[meoberry]

Amana and Goodman both have the best warranties on the market.

Especially there 16 seer and higher carry a life time compressor warranty.
Can't beat that with a stick.

 

[meoberry]

Someone suggested a heat pump which is not a bad idea but you would need a back-up heat source since Houston averages 18 days a year with temperatures below freezing (climate-zone.com). A heat pump has a balance point of 45 degrees which is the point at which it starts losing its ability to transfer heat effectively. The best overall option would be a hybrid system with a two stage heat pump condensor and a variable speed furnace set up to run gas heat as a third stage auxilary heat source. I would also recommend a humidistat and a honeywell pro IAQ themostat which would automatically adjust the blower speed to remove more humidity and keep your fan in the on position. The average anual relative humidity in your area is 77% and this would greatly increase your level of comfort.

It is true that a heat pump works best around 45* but it will produce heat down to 18* cheaper than electric heat. Your typical heat pump requires backup heat for defrost cycle anyway. If you install all electric it will have to have the required amount of back up heat. It not only comes on for defrost but will automatically come on when the heat pump starts loosing ground or you switch the t-stat to emergency heat which will shut off outside unit and run on heatstrips alone. With the price of lp and natural going up the last few years I have alot of customers switch to heatpumps. They do not put out the heat like gas but they cost less to run.