Living a luxurious lifestyle with amenities steps away from our front door would make us feel like we’re at an all-inclusive resort every day. And the inner loop has plenty to offer for high earners who don’t mind splurging on rent.

Driving down the streets of Houston, it’s obvious that more high-rises are being built every year to cater to the influx of people wanting to live in the city’s trendiest neighborhoods or just shorten a long commute. In the past decade, an estimated 30 complexes with 10 floors or more have sprung up in Houston. This new construction has added some density that the city is otherwise lacking, even though not all neighbors are pleased with the towering newcomers (looking at you, Ashby high-rise protesters). With so many options, apartment complex landlords are in a battle for who can attract the most people—and how. We pretended to be rich for a day and took a tour of a few places with luxury amenities to see how they compare.

The Driscoll at River Oaks (est. 2021)

Houston is home to nine Hanover high-rises, including the Hanover Montrose that towers over the empty Disco Kroger lot and the brand-new Hanover Autry Park. One of the more impressive Hanover properties is the 30-story Driscoll at River Oaks. Most amenities are located on level eight, where there’s a large resident lounge equipped with a kitchen with a gas stove, making for the perfect dinner-party spot. This community space also boasts conference rooms that can be used during a work-from-home day and two home theater rooms, so you don’t even have to leave your building to watch a movie on a big screen.

The level also features an amazing view of downtown from its outdoor deck and a gorgeous pool with lounge chairs and cabanas for the summer. Meanwhile, gym rats will love the Driscoll’s full fitness center with an on-demand room offering classes via a TV, and a newly added outdoor workout area with turf. The complex even has an on-site pet spa to pamper your furry friends.

One-bedroom, one-bath apartments at this Hanover property are nearly 700 square feet and go for about $2,100 a month. The one we toured had modern finishings and great features such as an electric stovetop, a deep farmhouse sink, a dry bar, and tons of cabinet space in the kitchen.

The Westcott Memorial Park (est. 2022)

The Westcott Memorial Park boasts 11 stories just outside Houston’s largest green space. Tenants have access to guest suites, by far the building’s best amenity, and a sky deck with a large entertaining area with a kitchen, wine bar, and piano lounge. Plus, the space can be rented out for a private party. The building also has a club room, a media lounge, a bar, a game room, and coworking spaces.

As for the outdoor area—well, let’s just say we wanted to hop into our swimsuits and get our tan on. There are numerous lounge chairs, cabanas that reminded us of a Las Vegas hotel, and an entertaining space with grills. The fitness space, which might make us cancel our gym membership, even has a wellness room that’s great for yoga. The Westcott’s dry cleaning and package concierge service comes with in-home delivery.

Depending on the floor plan, rents currently range from $2,500 to a whopping $9,000, but prices tend to fluctuate throughout the year.

Elev8 (est. 2023)

If you absolutely love to live downtown, consider Elev8, a 20-story, half-century-old office building turned into a luxury high-rise last year (a growing trend in an effort to combat high vacancies downtown). As a result of this conversion, the units have partially exposed industrial ceilings that might steer some people away, but they reminded us of an episode of New Girl, so no deal-breakers for us here.

The building has nice amenities, including an indoor pool that is heated in the winter, a gym, a dining room, and other community areas. However, the star of the show is the actual apartment you’ll be living in. The one-bedroom unit we toured was small but practical, with various modern finishings, a gas stove, a wine fridge, and an Amazon Alexa that works with built-in speakers and smart home technology. Meanwhile, the bathroom boasts LED vanity mirrors that made us feel like we were in a fancy hotel room (and wish we had something
similar for our daily makeup routine).

Other big perks: Wi-Fi is included, and electricity can run 7–9 cents per watt,
far less than the average for Houston. It could help save you some pennies—
and you’ll be needing it. A 733-square-foot one- bedroom, one-bathroom apartment is currently around $2,000 a month.