What do we mean by a neighborhood?
NeighborhoodScout® uses the official government designation for neighborhoods - the census tract.
Census tracts are small, relatively permanent subdivisions of a county that are defined by the U.S. Census Bureau in conjunction with local authorities all across the country to define real neighborhoods that are bounded to contain areas with homogeneous population characteristics (including economic status, lifestyle, and living conditions). Census tracts usually have 4,000 persons, but can range between 1,500 and 8,000 persons. This is the most fine-grained area for which detailed information is made available from the government, to protect the individual privacy of each of us. Because census tracts are based on population, they vary in size depending on the density of settlement. In urban areas, they are small, and in rural areas they can cover an entire small town or even a few small towns in very rural areas.
Since census tracts are subdivisions of a county, we did a spatial overlay of the census tracts onto city and town boundaries using a geographic information system to properly assign each census tract to its appropriate city or town. Then we named each census tract to the local colloquially recognized neighborhood name for that spot (e.g., Boston, MA (Dorchester). If there was not a name available, we named the census tract by the largest street intersection in the census tract (e.g., Worcester, MA (Lincoln St/Plantation St)
Why we don't use Zip Codes as neighborhoods
Zip codes were developed by the Postal Service for the purpose of delivering mail, but were never intended to define coherent neighborhoods. In addition, Zip Codes can have as many as 10 distinctly different census tracts contained within them. When distinct census tracts are blended together in a single Zip Code, the data reflects their average conditions and often gives a false sense of the area. The result is that potentially great matching neighborhoods can be missed, and erroneous matches can also be produced and delivered to you.
Using census tracts makes great matches possible, and helps people find the areas that are best for them and their families. Because we are committed to providing the highest possible quality and finding the neighborhoods that best meet your criteria, we use census tracts. And, as always, we show you the actual street map of the neighborhood so you know exactly where your best matching neighborhood is located.
What is a Condition Alert?
A condition alert is a condition in the neighborhood that triggers an alert. NeighborhoodScout contains condition alerts to highlight conditions that are extreme, whether good or bad. This helps answer crucial questions about the state of the neighborhood being evaluated, such as:
What are the risks of violent crime here?
Is the risk of home break-ins or other property crimes increasing?
Does real estate here hold its value?
Are the trends in local vacancies or unemployment concerning?
...and dozens more.
Information at a glance that you need to know to invest, appraise or finance a property.
Gulfton Southwest median real estate price is $605,185, which is more expensive than 89.1% of the neighborhoods in Texas and 75.0% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.
The average rental price in Gulfton Southwest is currently $1,260, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. Rents here are currently lower in price than 89.2% of Texas neighborhoods.
Gulfton Southwest is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Houston, Texas.
Gulfton Southwest real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) apartment complexes/high-rise apartments and mobile homes. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood are established but not old, having been built between 1970 and 1999. A number of residences were also built between 1940 and 1969.
Gulfton Southwest has a 11.8% vacancy rate, which is well above average compared to other U.S. neighborhoods (higher than 68.6% of American neighborhoods). Most vacant housing here is vacant year round. This could either signal that there is a weak demand for real estate in the neighborhood or that large amount of new housing has been built and not yet occupied. Either way, if you live here, you may find many of the homes or apartments are empty.
Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics
Many things matter about a neighborhood, but the first thing most people notice is the way a neighborhood looks and its particular character. For example, one might notice whether the buildings all date from a certain time period or whether shop signs are in multiple languages. This particular neighborhood in Houston, the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.
Occupations
NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research identifies the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood as having one of the highest concentrations of people employed in manufacturing or as laborers of any neighborhood in America. In fact, despite the loss of manufacturing jobs nationally, this neighborhood has 51.6% of its working residents employed in such fields, which is a higher proportion than 99.2% of American neighborhoods.
Modes of Transportation
Our research shows that more people carpool to work here in the Gulfton Southwest (30.4%) than in 98.9% of the neighborhoods in America.
Also, more people ride the bus in this neighborhood each day to get to work than 98.2% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Finally, if your dream is to be able to ride your bike to work each day, look no further than this unique neighborhood. With 2.9% of residents in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood commuting on a bicycle to and from work daily, this neighborhood has more bicycle commuters than 95.7% of all neighborhoods in the U.S., according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis.
