How do you match new apartments to my job?
You’ll spend more hours in your car than at the leasing office, so we start with your commute. We take your job address and hours, then find areas with new builds inside a sensible drive.
Our commute minutes are free-flow travel time. That’s the drive with no traffic, so treat it as the floor. For each route, we name the segments the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) lists as congested, and we add any tolls to your monthly bill.
Which job anchors do you map?
Employer pages open once 5 or more buildings sit within 20 free-flow minutes. Until then, each one lives here as a section.
| Job anchor | Areas we usually look at | Common routes | Toll notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas Medical Center | Heights, Midtown, Museum District, Pearland edge | SH 288, I-610, METRORail Red Line | SH 288 express lanes are tolled |
| Energy Corridor and Park Row | Katy, west Houston, Cypress | Katy Freeway (I-10), Grand Parkway | Main lanes free; Grand Parkway tolled |
| ExxonMobil campus | Spring, The Woodlands edge, Tomball | I-45, Grand Parkway, Hardy Toll Road | Grand Parkway and Hardy tolled |
| Chevron Downtown | Heights, East Downtown, Midtown | I-45, I-10, METRORail | Usually untolled |
| IAH | North Houston, Humble, Spring | Beltway 8, Hardy Toll Road, US 59 | Beltway and Hardy tolled |
| NASA JSC | Clear Lake, League City, Webster | I-45 South, NASA Parkway | Usually untolled |
| Houston Ship Channel | Pasadena, Baytown, La Porte | SH 225, Beltway 8 | Beltway tolled |
Free-flow minutes for each building show on its card. We don’t publish a single number for a whole area, because the drive changes building by building.
Why the floor, not an average
Average commute times depend on the day, the weather and your start time. A floor is honest about what’s possible, and named slow segments tell you where the morning usually stalls.
What about hospital shifts at the TMC?
If you work at Houston Methodist, Texas Children’s Hospital, MD Anderson or another TMC employer, your hours matter. A 6 AM start misses most of the morning rush. A 7 PM finish may not.
We ask each building about garage access after hours, gate rules and whether you can get a unit away from late-night amenity noise. We also compare the cost of a parking space at home with the TMC garage and the Red Line.
How do tolls change the choice?
Tolls can act like a second rent. The Westpark Tollway and Grand Parkway (SH 99) are common from Katy and Cypress, and Fulshear to the Galleria ran about $219 a month on Oct 25, 2026.
We add a toll line to the true monthly. A building with a smaller special but an untolled drive can come out ahead, and we show you when it does.
How do I get a commute-first shortlist?
Send us your job address, start and end times, move date and all-in budget. We’ll match areas, name the slow spots, add tolls, and line up to four tours on one side of town in one afternoon. It’s free to you, and your rent is the same either way.
