical.

With a BL salary, I'd recommend living in the inner loop or at most inside Beltway 8 even if you have to sacrifice home size. If you have kids, WestU/Bellaire/Memorial are good areas, if not then you can probably get a nice townhome in Rice Military or the Heights for under 400.

I live in Memorial/Energy corridor (which is basically riiiiiiiight outside the Beltway) and I really like it. Traffic coming from this direction isn’t too terrible - my commute is ~20 mins normally and 30 in rush hour. 45 if one of the highways is fucked. We have a giant house for relatively cheap and it’s a really nice area. For context, we’re about halfway between Katy and downtown.

Then again, my firm doesn’t look like it’ll require us to come into the office anytime soon, and if they do it’ll be 1-2 times per week.

Btw for people new to Houston “the loop” and “the Beltway” are two different things. The Loop means highway 610 and the Beltway means highway 8, which essentially forms a second larger loop around 610 (but unlike some other cities, nobody says “inner loop” and “outer loop.”

Memorial is a good area, particularly if you have kids. Good schools, homes with big yards in nice/safe areas. Commute is ok-ish, but in current state of only going in 1-3 days a week max, should work.

I would not necessarily recommend the area if you are single / don't have kids. If you want to go out, you will have to uber / find a DD for just about anything. Inside the loop (particularly the Heights, midtown or Montrose) you can walk / stumble your way home from a good number of bars and restaurants.

I agree that you really cannot go wrong inside the Beltway, though I am partial to inside the loop. Have lived south of Rice, in Montrose and in the Heights and love the Heights, though it is getting expensive.

None of the commutes from inside the loop to downtown are that bad.

Happy to answer any questions.

[Anonymous User]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

My in-laws are in Katy and we have stayed there on a Sunday night and made the drive in Monday morning. It’s BRUTAL. Stop and go traffic the entire way. I was exhausted by the time I got to the office. I would not recommend it unless you only have to go into the office 1-2 days per week.

Driving from any suburb (Katy/The Woodlands/Sugar Land) to downtown is hell and really should be avoided at all costs. Terrible for your health both mental and physical.

With a BL salary, I'd recommend living in the inner loop or at most inside Beltway 8 even if you have to sacrifice home size. If you have kids, WestU/Bellaire/Memorial are good areas, if not then you can probably get a nice townhome in Rice Military or the Heights for under 400.

I live in Memorial/Energy corridor (which is basically riiiiiiiight outside the Beltway) and I really like it. Traffic coming from this direction isn’t too terrible - my commute is ~20 mins normally and 30 in rush hour. 45 if one of the highways is fucked. We have a giant house for relatively cheap and it’s a really nice area. For context, we’re about halfway between Katy and downtown.

Then again, my firm doesn’t look like it’ll require us to come into the office anytime soon, and if they do it’ll be 1-2 times per week.

Btw for people new to Houston “the loop” and “the Beltway” are two different things. The Loop means highway 610 and the Beltway means highway 8, which essentially forms a second larger loop around 610 (but unlike some other cities, nobody says “inner loop” and “outer loop.”

Memorial is a good area, particularly if you have kids. Good schools, homes with big yards in nice/safe areas. Commute is ok-ish, but in current state of only going in 1-3 days a week max, should work.

I would not necessarily recommend the area if you are single / don't have kids. If you want to go out, you will have to uber / find a DD for just about anything. Inside the loop (particularly the Heights, midtown or Montrose) you can walk / stumble your way home from a good number of bars and restaurants.

I agree that you really cannot go wrong inside the Beltway, though I am partial to inside the loop. Have lived south of Rice, in Montrose and in the Heights and love the Heights, though it is getting expensive.

None of the commutes from inside the loop to downtown are that bad.

Happy to answer any questions.

Besides the heights, rice military, and montrose is anywhere inside the loop very safe? I’ve been looking at the crime maps and the heights look best and obviously like river oaks/some of montrose, but everything else looks pretty sketch honestly. Do you have any recs for inside loop neighborhoods or would it be best just to stick to the northwest part of inside the loop.

[Right2BearArms]

Anybody have experience living farther outside the loop (Katy, Spring, the Woodlands)? I've met a few associates who live out there and they seem to like it and make it work, but obviously there's some survivorship bias at play.

My in-laws are in Katy and we have stayed there on a Sunday night and made the drive in Monday morning. It’s BRUTAL. Stop and go traffic the entire way. I was exhausted by the time I got to the office. I would not recommend it unless you only have to go into the office 1-2 days per week.

Driving from any suburb (Katy/The Woodlands/Sugar Land) to downtown is hell and really should be avoided at all costs. Terrible for your health both mental and physical.

