Help! Moving to Austin. Where should I buy a home?

[ctrl+alt+del]

My wife and I are moving to Austin from Sacramento. I am only familiar with Austin in so much as attending school at UT. What parts of Austin and vicinity are good for a young couple who can spend $250,000 on a home? Where are the older, established neighborhoods? Where are the new home areas? Where are the neighborhoods to avoid? Thanks for your help!

Hook 'em!

"The common people, in so far as they make no effort to study even after having been vexed by difficulties, are the lowest" -Confucius

 

[evil horn]

damn, lucky bastard.

wish I could help. the only thing I can offer you is some advice/opinions (I moved back for 2 months in the Spring)...

as someone who probably has a certain nostalgia for Austin, (it has changed since I got out in 90) I would try to stay as close in as possible. the farther you go out the more it's going to feel like Sacramento.

I prefer the funkier,older neighborhoods. I'd want to be able to walk to Magnolia Cafe... run with my dog down to Barton Springs, or walk over to Hyde Park Grill for some fries, that kind of thing... I have no idea if those are considered good neighborhoods by other's definitions (schools, taxes, etc), but they're what I love and miss about Austin. reliving my college days? yeah, I figure I can do that safely until I'm 40.

damn, I'm jealousy, good luck.... would love to hear how your search goes.



hey, my pup's hound of the week
The Link

 

[GatePratt]

ctrl+alt+del - let us know how your search is going. Tarrytown, Hyde park ad Brykerwoods are older areas you may like. Pricey but good schools and nice neighborhood feel. Parts of Westlake, Circle C and Arboretum area are newer ares with newer homes. Westlake is expensive but the other areas are pretty affordable. Travis Heights/South Congress is a funky area that is fun but might not be right if you have kids or are about to...Let us know....

 

[LonghornGirlie]

Unfortunately, 250k doesn't buy what it used to in Austin. The real estate market in Austin currently is totally outrageous -- due to the influx of California hi-tech, IMHO, where folks think that getting any home at all for 500K is more than reasonable.

We live in "Old Enfield" which is roughly bounded by 15th, Lamar, 24th, and Mopac. Definitely old, established Austin. Our home was built in 1938. You might take a look at Clarksville (immediately south of our neighborhood, say from 6th-15th). It has generally smaller homes of the same vintage as ours, and is definitely an up and coming trendy neighborhood, if you like a downtown feel.

Other older neighborhoods that might be a fit for you include Hyde Park, Tarrytown, Travis Heights (much like Clarksville -- a neighborhood that in times past was not the best, but is experiencing a revitalization).

Your choice may depend largely upon where you work. Traffic in Austin is horrible and doesn't look to get any better any time soon. Make sure you factor this into your decision.

My brother and his wife just bought a newer home out in Travis Country. I think Travis Country is a neat neighborhood with a good mixture of homes. They have a great neighborhood association with common parks and two swimming pools. Nice area to raise a family.

Westlake has great schools and lots of nice neighborhoods. My other brother and his wife live in The Woods of Westlake. You won't find much for $250 though, but again that will be tough to find anywhere.

If you like the lake, you might try out in Steiner Ranch. I have several co-workers that have homes out there and love it! You'll probably get more home for your buck out that way, but you are looking at a pretty hefty commute if you work downtown. Pretty good access to anything off of 360, though.

Generally speaking, Austin is growing to the southwest and northwest. There are plenty of nice, "master-planned" communities in either direction if you are looking for one of those neighborhoods with a community center and a choice of 5 floorplans. Also, generally, don't go east of 35 -- although apparently the neighborhoods that are by what used to be the airport are now on an upward swing.

Round Rock, Pfluegerville, Georgetown are all supposed to be nice but I wouldn't want to face I35 on a daily basis.

Let us know if we can be of any help. If you want to look in our area, I'll be sure to keep an eye out for you. In fact, there is a nice home at the end of our street that has been on the market for a while. I'm not sure what they are asking though.


--
Hook 'em Horns

 

[SouthernGent]

If you want to live WAAAAYYY North I would say check out all the new subdivisions off of 620. My sister lives in the area by the HEB on 620 and they have a bunch of new neighborhoods going up around that area. Nice area, good mix of homes $130-$240 I think. It's nice cause you can either go down 360 to 35 or take 620 to parmer and then hit mopac. I would, however, recommend living as close as possible to where you are going to work. I live in RR, 2 exits from where I work and in the morning it takes about 25 minutes to get where I want to be. Usually it takes about 10.

--------------------------------------------------
"Oklahoma. The only state Arkansas can make fun of" - Bill Hicks

"They are like Nebraska fans that drink more, and wear purple. " - boom on K-State fans

 

[K-Man]

If you work downtown, you might find Wilshire Woods appealing. Heavily wooded area with huge limestone homes on great big lots, just east of I35 and Hyde Park.