The short version
Texas has no personal income tax, but property taxes run high and you pick your own electricity provider. Houston has no zoning, so check the deed restrictions and the flood map for any address before you commit. Summers are long and hot, hurricane season runs June through November, and you have 30 days to register your car and 90 days to get a Texas license. The metro area had 7.9 million people in 2025, which is why everything is a drive.
Taxes
Texas has no personal income tax (Texas Comptroller). The money comes from sales tax and property tax instead. Harris County's adopted rate for 2025 is $0.38096 per $100 of value (Harris County Tax Office), and that is only one line on the bill: the city, the school district, the community college and sometimes a utility district add their own. If you buy, file for the homestead exemption with the appraisal district between January 1 and April 30. It takes at least $140,000 off the school-district taxable value, with more for people over 65, people with disabilities and disabled veterans (HCAD).
No zoning, so read the deed restrictions
Houston is the largest U.S. city without zoning. Development is governed by ordinances about how land is subdivided and built on, not by use (City of Houston Planning). What keeps a neighborhood residential is its deed restrictions, which are private agreements that run with the land (City Legal Department). Where there are none, the city notes that a property owner may be free to run a commercial business in the neighborhood (Planning: deed restrictions). Before you buy or sign a long lease, ask for the deed restrictions and look at what sits on the next block.
Check the flood map for every address
Harris County Flood Control District runs a free map where you type an address and see which floodplain it sits in (harriscountyfemt.org). Two things the district itself says to keep in mind: the tool is not the official FEMA map, which lives at msc.fema.gov (about the tool), and about half of the flooding in Harris County happens outside any mapped floodplain, from street flooding and sheet flow that the maps do not show (HCFCD FAQ). A "500-year floodplain" means a 0.2% chance of flooding from a bayou or creek in any given year, not once every 500 years (HCFCD glossary). Flood insurance is a separate policy; a standard homeowners or renters policy does not cover flooding.
Utilities work differently here
- Electricity. Most of Houston is on the deregulated Texas grid. CenterPoint owns the wires and delivers the power, but you buy it from a retail provider you choose, and the state's comparison site is Power to Choose. Plans differ a lot. Read the rate at your expected usage, not the headline.
- Water and sewer. Inside the city limits it is a city account. In the suburbs it is usually a Municipal Utility District, a local governmental entity that provides limited services like water, sewer and drainage and levies its own tax (TCEQ). A house in a MUD can carry a noticeably higher tax bill than one next door in a city, so ask which district an address is in.
- Gas. Many homes are all-electric. If yours has gas, the start request goes to the gas utility, which for most of Houston is also CenterPoint.
Who to call, in what order, is in the Houston moving checklist.
The weather is a planning factor
The normal July high at Bush Intercontinental is 94.5°F (NWS Houston, July normals), and the humidity makes it feel worse. Houston averages 51.84 inches of rain a year (NWS normals summary), much of it in heavy bursts. Hurricane season is June 1 to November 30 (National Hurricane Center). Winters are mild, with occasional freezes that pipes and plants need a plan for. If you can pick your moving date, October through April is kinder than July. If you cannot, moving in Houston heat and rain has the survival rules.
Cars, licenses and voting: the deadlines
- Register your vehicle within 30 days of moving here. It needs a Texas inspection and insurance first (TxDMV: New to Texas).
- Get a Texas driver license within 90 days. Your old license stays valid until then (Texas DPS).
- Register to vote by the 30th day before any election you want to vote in (VoteTexas.gov).
- Tolls. A good share of the freeway system is tolled. The Harris County Toll Road Authority sells the EZ TAG that works on them (HCTRA). Get one early if your commute uses a tollway.
How big it is
The Houston metro area had an estimated 7,904,627 people on July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau). It is spread out, and most trips are by car. "Close" in Houston means twenty minutes. When you look at apartments or houses, test the commute at the hour you would actually drive it.
The move itself
Two local habits worth copying. First, nobody moves at noon in August if they can help it; start at seven. Second, many moves here are apartment to apartment, up elevators and down hallways, and uniform containers that stack on a dolly make that far faster than mixed cardboard. That is what we rent: lidded moving bins delivered to your door anywhere within 30 miles of downtown and picked up from the new place when you are done, from $119 for a one-bedroom's worth. If you are arriving from out of state your things come in whatever you packed them in, but for the move from the first apartment to the second, this is how it works. The apartment move-in guide covers elevator reservations and the insurance letter buildings ask for.
Questions people ask
Does Texas have a state income tax?
No. Texas has no personal income tax. The state relies on sales and property taxes instead.
How do I check if a Houston address floods?
Type the address into the Harris County Flood Control District map at harriscountyfemt.org. Remember that about half of the county's flooding happens outside mapped floodplains, so also ask neighbors and look at the street drainage.
How long do I have to get a Texas driver license after moving?
90 days. Your vehicle has to be registered in Texas within 30 days.
Why does Houston have no zoning?
The city has never adopted a zoning code. Land use is shaped by subdivision and building ordinances and by private deed restrictions, so what can be built next door depends on the deed restrictions, if any.
What is a MUD?
A Municipal Utility District: a local governmental entity that provides water, sewer, drainage and similar services in an area outside a city, and levies its own property tax to pay for them.
Last updated October 2, 2026. Every number above was read on the linked official page on October 2, 2026. Tax rates change yearly.