With a BL salary, I'd recommend living in the inner loop or at most inside Beltway 8 even if you have to sacrifice home size. If you have kids, WestU/Bellaire/Memorial are good areas, if not then you can probably get a nice townhome in Rice Military or the Heights for under 400.

I live in Memorial/Energy corridor (which is basically riiiiiiiight outside the Beltway) and I really like it. Traffic coming from this direction isn’t too terrible - my commute is ~20 mins normally and 30 in rush hour. 45 if one of the highways is fucked. We have a giant house for relatively cheap and it’s a really nice area. For context, we’re about halfway between Katy and downtown.

Then again, my firm doesn’t look like it’ll require us to come into the office anytime soon, and if they do it’ll be 1-2 times per week.

Btw for people new to Houston “the loop” and “the Beltway” are two different things. The Loop means highway 610 and the Beltway means highway 8, which essentially forms a second larger loop around 610 (but unlike some other cities, nobody says “inner loop” and “outer loop.”

Memorial is a good area, particularly if you have kids. Good schools, homes with big yards in nice/safe areas. Commute is ok-ish, but in current state of only going in 1-3 days a week max, should work.

I would not necessarily recommend the area if you are single / don't have kids. If you want to go out, you will have to uber / find a DD for just about anything. Inside the loop (particularly the Heights, midtown or Montrose) you can walk / stumble your way home from a good number of bars and restaurants.

I agree that you really cannot go wrong inside the Beltway, though I am partial to inside the loop. Have lived south of Rice, in Montrose and in the Heights and love the Heights, though it is getting expensive.

None of the commutes from inside the loop to downtown are that bad.

Happy to answer any questions.

Besides the heights, rice military, and montrose is anywhere inside the loop very safe? I’ve been looking at the crime maps and the heights look best and obviously like river oaks/some of montrose, but everything else looks pretty sketch honestly. Do you have any recs for inside loop neighborhoods or would it be best just to stick to the northwest part of inside the loop.

The Heights or most of Montrose will be best. Rice Military is safe, but there are a lot of bars near by and all that those bring. Midtown is nice in places, but can then be total crap 2-3 blocks over.

Honestly, the area in 3rd ward around UH and Eado have gotten much nicer / better in the last few years. Near Northside is probably the "worst", but my secretary lives there and loves it, and I spend a lot of time over there at a garage I rent with some friends and have never felt unsafe (I am also a 6'2", 220+ male though, FWIWI). I would not live east of 59 north of I-10 or near the south loop from 288 around east to I-10 but otherwise there arent many areas inside the loop I would avoid on principle.

A lot of the crime is property crime (I wouldn't leave anything in your car anywhere in Houston) and most (though not all) of the violent crime is engaged in by the gangs, etc. that wont usually bother you in my experience (anecdotal of course).

[Hutz_and_Goodman]

Does the lack of zoning in Houston impact the decision of whether to buy or rent? I would be concerned to buy and then have someone build a prison or open a mental asylum nearby (extreme examples but lots of other possibilities).

[nixy]

I’d imagine it’s not hard to avoid that possibility if you buy in an established community.

[Anonymous User]

I’d imagine it’s not hard to avoid that possibility if you buy in an established community.

Yeah there are lots of private deed restrictions that control development. Also, the city has other tools at its disposal besides zoning, so it’s not a complete free for all. This is a very interesting YouTube video about the whole thing:

https://youtu.be/TaU1UH_3B5k

[Anonymous User]

Does the lack of zoning in Houston impact the decision of whether to buy or rent? I would be concerned to buy and then have someone build a prison or open a mental asylum nearby (extreme examples but lots of other possibilities).

Lol.

There’s no top down zoning, but individual neighborhoods have deed restrictions and similar rules, so just do your research like anywhere and understand where you are buying. New developments in gentrifying light industrial areas (e.g., EaDo) carry risk that someone opens a CrossFit gym across from your crappy townhouse, whereas buying in a designated historical area of the Heights carries no risk at all, because the only thing those houses are allowed to be is single family homes or businesses with no walk up activity.

[Anonymous User]

Does the lack of zoning in Houston impact the decision of whether to buy or rent? I would be concerned to buy and then have someone build a prison or open a mental asylum nearby (extreme examples but lots of other possibilities).

lol move back to the northeast.

[Right2BearArms]

Does the lack of zoning in Houston impact the decision of whether to buy or rent? I would be concerned to buy and then have someone build a prison or open a mental asylum nearby (extreme examples but lots of other possibilities).

lol move back to the northeast.

Not sure why some of y'all are being a-holes (anonymously on a thread about places to live at that...), its an odd feature of Houston and a legit question / concern, if presented in a somewhat hyperbolic fashion.

