Moving - No inside view! Please help.. (Austin, Spring: short sales, real estate market)

[futuretexan]

So my wife and I just got a job offer from a company around the West Lake Hills and Lost Creek areas. We were going to move to another state, but found out that we would be getting paid more.

We want to eventually buy a home, and we have enough as first time home buyers for the down payment. Preferably less than $100k. I'd like to stay around a 30 min commute time (if possible? I don't even know how the traffic is around that area) Looking at short sales or foreclosures.

Let me paint a quick picture here: I come from white-suburbia in the midwest. I'd like to stay away from any violence-prone areas. What are areas to avoid?

Are there any neighborhoods or areas that would be in our price range and a safe place to raise our kids?

Schooling is a huge deal as well. Any districts that you would recommend?

I sincerely appreciate any/all information that you can share. I just don't have family down in Texas and don't even know the first thing of where to start (places to avoid/things to look for)

Thanks in advance, and I hope that I can get some responses!

[mark311]

Are your kids already in school or are you just planning for the future?

Less than $100K with good schools and within a 30 minute commute to West Lake Hills won't be an easy task. The good short sales and foreclosures in that price range are often immediately purchased with cash by investors and the ones that aren't often need a lot of work. The Real Estate market in the Austin area is not depressed like other parts of the country and the West Lake Hills/Lost Creek area is not a cheap area to be close to.

Personally, I would start with an apartment close to work as that would provide you with good schools and you can scout out other areas after that. Even if you raised your price range to $150K, you would probably still have a tough time finding what you're looking for within a 30 minute commute. Especially if your kids aren't school-aged yet, I'd definitely go with the apartment close to work.

[llkltk]

$100K near that area for work? I'd say it is impossible. You will be facing a long commute and probably need to look in areas that are not so great. That is a pretty low price. Even in Pflugerville or Buda, you would pay way more than that. I think renting is a good option for you.

[yam]

$100k is for the house or just the down payment? $100k down payment is just about right for westlake hills or lost creek. Both areas are safe upper middle class areas with highly rated schools.

[drshdw]

I think $100k is for the down payment. $100k as your total budget won't get you very far.

[futuretexan]

Wow. This move could be harder than I thought... We are first home buyers so ideally I'd like to stay around $100k. I realize that it won't get us very far, but I'm not trying to shoot for the stars here. It sounds to me that the office is nestled within an area with people making a TON of money.

A concession needs to be made. So if I am willing to commute, what are some neighborhoods I should look at? Schools that I can widdle the search down by?

Simply, I want to get into a home because the market and interest rates are so low, i'd like to capitalize.

Clarification:

We are planning for the future on the kiddos.

Thanks again for additional insight.

[centralaustinite]

Rent! For at least 6 months if not two years. There is no need to rush into a home purchase in an unfamiliar area. Any home you can find at that price point (100K) will be far out in an exurb and where you are unlikely to see any appreciation because you will be surrounded with raw land that will be turned into other low-price new homes. No one will want your house at re-sale because just down the road will be a new, low-priced home.

Rent a nice apartment close to your work. Get familiar with the area, save some money. Decide exactly where you want to live in a year or two. Frankly, even with kids, renting and staying in Eanes school district might be a better option than buying a house out in Buda or unincorporated Hays County somewhere.

Be patient. Rates are likely to stay low until 2014 if not beyond. (read the minutes of the last Federal Reserve meeting).

[Jennibc]

I hate to be a party-pooper, but unfortunately $100,000 will not get you a single family house in a safe area in the Austin metro. Austin has the most expensive housing market in Texas. While the metro area has reasonable housing prices compared to cities on the coast or big cities like Chicago or DC, it's not super cheap here.

[Dog_Gone]

You can find condos for close to that price in Austin. Just over 100K will get you into a nice starter. It could be used later for income or just nice shot to have some quick equity. The down side - No real chance at an FHA loan. The condo FHA rules have changed dramatically. HOA, not everyone is hip on HOA's.

[Trainwreck20]

Westlake Hills\Lost Creek is probably one of the most expensive areas around Austin, with the exception of some of the more central downtown areas (Tarrytown, Travis Heights). Commuting 30 minutes might get you into a decent house for 200k, although 250k is probably more realistic.

Now, you might want to consider renting an apartment (houses might be steep) in the Westlake area proper. That is Eanes Independent School district (EISD) and is a stellar school system by any metrics. The down side would be that if you wanted to buy a house, you would most likely either have to move out of district or wait some years until you could pay for a much more expensive house.

Alternatively, you could rent in a school district that you might be able to afford a house in sooner. The first place that comes to mind is Dripping Springs, which is pushing the 30 minutes but might work if you 'go in early' (i.e 7:00 am). I am not sure what the housing prices are there exactly, but they will be significantly lower the Eanes and you will less likely have to change districts when you buy a house.

A second option is to look in some areas of South Austin. There are some excellent schools, although housing value is pretty closely tied to school quality, so you have to be a bit selective. The rental prices, though, will be much less than Eanes and the commute probably easier than Dripping.