Is Meridian good place to buy home? (Austin, Round Rock: fit in, real estate market)

[JDeror]

I am planning to buy home in Meridian but I have few questions regarding the area.

1. There is no CVS or HEB within 2 miles. Do they plan on opening one in few years?
2. New elementary school - is that a good point or bad? I mean it could turn out to be an average school.
3. And it appears that they are struggling to sell home in that area - both used and new.
4. How is the intersection of La crosse and Mo Pac in the evenings and morning?

My Realtor is a big fan of the area and claims that you cant negotiate more than 5% with anyone in that area.

And I drove around the place yesterday and it appears that it is almost 10-12 miles from that downtown, which is not as close as few guys in this forum claim.

Jon

[jobert]

Originally Posted by JDeror

My Realtor is a big fan of the area.

Studies have shown that 10-out-of-10 realtors are big fans of areas where they own/sell real estate.

You should type your realtor's name into TravisCAD, and see what pops up.

[nickeol]

I live in Circle C West which is quite close to Meridian. I love the area. If you have a family it is a great area. Most of these neighborhoods seem to be family oriented.
As for HEB/CVS, not sure if anything new is coming, but there is a great HEB at Slaughter and Escarpement which should not be more than a 5 to 7 minute drive from you. There is Walgreens at the corner of Mo-Pac and Slaughter so also relatively close.
As for the school I would expect for it to end up being on par with the other schools this area. Many people who will be attending that school are coming from Clayton Elementary and will demand the same from this school.
LaCrosse and MoPac is not a busy intersection ever really. Mo-Pac and Slaughter will back up a bit a rush hour, but nothing too extreme. If you are commuting to downtown at prime time rush hour I would expect a 25 minute commute, non-rush hour you can be downtown in 15 minutes. If you are commuting north of downtown than I would suggest that Meridian might not be your best option.
As for the real estate market I can't speak much to that other than it is a bit slow everywhere right now and if you look hard enough all neighborhoods are struggling still.
Good luck!

[llkltk]

Originally Posted by JDeror

I am planning to buy home in Meridian but I have few questions regarding the area.

1. There is no CVS or HEB within 2 miles. Do they plan on opening one in few years?
2. New elementary school - is that a good point or bad? I mean it could turn out to be an average school.
3. And it appears that they are struggling to sell home in that area - both used and new.
4. How is the intersection of La crosse and Mo Pac in the evenings and morning?

My Realtor is a big fan of the area and claims that you cant negotiate more than 5% with anyone in that area. I can reach the city in 12 minutes with no traffic. How would you like to live in Round Rock where it will take you 25 minutes with no traffic. Meridian is part of SW Austin, close to the city, yet far enough away.

And I drove around the place yesterday and it appears that it is almost 10-12 miles from that downtown, which is not as close as few guys in this forum claim.

Jon

You are wrong on all points. Where do you get your info? I think you are living in the Twilight Zone. There is an HEB 5 miles away in Circle C, and it is one of the best in Austin. CVS is on William Cannon, about 7 miles away. Who would want a CVS within 2 miles anyway.

A new elementary school bad? Most people bought homes because schools are GREAT for resale value. Considering the area, this school will be as good as Clayton, Kiker, etc. This one made me laugh.

Meridian is not struggling to sell homes. The ones that aren't reselling have issues, bad lawns, facing road noise, etc. There are not many lots left in here, maybe about 6 or 7 Scott Felder homes and some towards the back that are more in the 400s and 500s. That price point isn't doing well in any area of Austin. The section up front sells really well and the prices have been appreciating about 5% per year. I wouldn't expect much of a deal unless you find a spec.

12 minutes to the city with no traffic is REALLY CLOSE! Would you rather live in RR where it will take 25 minutes? Come on, this is as close as you get to Austin. It is not far away by any means!

Seriously, I hope that your realtor didn't tell you any of this because if he did he is not very good at what he does. Meridian is a fabulous area, the school is highly anticipated and our property values are rising. Not sure if such negativity would fit in around here.

[TheyCallMeDerek]

Originally Posted by jobert

Studies have shown that 10-out-of-10 realtors are big fans of areas where they own/sell real estate.

