More Montrose developement

Luxury apartments likely to replace Montrose highrise in prime location

A Montrose Boulevard highrise that formerly housed Scott Gertner's SkyBar could soon be demolished for luxury apartments. Houston-based development company Hanover Co., known for building luxury high-rises across the country, currently has the 3400 Montrose site under contract, according to a report in the Houston Business Journal.

The 10-story, 96,849-square-foot building has been vacant since 2010 when SkyBar and other tenants moved out. Longtime Montrose residents may also remember the location as it housed Cody's, a rooftop jazz bar that occupied the space in the 1980s.

Hanover has recently built upscale mid-rise apartment complexes in Rice Village and on West Gray at Waugh. The company plans to break round in early 2014 on construction of a 29-story luxury apartment tower in the Galleria area at San Felipe and Post Oak Blvd. The tower, dubbed Hanover Post Oak, will sit on 1.2 acres of the 21-acre mixed-use development site of Wulfe & Co.'s BLVD Place, which will include a Whole Foods Market, restaurants, shops, and office space.

The 3400 Montrose property, with an estimated value of $1.9 million, seems ripe to be redeveloped into luxury apartments in the prime location at Hawthorne street. Asbestos removal and demolition of the highrise could add another $1 million before construction could take place. Hanover Co. representatives did not immediately return phone calls about the development.

"I would expect a major component of the project will be luxury apartments," Ray Lawrence, director of economic development with the Montrose District, told HBJ. "It’s an older building, and I understand that it does have asbestos that would have to be abated. It’s really an obsolete building; there’s no way they could remodel."

The 3400 Montrose site is currently under contract to Houston-based developer Hanover Co., known for building luxury high-rise apartments.

building at 3400 Montrose fromer Scott Gertner Skybar

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The 3400 Montrose site is currently under contract to Houston-based developer Hanover Co., known for building luxury high-rise apartments.

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bang for your buck

These are the 6 most affordable ZIP codes for Houston renters

Facebook / City of Bellaire, Texas

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Trying to afford buying a home in Houston is difficult enough with current mortgage rates, and doubly so if you're already paying high rent on an apartment or a house. But there are six Houston ZIP codes where renters can get the most bang for their buck, according to a new study by financial services company CashNetUSA.

To find the most affordable ZIP codes to rent in the U.S., analysts compared median household incomes by ZIP code to the average annual rent costs using the Zillow Observed Rent Index. ZIP codes where the average annual rental costs required the lowest percentage of median household income were considered the "most affordable."

Two Houston-area ZIP codes specifically stood out in CashNetUSA's ranking of the most affordable ZIP codes for renters in America: 77401 in Bellaire (No. 9) and 77094 in the Energy Corridor (No. 12).

According to the study's findings, the average monthly cost of a rental in Bellaire comes out to $2,401.25, and the median annual income of a Bellaire household is $210,577. Analysts then calculated that the annual rent of a home in the Bellaire ZIP code only takes up 13.68 percent of a household's median income, which is the ninth-lowest in the nation.

But as Houstonians know all too well, Bellaire residents aren't exactly struggling to pay their rent, seeing as they live in one of the wealthiest places in America.

Meanwhile in Houston's 77094 ZIP, annual rent costs only represent 13.88 percent of a household's median annual income. The area – which encompasses the Kingsland Estates, Green Trails, Green Trails Oaks, Windsor Park Estates, Windsor Park Lakes, and Barker neighborhoods – has a median household income of over $168,000, and average rent costs add up to $1,944.58, according to the study.

CashNetUSA found the No. 1 most affordable ZIP code for renters nationwide is 66224 in Leawood, Kansas, where annual rent only takes a 10.57 percent cut out of a household's median annual income.

Elsewhere in Texas, San Antonio's 78248 ZIP ranked as the No. 4 most affordable ZIP code for renters in the U.S., and the No. 1 most affordable ZIP code statewide. The North Texas ZIP code 75013 in Allen ranked two spots behind Houston to claim the No. 14 spot nationally.

The most affordable Houston ZIP codes for renters
CashNetUSA further unveiled the five most affordable ZIP codes across major U.S. cities, including in Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.

Following 77094 (which took the No. 1 spot citywide) is 77008 (No. 2), which spans Greater Heights, Houston Heights, Shady Acres, and Lazybrook/Timbergrove. Rent costs in this ZIP code averaged out to $1,856 per month, the report found.

Landing in the No. 3 spot is 77024, which includes four of Houston's historic Memorial Villages, including Hedwig, Bunker Hill, Hunters Creek, and Piney Point. The report said average rent in the area comes out to $1,730 per month, which takes up 16.88 percent of a household's median annual income.

The remaining top two most affordable ZIP codes for Houston renters are located in 77007 (Washington Avenue Coalition/Memorial Park, Rice Military, and Crestwood/Glen Cove) and 77345 in Kingwood, which is about 30 miles north of downtown Houston.