So, I ended up in Houston this past Sunday looking for apartments. Here is the rundown on the properties I checked out:
1) I first tried to see Alta Lofts, but unfortunately was turned away at the door due to recent floor refinishing, and notice that the leasing staff would not be there until next week. Bummer.
2) Lanesborough was the 2nd stop. I liked the complex except for the dinky trailer leasing center which was rather strange. I checked out the small 1 BR A model and really liked the layout. They had a decent special running so that rent was about 730 or so per month.
3) Greenbriar was 3rd. I didn't like the Greenbriar compared to Lanesborough. The complex looked really dull and older, lacked the cool fitness center at Lanesborough, and I wasn't enthralled with their small 1BR floorplan. They were also more expensive than Lanesborough. I nixed this place off of choices after I saw it.
4) Archstone Brompton Courts. This ended up being my choice. Their leasing staff was very nice, as was the exterior of the apartments. This is a huge complex with 796 units. The main things that impressed me were the hourly shuttle service to TMC they have ( they have their own large bus, with no other apartment stops; takes about 10 min to get to the BCM stop), the great prices they have going, and the diverse and quiet people at the community. I will end up paying over $100 less per month than Lanesborough for a bigger floorplan, which is pretty significant.
5) and just for kicks I went to the El Mundo area. Gotta say, I didnt like the area at all. Some of the complexes were plain scary with razor wire on top of their walls. The whole area looked unsafe. It was rather odd, because they have a few nice looking complexes, i.e.- San Melia, San Marin, Parque del Oro, and then some really, really, shady looking complexes next door. I just didnt feel very safe here.
6) Went to Archstone Medical too. Didn't like the location. But it has shuttle service, and metro rail next door. Prices were good, but not as good as Brompton, and not as nice as Bromton either. Facilities were kinda meager.
So in sum, for the price, size and shuttle service, I went with Archstone Brompton out of Lanesborough, Greenbriar, the entire el mundo area, and Archstone Medical.