Real Estate
Renter-occupied real estate is dominant in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood. The percentage of rental real estate here, according to exclusive NeighborhoodScout analysis, is 97.4%, which is higher than 98.6% of the neighborhoods in America. If you were to buy and live in the property you bought here, you would be almost alone in doing so.
In addition, the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood is very unique in that it has one of the highest proportions of one, two, or no bedroom real estate of any neighborhood in America. Most neighborhoods have a mixture of home or apartment sizes from small to large, but here the concentration of studios and other small living spaces is at near-record heights. With 88.0% of the real estate here of this small size, this most assuredly is a notable feature that makes this neighborhood unique, along with just a handful of other neighborhoods in the U.S. that share this characteristic.
Furthermore, the real estate in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood really stands out in the way it looks for a unique reason: this neighborhood has a higher proportion of apartment complexes or high-rise apartments than nearly every neighborhood in the country. Most neighborhoods are a mixture of real estate and housing types, but here it is almost entirely dominated by big apartment buildings and complexes. In fact, 82.6% of the real estate here is classified as apartment complexes or high-rise apartments, which is more than is found in 97.1% of American neighborhoods.
Car Ownership
Most American households own a car or other vehicle. Many own two cars or perhaps three. In the United States, it is useful to have an automobile not only for commuting, but also for shopping and getting to other services one needs. But NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that households in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood have a highly unusual car ownership. 35.1% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 97.7% of U.S. neighborhoods.
People
The Gulfton Southwest neighborhood is unique for having just 5.3% of adults here having earned a bachelor's degree. This is a lower rate of college graduates than NeighborhoodScout found in 96.9% of America's neighborhoods.
Diversity
Significantly, 6.4% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak African languages at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 99.2% of the neighborhoods in America.
Migration / Stability
Some neighborhoods have more internal cohesiveness than others. While other neighborhoods feel like a collection of strangers who just happen to live near each other. Sometimes this comes down to not only the personalities of the people in a place, but how long people have been together in that neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's research has revealed some interesting things about the rootedness of people in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood. What is interesting to note, is that the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood has a greater percentage of residents born in another country (54.8%) than are found in 98.5% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
The Neighbors
How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.
The neighbors in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood in Houston are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 89.8% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 35.4% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 86.0% of U.S. neighborhoods.
What we choose to do for a living reflects who we are. Each neighborhood has a different mix of occupations represented, and together these tell you about the neighborhood and help you understand if this neighborhood may fit your lifestyle.
In the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood, 51.6% of the working population is employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 36.9% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations (6.8%), and 4.6% in executive, management, and professional occupations.
Languages
The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood is Spanish, spoken by 69.9% of households. Other important languages spoken here include English and African languages.
Ethnicity / Ancestry
Boston's Beacon Hill blue-blood streets, Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish enclaves, Los Angeles' Persian neighborhoods. Each has its own culture derived primarily from the ancestries and culture of the residents who call these neighborhoods home. Likewise, each neighborhood in America has its own culture – some more unique than others – based on lifestyle, occupations, the types of households – and importantly – on the ethnicities and ancestries of the people who live in the neighborhood. Understanding where people came from, who their grandparents or great-grandparents were, can help you understand how a neighborhood is today.
In the Gulfton Southwest neighborhood in Houston, TX, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Mexican (35.3%). There are also a number of people of Sub-Saharan African ancestry (9.6%), and residents who report Spanish roots (1.7%). In addition, 54.8% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.
Getting to Work
Even if your neighborhood is walkable, you may still have to drive to your place of work. Some neighborhoods are located where many can get to work in just a few minutes, while others are located such that most residents have a long and arduous commute. The greatest number of commuters in Gulfton Southwest neighborhood spend between 30 and 45 minutes commuting one-way to work (50.7% of working residents), which is at or a bit above the average length of a commute across all U.S. neighborhoods.
Here most residents (34.3%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors to get to work (30.4%) and 18.0% of residents also ride the bus for their daily commute. In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.
SCOUT’s patented match algorithm identifies the most similar neighborhoods to a subject location, and quantifies the similarity to the subject location. This allows analysts to identify the most similar neighborhoods in a local market area for appraisals, investments, and research.
The algorithm uses 273 neighborhood conditions, identifies the dominant dimensions underlying the conditions and calculates the similarity. This captures the true culture and character of locations, economic conditions, and trends.
The closer to 100% means the locations are nearly identical. 80% is a very good, but not excellent match, and so forth.
