Hutto Neighborhoods (Round Rock, Pflugerville, West: HOA, co-op, new home)

[blackbunneh]

Hi! I am new to the whole HOA thing, but it looks like most of the houses I've seen in Hutto are managed by one. I hope someone in the know could advise me about which neighborhoods might fit us best.

We're looking for something with 4 bedrooms and a decent sized backyard. I would like to plant some fruit trees and an organic vegetable and herb garden. I plan to have a compost system and/or worm bin.

We have children aged 0, 6, and 9 who would like other kids to play with. I stay at home with them so hopefully I will find other women who are around during the day. I'd like to meet people who walk, garden, craft, and enjoy intellectual pursuits more than reality shows. (Nothing wrong with liking those, but they are not my thing.) Being walking or biking distance to some of the area amenities would be cool. I do realize that most things in Texas are spaced out, but being able to wAlk to the school or bike to get groceries would be awesome.

Most of all I want to avoid a really nitpicky environment and any drama. I don't want to have to submit triplicate requests to a HOA before planting flower beds, putting out a bench, or installing our dog run. I don't much care what other people choose to do with their houses as long as they aren't making really loud sounds or hanging swastikas in their yards! I understand that uniformity is important to some people, but is not too important to us.

Thanks so much for any input! I am looking forward to having a new hometown!
Forgive any typos, please. I have such a hard time typing on my Kindle.

[love roses]

I'm typing on one too. I'll try answering some of your questions, as I live in Hutto.

Most of the neighborhoods in Hutto have HOA's, except 'Old Town' and the more rural areas of Hutto. Some HOA's may be stricter than others. I am on the ARC for my neighborhood, and we do require people to submit forms for certain improvements, but we look at it as more of a formality and really don't disapprove much. If we could get our HOA to let us have chickens, there are lots of residents who would love that (myself included). We allow varied landscape choices and lots of people here like xeriscaping. In Old Town Hutto, you only have to deal with Code Enforcement.

You should be able to find a house like that nearly anywhere here, and plant whatever you want. I live in an HOA neighborhood and have fruit trees, a garden, an herb garden, a compost bin and my husband is going to put in a keyhole bed soon. I would love to do the worm thing too. Hutto also has a community garden if you need more garden space.

There are lots of SAHM's here. You can also find local playgroups. Look at meetup.com and talk to your neighbors to find specific ones. There are a few good parks here and we are also close to Old Settler's Park. Hutto has a hike/bike trail that the city, in the near future, plans to extend to interconnected with a larger system connecting Pflugerville and Round Rock, and to also circle all of Hutto. Several of the neighborhoods have schools in them that you can walk to. Otherwise, there is bus service. We are in walking distance to an elementary and middle school. I use to get upset with all the development around my neighborhood when I first moved here, but
Now I'm happy that I can walk or bike to every restaurant in Hutto, The doctor is right there, an optometrist, the library, banks, the YMCA (when it's finally built), several churches, the drycleaners, liquor store, frozen yogurt....just anything. Another great thing will be once they get the CO-OP developed. They are also going to have a food trailer park close by. Oh, and walking distance to the farmers market. Hutto also has several festivals throughout the year. The only downside is that Hutto has no major grocery store. You will have to drive or use CARTS or a Cab to do that. We DO have a great little market called Westphalia that is primarily a meat market but also sells some produce and other grocery items. It is a family run business and small, but many people do small scale shopping there to keep their money local. They have great meat there too, much of it from local farms and ranches.

From much of what you post, ask the realtor to show you houses in old town.
now I'm happy that I am in walking or hiking distance