Bigger chance that you will buy something across from an empty lot or an old warehouse/factory and it will be demolished for another apartment building or townhouse development than the other way around. As others have pointed out as well, many neighborhoods, or at least parts of them, have deed restrictions that limit usage to residential / light commercial at most.

[Anonymous User]

Besides the heights, rice military, and montrose is anywhere inside the loop very safe? I’ve been looking at the crime maps and the heights look best and obviously like river oaks/some of montrose, but everything else looks pretty sketch honestly. Do you have any recs for inside loop neighborhoods or would it be best just to stick to the northwest part of inside the loop.

West University (and Southside Place for that matter) are inside the loop and probably safer than the above. These neighborhoods (which are actually cities) come with their own police force that is much better funded and way more active than Houston police. Land value is very expensive as these areas are small. Great for families. I think Southside Place only has something like 300 families.

[Anonymous User]

Does the lack of zoning in Houston impact the decision of whether to buy or rent? I would be concerned to buy and then have someone build a prison or open a mental asylum nearby (extreme examples but lots of other possibilities).

lol move back to the northeast.

Not sure why some of y'all are being a-holes (anonymously on a thread about places to live at that...), its an odd feature of Houston and a legit question / concern, if presented in a somewhat hyperbolic fashion.

Bigger chance that you will buy something across from an empty lot or an old warehouse/factory and it will be demolished for another apartment building or townhouse development than the other way around. As others have pointed out as well, many neighborhoods, or at least parts of them, have deed restrictions that limit usage to residential / light commercial at most.

Pretty lighthearted ribbing, I’d say, but honestly if people are considering moving to a place, asking the locals a question that betrays a total lack of sympathy towards one of the aspects that gives the location character, while also being just fundamentally a silly question, is always going to draw bit of a reaction.

[Right2BearArms]

Does the lack of zoning in Houston impact the decision of whether to buy or rent? I would be concerned to buy and then have someone build a prison or open a mental asylum nearby (extreme examples but lots of other possibilities).

lol move back to the northeast.

Not sure why some of y'all are being a-holes (anonymously on a thread about places to live at that...), its an odd feature of Houston and a legit question / concern, if presented in a somewhat hyperbolic fashion.

Bigger chance that you will buy something across from an empty lot or an old warehouse/factory and it will be demolished for another apartment building or townhouse development than the other way around. As others have pointed out as well, many neighborhoods, or at least parts of them, have deed restrictions that limit usage to residential / light commercial at most.

Pretty lighthearted ribbing, I’d say, but honestly if people are considering moving to a place, asking the locals a question that betrays a total lack of sympathy towards one of the aspects that gives the location character, while also being just fundamentally a silly question, is always going to draw bit of a reaction.

No idea what you mean by the bolded. I will stand by my position that it is a fair question to ask, even if the content of the question is a bit hyperbolic as I noted earlier.

It is certainly not "fundamentally a silly question", as it was not that long ago that there were, in fact, numerous light and not-so-light manufacturing operations in the Heights and near "nice" neighborhoods to the west of 610. There are still plenty of places where there are homes on either side of industrial warehouse complexes or across the street from a factory. I rent a warehouse that is behind a Mexican restaurant, between a well maintained 1920's home and a vacant lot with a homeless camp, across the street from a rundown bungalow with 5 cars in the yard to the left and a 2 year old modern farm house that sold for close to $550k at the end of 2019 to the right. Outside of small towns, I am not aware of many places that would occur, and certainly not in any of the other cities I have lived in.

[The Lsat Airbender]

People are getting riled because you're treating one of Houston's few inarguably-based qualities as if it's some kind of downside

It's like asking NYC people if the lack of street parking makes them concerned about buying a condo there

[Anonymous User]

.

[Ultramar vistas]

Has anyone heard anything about Somerset Green? Looks beautiful, relatively affordable, and they're new construction which seems like a plus to me. The overall area seems like it's still in the process of gentrifying though.

It’s a literal gated community wedged between 610 and 10, so you can doubtless here the constant hum of the freeway from your 4 story faux-European builder home…

What are you looking for from your Houston experience? Have you lived here before?

[Anonymous User]

.

[Anonymous User]

Will be moving to Houston after bar and have never lived in Texas before -- hoping to seek some insights as well!

Just my husband and me so far, both in early to mid 20s, and probably will get a pet dog later. We are looking at luxury apartments (for safety reasons, or perhaps just the ease of mind) in Museum District, Montrose, Rice Village, and River Oaks. Which neighborhood do people recommend? If it is not too much to ask, are there any specific apartments that you have heard good things of?

Much appreciated!

