Coldwell Banker United, Realtors

What is Katy, Texas?

 Good question.  There is the City of Katy and the Katy postal addresses.  The City of Katy encompasses the original village of Katy and surrounding subdivisions and open farm and ranch land.  It is located about 25 miles west of downtown Houston.  The original village is often referred to as “Old Town Katy”, “Old Katy”, or “Katy Proper”.  Though mostly to the north, the City of Katy straddles I-10.  The current population is approximately 14,000.  Also near the center of Old Katy is the point where Harris, Waller and Fort Bend counties meet.

 The Katy Independent School District (KISD) services a population of over 200,000 providing instruction to more than 50,000 students and is one of the fastest growing districts in the state.  In addition to top flight teaching facilities and a credit cooperation with Houston Community College, the students are offered an expansive array of extracurricular activities.  It is annually recognized as one of the top school districts in the state.  Most of the postal addresses of Katy are zoned to KISD.  However, there are some Katy postal addresses that are zoned to Cy-Fair School District to the north.  Also some of the westernmost Houston addresses are included in KISD.  Recently a small portion of Fulshear mailing addresses, to the southwest of Katy, have been included as well.

 Historically, Katy was a farm and ranch village.  Initial settling occurred in the late 1800’s.  Many of the original family names are commemorated in street and school names.  In addition to cattle, the main crops were rice and cotton.  Several rice silos remain on the main street adjacent to the railroad tracks.  Katy celebrates this heritage each October with the Rice Harvest Festival.  Katy incorporated as a city in the mid 1940’s.  Many of the old cottages in the original downtown are now small shops, offices and antique stores.  Some of the historic homes have been moved to a common site in one of the parks. 

 Real growth began during the 1970’s when subdivisions were developed just north and south of I-10, east of the City of Katy along Fry Road and Mason Road.  Some of the subdivision names from the 70’s and 80’s are; Nottingham Country, Cimarron, West Memorial, Memorial Parkway south of I-10 and Williamsburg Settlement, Sundown, Westgreen, Westlake north of I-10 and many others.  Also at this time Katyland, in the city limits of Katy, was being built.  Commercial development followed, principally along Mason Road.  Later, several Green Trails and Kelliwood subdivisions were built filling in from Barker Cypress to and along Fry Road.  Pin Oak Village, located just south of the Katy city limits was originally developed as a custom home subdivision catering to managers of business located in the “Energy Corridor” just east of Katy.  After a lull during the oil business down turn of the 1980’s, building renewed with less custom type homes. 

 Earlier in Katy’s history five energy company friends purchased a large tract for a leisure ranch.  They named it Cinco Ranch.  It was purchased in the early 1990’s for the development of a 5000 acre master planned community.  Within Cinco Ranch are several separate enclaves of homes.  Each of these enclaves has homes of similar size produced by 2-4 builders.  Forethought was given to providing outstanding amenities and setting aside space for schools, churches and commercial development.  The amenities include; lakes, a beach club, golf course, pools, a water park, tennis courts and ample trails for walking, jogging and biking.  Later, another 2400 acres were acquired west of the Grand Parkway (Highway 99).   This area is still under development with home prices ranging from $170,000 to in excess of one million.  It also includes a seniors (55+) only community with its own amenities. 

 While Cinco Ranch was growing two other large subdivisions adjacent to Cinco Ranch were developed.  Grand Lakes and Seven Meadows have been completed, as were Falcon Point and Falcon Ranch.  Both have quality subdivision amenities.  Other small subdivisions have occupied tracts around these large subdivisions.  To the north several areas were developed including Williamsburg Parish, Bridgewater and Lakecrest.  New construction also continues north of I-10.

  Steady growth continues with new communities such as; Wood Creek Reserve, Firethorne, Grayson Lakes, Pine Mill Ranch, and Cross Creek Ranch, among others.  Commercial sites are developing with businesses needed by a vibrant growing community.  As an example, Phase one of La Centerra was recently opened.  It features office spaces, upscale retail shops, and dining from Starbucks to cafes, restaurants and pubs.  La Centerra also boasts a Saturday Farmers Market and frequent evening concerts.

 If you are planning to move to the Katy area and plan to buy a house, then there are a few other considerations that pertain to homes in Katy.

 MUD - Except for homes within the city limits of Houston and Katy, water services are provided by Municipal Utility Districts.  In addition to usage charges, residents are charged a MUD tax to pay off the bonds that were issued to provide infrastructure for the services.  These taxes gradually decline as more homes are included and the balances are reduced.

 ETJ – The vast majority of homes in Katy lie in unincorporated portions of the three counties.  These unincorporated areas, therefore, lie in the Extra Territorial Jurisdiction of the various cities (mostly Houston), but must provide their own services, like fire and emergency services.  The cities, at their discretion, can annex these areas.  It is interesting to note that Houston has annexed narrow corridors along the major highways where commercial development (read high tax base) exists, but not the adjacent residential areas (read need to provide services).  There is also a wonderful David and Goliath story in this regard.  It’s said that when the plans for the development of the large Katy Mills Mall were ongoing, the plot had a small portion of Houston’s ETJ included with a much larger portion of that of Katy.  Katy insisted that Houston allow Katy to annex and incorporate all for the land into Katy, including Houston’s.  Katy reportedly told Houston that if they did not do so, the design would place all the parking lots in the Houston area (low tax value), while the Mall itself would be in the Katy portion.  Houston relented for a small cash payout.

 Basements – They don’t exist.  All homes are either pier and beam construction or, most commonly, post-tension slab on grade.  The home designs often compensate for this lost space by including a game room, normally on the second floor.  Recently we have seen a trend for also adding a theater or media room, some even with a tiered floor for seating.

 Location of utilities – With no basement, there still must be a location for the furnace, AC and water heater.  It is rare to find them any where else other than the attic.  They are accessed by fold down ceiling ladders and/or doors off the upstairs rooms.  Most furnaces and hot water heaters are gas fired.  Recently, we have seen a few builders who are offering the option of a tank less instant hot water system.

 Lot sizes – One would think that with all the wide open space in Texas, home lot sizes would be large.  In reality they are remarkably small.  A lot of over ¼ acre is considered large.  One can find homes on an acre or more, but rarely in a Katy subdivision.  They are normally on lots which predate a developer’s acquisition of a large tract for a subdivision.  They also ordinarily have their own well and septic system.  When developers plan a subdivision they typically divide it into sections with similar sized lots in a manner to maximize the total number of homes they can build.  But with the larger lot size, they normally build a larger home, thus consuming much of the lot.  The biggest lots are usually those at the end of a cul de sac street and command a lot cost premium when building.

 Table funding – Upon closing on a resale or new home the buyer is given possession of the home when the transaction is funded.  The title company will fax/email select documents to the mortgage company for review.  When the mortgage company approves, they release the funds to the title company for disbursement to the appropriate parties.  Therefore, funding and possession can occur while the buyer is still at the closing table or very shortly thereafter.

 In Katy you will find a small town atmosphere, great schools, affordable homes, attractive amenities and proximity to a big city.  In sum…..You’ll love Katy!