liberty hill tx (Austin, Round Rock, Georgetown: foreclosure, lender, house)

[don1299]

can anyone tell me what it would be like to live there

[deeptrance]

I think Liberty Hill is a great place to buy a house and hold onto it for as long as you can because it's at the cutting edge of the urbanizing Northwestern suburbs of Austin. You would have easy access to the lakes and other countryside yet still be close to Cedar Park with all its urban amenities, and at non-commute times it's only a half hour to central Austin.

The history of Liberty Hill isn't so nice. There's still a remnant of old-time rednecks and drunks who live there, my friend's grandmother is one of them! I've heard some negative things about the "hillbilly" types who've been there for generations, but that's going to all be absorbed into the urban scene.

Leander is planning a rail-oriented walkable downtown. You would be near that and perhaps Liberty Hill will one day become connected to the commuter rail system and have its own walkable "new urbanist" neighborhood designed around rail and pedestrians. If this happens, then watch your property value skyrocket.

I think it's a good choice, but not if you're looking for progressive urban neighbors. You'd have to hop in your car and drive into Austin for that.

[FoxClover]

Don1299:
Do you have more specific questions re: Liberty Hill? I would be happy to help.

Here is a general overview. As already posted, Liberty Hill is on the edge of the Austin urban/metro area. The cities of Leander and Cedar Park exist between Liberty Hill and Austin, but Cedar Park has and Lender is soon becoming just another part of the Austin metro area.

The cost of housing has steadily increased in the past years. I purchased property in Liberty Hill in 2001, built a house in 2002, and have seen the value of my investment go up (more than I would like -- for tax reasons) every year. Before Liberty Hill I lived in Leander for 7 years. I was on the far north side of Leander and it was nice for about 2 years. After that it just became another part of the Austin metro. Land (and homes) is no longer a bargin in Liberty Hill. What you get is more property (like 2-5 acres) for the same cost as a lot (120’ x 60’) closer into the city of Austin with an equivalent size house.

The commute from Liberty Hill (assuming you would need to work in Austin) can range from 35 minutes to 2 hours depending on weather and time of day. For the past 10 years I worked on the far northwest side of Austin and my commute was rarely more than 30 minutes. For the past year I have been working closer to downtown (off I35) and my commute is normally 50 minutes each way. If you worked in Cedar Park, Leander, Round Rock, or Georgetown, you could expect your commute to he less than ½ that. I had a friend who lived in Liberty Hill and worked in south Austin – his commute was about 1 hour and 20 minutes each way.

The school system in Liberty Hill is excellent. The quality of the education is on par with most of the best school districts in Texas. The only thing Liberty Hill is lacking is the quantity of selection you might find in larger districts (like French or German classes for example). Our sports programs are good, but again smaller. We are classified as a 3A school. For comparison, Austin & Leander, which includes Cedar Park, are class 5A – the largest. We are state champions this year in class 3A football. I expect that will help increase the amount of funding dedicated to sport and sports programs.

Honestly, I could go on for pages about what I like about Liberty Hill and why I moved here from Leander, but let me sum it up like this: My former employer was bought out and shut down a year ago. I was offered a job with the new company at my same pay rate, grade, etc. if I relocated to their corporate headquarters. The HQ location happened to be 100 miles from where I grew up and still have a few old friends. I decided to take my chances with unemployment and stay in Liberty Hill. Oh, and I do not regret it for a moment. I was back working in a similar position in less than 30 days and other than a longer commute was not really affected by the change.

If you have additional questions, please feel free to ask.

Fox

[naturalears]

I have bought three places in Liberty Hill this year; one, a creek property in forclosure, worth three times what I paid.
One, an old arts and crafts home, built around 1915, in great shape; which I am living in while I renovate to sell. I also have a contract on one of 13 turn of the century limestone commercial buildings on Main Street; it was the barbershop. Homes are running under $1 a square foot in old town.

The new tollroad will change this place completely. Values are rising daily, and the real deals are in 'old town' where we are still waiting for the new sewer to come in. Everyone is on septic, which stinks. It should come in 6 months; it will cost a few thousand to hook up, but will raise values geometrically.

This is a charming area. I like the old drunks, too. I lived here in the 70's, when Main Street enjoyed a renaissance of sorts. They had a sculpture event which drew artists from all over the world. The old storefronts were restored; there was a movie theatre, a cafe. a bakery, a local newspaper, etc. It is poised to happen once again, and there won't be so far to go to make it happen.

[Hawk70]

I am looking at buying/investing in property in Liberty Hill. Did you use a realtor? Can you recommend? Are you a realtor? How did you find the foreclosure? Thanks.

Originally Posted by naturalears

I have bought three places in Liberty Hill this year; one, a creek property in forclosure, worth three times what I paid.
One, an old arts and crafts home, built around 1915, in great shape; which I am living in while I renovate to sell. I also have a contract on one of 13 turn of the century limestone commercial buildings on Main Street; it was the barbershop. Homes are running under $1 a square foot in old town.

The new tollroad will change this place completely. Values are rising daily, and the real deals are in 'old town' where we are still waiting for the new sewer to come in. Everyone is on septic, which stinks. It should come in 6 months; it will cost a few thousand to hook up, but will raise values geometrically.

This is a charming area. I like the old drunks, too. I lived here in the 70's, when Main Street enjoyed a renaissance of sorts. They had a sculpture event which drew artists from all over the world. The old storefronts were restored; there was a movie theatre, a cafe. a bakery, a local newspaper, etc. It is poised to happen once again, and there won't be so far to go to make it happen.