On the market

A stone's throw from River Oaks, this $800,000 townhouse delivers kitchen anddeck wows

With high ceilings and ample windows, the living room is bright and cheery,offering a sophisticated entertaining area.
The gated townhouse complex is centrally located, a stone's throw from RiverOaks shopping center.
This ground floor bedroom was converted to a media room with built-in wet bar.It opens to a nice-sized deck and garden.
The deck is shaded by massive oaks and provides ample space for outdoor living.
The first floor guest bedroom is a spacious, sunny room that opens to the patio.
The dining room leads down two steps to the living area.
The breakfast room, opening from the living room leads to the good-sizedkitchen, a chef's dream.
The third-floor loft overlooks the dining area and is large enough for a babygrand piano and office desk.
The master suite occupies the entire third floor where a coffee bar, walk-inclosets and good-sized bath provide all that you need.
The complex is just off of San Felipe and this corner unit enjoys its share ofopen space.

Editor's Note: Houston is loaded with must-have houses for sale in all shapes, sizes and price ranges. In this continuing series, CultureMap Editor-at-Large Shelby Hodge snoops through some of our faves and gives you the lowdown on what's hot on the market.

1901 Spann St.

Central to downtown, a stone's throw from the shopping/dining mecca of West Gray and easy access to streets leading west, this townhouse enjoys the trinity of real estate success — location, location, location. It stands on the corner of a quiet, gated complex at San Felipe and Spann, between Shepherd and Kirby.

For confirmed inner-Loopers looking for swell digs in a nice area with a price tag just under $800,000, this three-story, well-built dwelling could be the ticket.

Walk through: We don't love the tiny entry that stands in contrast to the imposing facade, but that is our only design beef with the otherwise well-planned structure. (We suggest mirroring the walls for a more open feel.)

On the ground floor, the current owners have cleverly converted one of the two bedrooms, each with full bath and walk-in closet, into an entertainment room. They added a wet bar with granite counter tops and mounted the large HDTV on the far wall thereby converting sleeping quarters into a cozy and inviting play room.

Bonuses in this space are high glass doors that open to a surprisingly spacious deck and garden area (rare in complexes of this sort), where two massive oak trees provide shade for the patio furniture and the gas grill. Perfect for outdoor entertaining or just kicking back for after-work cocktails.

The stairway leads to the open plan second floor where the dining area flows (down two steps) into a spacious living room with fireplace. On the far side, the living room opens to a breakfast area and beautifully paneled kitchen. Would-be chefs will love the space, the center island gas range and the overhead pot rack.

A laundry room and guest bath complete the plan that includes an elevator closet that extends from street level to the third floor. The addition of the vertical transport is the new owner's responsibility.

The master suite occupies the entire third floor with its demilune loft that overlooks the dining area below. The actual bedroom is large enough for a serious sitting area and includes a gas fireplace as well as banks of windows on two sides. A large, contemporary bath, a coffee bar and good-sized walk-in closets complete the third floor.

Love: The clean lines, the quality construction and rich finishes that create an appealing esthetic. Very nicely done. Plantation shutters on most windows are another rich touch.

Quiet, please: The townhouse backs up to San Felipe and you'll have to deal with a low level of traffic noise particularly during rush hour. However, if you are occupied in the house, you don't necessarily notice cars whizzing by. On the patio, the intermittent traffic din is a factor.

Square footage: 3,619

Asking price: $799,999

Listing agent: Beth Wolff, Beth Wolff Realtors

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rent report

New report reveals how many Texans are paying too much for rent

Photo by Francesca Tosolini on Unsplash

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Millions of Texas renters, both current residents and new arrivals, suffer from wallet whiplash.

A new report from the Texas Affiliation of Affordable Housing Providers shows 45 percent of the state’s renters spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing. Renters occupy more than 4.2 million Texas households, representing nearly half of the state’s residents.

Worse yet, 81 percent of extremely low-income households in Texas spend more than 50 percent of their income on housing, the report says. For that income group, Texas has a shortage of 864,000 affordable homes.

Thirty percent is the standard financial benchmark for spending too much income on rent, while 50 percent puts a renter in the “severely cost-burdened” bucket.

“To sustain growth and secure future prosperity, Texas will need more than 320,000 additional affordable homes [rented and owned] to address workforce housing affordability and meet the demands of a growing population,” says the report.

“Today, the state is creating thousands of new jobs,” the report adds, “but housing supply has not kept pace with demand, driving up housing costs and constraining continued economic growth.”

Not surprisingly, people who live in or move to three of Texas’ biggest metro areas get hit with the state’s highest apartment rental rates. Here’s Apartments.com’s list of the 10 most expensive places for renters in Texas, based on apartments whose average size ranges from 713 square feet in Austin to 771 square feet in Plano:

1. Frisco — $1,477 per month
2. Plano — $1,461 per month
3. Austin — $1,417 per month
4. Dallas — $1,413 per month
5. McKinney — $1,363 per month
6. Grand Prairie — $1,327 per month
7. Irving — $1,318 per month
8. Garland — $1,237 per month
9. Fort Worth — $1,217 per month
10. Houston — $1,183 per month

San Antonio boasts some of the lowest average rent among Texas’ 10 most affordable markets: $1,075 per month. Mesquite, a Dallas-Fort Worth suburb, also fits into that category, with average monthly rent of $1,052.

Earlier this month, Gov. Greg Abbott announced more than $114 million in grants to help develop or rehabilitate properties, providing more than 4,400 affordable rental units.

“As our state grows, we must ensure that Texans have access to the affordable housing they need to thrive,” Abbott says.

rent prices report apartments