There is a possibility that we may be relocating to Houston in the Katy area. What is the area like in terms of safety, schools, housing etc.. Comparing it to other suburbs of Houston, how would you rank it and other areas around Katy. Thanks.

I don't live in Katy, so I am somewhat unbiased. I do live on the west side of Houston though so I am familiar with the area, and have several friends that live in Katy as well. Katy is a rapidly growing suburb of Houston. The schools are said to be some of the best in the area with extremely competitive sports (at the HS level). There are a lot of great churches, restaurants, and a huge outlet shopping center. The housing is typical of many area suburbs, and probably compares well with Sugar Land and The Woodlands in terms of price (you can get a decent house in a nice area for mid $100's, or you can by a lavish custom home in a gated community for $500+. I don't know specific crime statistics, but put it this way, you don't hear much on the news about crime in Katy. I think it's relatively safe (at least safer than Houston itself). Anyway, most people that live there love it, and when I visit friends, I enjoy being there. Depending on where you will be working and your budget, you might consider the Memorial Villages (which is about 10 miles east on I-10) if you prefer the city. The schools there are great, and you are a little closer to more entertainment options, sporting venues, premier restaurants etc. I think Katy is a good choice though out of all of the suburbs in Houston, personally I would rank it in the top 3 or 4 (out of about 15 or so areas).
Hope that helps a little. Good Luck, and if you need more specifics let me know and I will ask a few friends.

Fine, as long as you don't need to take I-10 (Katy Freeway) to work. It has the worse traffic of all Houston freeways, and they're just starting a 10-year long rebuild project. Expect long long commutes into town.

The traffic is horrific on 1-10, so do consider this when deciding. The expansion will be nice when it's done, but that will be many years (I think 7-10). As long as you will not be commuting too far east on 1-10, Katy is a good choice. Still with that said, I know several people that do it, and just carpool so they can take the HOV lanes. Glad to help!

JBJ
Thanks for all the great info. We're looking forward to a trip to Houston and touring the Katy area. Will send another post if I have any more questions. Thanks again!!

rkkwan and others, shouldn't he investigate the Westhemier corridor (from Katy, going east on Westheimer, then behind West oaks Mall hop over to Richmond Ave.) to get into town? My family lives in West Houston and Katy and that is how I always go into Houston from Katy and back out again, although I've only done it a few times at rush hour.

Sure, there are other ways, but you're talking about dozens - and I mean dozens - of traffic lights if you take Westheimer or Richmond the whole way.

Or drop down to Alief-Clodine at Highway 6, and then take the Westpark Tollway. [$2.00 total, EZ Tag only.] It connects back to the Southwest Freeway, which unfortunately also has construction before coming to downtown.

So, it depends on where one needs to commute to. Certainly there are alternatives, but just beware that the main artery - the Katy Freeway - is a mess.