There has been quite a bit of new apartment construction all over the city of Houston and in the outlying areas in the last few years.  Thousands and thousands of units are and have been introduced onto the market the last few years. Apartment homes now are featuring concrete and wood floors, stainless steel appliances, resort style pools, tanning beds, fitness centers with free weights, and other top of the line equipment. Renters have many options at their fingertips when it comes to leasing units on a 12 month lease or longer. Here are a few of the newer communities in the area.

Gables 6464 San Felipe is Gables newest community in the Galleria area. This community sports spacious loft residences with open floor plans, wood floors, and gourmet island style kitchens, and stained custom cabinetry, and 18 inch style ceramic tile flooring.  The bathrooms contain large garden tubs and a large parking garage parking structure for your convenience.

Alexan Westheimer is one of Alexan’s newest properties in the inner loop area. All floors on the first floor boast a stained concrete flooring and 2,3, and 4th floors contain wood floors.  All Alexan properties contain a state of the art fitness center that rivals many gyms in the area.  Also this location is really second to none as residents will be in close location to the Museum District, River Oaks, Downtown, and the Texas Medical Center.  This community was just completed in 2008 and sports 244 total units.

Finger Apartment Communities are a favorite of ours and residents around the area have very few complaints when it comes to their day to day dealings with this management company. They have a track history of paying their vendors quickly and quick to respond to any questions and concerns.

They have properties all over the city including Clear :Lake, the inner loop, and northwest areas.  The Park at Armand Bayou is one of their  apartments communities in the Clear Lake area. It was constructed in 96 and their one bedrooms are extremely large (starting at 839 square feet). Apartment homes feature 9 to 10 foot ceilings with crown molding and all apartment homes have full size washer and dryer’s and french doors which lead onto a balcony or patio. Even though this community may be one of the more expensive in the Clear Lake area, when you factor in the square footage it is actually a great price.

The Creole on Yorktown is one of their apartment communities closer to the Galleria. This community is actually a bit older as it was constructed in 1971.  Compared to other communities, they will not have all the bells and whistles of the newer communities, but Fingers does such a good job managing their apartment homes you should definitely factor this into your apartment search.

The Post Oak at Woodway is their most luxurious property in the Uptown/Galleria area. One bedrooms easily range well above $1000 for their starting one bedroom units.  However, it has a prime location and is very secure.

Make sure you do your research before you lease your next apartment home.  Many would be renters simply drive around different areas unprepared and not knowing what they will come up against.  Sometimes there are great apartments hidden off roadways that offer tons of amenities and great discounts, but their lack of location limits their drive-by customers. In today’s environment you should be able to receive some sort of incentive. Whether it be free rent or a free plasma do some research before you lease.

A) Use the Internet to do your research. You should be able to find the majority of the apartments online.  Any apartment company constructed in the last 5 years or so should have a website. But this only helps if you know the apartment by name. You can do certain searches for areas that you are interested in. For example, if you are looking for Clear Lake apartments for rent, simply type this in one of the search engines and you should be on your way.  You may come across Village on the Lake.  This is one of the most luxurious apartment homes in the area.

B) If you don’t have a computer go to the library or use a friends.  As a last cause you can use an apartment finder book.  These will list apartments by area.  However, they are not up to date with the latest specials, and its hard to get reviews on the apartments themselves. But it is better than simply driving around aimlessly.

Please read more about The Villas at Westheimer.

If you have heard the term “Going Green” then you may know the wave going on today in regards to playing a role in saving the environment.  We can all play a role by “going green” in our apartment home today.

1) Light bulbs in apartment homes today are highly inefficient. There are many light bulbs on the market today that will help reduce your energy consumption today.  The life of these light-bulbs are also much longer.  Although it will cost a few dollars to purchase new light bulbs, the energy savings and extended lift will save you money and help reduce your carbon footprint upon the environment. Most apartment communities will not provide you with new light bulbs.  However, if they do try and request these special bulbs.

2) Unplug the appliances in your apartment home and other electronic devices in your Pasadena Texas apartments.  Electricity current still flows through these devices even if the power is turned.  This is especially true of computers. I cannot tell you how many users never turn their computers off. These burn electricity. Even though it may not burn holes in your pockets it will help curtail energy use.

3) Have the maintenance crew change out your air conditioning filters every month. This is normally free at most of the apartment communities.  This will help your air conditioning unit run more efficiently.  Also remember to turn off your lights when you leave your apartment home.

On a side note, if you can rent an apartment home on the first floor, your cooling costs will be lower too.  Please read more about Spring Texas apartments.

There are a couple items all renters need to know when it comes to bringing your pets with you to your new apartment home. Keep in mind that most Houston Loft apartments will accept your pets.  Lofts usually have stained concrete or hardwood flooring which makes it very convenient in cleaning up any messes they may make. If you have a large dog these types of communities are usually pet friendly and allow dogs that weight up to 100 pounds.

Apartment communities will first ask you what type of breed you pet is.  If you have an aggressive breed like a Dobermin or German Shepherd you will be flat out of luck.  Make sure you contact the property ahead of time if you are unsure how your dog will be classified.  If you have an aggressive breed try leasing a private apartment home where the landlord may be more flexible when it comes to your pet.

Pet weight will be the other main criteria upon which your pet will be judged.  All apartments will have a maximum weight limit. Don’t worry too much if your pet breaches the limit by a few pounds.  We have had clients you were able to get into their Houston Galleria apartments when their pet breached the limit by a few pounds.  Call ahead and get the weight limits before you start touring.

Houston, Texas has a lot of great areas to call home.  Houston is huge and there are other cities including places like Spring, Tx and Katy, Texas that are included in many population estimates of the city, and are easily accessible by car.  The downtown area has become a very trendy place to live nowadays.  Ever since the construction of the Metro Light Rail and the Super Bowl in 2004, this area has become the place to call home.  The light rail travels from the north side of the downtown area, south towards the Houston medical center.  The downtown area offers many lofts and downtown Houston apartments for rent.  Many of the loft properties will contain floor to ceiling windows and concrete flooring.  The old Post Rice Hotel was converted into a loft apartments for rent.  The only real drawback to this property is the lack of washer and dryers in the residences.  However, hotels do not have those amenities in their residences which explains why they area lacking.

The Midtown area has also picked up a lot of steam as far as population increases area concerned.  There are a plethora of bars and clubs and restaurants that line the area.  Midtown apartment communities have literally been popping up all over the area.  Residents will usually choose from apartments or townhomes.

Of course the Houston Galleria area has and will continue to be one of the most popular places in Houston.  This area sports office space, restaurants, private high rises like 3525 Sage