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I'd look at the Mueller Development: Homepage | Mueller Austin
or Allandale neighborhoods. They're both in Travis County but much better fit walkability needs than most places in Wilco.
A commute from Mueller to Round Rock wouldn't be so bad, it's a reverse commute.
I'm just north of mueller and drive to Seton Williamson regularly ...on the weekends and it can take me 35 minutes. The traffic right at 45/35 stacks up. It would take me 45 minutes to get ftonst. John's/35 to wells brabch/35 at times when I was out there. It can be a tough commute. It not as bad as others...
People are trying to sell you a Williamson county that isn't what you are looking for. Williamson County is the Colin County of Austin. There are nice, high-end parts like some parts of Plano and Frisco (Avery Ranch, parts of Cedar Park), good upper-middle class areas like Allen (Round Rock, Cedar Park), areas that have everything from working class to luxury like McKinny (Leander, Georgetown). And sure, you *might* find a walkable area in Williamson county, but it will be surrounded by boring suburbia. But based off what you are telling us, they are not what you are looking for.
Look in North Central Austin. With your budget, you will be able to find diverse housing options. I might like to suggest Allendale. You will find it a flat, somewhat walkable area, with a lot of young families. For under a million, you will be able to find new construction of a medium sized house (not the 6000sqft+ homes of Coppell or Southlake you might be used to, but with a neighborhood filled with charm). Hyde Park, Brentwood, Clarksville will all be very walkable in family friendly neighborhoods but are going to give your husband a bit of a commute. But you likely won't call it boring suburbia.
Now with your budget, let's talk about West Austin. Anyone moving to Austin with a million dollar budget who doesn't at least give West Austin a look at is selling themselves short. I am going to give information about West Austin which is in Austin, not Eanes, Lake Travis, or Stiener Ranch, which are all west of Austin.
Tarrytown: The most walkable neighborhood, but not much to walk to. Considered the old money part of Austin. You will find older, somewhat renovated homes in the million dollar price range, and these homes will be big enough for a family-- likely around 2000sqft. Good Schools, especially the Casis Elementary. I personally love the charm of Tarrytown, and would consider it my dream neighborhood, if only one day I will be lucky enough to afford it.
Mount Bonnell/Highland Park: Not walkable at all, but you are in the hills! With a million dollars to spend, you likely won't have a view, but you will be only steps away from beautiful views. You will get a little more for your house here than in Tarrytown. Lots of families and Highland Park elementary is FANTASTIC. However, many families do not send their kids to the local middle and high school, because those buying these pricey homes want better schools. Public school options are LASA, one of the best high schools in the state, but located on the other side of town, or get an IB transfer to Anderson. I am a graduate of Anderson, and I know about a dozen kids who graduated with me who lived in Highland Park and took advantage of this option. Given that Highland Park elementary has about 80 kids per class, this is a sizable population of the area.
Northwest Hills: Not very walkable, but more walkable than Highland Park. Schools are better, you may even get a view with your home. This is one of the neighborhoods I grew up in, and families are always walking the streets, but more for the exercise, and not to any destination in particular. The neighborhood is filled with charm. Schools are great and in the neighborhood. You will have a lot of housing options in your price range, perhaps even newly renovated with a view and still find the neighborhood walkable. Also easier access to Round Rock than Highland Park or Tarrytown.
Great Hills: Lot of hill views and with your budget, you will find a nice size home in a family friendly neighborhood with a view, and likely a pool with some updates AND not a bad commute to Round Rock. While this neighborhood is the least walkable of the four I am mentioning, you are still very close to central Austin (less than 10 minutes away) where you can park your car and walk around and experience the Austin charm. Great Hills will give you the access of Round Rock for work and proximity to walkable Austin areas and beautiful hill views. I also grew up in Great Hills, schools are fantastic, it is very family friendly, and what it lacks in walkability it makes up with some sense of community. People will try to tell you that you can find similar in Williamson County, and they are probably right, but you seemed to want to leave the DFW suburbs, and moving to Williamson County will make you feel like you never left.
If walkability is your highest concern: Allendale and Hyde Park would be my first two choices.
If you want not flat and not boring but easy access to work and easy access to charming neighborhoods more than walkability: Northwest Hills and Great Hills.
