Real estate prices in Texas crazy cheap?

[sanantone]

You need to enter the first condo with a biohazard suit. The second condo is kind of cute. The third condo is totally trashed.

You would be 100% correct—there is mold in that condo. And you would also be 100% correct that there is mold in every house and in every breath of air you take.

Get any organic material wet, come back in a few days to a week and there will be mold. 

People are more afraid of mold than the Ebola virus.

Excessive mold that's not in the shower requires professional services. We also have to consider that many properties were flooded back in 2017, and some people couldn't afford to fix the water damage. There was also a lot of water damage in Houston back in 2021 when our state let us freeze to death.

There is no established EPA standard for what constitutes a dangerous level of mold.
https://www.epa.gov/mold/mold-testing-or-sampling

However, some people are highly allergic to mold, and even minor water damage, such as a pipe leak or burst, can cause water to wick up the drywall over a large area.

The only way to properly address this is to remove all affected drywall, typically up to 4 feet high, treat the area with mold remover, and encapsulate it with specialized paint. In many cases, local regulations prohibit homeowners from undertaking such extensive work themselves, meaning they must hire a contractor, which can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

When mold is severe, you can often smell it as soon as you enter the house.

This kind of property is typically suited for experienced house flippers.

For homebuyers, it is critical to hire a property inspector during the closing process. A thorough inspection can identify issues with the property, and buyers can often negotiate a discount on the purchase price based on the inspector's findings.

Texas and other states have regulations on mold. Depending on how big the problem is or whether you're in a multi-family property with more than 10 units, mold remediation requires a license.

[LevelUP]

Texas and other states have regulations on mold. Depending on how big the problem is or whether you're in a multi-family property with more than 10 units, mold remediation requires a license.

If the mold covers an area larger than an 8 x 4-foot sheet of drywall, you are typically required to hire a licensed mold remediation professional.

Unfortunately, the mold remediation industry is rife with scammers who prey on people's fear and lack of knowledge about mold.

I know a guy who did mold remediation for a large company in CA. He said a lot of what they did was BS and was overpriced.

[sanantone]

Texas and other states have regulations on mold. Depending on how big the problem is or whether you're in a multi-family property with more than 10 units, mold remediation requires a license.

If the mold covers an area larger than an 8 x 4-foot sheet of drywall, you are typically required to hire a licensed mold remediation professional.

Unfortunately, the mold remediation industry is rife with scammers who prey on people's fear and lack of knowledge about mold.

I know a guy who did mold remediation for a large company in CA. He said a lot of what they did was BS and was overpriced.

That's when you look at reviews. I like to look at the lowest ratings to see if there's a pattern of the same bad behavior. But...if you don't want to risk being overcharged or receiving subpar remediation, you can avoid buying properties with excessive mold. 

The OP did ask for anything he might be missing. 

1. A lot of people move to Texas for the jobs and what they think is cheap housing until they live here for a while and experience our lower wages and higher property taxes. The state is tolerable, though. We're not New Mexico, Louisiana, West Virginia, or Mississippi. 

2. We're the worst state for natural disasters, which is why our home insurance rates are high, and some insurers are pulling out of the state altogether. California and Florida have the same problem. 

3. Among the big Texas cities, Houston is at greatest risk for catastrophic natural disasters because it's on the coast where hurricanes hit.

4. There's no income tax, but we kind of make up for it with higher than average property and sales taxes. 

5. Houston and Austin traffic is horrendous. Public transportation in the state is inadequate. 

6. Texas' power grid is at risk of total collapse, and our government has done little to fix it. 

7. We don't have enough water for all the people who are moving here. 

8. Some people like high humidity, but most people don't. Houston's weather is disgusting, and it's near a bunch of stinky oil refineries. 

