Question about Austin

U

Uninformed

5,000+ Posts
Where is Westlake - around BeeCaves? Besides Westlake, what are the other good schools in Austin or the surrounding area (such as Lake Travis)? Are there any really nice subdivisions around any of the lakes (with things like golf or elaborate swimming pools for kids). What highschools would kids go to if they lived around lake Austin? Just wondering in general what Austin would be like for a young family.
 
Our neighbor is a School Teacher and she has move from the Eanes School District (Westlake) to Lake Travis H.S. because she felt that the "over abundance" of drugs was worse in that area.

She did not say that there was "not" a drug problem at LT or any other School District for that matter, just said that some parents, teachers and herself believed that it was a bigger problem at Westlake.
 
Lake Travis ISD is good. Other options near Lake Austin and Lake Travis are Steiner Ranch and RIver Place. Leander ISD is not the greatest, but the schools that service those areas are very good, and you are right by the lakes. Both of those subdivisions have private parks with Lake Austin access, and Lake Travis is right there as well. Westminister is another nice subdivision in the area that feeds into the same schools.
 
If you get far enough out, I think you can still be "on Lake Austin" but districted for Lake Travis or Leander (Cedar Park or Vista Ridge?).
 
But, like I've said before:

You buy a house in Eanes for $300,000 because of the "good schools"
or
You by a similar/better house in AISD and pay $150,000 because of the "bad schools"
Your kid is in honors classes and gets about the same education (more money in Eanes probably leads to some better opportunities, but my experience has been smart kids are the same everywhere).

10 years later, it's time to sell.

Your house in Eanes is worth $400,000 because of the good schools. Your kid graduated in the 15th %ile of his class and was denied admission to UT. You need the $100,000 profit from the house to pay for Rice.
or
Your house in AISD is worth only $200,000 because of the schools. Your kid graduated in the top 5%ile and can attend UT. The money you saved in mortgage payments funded an every-two-years vacation to Europe.

5 years later, your kid graduates from college and gets about the same job.

Was it worth it to spend all that extra money on a house?
 
Puddle,
Just buy in NW Hills and send the kids to Doss, Murchison and Anderson. Not as good as Eanes, but certainly above average. Cheaper as well.
 
When I graduated from Westwood 8 years ago they had a bunch of plaques in the main office saying how awesome the school is. To my knowledge, nothing has changed. I don't know how good an indicator that is, but I turned out alright, I think.
 
As far as a good education goes, you can't beat LBJ Science Academy. It's not in the nicest neighborhood but they provide buses that go there from anywhere in the city. They have classes that nowhere else does and the teachers actullay (a) know something about advanced subjects and (b) care that the students learn something too.

My personal experience: I went into UT easily a year ahead of almost everyone else and saved thousands of dollars on tuition by being able to skip intro classes. Got my BS in physics there. Now I am getting my PhD in nuclear physics at a Top 5 grad school in the field and I really think it all goes back to the head start I got at LBJ.
 
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