SW, W, NW Austin? (Spring, Cedar Park: home, buying, construction)

[mimimomx3]

The commute from Circle C West (the most remote part of Circle C) to 35th would take about 15 minutes during the summer. Traffic seems to pick up quite a bit when school is in (UT and AISD) or when it rains, so you should probably add about 5 or 10 minutes to your estimated commute during those times.
Sorry, I respectfully disagree. That drive is at least 15 miles...the only time it would take 15 minutes is from 10 pm-6 am, barring construction. I think under the best of circumstances, I would budget 30 minutes. Adding 5 or 10 minutes during rush hour? Bad weather? Construction? Again...no. At that point, an hour.

[Trainwreck20]

Some random travel times from SW Austin (Starting at Escarpment and Davis, very near Circle C):
to Westlake HS area (weekday, pre-rush hour) - 13 minutes (8.5 miles)
to Westlake HS area (weekday, peak rush hour) - 30-35 minutes (8.5 miles)

to Canyon Vista MS (weeknight, ~7:30 pm) - ~25 minutes (22 miles on mapquest)
This is driving up MoPac to 183 and then heading North

These are the only ones that I have times lately (gotta use that little timer on my dash for something). The peak rush hour also represents school in sessions. It is always shorter than 1/2 hour when WHS is out for the summer.

[mimimomx3]

Some random travel times from SW Austin (Starting at Escarpment and Davis, very near Circle C):
to Westlake HS area (weekday, pre-rush hour) - 13 minutes (8.5 miles)
to Westlake HS area (weekday, peak rush hour) - 30-35 minutes (8.5 miles)

This is realistic, mostly because to get to WHS from Circle C you can exit 360...to get to 35th st. you have to cross the river, which is the bottleneck.

[audrey2]

I am beginning to think more and more that neighborhoods like Belterra, Twin Creeks (in CP), and certainly Steiner Ranch,and even the Bee Caves area are too far away for my commute to be comfortable. Even far south areas of Circle C may be too far away. I've let my realtor know that I'd like to hone in on areas like Lantana, Travis Country West,The Heights at Loma Vista, Convict Hill Rd., northern parts of Circle C, and Covered Bridge in the SW and I'm wondering if the Balcones/Spicewood area (farther NW) would be too far. Are there any more similar neighborhoods that are within this radius of where I'll work (It's more like Westover and Exposition and not 35th and Exposition)? Is there anything similar directly to the west?

Now with all your insights re: adding time to the commute for rush hour traffic, I would like to keep my commute down to 15 minutes during non-peak times. I figure if I leave for work between 6:45 and 7 am, then I'll only need to add an extra 5-10 minutes maybe? Thank you for putting up with all my questions. In no time, thanks in part to y'all, I will start to sound more and more like I know what I'm talking about! It is hard being a newbie. Now if I could just stop procrastinating and get back to decluttering my current house so that we can sell it, then all will be well!!

You all have been so helpful. It's just a little frustrating, since I'm not out there yet (not until early August) and can't just jump in my car and go exploring the neighborhoods yet!

[mimimomx3]

Now with all your insights re: adding time to the commute for rush hour traffic, I would like to keep my commute down to 15 minutes during non-peak times. I figure if I leave for work between 6:45 and 7 am, then I'll only need to add an extra 5-10 minutes maybe?
If your commute time is your most important factor, then I would look at Allandale (2222 on east side of Mopac) and Crestview (East 45th area). These are older homes, smaller, NOT planned communities but they should put you at mopac and westover in under 20 minutes...no highway commutes.

[audrey2]

I have been doing a lot of research since my last post (That could be good or bad!) and now it looks like I have a lot more questions...Thank you for all of your help so far. I really am starting to get a feel of things as best I can from far away. Less than a month now till I arrive, though!

I don't want to get that close in (Allandale, etc.) I still want new (not older than 1997) and nice.

Does anyone know anything about the Village at Western Oaks? Is it "nice"? Good quality builders? Good appreciation of property? What about Legend Oaks, Shady Hollow, Austin Lake Hills, spricewood Springs, Stablewood at Slaughter Creek, Deer Haven, Southland Oaks (The Villages at Shady Hollow), Lake Pointe, or Davis Spring?

Also, I am confused. There is at least one house in Travis Country West that was built in the 80s. Does it have newer phases? also, what is so great about the 78750 (Lakewood) area? About how much money would I save per year living in a home besides Belterra, where I understand the utility bills are through the roof?

THANKS!

[mimimomx3]

Does anyone know anything about the Village at Western Oaks? Is it "nice"? Good quality builders? Good appreciation of property? What about Legend Oaks, Shady Hollow

I would say that Western Oaks dates from the 1980s, as do Legend Oaks and Shady Hollow (most parts). the commute from these neighborhoods to Westover during rush hour are at least 30 minutes. I'm not familiar with the other neighborhoods. Spicewood and Lakewood, if I'm correct, are off 360...those are newer, I think, but the commuting time is similar.

[Trainwreck20]

I am in the Villages of Western Oaks, and our house is 1999 construction. This is in the same general area as Western oaks and Legend Oaks, so there are some newer houses out in this area. The neighborhoods are very well situated and are appreciating a little too nicely for my tax taste . Rush hour commute is ~30 miinutes to Westover area, a little less or a little more depending on schools in session, etc.

[mimimomx3]

I really like Western Oaks and Legend Oaks....lots of nice trees!

[audrey2]

Thanks for the info on some of those communities. Would you mind giving me specific builder info? I must admit builders like Wilshire (as opposed to pre fab builders) are a dealbreaker for us. We need to have the good quality. What about current and projected appreciation in these areas, too? That will be really important to us in our search as well. How do planned master communities tend to appreciate over time? Once the "luster" and "newness" wears off, do they tend to be totally replaced by newer planned communities? Seems to me that it would take almost no time for the homes in any planned community to become dated and therefore not popular. Or, does it really ALL come down to location?

If that is so, then which SW communities have been predicted to really go up in value over time, or is there really no way to know that? I know that in the W and NW, the lakes are a natural boundary, which could cause the properties east of the lakes to increase significantly in value? Does the SW have anything like that going for it?

Also, about how much money would I save per year living in a home besides Belterra, where I understand the utility bills are through the roof? Thanks for any answers. Once I move out there, I will have the luxury of hands-on learning and learning through doing/learning through experience. I'm definitely looking forward to that! If it's not obvious, I have never sold or bought a house before. My husband already lived in our current house when we met.