Austin GBCNers meeting in here.

[texassmith]

noisemaker2
ditzydi
duder

Panic mode activated. We originally thought we'd be moving to Austin summer 2015, but now it's looking like summer 2014. That's in less than a year, so now is the time to start researching real estate, neighborhoods, schools, etc.

We're tentatively targeting Westlake (as are several other families at DH's company, so that will be nice). We hear great things about the community feel and the schools in that area (Eanes ISD). DH's office will be downtown, so this is presumably an easy commute.

I don't know if I have really specific questions yet. What do you know/think about that area? DH and I will be taking several weekend trips to scout stuff out, I'm sure. I just want to obsess about it now

[noisemaker2]

Westlake is beautiful! We looked there too and loved it. It is one of the more affluent areas of Austin, so the homes are gorgeous, the scenery amazing and the schools excellent. Of course, that comes with the price tag to match, so be aware of that. I think the home prices are particularly hard to swallow coming from Houston, where housing is relatively cheap.

I've heard mixed things about commuting to downtown from Westlake. It's a short distance (especially by Houston standards), but there's no real highway connecting the two places. you're limited to 2 and 4 lane roads that I've heard get pretty congested for the prime commuting times. I want to emphasize again how pretty the area is though, and that the schools are some of the best in the state.

That's my initial 2 cents. Feel free to follow up or ask about other places.
You're going to love Austin!

[mrsgoontz]

I agree with noisemaker. Westlake is a very nice area and the schools are great. I also have family that lives in Steiner Ranch and Lakeway and both of those areas are very nice as well but not near downtown.


Commuting into downtown is going to be a major PITA from anywhere in the suburbs. The highways get very backed up and there really isn't any way around it. A drive that might take you 15-20 minutes with no traffic will probably take you an hour.

[bella427]

Westake is great, if you can afford it. I'm nest poor. If housing is too pricey in Westlake, we really like the neighborhoods zoned for Brentwood and Gullett elementary schools. They're centrally located and DD is at BW currently. Many of the houses in this area were built in the 60s and 70s though; not sure if you're up for that or not, LOL. I also love the cute little houses in Hyde Park. They have good elementary schools too.

[bella427]

If you do end up going to Brentwood Elementary, PM me. Our daughters are the same age.

[texassmith]

kooshball: Yeah, Steiner Ranch is definitely too cookie cutter for us and also too far from downtown.

bella427: That's great! I *think* we should be able to get into Westlake, but you mentioning those other schools is really helpful too. Do you know anything about the middle schools/high schools in those neighborhoods? What would those neighborhoods/subdivisions be called so I can look at houses online? We're good with an older home. We actually may prefer it. We probably don't mind doing a bit of cosmetic updating, but don't want to have to do a gut-job or anything. Is your DD in kindergarten now? Hyde Park was on my radar for a while but it seemed like the houses are smaller, like 1500-1800 sq. ft.? Our rental now is ~1650 and it's fine, but we'll be looking to buy a house that we'll hopefully be in for a long time, so we'd like to have a bit more space.

noisemaker2 and mrsgoontz: Thank you! That's good to know about the commute. I'm not the one commuting so it's not a huge deal to me, but of course DH will care so it's good to have that info.

[bella427]

Brentwood and Gullett feed into McCallum, a good high school (performing arts magnet). The middle school though is Lamar, which is "up and coming." Hyde Park kids go to Highland Park Elem, great school. The BW and Gullett neighborhoods are Crestview, Brentwood and Allandale. Some of the Brentwood houses have additions; the older ones are smaller than where you are now. Gullett houses tend to be bigger than Brentwood and built in the 70s.

[texassmith]

Thanks bella427!

[texassmith]

noisemaker2, mrsgoontz, bella427...it's me again

Y'all know anything about Shady Hollow? Prices are better than Westlake (duh), but farther from downtown. Schools are Baranoff Elementary, Bailey Middle, Bowie High.

We just fell in love with a house online Obviously it's unlikely that it'll be around when we're looking next summer, but it's the same price as a shack in Westlake, which is appealing.

[mrsgoontz]

South Austin is just a completely different feel than the north side of town. I'm not sure about the elementary and jr. high school but Bowie high school is rough. You might not have to worry about that for a bit but it's still something to note IMO. The schools in WestLake are 100% better in my opinion. 

[texassmith]

Oct 30, 2013 15:27:54 GMT -5 mrsgoontz said:

South Austin is just a completely different feel than the north side of town. I'm not sure about the elementary and jr. high school but Bowie high school is rough. You might not have to worry about that for a bit but it's still something to note IMO. The schools in WestLake are 100% better in my opinion. 

Definitely something to consider. We're pretty much deciding between West and South/Southwest Austin I think. By HS we would be able to send them to private if we wanted to. Main priority is elementary at this point. We're thinking to get into Westlake in a house we'd actually want to live in, we'd need to rent at first (and rental prices are outrageous). I just really really don't want to rent then buy, but it may be unavoidable. From what I read online about Shady Hollow, it seems like an area with lots of young families, nice homes on large lots, and even a neighborhood moms group. So I like the sound of that, but we don't want to trade it for good schools.

[texassmith]

Oct 30, 2013 15:51:23 GMT -5 FormerlyRR said:

Oct 30, 2013 15:12:39 GMT -5 texassmith said:

noisemaker2, mrsgoontz, bella427...it's me again

Y'all know anything about Shady Hollow? Prices are better than Westlake (duh), but farther from downtown. Schools are Baranoff Elementary, Bailey Middle, Bowie High.

We just fell in love with a house online Obviously it's unlikely that it'll be around when we're looking next summer, but it's the same price as a shack in Westlake, which is appealing.

Shady Hollow is really nice, but access SUCKS. I lived in Sunset Valley, which is north of Shady Hollow, and loved it. Westlake is awfully nice, but I think a bit over hyped. Put Hyde Park back on your radar, the neighborhoods are so pretty and friendly. Get a good realtor, and let them know what you are looking for, there are some terrific ones in the area. 

Thank you! I didn't realize you were in Austin (I recognize you from my mostly-lurking on H&F). I'll check out Sunset Valley.

[bella427]

I don't know much about Shady Hollow but the elementary school is on the "good" list. If you're looking South and SW, I'd look at Travis Country and Circle C too. This website is a great forum for asking Austinites to suggest neighborhoods based on your budget and preferences: www.city-data.com/forum/austin/ I really like this website for home searches: www.realtyaustin.com/

[bella427]

Also, this was spot on. www.thrillist.com/entertainment/austin/austin-doesnt-suck-but-your-neighborhood-might

[texassmith]

Oct 31, 2013 10:29:30 GMT -5 bella427 said:

Also, this was spot on. www.thrillist.com/entertainment/austin/austin-doesnt-suck-but-your-neighborhood-might

LOL!

Thanks for the other links too. I bookmarked them