Texas Opportunity Zones: Which one should I invest in?

[Matt Smith]

Please share your thoughts on where you think the best Opportunity Zones in Texas are, and why.

I like Houston's Eastwood and Greater East End, and Karnes County.

1-Houston's Eastwood and Greater East End, Including the 2nd Ward--The East End, without a doubt, has the easiest ingress and egress to Downtown. It also happens to be the best part of Downtown since the major sporting venues, convention center, live music, restaurants, and night life can all be found on the East Side. Location, egress, and new developments make this a great choice to invest...business and property, commercial, or residential.

2-Karnes County, including Kenedy and Karnes City. Karnes County is in the middle of what I call Texas Triangle Mega-Region Lite. It's within 60 miles of San Antonio to the Northwest, 100 miles of Corpus Christie to the South, and 60 miles of Victoria. All in all, the population adds up quick in every direction. No traffic, low prices, strategic logistics make this a great choice to invest.

There is a lot of discussion on Opportunity Zones and what they are, but not many discussions on where they are.  If you haven't considered investing in a Qualified Opportunity Zone, you may want to.  Most focus on the real estate in the zones, but let's not forget that the goal of this program is to invest in businesses, too.  It's important to note that the QOZ were determined based on the 2010 Census.  Karnes County, for example was regarded as one of the poorest in the state around that time; however, it is now one of the richest due to the Eagle Ford Shale Oil Boom.  Not all information will be up to date, so when considering map views, try views from main roads.  Population will not be accurately portrayed in rural areas, so be on the lookout as 2020 Census kicks into gear this year.  These are my pics for the best Opportunity Zones to invest in Texas:

As for other states, there should be a discussion made up of each state.  When potential investors can see what these Opportunity Zones have to offer, they will be able to better decide where they would like to invest, and if they would like to invest in businesses and property, or just one or the other.

All Opportunity Zones are worthy of our investments and have been selected by every state's Governor based on 2010 Census.  The goal is to invest capital gains into businesses and real estate in these zones as a long term investment strategy.  10 Years, or longer, investment will lead to paying ZERO TAXES on realized capital gains.  There's more to it, but it's definitely worth your consideration.

Thanks in advance for your feedback and for keeping the discussion going.