[Anonymous User]

How’s the commute from the heights? It looks similarly as far as the galleria area and I’ve heard awful things about that commute?

How long is a piece of string?

The Heights is pretty vast. If you live on the Eastern part of Woodland Heights you can be downtown in literally 5 minutes on a Sunday and 10 minutes on a weekday morning, whereas if you live up on the 20th street strip, it might take you 20, 25 minutes on a morning.

Regardless, the Galleria is outside 610 and physically / temporally further than almost all of the Heights, so maybe check your map…

Everything above is correct about the Heights. I live on the eastern side near N. Main and 45 and my commute is 5-10 minutes. It takes me a long to leave my desk, get to the garage, and get my car to the street as it does to get home once my wheels hit pavement most evenings unless there is a major wreck on 45. Good friend lives in Shady Acres (NW corner of the greater Heights inside the 610 loop) and his commute is 15-20 min usually, though he is close to the loop so he does not have to bother with many lights/stop signs to get on the highway.

I avoid the Galleria / Uptown / 610 West as much as possible. It is a zoo, the roads are always crowed (610 crawls from ~7:15-10 am every morning, and again from ~4-7:30 every night). The alternative routes into downtown involve stop lights or construction, and I don't trust the City to not eliminate 25% of the lanes of travel on many more major roads in favor of wider sidewalks and bike lanes that get used by maybe 50 people a day.

Would you recommend a certain part of the heights. I’ve been looking at both the west (shady acres) and east sides. Not very familiar with Houston at all but see it looks pretty safe overall. Any specific areas in the heights you’d suggest avoiding due to either crime or worse commute?

You know google maps? It tells you how long it takes to go from one place to another. You can make your destination “downtown” and then drag your starting point around the Heights to get an idea of how different areas/proximity to highway onramps will change your commute time. You can even select “arrive by 9:00am” to see what late-morning traffic will do to your commute.

In terms of crime, you can search “Houston crime map” and get wonderful tools like Trulia’s neighborhood guides.

https://www.trulia.com/n/tx/houston/gre ... hts/86420/

If you really want that anecdotal data though, the Heights is generally very safe, subject to the Houston-wide caveat that vehicle crime is rampant in all areas, and if you leave visible belongings in your car you should expect them to be stolen.

As a massive generalization, the closer to the center of individual Heights neighborhoods you are, the safer it is. Criminals enter the neighborhood via freeways and major thoroughfares, and opportunistic crime (the majority of crime) is more likely in those areas. If you live north of North Main, you are a gentrifier and should expect stray dogs and some sketchy people and houses, mixed in with million dollar builder homes waiting for people just like you. All of the fringes are a bit less “neighborly” and a bit less expensive, so live East of Shepherd, North of White Oak/6th, and south of North Main. if you want the real “Heights” experience, you want woodland heights or the area around the collegiate streets.

Thanks, appreciate the anecdotal data. Yeah I’ve been using the crime and and maps ETA features. Just wasn’t sure how accurate those were.

Is this also true for shady acres as a neighborhood of the heights? Not sure you were the above poster with a friend who lives there.

My spouse and I have been through the Houston moving process a couple times, as outsiders (and then as new residents). Crime maps are helpful but what you really need to do is go drive around the place you’re considering at night. Like 9pm-midnight on a Friday or Saturday. Go through your desired neighborhood, then all of the areas bordering it (with an emphasis on anything that is marked on the crime map). Sometimes an area we thought was safe had tons of shady people lingering around at night. Other times we would drive through an area that supposedly had crime, and it actually seemed kinda nice with nothing out of the ordinary.

[Anonymous User]

Will be moving to Houston after bar and have never lived in Texas before -- hoping to seek some insights as well!

Just my husband and me so far, both in early to mid 20s, and probably will get a pet dog later. We are looking at luxury apartments (for safety reasons, or perhaps just the ease of mind) in Museum District, Montrose, Rice Village, and River Oaks. Which neighborhood do people recommend? If it is not too much to ask, are there any specific apartments that you have heard good things of?

Much appreciated!

You might consider Rice Military, which is just north of River Oaks/northwest of Montrose. Lots of new luxury apts there, but you can also get a 3-bdrm townhome for ~400k or so. Close to a lot of good amenities and has a solid vibe (lots of folks in their 20s/early 30s).

Schools are rather poor, but as you don't have kids that's not a problem.

[Anonymous User]

Wife and I live in an apartment complex in Montrose; about 800-900 square feet and it's ~1700 all in with utilities (1600 base). Pretty happy with it and it's nice (quiet, pool, nice gym, great front desk) and we'll have lived here 4 years...considering either renewing or buying a house.