People are trying to sell you a Williamson county that isn't what you are looking for. Williamson County is the Colin County of Austin. There are nice, high-end parts like some parts of Plano and Frisco (Avery Ranch, parts of Cedar Park), good upper-middle class areas like Allen (Round Rock, Cedar Park), areas that have everything from working class to luxury like McKinny (Leander, Georgetown). And sure, you *might* find a walkable area in Williamson county, but it will be surrounded by boring suburbia. But based off what you are telling us, they are not what you are looking for.
Look in North Central Austin. With your budget, you will be able to find diverse housing options. I might like to suggest Allendale. You will find it a flat, somewhat walkable area, with a lot of young families. For under a million, you will be able to find new construction of a medium sized house (not the 6000sqft+ homes of Coppell or Southlake you might be used to, but with a neighborhood filled with charm). Hyde Park, Brentwood, Clarksville will all be very walkable in family friendly neighborhoods but are going to give your husband a bit of a commute. But you likely won't call it boring suburbia.
Now with your budget, let's talk about West Austin. Anyone moving to Austin with a million dollar budget who doesn't at least give West Austin a look at is selling themselves short. I am going to give information about West Austin which is in Austin, not Eanes, Lake Travis, or Stiener Ranch, which are all west of Austin.
Tarrytown: The most walkable neighborhood, but not much to walk to. Considered the old money part of Austin. You will find older, somewhat renovated homes in the million dollar price range, and these homes will be big enough for a family-- likely around 2000sqft. Good Schools, especially the Casis Elementary. I personally love the charm of Tarrytown, and would consider it my dream neighborhood, if only one day I will be lucky enough to afford it.
Mount Bonnell/Highland Park: Not walkable at all, but you are in the hills! With a million dollars to spend, you likely won't have a view, but you will be only steps away from beautiful views. You will get a little more for your house here than in Tarrytown. Lots of families and Highland Park elementary is FANTASTIC. However, many families do not send their kids to the local middle and high school, because those buying these pricey homes want better schools. Public school options are LASA, one of the best high schools in the state, but located on the other side of town, or get an IB transfer to Anderson. I am a graduate of Anderson, and I know about a dozen kids who graduated with me who lived in Highland Park and took advantage of this option. Given that Highland Park elementary has about 80 kids per class, this is a sizable population of the area.
Northwest Hills: Not very walkable, but more walkable than Highland Park. Schools are better, you may even get a view with your home. This is one of the neighborhoods I grew up in, and families are always walking the streets, but more for the exercise, and not to any destination in particular. The neighborhood is filled with charm. Schools are great and in the neighborhood. You will have a lot of housing options in your price range, perhaps even newly renovated with a view and still find the neighborhood walkable. Also easier access to Round Rock than Highland Park or Tarrytown.
Great Hills: Lot of hill views and with your budget, you will find a nice size home in a family friendly neighborhood with a view, and likely a pool with some updates AND not a bad commute to Round Rock. While this neighborhood is the least walkable of the four I am mentioning, you are still very close to central Austin (less than 10 minutes away) where you can park your car and walk around and experience the Austin charm. Great Hills will give you the access of Round Rock for work and proximity to walkable Austin areas and beautiful hill views. I also grew up in Great Hills, schools are fantastic, it is very family friendly, and what it lacks in walkability it makes up with some sense of community. People will try to tell you that you can find similar in Williamson County, and they are probably right, but you seemed to want to leave the DFW suburbs, and moving to Williamson County will make you feel like you never left.
If walkability is your highest concern: Allendale and Hyde Park would be my first two choices.
If you want not flat and not boring but easy access to work and easy access to charming neighborhoods more than walkability: Northwest Hills and Great Hills.
It's "boring suburbia" to the urbanist, but there areas of Williamson County that aren't cookie cutter or masterplanned. Those are the areas I had in mind. A million dollar house isn't unusual either. While I totally understand the inclusion of Austin, Williamson County itself has a lot of great options as well, sans the walkability. If walkability is a must, then yeah Wilco isn't known for that, but it is attractive in its own right and is an option if they don't want to really commute much at all.
OP: here's a street view of an older section of Round Rock. I am not familiar with Dallas suburbs.
It's "boring suburbia" to the urbanist, but there areas of Williamson County that aren't cookie cutter or masterplanned. Those are the areas I had in mind. A million dollar house isn't unusual either. While I totally understand the inclusion of Austin, Williamson County itself has a lot of great options as well, sans the walkability. If walkability is a must, then yeah Wilco isn't known for that, but it is attractive in its own right and is an option if they don't want to really commute much at all.
