Portico Kirby

Directly next door to Mezzo on Kirby Drive, Portico Kirby is the older and lower of the pair — a four-story community from the late 1990s, now Greystar-managed, with one- to three-bedroom plans from roughly 570 to 1,330 square feet and washer and dryer sets included throughout.

The pool is the centerpiece, shaded by the covered portico that gives the property its name and ringed by private cabanas and landscaped courtyards. There is also a fitness center, a dog park and an outdoor grilling station.

Kirby Drive at this point runs between the Texas Medical Center and Braeswood, a few minutes from UT Health Houston and about seven from Rice University, with quick connections to the 610 Loop, US 59 and TX 288. Walk and bike scores are high, and rents run below the newer med center towers.