Northwest Houston · Cypress
Cypress, TX — 77429 & 77433
Two very different ZIPs, the highest combined tax rates in the region, and the single most affected area in Harris County under the draft 2026 FEMA maps.
What Cypress actually is
Four high schools with 'Cypress' in the name are not in Cypress. Cypress Creek, Cypress Falls, Cypress Lakes and Cypress Ridge all carry Houston or Katy addresses. And Bridgeland is not uniformly Cy-Fair ISD — Lakeland and Parkland villages are, while Prairieland and Creekland are Waller ISD, with part of Prairieland in Katy ISD. In a community this large the district can change between one village and the next.
Subdivisions in the ZIP
Bridgeland (77433) · Towne Lake (77433) · Fairfield (77433) · Marvida (77433) · Dunham Pointe (77433) · Lakes of Fairhaven (77433) · Coles Crossing (77429). Housing stock runs mainly through 1998 onward in 77429; 2003 onward in 77433.
Flooding and drainage
Cypress Creek — 267 square miles across northwest Harris and Waller counties, with 250 miles of open waterway. Little Cypress Creek is a subwatershed, and HCFCD's Frontier Program is building regional detention there ahead of development rather than after it. In large events water also moves from Cypress Creek into the Addicks Reservoir watershed.
Named events in this watershed include Harvey, Ike in 2008, Allison in 2001 and the 2016 spring floods. HCFCD's own line is that a major flood happens somewhere in Harris County about every two years. The 2018 bond funded $597M and 22 detention basins across the Cypress Creek watershed, projected to remove about 19% of structures from the 100-year floodplain.
The draft 2026 FEMA maps are not final — but they are the reason to check now
FEMA released draft Harris County flood maps to floodplain administrators on 2 February 2026, the first countywide rebuild since 2007. They would add roughly 200 square miles of floodplain: about 175,000 housing units move in and 60,000 move out. County officials are explicit that the maps are not regulatory and nothing changes today about insurance requirements — final approval is estimated November 2028. What the draft maps actually mean for a purchase this year.
What a house here needs, by era
This is the part most listing pages skip. I work in construction as well as holding a real estate licence, so these are the things I price before you write an offer rather than after the inspection lands.
77429 is where the renovation conversation lives
Coles Crossing was established in 1998, and the 77429 stock generally runs older than 77433. Late-1990s and 2000s systems — roof, HVAC, water heater — are reaching the end of service life now. That is replacement budgeting, and it is what I price before you offer.
77433 is a different problem
Bridgeland began in 2003, Towne Lake in 2006, and Marvida, Dunham Pointe and Avalon are building today. Here the questions are builder warranty, punch-list quality and dated finishes rather than systems replacement. I walk new-build punch lists as a contractor, not as an agent reading a checklist.
Roof age and insurance
Texas carriers commonly stop writing replacement-cost coverage on a composition roof at about fifteen years, moving to actual cash value, and decline outright around twenty. A roof can pass an inspection and still make a house expensive or difficult to insure. Ask for the roof's age and the replacement paperwork before the option period ends.
None of this is a reason not to buy. It is a reason to know the number first — a house with polybutylene and a fifteen-year-old roof is a fine purchase at the right price, and an expensive one at the wrong price.
Schools
Cypress-Fairbanks ISD — with part of Bridgeland in Waller ISD and Katy ISD. Campuses with a Cypress address:
- Cy-Fair High School — 22602 Northwest Fwy — 77429
- Cypress Woods High School — 13550 Woods-Spillane Blvd — 77429
- Bridgeland High School — 10707 Mason Rd — 77433
- Cypress Ranch High School — 10700 Fry Rd — 77433
- Cypress Park High School — 7425 Westgreen Blvd — 77433
- Cypress Springs High School — 7909 Fry Rd — 77433
Attendance zoning is assigned by address, not by ZIP code, and districts rezone as new campuses open. Verify the zoning for a specific property with the district before you rely on it.
Getting around
The through-routes are US 290, the Grand Parkway (SH 99), Fry Road, Barker Cypress, Telge, Mueschke and Huffmeister.
Anchors in the area
- Bridgeland — 11,500 acres, 20,000 homes planned, developer Howard Hughes
- Towne Lake — 2,450 acres around a 300-acre lake, developer Caldwell
- Grand Parkway Segment E — opened December 2013; widening to three lanes each way begins mid-2026
Renting in Cypress
Apartment averages for Cypress overall as of 1 August 2026. Single-family rents run well above that — HAR showed an average of $2,313 for 3-bed in 77429 and $2,765 for 4-bed in 77433, with 346 rental listings in 77433 and 214 in 77429.
- 1 bed — $1,404
- 2 bed — $1,769
- 3 bed — $2,308
Questions people actually ask about Cypress
Why are Cypress property taxes so high?
Because most of Cypress is MUD-financed. Cy-Fair ISD adopted $1.0669 per $100 for 2025 and county jurisdictions add about $0.6333, but the MUD is the swing factor. Harris County MUD 397, serving Fairfield, levied $0.42 for 2025. MUD 419, serving Bridgeland, levied $0.79. That difference alone is worth thousands a year on a $500,000 house. Cypress is unincorporated, so there is no City of Houston tax — but the MUD usually more than makes up for it.
Do MUD rates go down over time?
They generally do, as the district pays down the debt that built the infrastructure. MUD 419 has fallen from $0.94 in 2019-20 to $0.79 in 2025. A newly developed section with a high MUD rate is not permanently expensive — but you should look at the district's debt schedule rather than hope.
Is there a tax increase on the ballot?
Yes. Cy-Fair ISD trustees called a voter-approval tax rate election for 3 November 2026 — a 12-cent M&O increase against a 3-cent I&S reduction, a net 9 cents — alongside five bond propositions covering renovations, technology, buses, athletics and pool systems rather than new school construction. If you are buying here this autumn, that is a real number to put in your budget.
Are the 2026 flood maps going to affect my house?
Cypress is the most affected region in Harris County under the draft maps — about 24,500 single-family homes and 6,100 multifamily units added to floodplains across four communities. But the maps are draft, not regulatory, and nothing about your insurance changes today. Look your address up on MAAPnext before you buy, because the answer for a 2028 resale may not be the answer today.
Can I rent out a house in Bridgeland or Towne Lake?
You need to read the recorded covenants for that specific section, not the community website. Large master-planned communities often file separate declarations by village, so leasing rules can differ within the same development. Both communities also charge a percentage-of-sale-price fee at closing on top of annual dues, which changes investor maths. Get the resale certificate early.
Ask about a specific address in Cypress
Send me a street and I will tell you what the house needs and what it costs — before you are emotionally committed to it.