By DeeinAustin™

This week’s spotlight focuses on the $85M mixed-use project breaking ground in Northwest Austin.

The Villagio will be located at RR 620 between US Hwy 183
and TX Hwy 71 minutes from Lake Travis. This project is sizable, with 29 acres of retail, office and luxury residences, all with an Italian style.

• 117,310 SF Retail/Restaurant space
• 31,800 SF Professional Office space
• 300 Apartments and a 5-acre lake

Who will live, work and shop at the Villagio Austin?

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Popularity: 8% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

This Friday’s story focuses on Austin custom home builder involved with Maravilla. (NOTE. The builder has not been indicted for charges, so names will be kept anonymous.)

According to readers, local sources, and information available to the public, a ‘Maravilla Builder’ may soon be under investigation by several Texas legal authorities for accusations around their involvement in Maravilla, a subdivision that resulted in Texas Builder Mike Kelly filing bankruptcy.

Kelly confessed to an agreed order from Texas Residential Construction Commission (TRCC) for his actions.

One Maravilla Builder’s license was deactivated in February for reasons unknown to us.

We were told that current accusations from private individuals against a Maravilla  Builder include:

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Popularity: 7% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

Today’s spotlight is on SouthTown Austin, a growing area of South Austin that lacked the media attention of it’s popular cousins in the SoCo (South Congress) and SoLa (South Lamar) Districts.

SouthTown Austin has been quietly booming for the past few years. Home
prices steadily rose. The area is affordable,
ripe for rehabs, and ready for new construction. The latest Austin real estate update showed South Austin homes selling in 30 days, SouthTown included.

SouthTown may share the same fate as SoCo, which now has too many condos coming. The Austin Statesman published an article entitled, "It’s called LoCo and it’s getting a redo".

WHERE IS THE SOUTHTOWN DISTRICT(aka SOUTH SOCO, SOUTH SOLA, LOCO, LOWER CONGRESS)?

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Popularity: 15% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

This week’s spotlight is on Streetman Homes,a national builder who is well-respected in Central Texas because of their high-end, green, sustainable homes.

Streetman is among few volume builders who can build 5-star green homes. Their popular styles include Hill Country Modern (pictured) and Craftsman.

Streetman’s Austin communities are popular for buyers handling in or out-of-town relocations.

MOST POPULAR STREETMAN HOMES COMMUNITIES IN AUSTIN

1.Stone Creek is new at Circle C Ranch and starts in the mid $270s. Circle C is probably the most popular master-planned communities in Southwest Austin, so to have some more affordable homes in the neighborhood seems like welcome mix.

2. Belterra. Streetman has several choices in Belterra: Valley Oaks from the $240s, Palisades starting at the $350s and Aspen Hills starting in the $420s.

3. Mueller Austin (pictured) homes starting at $480,000. Mueller is about 30 minutes southeast of the Lake Travis and a few minutes to Downtown Austin.

STREETMAN INTRODUCES WEST CYPRESS HILLS IN THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY

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Popularity: 8% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

We’ve been celebrating our own Green Week here at the Texas Realty Blog.

• Monday, we provided some background on the topic and pointed to green certifications and events that are coming to Austin and Texas.
• Wednesday was an addition to our popular Gotcha Guide™ series where we gave you 5 Quick, Easy Green Home Fixes that you can do today for low cost.
• Today, we’ll honor top green real estate communities and why they are successful.

CAN GREEN BE AFFORDABLE AND LOOK "NORMAL"?

Some of my clients are custom green home builders who specialize in infill development.

It can be challenging to build a high-quality, beautiful green home in an existing neighborhood while trying to keep prices affordable. If you find a good green custom home builder, the home won’t look odd for an area…or too cookie cutter. Affordable development is often achievable through tax incentives and programs.

These green real estate developments took it a step further and built entire green communities that are sustainable, diverse, and walkable, the principals of new urbanism.

Many made strides that set the bar for other home builders and developers in this arena.

TOP GREEN REAL ESTATE COMMUNITIES THAT DARED TO BE DIFFERENT

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Popularity: 15% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

Let’s take a stroll along East Riverside Drive in Southeast Austin, Texas for a mini site-seeing tour of present-day Austin. Picture yourself walking by my side as I describe the sites, sounds, and ambiance of the area.

