Pattison's housing reflects its small, established character, with single-family homes on a mix of in-town and larger rural lots. The community has a suburban-rural feel, and most residents own their homes, with agricultural land and acreage common in the surrounding countryside. Because Pattison is the smallest city in Waller County, housing turnover is modest and the market consists mainly of resale homes, older properties, and occasional land listings rather than large new subdivisions. Buyers are typically drawn by the quiet setting, larger lots, and the convenience of nearby Interstate 10 for Houston commutes.

Pattison is a single small community rather than a collection of named subdivisions, centered along Farm to Market Road 359. Homes, churches, and the school district facilities are spread across a compact area, with farms, pastures, and rural parcels extending outward into Waller County's countryside. The surrounding landscape transitions between farmland and the growing residential and commercial development of the Brookshire area. This layout gives Pattison a traditional Texas small-town feel, where the community is close-knit and the countryside begins just beyond the center of town.

Pattison offers a quiet, small-town lifestyle with a suburban-rural mix, where residents enjoy open countryside and a neighborly pace of life west of Houston. Daily needs are met in nearby Brookshire and the growing communities along Interstate 10, while the full range of Houston's employment, dining, and cultural amenities remains within reach. The community's identity is rooted in its agricultural and railroad past, with churches, the school district, and local gatherings anchoring civic life. Pattison appeals to those seeking a low-key rural setting with convenient access to one of the nation's largest metropolitan areas.

Pattison is served by the Royal Independent School District, a public district based in the Pattison-Brookshire area that serves students across the surrounding Waller County communities in grades pre-kindergarten through twelfth. The district enrolls roughly 3,000 students and operates several campuses, with notable offerings including the Royal Early College High School, where students can earn college credit alongside their high school diploma. The district's presence anchors much of the community's civic life, and families moving to Pattison benefit from a full K-12 system within the local area.

Pattison sits along Farm to Market Road 359, which connects the community south toward Richmond and north through Brookshire to Interstate 10, the principal east-west corridor between Houston and San Antonio. This location gives residents quick freeway access to the Houston metropolitan area and points west, while local farm-to-market roads link Pattison to the surrounding Waller County countryside. As a small rural community, Pattison has no fixed-route public transit, and residents rely on personal vehicles, with Brookshire providing the nearest concentration of services and transportation connections.

Recreation in Pattison centers on the surrounding Waller County countryside, with open space for outdoor pursuits common to rural Southeast Texas. The community's location west of Houston places regional destinations within reach, including Brazos Bend State Park for hiking and wildlife viewing and other state and county parks along the Brazos River. Nearby Brookshire and Katy provide additional parks, sports facilities, and shopping, while Houston's extensive park system and cultural attractions are accessible via Interstate 10. For residents, the quiet rural landscape itself is among the area's primary recreational assets.