Relocating to Austin - need advice (Round Rock, Spring: for sale, apartment complexes, rentals)

[jesslauren310]

Hello!

We are relocating from the Philly suburbs to the Austin area. I have done extensive research on some districts/areas and am just looking for a little advice from locals!

A little background: We are looking for 4 bedrooms, but 3 would be ok for the right location. We definitely want a yard, though it doesn't have to be very big, just no condos. We don't want to spend more than 500k on a house, so our range is around there or below. My husband will be working in downtown Austin.

1. I really like what I see about the Westlake district, but I can't seem to find a single family home that's under the high 500k range. Is this the case, or am I not looking in the right places?

2. I also like the Lake Travis and Dripping Springs districts, as well as part of Round Rock - but is the commute going to be awful for him in any of those areas? They don't seem "far" on the map, but I have heard traffic can be brutal.

3. Are there any really good school districts closer to the city that fit our price range that I'm missing?

4. Does Austin have a commuter rail or any sort of public transit from the outer limits to the city?

Thanks! I really appreciate the insight.

[hound 109]

Comments in quote below.

Originally Posted by jesslauren310

Hello!

We are relocating from the Philly suburbs to the Austin area. I have done extensive research on some districts/areas and am just looking for a little advice from locals!

A little background: We are looking for 4 bedrooms, but 3 would be ok for the right location. We definitely want a yard, though it doesn't have to be very big, just no condos. We don't want to spend more than 500k on a house, so our range is around there or below. My husband will be working in downtown Austin.

Great info, thanks for posting this.

1. I really like what I see about the Westlake district, but I can't seem to find a single family home that's under the high 500k range. Is this the case, or am I not looking in the right places?

It's Eanes ISD and Westlake HS. Yes, it'll be tough to find a home in your budget. What is it that you "really like" about it.

2. I also like the Lake Travis and Dripping Springs districts, as well as part of Round Rock - but is the commute going to be awful for him in any of those areas?

What is it that you "like" about them. (The areas offer VERY different demographics & lifestyles (& neighborhood feel).

They don't seem "far" on the map, but I have heard traffic can be brutal.

3. Are there any really good school districts closer to the city that fit our price range that I'm missing?

Don't go by District. Go by School track or School Feeder.

4. Does Austin have a commuter rail or any sort of public transit from the outer limits to the city?

Yes. From NW Austin (& CP & Leander) to Downtown & back. Where "downtown" will your hubby be working, this may be an option....or may not.

Thanks! I really appreciate the insight.

There might by 6-10 School tracks that would be in the mix depending on your answers to the above questions. If your husband works downtown, I'd drop Dripping (& maybe LT). If the home needs to be under 500K, I'd drop WL from the mix.

Good luck.

[jesslauren310]

thank you so much for responding!!! my answers are below:

1. I like the ratings of the Eanes district and the proximity to downtown in comparison to other options. A good commute would be optimal for him, and schools are really, really important to us. It also seems very beautiful from what I've seen/read.

2. Lake Travis and Dripping Springs seem - and correct me if I'm wrong, bc I'm going off of research, not being there in person at the moment - very family oriented with good schools and more affordable home prices.

3. He will be working in what looks to be the Warehouse District, right near University Medical Center Breckenridge. We are so used to taking the train to the city here in Philly, so I wasn't sure if that was a possibility for him.

[centralaustinite]

You could try to rent in Eanes ISD. You won't find any single family homes in your price range. There are apartments in EISD.

I would never make that commute from Dripping or Lake Travis area to Brackenridge. yowsa! Will he be on call?

Every where in Austin is family oriented.

[jesslauren310]

No call, regular business hours that he can set himself. But usually a regular 8-4 or 9-5 day. Do you have any other suggestions for places in our price range with a good/decent commute and excellent schools?

[riaelise]

As a train rider, the train is nothing like the commuter rail system that you are used to. If he's boarding in Austin during rush hours, I hope he understands that he will not sit. (That alone makes me think about going back to driving)

At that price range and school requirements, its either SW Austin or N suburbs, neither of which are particularly close to downtown. They aren't far away either, but if you are expecting a quick 15-20 minute commute that's not going to happen during rush hour. If schools are the most important, you want at least 4 brs, and your budget is to $500k, then (since you are already a suburbanite to begin with) I'd suggest you look in those areas. You'll get more but the tradeoff is more commute. Personally, commuting is just a fact of life for me since birth so I don't get all hot and bothered by it.

I live in RR, and there are actually three homes for sale in my neighborhood at the moment. One is pending, but for $515k, you'd get a 3900 sq ft custom house with a 1/2 acre of land. The other two are in the 400s. I think it would meet your requirements of family oriented (very much like a "Mayberry"), plus is features large lots and LOTS of mature trees. It is frankly a beautiful neighborhood that is very safe and hidden. It is an older neighborhood of Round Rock. The only caveats I would say are that it is farther out from downtown Austin (though definitely not as far out as many other RR neighborhoods) and the zoned high school is not the highest ranked in RRISD. While the neighborhood elementary is excellent and the middle school is great, the high school (which has a wider geographic coverage that includes many apartment complexes along I-35) is "above average". It's not bad by any stretch, and probably that's due to the fact that there are some pretty swank neighborhoods feeding into the school as well. But I'm just gonna put that out there. FWIW, many parents in my neighborhood still send their kids to the school and they are college bound. There are many stay at home folks in the neighborhood...either retirees or SAHM, so you wouldn't be alone and trapped in your house. The average resident is 42 years old, half the residents are retirees and the other half are younger families with children.

[Moonlady]

Originally Posted by centralaustinite

You could try to rent in Eanes ISD. You won't find any single family homes in your price range. There are apartments in EISD.

I would never make that commute from Dripping or Lake Travis area to Brackenridge. yowsa! Will he be on call?

Every where in Austin is family oriented.

I second this. You probably want to start out renting anyway to give you time to get a feel for the area, the commutes, schools, etc. Use the local MLS to find non-apartment Residential Rentals: www.austinhomesearch.com

[riaelise]

Originally Posted by jesslauren310

No call, regular business hours that he can set himself. But usually a regular 8-4 or 9-5 day. Do you have any other suggestions for places in our price range with a good/decent commute and excellent schools?

LOL, most places are 40 hours down here. I remember the days of working only 35. Not here.

[Roadking2003]

Westlake, Lake Travis, Dripping Springs and Round Rock are VERY different places to live. So you will need to set your priorities. Westlake (Eanes) schools are the best by far, and one of the top .01 percent in the nation. Westlake will be the shortest commute, but housing is very expensive. You might want to look at other parts of the Eanes School district, such as out Bee Cave road between 360 and the town of Bee Cave. Housing would be much more affordable than in Westlake.

Round Rock is a bedroom community. Dripping Springs is a small country town. Both will have long commutes (20 - 24 miles) to downtown and the Round Rock commute will be along the most congested route in Austin. Both will have affordable housing.

Lake Travis has very good schools, is farther out than Bee Cave and will have much more affordable housing than Westlake.

[Roadking2003]

BTW, if you use Google Maps you can see how long the commute is from various locations. Map it during rush hour and Google will tell you the travel time with traffic at that time.