The Lions' Pride

Couple of my classmates from HS live in Houston. Never hear them complain about and they've lived there for 10 years.
Weather gets a little wild. Went to see them a couple years ago and we went golfing on a Saturday and it was 90-95 degrees
with massive humidity. Next day went gofling again and it was 30 degrees! Reason #134 why I hate golf. Anyways, good luck down there.

I lived in the Houston area for 9 years when I worked at NASA. Left there in '95, but I can tell you the Clear Lake area which is south of the city was very nice. Close to the water, not sure how far the commute would be though.

I should also mention the cost of living is waaaay lower here than in PA. Everything is a dime or two cheaper, and there's no state or local income tax. That alone was like getting a 6% raise when we moved here from suburban Philly.

Yep. Summers are brutal, winters are money. It's a nice 'generic' town, no distinct personality maybe like Charlotte, good restaurants, great cost of living, generally a high quality of life.

Where to live depends on your situation. If you're single or definitely if you no kids, which is going to be my assumption here -- there is no reason to look outside the loop or at least past the Galleria area. My Bro&Sis-in-law live in Montrose which is more or less near mid-town but more eclectic. Mid-town is full of new lofts/apartments, etc. - note, as of 10 years ago, this was the hood, you did not want to be there after dark, but it's unreal how quickly it has turned over. Full of trendy stuff, recent hot UT Bettys, etc.. If you are married, this area still works, I lived in the Heights for years, and it has more of a neighborhood family feel, but just a stones throw from downtown. West U near Rice is not a bad area for a young buck either. That's probably where I'd go, but it's on the pricier side - that said you can find something in your price range if you look. West Alabama/Richmond area tucked between Montrose and West U is also nice and you can find some deals there, easy commute into downtown as well. Galleria is a little more cougar town IMO, I used to live in an apartment complex near there that I discovered after the fact is where a lot of strippers lived because of the security, spent a lot of time at the pool......, but it works too.

Also depends on personality. For me, I am little more outdoorsy, so I would prefer to be near Buffalo Bayou (you can do this at Mid-town) or even better near Memorial Park for running, golf and mtn biking. And Memorial park has some nice areas around it, I love the drive into downtown on Memorial and you have easy access to Galleria, mid-town and downtown. If you like eating tapas and a martini, mid-town probably is where it's at. Plus downtown is coming around big time with lots to do. If you are laid back and not ready to leave the college scene slide over towards West U/West Alabama/

No doubt, but you definitely get acclimated to it after a few weeks. It doesn't really bother me anymore, but those first couple weeks after we moved in the middle of July were brutal. That and we had three hurricanes go through in the first two months we settled on the house. Two were near misses and then Ike was a direct hit. Hunkering down through a hurricane and dealing with no electricity for weeks afterward in August is not fun. I was asking my co-workers if it was like this every summer. Thankfully, we really haven't had even a scare since Ike.

Thanks everyone for the advice it was REALLY helpful. The input is definitely appreciated as I will be new to the town. I think I am going to go for Midtown as it is about 10 minutes driving from work on Louisiana Street. Ventana at Midtown is pretty solid and the location seems good. If anyone has heard of that (although I doubt it) I think that is what I am gonna go with.

Hopefully I see some Nittany Lions jerseys out on Saturday because there is no way in hell I am going to UHouston to get my fix!

A little late, but, my kid brother lives there and I just want to give you a heads up about buying a house.

Do your due diligence! There are all kinds of problems with the construction/maintenance. Things like cracked slabs (no foundations) and infestations. Don't want to scare you, just be aware. So different from the northeast.

On a more positive note, good luck and congrats on the new career.