Work for a tech company in North Austin looking to buy in a neighborhood close to work that values creativity. (house, live)

[sxrckr]

Valid points from both sides on Agave. I think it's a wait and see...

[clarios]

If you're searching for a creative and diverse community with an Austin feel, this neighborhood is where it's at. A good look into the culture of Agave Austin:

Life at Agave Austin

[scm53]

Originally Posted by clarios

If you're searching for a creative and diverse community with an Austin feel, this neighborhood is where it's at. A good look into the culture of Agave Austin:

Life at Agave Austin

Filed for bankruptcy last year. Interesting designs, with the inbound landing pattern for ABIA right overhead - some of the cheapest land in town, with some of the worst schools.

All you need to know here - before the 2012 bankruptcy.

[clarios]

I agree with the comment on public schools here as many public schools on the east side are having problems. Most of us send our kids to the Austin Discovery School across the street from our neighborhood. People drive from all over to send their kids there. ADS is very Waldorf like and it's free. Currently, kids can go there through 6th grade, but they have plans to expand thru 8th in the next two years. After that a lot of the kids (along with their ADS peers) go to the Khabele school downtown.

Tis also true that the previous developer went bankrupt as did many in the economic downturn. This was also true for neighborhoods that went on to thrive such as Circle C so it's common when developing large communities like this. We currently have over 120 modern houses built in our neighborhood, which makes us a lot bigger than other similar green built developments like Sol.

We are about 15-18 minutes from the airport, so we see planes fly by. It isn't like they are flying low overhead, so no one ever complains about it.

As far as the cheapest land in town, if that's true, then I feel like we got a hell of a deal! We are perched high on top of a hill overlooking the downtown skyline. The sunsets here are to die for especially since the creative designs of our modern homes often yield a whole wall of windows from which we view the amazing sunrises and sunsets. Additionally, these houses were perfectly designed to capitalize on the natural light to reduce energy consumption. We never turn a light on during the day and at night we marvel at the full moon which peaks through the windows when you least expect it.

Moreover, our neighbors are very much like us. They value creativity and don't want to live in the traditional cookie cutter houses that make up a majority of the housing here due to historical reasons. Most have lived in Austin for a long time and enjoy the short 6 mile commute downtown. Our community is not your typical neighborhood. It's full of a diverse mix of Austin musicians, actors, professors, writers, filmmakers, entrepreneurs, designers and technologists. Our house crawls and happy hours are tons of fun and we all equally love living here. Perhaps the other thing we all love about this community is that it's full of great kids and its' incredibly dog-friendly.

Agave is not for everyone. If you are buying a house and have an absolute need to flip it in the next few years in hopes of making a lot of money, this may not be the place for you (although a lot of development is coming out this way which will likely increase property values over the next 10 years). However, if you want to be a part of a thriving diverse community who values each resident's individuality and want to provide your kids with a creative environment to grow up in, you may fall in love with Agave as much as all of us have.

[austin-steve]

Originally Posted by clarios

...
Agave is not for everyone.
... However, if you want to be a part of a thriving diverse community who values each resident's individuality and want to provide your kids with a creative environment to grow up in, you may fall in love with Agave as much as all of us have.

Sounds like it's perfect for you, though the photos remind me of scenery out of Breaking Bad.

I'm always a bit fearful and leery of communities which seek to help people collectively fulfill deep emotional needs rather than provide for practical everyday conveniences. But more power to you all if it works out.

Having put two kids through the Austin Waldorf School (and glad I did) it was interesting to see how valuing "values" eventually creates friction and judgment about those who don't seem to fit, or who don't value the "values" as deeply as others. I loved and still know and love many of my Waldorf friends - friends for life - but god save me if I'd have had to live in a neighborhood full of only them.

Give me some Republicans, Libertarians, old school Yellow Dog Democrats, non-musical, non-artistic business owners and fellow dog haters mixed in with all the aging hippies and Cultural Creatives and I think that makes for a much more flavorful stew of people to hang out and talk with than a bunch of like-minded sameness.

But to each his/her own. From strictly a real estate investment standpoint, it's better to buy mainstream in areas with good schools that appeal to the masses. If I wanted Madrid NM, I'd just move there.

Steve

[clarios]

Our neighborhood absolutely provides everyday conveniences. One of the biggest reasons many people chose this area is because of its convenience to most places in Austin... Downtown, the northern tech corridor (where many of us work, including myself as a software product manager) and UT. It's nice to be close to the city, but far enough out to still be able to see the stars at night.

And as I said, our neighborhood is incredibly diverse... Perhaps one of the most diverse in Austin. There are all types of cultures, religions, and political affiliations. While there are many cultural creatives, a large portion of us are in software at fortune companies while others are restaurant owners and even public school teachers. The things we have in common are that we enjoy creative living spaces with an element of sustainability and an Austin feel.

I think people tend to cast judgment on that which is not familiar to them. And I can understand why people think of Agave as different. It isn't the normal cookie cutter development.

[texan2yankee]

There are beautiful and very interesting houses in Agave, but where are the trees? I can see why some people would like the aesthetics of this community. Cookie cutter houses all in a row don't appeal to me either. The choices in Austin for housing are pretty diverse, which is one of the charms of the city, imo.

[clarios]

I agree. I think we all would love to see more trees. Since this development only started about 5 years ago, the trees planted as each house was built have not grown full size yet. We have 4 baby trees at our house as do many of our neighbors, but there's no rushing Mother Nature. This is a characteristic of most new developments.

[clack567]

Clarios, what are your thoughts on further development of Agave, and what that might do to future home value if they decide not to continue with the original vision of all modern design? Genuinely interested, as I love the place.

[cp102]

Absolutely beautiful. I am glad you found a place that has everything you wanted. Thats whats important. And I have bought in places people said would never appreciate, I loved the house and surprisingly within a 5-7 year time frame that property went up in value quickly. I purchase for me not for anyone else. The pictures were amazing, thank you for posting them. I live in a community with mostly Victorian style homes , there are the only two that are different, both being more more of a modern style. People said it would be a mistake it would never go up in value. We purchase with the mindset of staying permanently, so we didn't care. But the 2nd custom home built similar design sold for alot more than we paid. So enjoy your home each and every day!!!