OP: here's a street view of an older section of Round Rock. I am not familiar with Dallas suburbs.
Wilco is VERY similar to the Dallas suburbs. I'm not trying to bash wilco in any way, but if she doesn't want to live in Dallas suburbs, she might feel like she is in groundhog day. My dad is from the Dallas suburbs and he still has a lot of family and I visit them quarterly. I have been all over Richardson, Coppell, Flower Mound, Grapevine, Lewisville, Plano, and Allen (my dad is from a large catholic family that moves often-- so our family is spread out all over the metroplex). You're absolutely right that wilco is attractive in its own right, but based off what the OP has told us about her wants and needs, and her reaction to living in DFW suburbs, I doubt it is going to be very attractive to her. And let's not try to make her like wilco just because the people living in it like it. She obviously mentioned wilco because of job proximity, not because she found it specifically pleasing to her tastes. Had she mentioned she had a million dollar budget, wanted a family friendly neighborhood, that is walkable, with a decent commute to Round Rock, hardly anyone on this forum would be trying to convince her that Wilco is the place for her to move.
Also, let's talk about the link you showed her. While you showed her a nice street, with large, estate like homes, something I know is VERY desirable to a lot of people, it basically ignores most everything she wanted, save a decent commute. It is not walkable at all, and given it seems to be on a street with only a few dozen houses, I doubt it will be filled with families walking the street. Four years ago when I was in high school, I know that Cedar Ridge HS was not considered a highly desirable high school (but I know things can change), so I'm not sure if I would truly considered this to be family friendly. She said she didn't like flat suburbia, but you showed her a link to a home that is in a flat suburb.
Wilco is VERY similar to the Dallas suburbs. I'm not trying to bash wilco in any way, but if she doesn't want to live in Dallas suburbs, she might feel like she is in groundhog day. My dad is from the Dallas suburbs and he still has a lot of family and I visit them quarterly. I have been all over Richardson, Coppell, Flower Mound, Grapevine, Lewisville, Plano, and Allen (my dad is from a large catholic family that moves often-- so our family is spread out all over the metroplex). You're absolutely right that wilco is attractive in its own right, but based off what the OP has told us about her wants and needs, and her reaction to living in DFW suburbs, I doubt it is going to be very attractive to her. And let's not try to make her like wilco just because the people living in it like it. She obviously mentioned wilco because of job proximity, not because she found it specifically pleasing to her tastes. Had she mentioned she had a million dollar budget, wanted a family friendly neighborhood, that is walkable, with a decent commute to Round Rock, hardly anyone on this forum would be trying to convince her that Wilco is the place for her to move.
Also, let's talk about the link you showed her. While you showed her a nice street, with large, estate like homes, something I know is VERY desirable to a lot of people, it basically ignores most everything she wanted, save a decent commute. It is not walkable at all, and given it seems to be on a street with only a few dozen houses, I doubt it will be filled with families walking the street. Four years ago when I was in high school, I know that Cedar Ridge HS was not considered a highly desirable high school (but I know things can change), so I'm not sure if I would truly considered this to be family friendly. She said she didn't like flat suburbia, but you showed her a link to a home that is in a flat suburb.
Yes, I understand. But I also want to say that merely having a million dollar budget and wanting family friendly doesn't exclude Wilco either. You'd be surprised at how many people have (and spend) that type of money and live in Williamson County.
As for my link, no, it is not walkable. The area is considered very family friendly even if Cedar Ridge is the weak link of the chain. The elementary and middle are excellent schools and have been for awhile. Lots of people who make more money than us send their kids to Cedar Ridge, so it mustn't be that bad. Considering that a) most of the homeowners who buy into the area these days are families with at least 2-3 kids (we are one of them), b) the homes are large (clearly designed for families), and c) kids are everywhere, I don't know how much more "family friendly" it could be. I've walked that street (I'm in the general area) and there are people walking about constantly - either retirees, stay at home parents, or people who work from home. Google doesn't capture that. Also kids go to school, so yeah, there's not going to be kids running up and down the streets between 7-3 pm.
As for the "flatness", while there are no canyon-type hills, it isn't totally flat.
