The Galveston County property market in Texas can be confusing to first time home buyers, or anyone unfamiliar with the best Galveston county neighborhoods. Some houses seem to be outrageously expensive, while others seem to be suspiciously cheap. Much of this is a recent development, and can be attributed to one or two major factors.



The first of these is of course the current housing crisis, brought on by changes to sub-prime lending legislature. This new legislature is affecting millions of people across America, but first time home buyers are being hit hardest. A natural decrease in the sales of middle-priced homes across the country has resulted from this, but wider property markets are expected to improve to compensate.

The second major factor influencing property prices in Galveston is the fact that larger homes in the area have become more and more luxurious, while smaller homes suitable for couples without children have remained more or less the same for the last decade. This has drastically decreased the marketability of homes in less affluent areas, while simultaneously boosting the prices in some of the best Galveston county neighborhoods.

Fortunately, the difference in quality of neighborhoods is largely academic, and the smaller homes that have not been modernized are now selling for incredibly low prices. The area is definitely a first time buyer's dream market, and it is quickly becoming one of the best new places to live in the US. Small homes with two to three bedrooms can be bought for as little as $70,000. Usually this kind of money would barely buy you a condominium, but in Galveston it buys you a charming beach chalet on stilts.

Naturally when buying a home like this, the price would not be all you pay. The cost of updating this type of home could bring the total price up to around $100,000 but that would definitely be one of the better investments you will make this decade. However, if you want to buy a home that is already spacious, modern and luxurious then you would definitely be better off buying in one of the best places to live in Galveston County.

While the home prices in the better areas are a little bit high, take comfort in the fact that they show the area's resilience in the face of the current housing crisis. Some of the best Galveston county neighborhoods do have high property prices, but these properties are still excellent investments. Prices in this area are unlikely to drop by a large margin as a result of the sub-prime lending situation, so if you want to invest your money in property, Galveston is a safe bet.

The advantage of buying property in the best Galveston county neighborhoods is that they of course have access to the best schools in Galveston County. The area has many excellent public schools, as well as some very well respected private schools. However, some of these schools are not fed by some of the less affluent areas, and so buying a cheaper home will mean that your children will have a slightly smaller choice of schools.

On the plus side, property investment in the Galveston county area is looking to be a very safe long term way of growing your money. With the current housing crisis buying real estate in an area with such stable prices is a sure way of making sure your money grows while property prices everywhere else suffer. Even if you buy one of the cheaper homes, a few thousand dollars will see your new investment worth far more than what you bought it for.

As a general pricing guideline an average family home in Galveston, TX will cost you around $119,949. This is the average price of a three bedroom house across all counties, so expect to pay a little bit more in some of the best Galveston county neighborhoods. If you look at the average home price for the United States which is at $173,585 you can see that for first time buyers Galveston, TX is definitely a contender for the best new place to live in the US.