9. Houston is not exactly known for southern hospitality, and people will run you off the road. 

10. A lot of people say that Houston has great food. I disagree, but I accept that I'm in the minority. 

11. Houston is very diverse in every way. I think that's great, some people don't. 

12. Houston Independent School District was performing so poorly, it was taken over by the state. 

13. The other parts of Texas also have unpleasant weather. Austin and San Antonio have hot summers with high humidity, but not as high as Houston. Winters are mild. Dallas has lower humidity, but temperatures easily soar above 105 degrees Fahrenheit.  Dallas also gets cold in the winter with occasional snow, so it gets the worst of both worlds. Dallas has tornadoes; Austin and San Antonio have droughts, wildfires, and floods; and Houston has hurricanes. 

14. Houses in Houston are cheaper than Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington-Plano and Austin, but wages are also lower unless you work in oil and gas. San Antonio has cheaper houses among the four largest metro areas in Texas, but wages are comparatively very low. Other than the defense and healthcare industries, San Antonio is highly dependent upon low-paying industries. The poverty rate in San Antonio is 17%, which is high for the U.S. I had to leave San Antonio because I got tired of being poor. ?

15. The Rio Grande Valley has the cheapest houses, but it's also the poorest region of Texas. McAllen, Brownsville, Harlingen, and Edinburg all have poverty rates above 20%. There are not many high-paying jobs there. 

16. Our state is not equipped to handle wintry precipitation. During the snow storm of 2021, Arkansas right next door to us had its streets cleared, but Texas right across the state line didn't. Texas has far more money than Arkansas. Our state government just doesn't care. 

17. Houston was hit by a weak hurricane in July. Over 2 million people lost power. Hundreds of thousands of people didn't have power for a week. Any city in the U.S. can have power outrages, but Texas gets power outages for minor events. Between 2019 and 2023, Texas had the most power outages in the country.

18. While Houston is not Memphis, New Orleans, Baltimore, or Jackson, MS, it's not exactly a low-crime city. It also has a high STD rate.

[Jonathan Whatley]

I think we all want the OP and DegreeForumers to succeed. Forewarned is forearmed (and you've got to be forearmed with information in the US real estate market, and perhaps forearmed in Texas generally). Conversely, sometimes a bargain is good and sometimes a risk is worth taking.

[David1477]

Texas and other states have regulations on mold. Depending on how big the problem is or whether you're in a multi-family property with more than 10 units, mold remediation requires a license.

If the mold covers an area larger than an 8 x 4-foot sheet of drywall, you are typically required to hire a licensed mold remediation professional.

Unfortunately, the mold remediation industry is rife with scammers who prey on people's fear and lack of knowledge about mold.

I know a guy who did mold remediation for a large company in CA. He said a lot of what they did was BS and was overpriced.

That's when you look at reviews. I like to look at the lowest ratings to see if there's a pattern of the same bad behavior. But...if you don't want to risk being overcharged or receiving subpar remediation, you can avoid buying properties with excessive mold. 

The OP did ask for anything he might be missing. 

1. A lot of people move to Texas for the jobs and what they think is cheap housing until they live here for a while and experience our lower wages and higher property taxes. The state is tolerable, though. We're not New Mexico, Louisiana, West Virginia, or Mississippi. 

2. We're the worst state for natural disasters, which is why our home insurance rates are high, and some insurers are pulling out of the state altogether. California and Florida have the same problem. 

3. Among the big Texas cities, Houston is at greatest risk for catastrophic natural disasters because it's on the coast where hurricanes hit.

4. There's no income tax, but we kind of make up for it with higher than average property and sales taxes. 

5. Houston and Austin traffic is horrendous. Public transportation in the state is inadequate. 

6. Texas' power grid is at risk of total collapse, and our government has done little to fix it. 

7. We don't have enough water for all the people who are moving here. 

8. Some people like high humidity, but most people don't. Houston's weather is disgusting, and it's near a bunch of stinky oil refineries. 

