San Francisco was AWESOME but I love being back In Houston, Texas

          I was very fortunate enough to travel to San Francisco California for a couple of days this past week and it was incredible. I was able to visit with some of my very best friends in the world and I got to meet others that were just simply great. A friend from LA was even able to come up to celebrate the birthday of one of our great friends.

         San Francisco was simply beautiful and amazing. From the statues of the French Legion of Honor in the Presidio to the somber remembrance of the Holocaust.  

                                                 Presidio, San Francisco, California area (in upper left side)

It seems that the mountains, bay, and natural parks there are some of the best in the world and the people are very talented as well.  I was also able to tour various parts of the city. I  toured Haight-Ashbury, the Mission, the Castro as well as the Golden Gate park areas. I even had a chance to cross the Golden Gate bridge and eat at a great restaurant in Sonoma called the Girl and the Fig.

 The Girl and the Fig, 110 W Spain St, Sonoma, CA 95476, was great and the food and service we great as well. Although it was quite crowded for 1:30 pm on a Monday, it was still a pleasant experience and I would love to visit again. Their wines were very tasty from the Sonoma and Napa regions of California and their French inspired food was très magnifique. Their service was good and fast and their servers were polite and very accommodating. Brava! to them.

Beach Chalet, 1000 Great Hwy, San Francisco, CA 94121, was a great looking place but the food left something to be desired. Their drinks are good and refreshing and their service was on point. 

(Outside of The Girl and the Fig Resurant at night)

I met and saw a great bunch of people from my past college days, present friends and future friends.

             I also spent some time talking to my friends about real estate in the Bay Area. I was flabbergasted to say the least. In the city of San Francisco itself, the median value of homes has skyrocketed, from $670,000 at the beginning of 2012 to $1.12 million in May, a gain of more than 67%, according to Zillow.com, which puts the gain in the past year alone at 11% (though that’s down from a year-over-year estimate of 14% in February). Prices are only expected to increase about 2.6% over the next year. This was incredible to me because Houston is definitely not this type of market. 

            I really loved my chance to get away and see a part of the world that I really did not know. And although I liked everything about San Francisco, I really loved coming back home to Texas. Houston is my home and I missed it. Until next time San Francisco. 

Please note that although I was away, I continued to work remotely.  Buy, Sell, Lease or Invest, I want to be your Realtor. 

#liveinhoustonproperties  #liveinhoustonrentals  #realestate  #houston  #texasrealestate  #houstonproperties  

Ready, Set, Go! Let's go to the Museum #liveinhoustonproperties

           Yesterday I had the honor of hearing Ms. Janette Sadik-Khan speak at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston about how she, and the Bloomberg Administration in NYC, changed the streets of NYC forever. She talked about the arduous process that they had to go through from getting city council on their side to getting the people to see the potential pleasure it would be to have more green spaces and a better flow of traffic in The City. She talked about how influential her team was at getting the, "Crossroads of World", Time Square, closed to cars. She also discussed how she and her team actually listened to the people of NYC and discovered that they needed and wanted more bike lanes. So she decided to research other cities around the world and in the US to see some ideas that they had in order to implement said ideas. 

             Well, the lecture went great and I really appreciate the, #KIforum and #streetfight, Kinder Institute, Janette Sadik-Khan and her right hand man Seth Solomonow for coming to Houston and talking to no only us, the people interested in transportation and mobility, but also our city leaders. Sadik-Khan was also promoting her book called "#StreetFight and I look forward to listening it to on Audible while driving in Houston. 

The lecture took place at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The MFAH located at 1001 Bissonnet St, Houston, TX 77005, is one of the worlds greatest fine arts museums. I am probably a little bit bias though when i say this... 

The museum and its staff are ALWAYS hard at work bringing us, great art from around the world, films, interactive pieces and even dance parties from time to time. The MFAH art collections and exhibitions are presented primarily in the Museum’s two main gallery buildings: the Audrey Jones Beck Building and the Caroline Wiess Law Building. Connected by the underground Wilson Tunnel, these two locations also house the café, shop, library, Kinder Foundation Education Center, and Brown Auditorium Theater. 

This museum is really just one of many awesome museums that are located in Houston and all in primarily one area in town. The Museum District, Houston. Check them all out and see what I am talkin' bout, http://houmuse.com/.