Our tour begins on Riverside Drive, just East of IH35, as we head towards South Lake Shore Boulevard overlooking popular Town Lake.

There aren’t many homes on the street, because it’s mostly a commercial corridor, but that’s ok because the fumes from cars whizzing by has us lightheaded.

…the streets are a little grimy, but that’s ok. I’ll protect you while picking up litter along the way. The sweet smell of pizza, tacos, and "fried stuff" fills the air as we pass by the Capmetro bus stops taking students to campus.

A newspaper blows down the street. You catch one of the headlines,"Luxury high rise condos coming to East Riverside Drive in Southeast Austin".

WHY EAST RIVERSIDE DRIVE IN SOUTHEAST AUSTIN IS PRIME REAL ESTATE

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Popularity: 7% [?]

By Guest Author, Kevin R. Rodgers.

Baby Boomers will buy one out of every five new homes sold in 2008. What the 55-and-older segment is really looking for is vacant land. 

For instance, the Texas Hill Country is a prime location for Boomers to look for land from a 1- acre parcel in Marble Falls to a 300+ acre ranch in one of Burnet County’s ranch communities.

A recent boom in real estate development in Burnet County has resulted from this influx of future retirees.  Baby boomer investors coming to the Texas Hill Country are picky, but seem willing to pay top dollar for a piece of land in a great location next to outstanding amenities like fishing, boating and golfing.

Today’s Spotlight is Eagle Mountain Reserve. Features include:

• An Exclusive Master-Planned Community
• 118-acre community located on the northeastern foothills of Lake Buchanan
• Spectacular Hilltop Homesites with Million Dollar Views
• Ideal Hill Country Living with Resort-Style Amenities

WHY BABY BOOMERS ARE SCOOPING UP TEXAS REAL ESTATE

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Popularity: 4% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

I was in a Austin real estate market update class this week where Residential Strategies gave a year-end summary and forecast for the Austin area.

Here is what was said for the January 2008 market summary.

1. Texas isn’t doing bad compared to other states, but many national builders are in trouble due to their activity in Florida, Arizona and California.

2. Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio real estate markets are overbuilt in the affordable home price ranges. Builders are doing auctions and fire sales to get rid of their sub-$150k inventory.

3. Austin continues to buck trends and will continue to do well in 2008. The downside is that national builders in Austin will still suffer because their parent companies are in trouble.

4. National builders located in Austin have already pulled back on inventory, which may cause a shortage in 2009.

WHY NEWMARK HOMES AND OTHER AUSTIN BUILDERS MAY BE IN TROUBLE

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Popularity: 3% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

Fictional character J.R Ewing, from the popular 80s television drama, Dallas, was a betting man. What would the rich Texan do in today’s housing market?

I think he’d take a peak at lake real estate in Texas, which are poised for a comeback in 2008. Investors and buyers know that know that the market for second homes, luxury estate, and lakefront estate homes in Texas are still in demand. 

We recently reported on Trinity River development in Dallas. Today’s spotlight is on an upcoming 400-acre neighborhood development on the west side of Lake Houston.

A FEW DETAILS:

• This $90M-plus Parke Patterson Land Development project was announced a few weeks ago.
• Two Texas home builders have already committed. Next up is the retail developer.
• Estate lots will be 70-80′ along 2000 feet of shoreline on West Lake Houston Parkway near Beltway 8.
• Trees and water amenities will be the central feature of the Houston lake front community.
• Townhouses and retail will be integrated.

ARE KIMBALL-HILL AND IMPERIAL HOMES BETTING ON TEXAS LAKE PROPERTIES IN 2008?

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Popularity: 9% [?]

By DeeinAustin™

I took a trip to New Braunfels this past weekend. I’d been hearing about rapid growth in the area, so wanted to see for
myself. New Braunfels and the Gruene (pronounced, "green") Historic District are our Destination Spotlight for this week.

New Braunfels,Texas is a sleepy town about 30 miles South of Austin on the way to San Antonio. The areas is a getaway destination for busy professionals in Central Texas as well as out of state visitors.

College students from San Marcos and Austin also visit during the summer for fun on the Guadalupe and Comal
Rivers.

View the short photo tour below of new construction in the area. Click the photos to view a larger version.

"GRUENE GARDEN" LUXURY GARDEN VILLA COMMUNITY

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Popularity: 7% [?]