In all likelihood the recommendation isn't the best for her..and to be honest, I initially didn't recommend anything to her because she clearly sounds like she wants The Woodlands and Wilco doesn't really have that. But there are many people work in Williamson County (pick any of the cities), have $$ to spend, and live in those cities as well.
The first thing I said when I came to Austin.. it's all suburbia. This city resembles nothing of a real walkable urban environment and anyone who thinks other is absolutely uneducated. All the areas you listed above are suburbia regadrlsss if they're in Austin or not especially those west Austin areas.
Austin doesn't have walkability, it doesn't have those unique cultural neighborhoods, it doesn't have that pro sports that draw in thousands on a weekly basis, downtown dies almost every night after 6-7pm- and even on the weekend it's only a few select areas that get activity the others are truly Barron for a city this size. Public transportation doesn't exist. Williamson county isn't boring in comparison to Austin by any means in fact I spend more time here then I do in Austin because I have more that I like to do that's here. There's nothing beyond UT and a few events a year that I can't do here. Don't pay over your head for the same thing just to say you live in Austin.
Yes, I understand. But I also want to say that merely having a million dollar budget and wanting family friendly doesn't exclude Wilco either. You'd be surprised at how many people have (and spend) that type of money and live in Williamson County.
As for my link, no, it is not walkable. The area is considered very family friendly even if Cedar Ridge is the weak link of the chain. The elementary and middle are excellent schools and have been for awhile. Lots of people who make more money than us send their kids to Cedar Ridge, so it mustn't be that bad. Considering that a) most of the homeowners who buy into the area these days are families with at least 2-3 kids (we are one of them), b) the homes are large (clearly designed for families), and c) kids are everywhere, I don't know how much more "family friendly" it could be. I've walked that street (I'm in the general area) and there are people walking about constantly - either retirees, stay at home parents, or people who work from home. Google doesn't capture that. Also kids go to school, so yeah, there's not going to be kids running up and down the streets between 7-3 pm.
As for the "flatness", while there are no canyon-type hills, it isn't totally flat.
In all likelihood the recommendation isn't the best for her..and to be honest, I initially didn't recommend anything to her because she clearly sounds like she wants The Woodlands and Wilco doesn't really have that. But there are many people work in Williamson County (pick any of the cities), have $$ to spend, and live in those cities as well.
I have no doubt that plenty of people with money live in Round Rock and Williamson County. My dad is in real estate, and I've been surprised with the prices of the homes in WilCo. I think my original post conceded that high-end luxury exists in WilCo. Those new Leander communities with the large homes are GORGEOUS and have nice hill views.
I didn't get the sense she wanted the Woodlands at all. But my experience with the woodlands is limited. All this being said, with a million dollar budget and her list of things she wants, I think she would be much better served living in central Austin. The Hyde Park or Clarksville areas are beautiful, full of young families, and have a lot of walkability. Allendale gives her easy access to very cool burnet road restaurants. Rosedale might even be better! All of these are well within her budget as long as she doesn't require 4000sqft. If she wants a suburban style home in a walkable setting, then I will admit that WilCo will become more attractive, but since she hasn't mentioned that as a requirement, I hope she will be happy with her totally renovated 2500 sqft homes of Central Austin or 3000 sqft of home that hasn't been updated since the 60s will suit her needs. My ex's parents bought for 600k a beautiful new construction, about 1800sqft, high end finishes, about half a mile north of UT in a very charming and walkable neighborhood two years ago. I'd imagine the 2500 sqft 4bdrm houses that are freshly renovated will still cost less than a million. That might be more her style.
Great Hills: Lot of hill views and with your budget, you will find a nice size home in a family friendly neighborhood with a view, and likely a pool with some updates AND not a bad commute to Round Rock. While this neighborhood is the least walkable of the four I am mentioning, you are still very close to central Austin (less than 10 minutes away) where you can park your car and walk around and experience the Austin charm. Great Hills will give you the access of Round Rock for work and proximity to walkable Austin areas and beautiful hill views. I also grew up in Great Hills, schools are fantastic, it is very family friendly, and what it lacks in walkability it makes up with some sense of community. People will try to tell you that you can find similar in Williamson County, and they are probably right, but you seemed to want to leave the DFW suburbs, and moving to Williamson County will make you feel like you never left...
Great Hills is in NorthWest Austin.
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