This part of town is truly remarkable and it's a great place to live. With its proximity to the Medical Center, Rice University, the Houston Zoo, and Hermann Park, this area is a Urbanite's dream. The homes in this part of town are more then just fabulous though, they are spectacular! This part of town is home to a lot of very sophisticated more established families. The Rice/museum District subdivision is surrounded with restaurants, education opportunities, entertainment venues, shopping and more.The houses in this area start at about 500 K and can go up from there into the multi-millions. They can range from very traditional to very modern in architecture. If you are interested in this part of town, please let me know. I would  love to your Realtor. 

 

This is truly an awesome part or town and close to EVERYTHING. Please let me know if you have any questions. Buy, Sell, Lease or Invest, I want to be your Realtor. 

Call, Text, Email, Facebook or Snapchat, I am at your service. 

#liveinhoustonproperties  #liveinhoustonrentals  #realestate  #houston  #texasrealestate  #houstonproperties  

Houston and its ever changing landscape, Political and Physical

So I decided to go for a long walk the other day in one of Houston's amazing park areas, Eleanor Tinsley Park and Buffalo Bayou Park. "Eleanor Tinsley Park is a section of Buffalo Bayou Park in Houston, Texas. It was designated on April 20, 1998 in honor of Eleanor Tinsley, who served as a member of the Houston City Council At-Large for 16 years. The park houses the Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark, the Shady Grove Victim Memorial, a Henry Moore sculpture entitled "Large Spindle Piece", the Houston Police Officers' Memorial, Glenwood Cemetery, the San Felipe playground, jogging trails, and a sand pit which can be used for volleyball. This is all inside a bigger section called, Buffalo Bayou Park. Buffalo Bayou Park offers 160 acres of beautiful scenery and skyline views, artwork, a nature play area, the “go-to” dog park in the city, hike and bike trails, and gathering places for visitors to enjoy outdoor activities as well as live, artistic performances. Stretching from Shepherd Drive to Sabine Street between Allen Parkway and Memorial Drive, it is fulfilling its potential as one of the country’s great urban parks. This park recently went through heavy flooding though in the last couple of months after being renovated and completely "modernized". This park was designed this way in order to relieve other bayous in Houston and make way for the water in our system to make its way to the sea. 

 This area is home to affluent Houstonians with homes in the price range from the hundreds of thousands to the millions. In the immediate surrounding areas you will find River Oaks, The Houston Heights, Montrose and Washington Corridor. These are all great areas with home values that continue to rise year after year. If you would like to check out the real estate in these areas for a new home or investment property, please call me. I want to be your Realtor. 

The people in this city are also very active in sports, arts and especially politics. During my travels around the city, I usually have the honor of meeting different groups of people that represent the many streams of politics. From rightest right to leftest left, I want to meet them all. That is part of what makes Houston, Houston. We might not all see the same way politically but we all seem to love this city and our way of life in Texas. 

 I was able to make a fundraiser at an  awesome venue with valet parking called, 

Rosemont Social Club. Rosemont Social Club located at 910 Westheimer Rd, Houston, TX 77006,

A lounge in the heart of Montrose - Houston serving cocktails and lite bites with an indoor/patio bar. It was a good time and a great atmosphere. I met a couple of very nice people and I had to a chance to catch up with old friends and new ones. 

Houston really has something for everyone and it is impossible not to meet great people. So if you are looking to move closer to the action or if you are ready to slow down and stop and smell the bluebonnets, I can help you find the perfect spot. 

If you are ready to Buy, Sell, Lease or Invest, I want to be your Realtor. 

Call, Text, 713-518-7822

Email at  ordaz.jorge@hotmail.com

Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/jorge.ordaz

or Snapchat @houstonproud me today. 

#liveinhoustonproperties  #liveinhoustonrentals  #realestate  #houston  #texasrealestate  #houstonproperties  

Exploring Houston, Part 3 - Touring Midtown Central on Cinco De Mayo Houston Style

So yesterday was a great day to be in Houston and on Cinco de Mayo. Cinco de Mayo is not really a big holiday in Mexico but Texans really sure do like to celebrate it. BTW, Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexican Independence Day..

So my friend, Laura, aka San Antonio, decided that she wanted to shake things up a bit and go hang in Midtown for drinks and sushi instead of Mexican food and margaritas...as is customary on this day...We ended up having a good time. 

We ended up at a great new restaurant called Tarakaan. Tarakaan, at 2301 Main St, Houston, TX 77002. Tarakaan Sushi Bar is perfectly situated in the heart of Midtown, Houston. As you have read in my other posts, Midtown, Houston is one of the hot spots in our city. It is home to many young professionals with many restaurants, bar and clubs right down the street. It is also close to Main street which is where the rail runs and it can take you to many places around the city. The food at Tarakaan was very good and it tasted super fresh and the drinks were good as well. The ambiance was very nice and the decoration was stunning. 

