Best PlacesSouth Houston Gardens, Pasadena, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around South Houston Gardens, Pasadena, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena ranks 3,109th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena's strengths and weaknesses
Where South Houston Gardens, Pasadena ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$842 a month, better than 83% of neighborhoods
Where South Houston Gardens, Pasadena ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 2% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than only 10% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 11% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 18% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
A household needs to earn about $91,000 a year to comfortably buy the median South Houston Gardens, Pasadena home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $80,974, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses South Houston Gardens, Pasadena's effective rate of 1.63%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for South Houston Gardens, Pasadena.
Who works in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena, and how
Work in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena centers on education and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena has more restaurants and bars per resident than 81% of neighborhoods. The coast is about 13 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of South Houston Gardens, Pasadena and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena, month by month
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena sees roughly 134 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 64, with lows near 48. The comfortable stretch runs October through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64° | 55° | 48° |
| April | 79° | 71° | 63° |
| July | 93° | 84° | 78° |
| October | 82° | 73° | 66° |
Flying in and out of South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
William P Hobby sits about 8 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 6.8 million passengers in 2025, with 101 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
Schools across South Houston Gardens, Pasadena average a B−, better than 62% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Turner ElC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Carter Lomax MiddleC · 33% proficient
Top high schools
- Pasadena Memorial H SA− · 60% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every South Houston Gardens, Pasadena school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare South Houston Gardens, Pasadena against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena
Is South Houston Gardens, Pasadena a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, South Houston Gardens, Pasadena ranks 3,109th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on a stable housing market, state finances, and a strong job market, and lowest on disaster risk and transit. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is South Houston Gardens, Pasadena expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $311,892. The overall cost of living runs about 15% below the national average. Set against a $80,974 median income, cost of living beats 70% of neighborhoods.
Is South Houston Gardens, Pasadena safe?
Yes, South Houston Gardens, Pasadena is safer than 71% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $403 per resident a year.
Compare South Houston Gardens, Pasadena with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to South Houston Gardens, Pasadena. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for South Houston Gardens, Pasadena: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of South Houston Gardens, Pasadena: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in South Houston Gardens, Pasadena: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
South Houston Gardens, Pasadena detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.