9. Houston is not exactly known for southern hospitality, and people will run you off the road. 

10. A lot of people say that Houston has great food. I disagree, but I accept that I'm in the minority. 

11. Houston is very diverse in every way. I think that's great, some people don't. 

12. Houston Independent School District was performing so poorly, it was taken over by the state. 

13. The other parts of Texas also have unpleasant weather. Austin and San Antonio have hot summers with high humidity, but not as high as Houston. Winters are mild. Dallas has lower humidity, but temperatures easily soar above 105 degrees Fahrenheit.  Dallas also gets cold in the winter with occasional snow, so it gets the worst of both worlds. Dallas has tornadoes; Austin and San Antonio have droughts, wildfires, and floods; and Houston has hurricanes. 

14. Houses in Houston are cheaper than Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington-Plano and Austin, but wages are also lower unless you work in oil and gas. San Antonio has cheaper houses among the four largest metro areas in Texas, but wages are comparatively very low. Other than the defense and healthcare industries, San Antonio is highly dependent upon low-paying industries. The poverty rate in San Antonio is 17%, which is high for the U.S. I had to leave San Antonio because I got tired of being poor. ?

15. The Rio Grande Valley has the cheapest houses, but it's also the poorest region of Texas. McAllen, Brownsville, Harlingen, and Edinburg all have poverty rates above 20%. There are not many high-paying jobs there. 

16. Our state is not equipped to handle wintry precipitation. During the snow storm of 2021, Arkansas right next door to us had its streets cleared, but Texas right across the state line didn't. Texas has far more money than Arkansas. Our state government just doesn't care. 

17. Houston was hit by a weak hurricane in July. Over 2 million people lost power. Hundreds of thousands of people didn't have power for a week. Any city in the U.S. can have power outrages, but Texas gets power outages for minor events. Between 2019 and 2023, Texas had the most power outages in the country.

18. While Houston is not Memphis, New Orleans, Baltimore, or Jackson, MS, it's not exactly a low-crime city. It also has a high STD rate.

Thank you very, very much for all of this!!!
 
You guys are really great and helped me out a lot! Especially these 18 things you listed now, but also the specific pitfalls when buying a condo in the US that were talked about before are things that are difficult to find out unless you talk to locals who directly experienced these issues and learned to look out for them.
 
In most European countries, buying an apartment is quite simple, and you don't have an HOA molesting you with unreasonable fees or special assessments. At least I've never heard of it. You just buy the apartment, pay your utilities (often cities calculate the whole cost for the house/block, and it is then automatically split among the people living there so that they can pay it themselves, without any organization in between). The levels of water/heating/electricity usage can be checked to ensure that you don't pay for your neighbors having the heating on 24/7, etc.
 
That's why a situation like some HOAs charging way more than others for somewhat comparable functions was something that I would not have thought of at all.
 
I was also not aware that weather conditions can have such a significant financial impact. I thought it's hot in Texas and in some places very dry, but that hurricanes can make homeowners or owners of condos go broke for reasons they can't affect is definitely something to plan for when setting your budget. Being aware that unexpected snow storms/power grid issues are possible in that area is also a useful piece of advice.

[rachel83az]

In most European countries, buying an apartment is quite simple, and you don't have an HOA molesting you with unreasonable fees or special assessments.

In Italy, it's pretty variable, too. I know Italians who pay like 25€ per month. Most of the ones I'm aware of are paying 25-100€. A handful are being overcharged a few hundred euros per month. Buuuut... the super cheap ones aren't really taking care of the building properly. I personally know one building where the owners were pleased that they were able to get monthly fees cut roughly in half. But the roof wasn't taken care of/inspected as it should have been. A big storm rolled in, caused massive damage/leaking. Not only did the residents on the top floor have to deal with massive water damage, every apartment in the building had to pay (IIRC) 3000-4000€ suddenly out of pocket to pay for a new roof. Italy is one of the few countries with no state-mandated minimum wage, so 3000€ may have been a couple of months' wages for some of those people. With a slightly higher monthly fee, they wouldn't have had to pay so much out of pocket at once.

So the situation isn't completely unique to the US, but it is more common there.