You should type your realtor's name into TravisCAD, and see what pops up.

I've never heard of this study subject...weird thing to post. I own property but not in my name, under a trust or LLC so searching TCAD isn't going to get all of the info suggested here. I also like the area but don't own in Meridian or Circle C. Very good builders there, some better than others. As far as schools go; even a school with an "exemplary" rating can change without notice, so can boundaries.

[JDeror]

Doesnt following sound funny -

Originally Posted by llkltk

There is an HEB 5 miles away in Circle C, and it is one of the best in Austin. CVS is on William Cannon, about 7 miles away. Who would want a CVS within 2 miles anyway.

Come on HEB is HEB.

And yes I would prefer to have CVS within 3-4 miles of my home. Its always good to have a pharmacy nearby.

Originally Posted by llkltk

12 minutes to the city with no traffic is REALLY CLOSE!

Downtown is 12 mins drive and CVS/HEB is 10 mins drive?

I agree with nickeol that most of the kids who goto Clayton will be going to the new and I heard that the principal is from some very good school.

llkltk - Scottfelder has 2 homes in Market for more than 2 months (& 1 of them is waiting for owner for almost 4 months) and 1 resale home has been sitting out there for 2 months (w/ 3 price reductions). May be they dont want to sell it cheap.

FYI the prices of homes in Levata drive have gone down by 4% avg.

I am not here to offend you or anyone but what I put here is pure stats.

Still Meridian might be a good buy to bring up your family.

Jon

[llkltk]

I think Meridian is not the place for you. If you want to be 2 miles from everything, perhaps Central Austin is for you. I disagree with your assessment. You really need to talk with your realtor because you don't seem like you have any good information. Scott Felder does not have that many floorplans to choose from. That is another reason why they have lots left. Most of the homes have risen so high in value that they have had to go to the appraisal district to reduce their value. You aren't a Meridian resident so you do not have the facts. HEB is not HEB. Some are better than others, the HEB in Circle C has a Cafe on the Run. Most do not have that. Again, you do not have the information. You need to do your homework.

Try other areas of Austin. Meridian obviously doesn't fit the bill since you complain about CVS, etc. Walgreens is a 5 minute drive on Slaughter. Honestly, it doesn't get closer than that. Unless you want to build your house next to the Walgreens.

[llkltk]

As for the resale not selling, they were OVERPRICED from the get go. Had they priced it correctly in the beginning, it might have sold.

[jobert]

Originally Posted by CallDerek

I've never heard of this study subject...weird thing to post.

I was being sarcastic.

Originally Posted by llkltk

There is an HEB 5 miles away in Circle C, and it is one of the best in Austin. CVS is on William Cannon, about 7 miles away. Who would want a CVS within 2 miles anyway.

You're right about the CVS, it's trashy. You actually want a Walgreens within 1 mile instead - like I do - along with the 3 (and soon to be 4) grocery stores within 2 miles of my house.

[jobert]

The "elephant in the room" here is that SW Austin sits on an aquifer that feeds our springs.

Translation: Future large scale development in far SW Austin (south of Slaughter) will be practically non-existant due to environmental restrictions, and residents there will have to drive several miles to get anything they need, and even further if it's something more specific. How fun. To further mitigate undesired sprawl (as it's on a aquifer), this part of town will not see improved road capacity for what appears to be in my lifetime, or at least until 2020. I think the ability to live on land that was formerly off-limits and "special" appealed to narcissistic tendancies, and thus became "desirable".

Ironically, this is the double-edged sword they have chosen to live with. Back in the 80's-90's, the majority of development south of the river was junk-yards, dirty auto-repair shops and light industrial buildings. Residents who chose to live in this area of far SW Austin made a conscious decision to be removed from the rest of south/sw Austin - as it was dirty and undesirable.

Fast forward to 2010. Now these formerly undesirable areas of south Austin are booming with amenities, and will continue to do so. It's becoming increasing apparent that separating one's community from the 90% of the amenities and development on their side of town will begin to have the opposite effect as originally intended.