Now the neighborhood where Tarakaan is located has many homes to rent and for sale including town homes, condos, single family and apartments to rent as well. It is a great part of town and it is easily accessible. It is a straight shop to downtown as well. It really is a great place to hang out and live, play and work. 

Let me know if you are buying, selling, leasing or Investing in Houston, I want to be your Realtor. 

#liveinhoustonproperties  #liveinhoustonrentals  #realestate  #houston  #texasrealestate  #houstonproperties  

Great Houston Heights, Ravens Tower and White Oak, oh My

Yesterday was the first annual #BigGiveHouston Charity event in the entire city of Houston and the party for the event was held at Ravens Tower.

"Big Give Houston is a 24-hour crowdfunding event designed to empower every person to  give back to their local communities by supporting the organizations they trust to tackle today’s most critical issues.

On the first Tuesday in May (May 3, 2016) we help strengthen the foundation of our local communities, by providing critical funding for and celebrating the work of our community partners. We invite every person and every nonprofit to join us to improve the long-term outlook of our communities and ultimately, our country.

Please join us as we celebrate our local communities and support those organizations who work tirelessly and selflessly to keep our communities vital and strong." 

This just goes on to prove my point that Houston really cares about Houston and Houstonians. We are a people that takes care of each other in many ways but yesterday we remembered are non-profits. They are in some way the life blood of our community. I see it as in the way when city or state government funds fall short, the nonprofits steps in to fill in the blanks and voids and our lives. 

I want to really thank the organizer, Megan and her volunteers, Sarah Peacock, @somecallmewoo, for putting this together and helping us build a better Houston. In spite of Houston and our neighbors that going through some very tough times, it is nice to see that many people continue to shine a light in the respect of charity and good southern values. 

Ravens Tower located at 310 North St, Houston, TX 77009, is an awesome bar, music venue and patio. With plenty of parking and good drinks, it is a great place to sit and relax in the heart of the city.  The environment is awesome, the people are cool and the views from there are spectacular. It sits in the Northside Village neighborhood, it is truly an oasis in a go-go city. As you can also see, home prices have continued to steady rise since 2009 to the present. This area is very coveted and the surrounding stores, restaurants and new venues only prove this even more. 

It was my pleasure to be there. The people were great and so was the event. 

I continue to love Houston our people, new and established. Let me know how I can help you find the place of your dreams. Remember, Buy, Sell , Lease of Invest, I want to be your Realtor. 

#liveinhoustonproperties  #liveinhoustonrentals  #realestate  #houston  #texasrealestate  #houstonproperties 

My Weekend Trip to the Great NW, Houston that is....

This weekend was great for me in Houston. I was able to attend the first annual brunch for the Latin Wave at Under The Volcano. Under the Volcano,  2349 Bissonnet St, Houston, TX 77005 Is a great bar located in The Village  area of Houston right off of the SW freeway. They have good food and great frozen drinks but it more bar then restaurant, um.. more like lite bites then heavy meal. It has a great environment for happy hour drinks after work during the week and also a great atmosphere during the weekend and awesome waitstaff the whole week through. 

I was able to be there for The Latin Wave's first annul brunch. The Latin Wave is the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston's Latin Film Festival, now in its 11th year. They bring directors, actors, producers and other film people to have a Q & A session usually after he screening of the movies. They are all independent movies, which usually also brings distribution companies and their representatives to our great city.  The movies come from all over Latin America, Spanish speaking and Brazil. 

Soon after this I had the pleasure of getting my client's into their new home in Sugar Land. After the floods that took place recently in Houston, many people are still going through some tough times and my heart goes out to all of them. I am glad that I could make it at least a little more bearable for my friends and clients.

 On Sunday I had the opportunity to travel to another part of Houston for my best friend's birthday party, NW Houston to be exact. NW Houston, is a great place for families or young professionals that work on that side of town. With great older homes and brand new construction alike, NW Houston has lots to offer. You can literally work, live and play in NW Houston without ever having to come into the city. 

Just so that you have an idea of the area, the Mandolin Village Neighborhood is just an example of just what NW Houston has to offer. 

 So in conclusion this weekend was good. I learned a little bit more about Houston's film culture and met some great people. I ran into other friends and I helped out my friends and clients after the flood. I love Houston and I really like to help people via my real estate knowledge. So Buy, Sell, Lease or Invest, I want to be your Realtor.

#liveinhoustonproperties  #liveinhoustonrentals  #realestate  #houston  #texasrealestate  #houstonproperties