Houston, TX real estate: buy or sell with a local AXEN agent
Houston is the largest US city with no zoning. Land use is controlled by private deed restrictions the city helps enforce, plus lot-size rules neighbours vote in themselves. The other Houston-only fact is height: the city makes you build about two feet above the 500-year flood line, which is stricter than the federal rule.
Houston neighborhoods buyers ask about
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Buying a home in Houston: what to know
The rules that apply everywhere in Texas are on the Texas page. These are the Houston details that trip people up.
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No zoning. Deed restrictions do the job instead. The City of Houston is not zoned and city codes do not control land use. What controls it is the recorded deed restrictions on your subdivision. The city's legal department will enforce them and runs a deed restriction hotline. Read the restrictions before you write an offer.
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Neighbours can lock in lot size and setbacks. A block or area can apply for a special minimum lot size or minimum building line, based on what most of the properties already meet. If your block has one, a builder cannot split the lot under you, and you cannot split yours.
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The city builds higher than the federal rule requires. New homes in the high flood risk area have to sit at least two feet above the 500-year flood elevation, and three feet if the building is in the floodway or is a critical facility. Ask for the elevation certificate.
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The reservoirs can flood homes that are not on the map. During Harvey, rising water inside the Addicks and Barker reservoirs flooded streets and homes upstream, the first time in the dams' history. The flood pool reaches past the land the federal government owns. If the address is in either watershed, pull the county flood education map and ask what the seller knows.
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The suburbs run on utility districts, and the county has its own rulebook. Outside the city, Harris County has no zoning either. The county engineer handles platting and floodplain permits, and a permit class applies where the ground sits below the 100-year flood elevation. Most subdivisions out there are inside a municipal utility district.
Selling a home in Houston
Have the flood paperwork ready.
Buyers here ask for the elevation certificate, any floodplain development permit and permits for post-storm repairs. The city's floodplain management office keeps those records.
Name your utility district and show its numbers.
If the home is in a municipal utility district, the buyer will want the district's current tax rate and its bonded debt. Get the district's exact legal name from the state water districts database, then request the figures.
Document foundation and drainage work.
Houston sits on soft clay over an aquifer that has compacted from groundwater pumping, and most of that subsidence cannot be undone. Keep the engineer's letter, the transferable warranty and the receipts for any pier, slab or drainage repair.
Houston real estate questions
If Houston has no zoning, what stops a business from opening next door?
Private deed restrictions do. The city does not regulate land use, but state law and the council let the legal department enforce recorded restrictions for neighbourhoods. If your subdivision has no restrictions, there is far less protection.
Who is on my Harris County tax bill?
Four rates hit most properties: the county, the flood control district, the hospital district and the port authority. Add a school district. Add the City of Houston only if you are inside the city, and add a utility district if you are in one.
How much flood risk should I dig into here?
A lot. The flood control district says everyone in Harris County lives in a flood zone. Start with the county flood education mapping tool and the floodplain reference marks, then get the elevation certificate. Remember the city's own rule is two feet above the 500-year line.
The home is in Cypress or Spring with a Houston address. Is it in the city?
Probably not. Those are unincorporated Harris County. You pay no City of Houston tax, you get county services instead of city services, and permits come from the county engineer. Land use out there is controlled by platting and floodplain rules, not zoning.
Why do so many Houston homes have foundation work?
Because the region sits on soft clay over an aquifer that has compacted from decades of groundwater pumping. Movement is common and repairs are routine. What matters is the paperwork: the engineer's letter, the transferable warranty and the receipts.
Buying or selling in Houston? Talk to a local agent.
An AXEN agent who works in Houston answers your questions for free. No cost to talk. No pressure to sign anything.