Filed under: Real Estate | Tags: Austin homes, Austin real estate, East Austin homes, investment homes Austin, Real Estate, real estate investment
Last week I showed homes to a client who wants to live a short distance from the LASA (Liberal Arts and Science Academy). We have focused in on zip code 78723 which includes University Hills, Walnut Hills, Gaston Park and Delwood. I am amazed at some of the prices – some homes are listed for $170/sq ft, even up to $199/sq ft. The house I liked the best was 7005 Langston Drive, now under contract. It has been beautifully remodeled, and in my opinion looks better in person than in the photos. The investor/remodeler was originally asking $259K, but had dropped the price to $229,900 for 1660 sq ft. I told my client that would sell fast at that price, and within a few days it was under contract. A home that my client liked quite a bit is 3404 Lakeside Dr. It backs to Little Walnut Creek and has a wonderful canopy of trees that make the backyard extremely private. The biggest obstacle for that house is the steps in the master bedroom. I’m sure most buyers are having difficulty imagining going up and down a few steps to get into and out of the bedroom (you have to take the steps up to the master bathroom). This house also needs work done on the retaining wall which has scared off at least one buyer.
Two other homes we saw were updated and ready for move in - 1313 Briarcliff, and 1304 Glencrest. Briarcliff is beautifully remodeled, but it would help if it were staged. There were a couple of corners that seemed like wasted space (in the living room and master bedroom), but with the right furniture, the space might be usable. The kitchen is wonderful and the sunroom with it’s unique windows is truly inviting. The remodelers did a good job turning a 1955 home into a usable floorplan for today’s homeowners. I wasn’t as excited by the remodel job at Glencrest, but it will work for someone. The sellers may have to come down on their price a bit, though.
Another 5 homes we viewed all need updating – 3011 Northeast, 6905 Tulane, 7000 Bryn Mawr, 5514 Delwood and 3002 Susquehanna. The most reasonably priced is Susquehanna at $125K. That one is just waiting for an investor to make it beautiful!
Filed under: Real Estate | Tags: Austin real estate, lake area homes, lakeview property, Parade Homes
Have you ever dreamed of living in a Parade Home? Do you know what a Parade Home is? Every year the Home Builders Association (HBA) puts on a “Parade of Homes” as a fundraiser and a fun event. Usually 5-8 custom builders design, build and decorate a home on a selected street, usually in a new subdivision, and then open the home for display to the public for about a week. Part of the fee collected then goes to a charity chosen by the HBA.
Parade Homes often are cutting edge. The builders spend a lot of time working on the projects in order to showcase the best of their work. In 2010, the Parade will be held in Rough Hollow, a neighborhood bordering Lake Travis. This Parade will showcase homes from $750K to $1.3M. Some will have lake views, some hill country views. They will all have access to the lake via the marina and there is a new restaurant in the neighborhood, the Grille.
It would be pretty exciting to be one of the Parade Homeowners! With only two of the homes sold so far, there are at least 3 choices available for those interested in the opportunity. These builders have plans ready, which the new homeowner can modify, or one of the builders is willing to work with the buyer’s plans. To learn more about this rare opportunity, call me!
Vikki Goodwin
REALTOR®, GRI, SRS
EcoBroker®
Homes ATX
512-426-9090 cell
www.vikkigoodwin.com
Filed under: Real Estate | Tags: Austin, Austin real estate, home sales data, homes, lake area homes, Lake Travis, Real Estate, Vikki Goodwin
If you have thought about buying an investment house in the Austin area, you should have some idea of what areas are selling well, and which areas aren’t. One indication of how well an area is doing is the amount of inventory compared to the number of sales per month. If you look at areas of Austin, South Austin is doing extremely well, while the Lake Travis area is not doing so well. Here are some numbers to show what I mean:
Zip code: 78734 (Lakeway and area)
Active homes today: 373
Sold in last 6 months: 180
Basically 12+ months of inventory
Zip code: 78669 (Briarcliff of South side of Lake Travis)
Active homes today: 168
Sold in last 6 months: 70
Basically 14+ months of inventory
Zip code: 78749 (South/SW Austin)
Active homes today: 95
Sold in last 6 months: 295
Sold in last 60 days: 94
2 months of inventory – means houses sell fast, many in less than 30 days
Zip code: 78745 (South Austin)
Active homes today: 90
Sold in last 6 months: 283
Sold in last 60 days: 94
Less than 2 months of inventory
Zip code: 78758 (North Austin)
Active homes today: 53
Sold in last 6 months: 113
Sold in 90 days: 64
Less than 3 months of inventory
This is not a comprehensive list, but it gives you an idea. There is simply too much inventory in the Lake Travis area for homes to sell quickly. There are exceptions in which homes sell quickly in the area, and those exceptions are typically homes near the average price ($250K) or homes that have been updated well and are still priced well (comparable to new construction, and not much higher).
For data on other areas or specific investment advice, call me.
Vikki Goodwin
REALTOR®, GRI, SRS
EcoBroker®
Homes ATX
512-426-9090 cell
www.vikkigoodwin.com
