Still Houston’s ultimate address after nearly a century, River Oaks spans 1,100 beautifully wooded acres along Buffalo Bayou, just a few minutes’ drive from downtown along scenic Allen Parkway. Ranked as Houston’s most expensive neighborhood, and among the nation’s top 10 wealthiest communities, it’s home to the exclusive River Oaks Country Club. Property values are estimated to range from $1 million to over $20 million – a far cry from the $2,200 price for lots when River Oaks opened in the late 1920s.
River Oaks opens its doors – or at least its garden gates – to the rest of the city for the annual Azalea Trail tour, and it is home to the Museum of Fine Arts Rienzi and Bayou Bend House museums. The neighborhood also lends its name to the popular upscale River Oaks Shopping Center along West Gray.
One of the ways River Oaks resembles the rest of Houston is that, despite the stately architecture of its grand old homes, it has not escaped the teardown-and-rebuild movement
that is widespread across the city.
River Oaks is surrounded by several shady, stately neighborhoods such as Avalon Place and Royden Oaks, stretching to Upper Kirby and the Highland Village shopping area on
Westheimer.
The Upper Kirby area is also experiencing a surge in residential development. Much of it, like apartments in the West Ave mixed-use project, is rental. Mirroring a trend that’s spread throughout Houston, older low-rise garden apartments are being demolished for mid-rise and high-rise apartments in Upper Kirby.
