Opinions, please - for Austin areas... (Georgetown, Atlanta: transplants, HOA, houses)

[Cathydam]

Hello,

South Louisiana is getting old and we're ready for a change. Everything we've ever heard or read about Austin is great and we (me and my husband, late 30s, and one almost 3-year old son) are very, very seriously considering a move. We've got plans to visit in December but I'm eager to get as much information as I can before then...

I'm specifically looking for suggestions and opinions on areas of Austin. To live in. I've got a pretty good 'wish list' and I'm hoping that the wonderful members here can point me in the right direction.

In my ideal dream world, we'd live in an old, renovated house in a friendly, quirky neighborhood. No cookie-cutter gated-community brick mansions for us. I'd love to be able to walk my dogs around the neighborhood (on sidewalks) and stop and talk to the neighbors on my way. It would be great to be able to walk to a park or two, or a trail, and even better if I could wander down to the local cafe on Sunday mornings to read my paper and drink my coffee. I'd love a local feel - locally-owned restaurants (we enjoy good food and wine) and shops, that sort of thing. We don't need a huge house, or a lot of land, if we've got parks and green areas nearby.

We don't need to find jobs (luckily, our work travels with us), and I'm still thinking about homeschooling my son, so although a good school district is of course a bonus, I'd hate for that to make a break our decision.

We love live music and funny little bars that you stumble across and have to squeeze into, going to farmers markets and flea markets, and discovering new restaurants. Art exhibitions, live theatre, Saturday afternoons at the park, things that we can do with our son...

And all of this as close as possible to where we live.

So... does this exist in Austin? I would be very, very happy if you'd take a minute to let me have your opinions or suggestions - or, let me know that I am indeed living in a dream world.

Thank you!
- Cathy

[TexasHorseLady]

You don't mention price range. Except for the sidewalks, I'd recommend Barton Hills or anything in the Zilker area or immediately south of the river. SoCo area is another possibility. Crestview might do the trick, as well. That's just off the top of my head.

Also, over off Far West/Mopac might, though the houses are a bit newer (but not new).

[Cathydam]

Thanks for the quick reply. Sorry, I forgot to mention price - we'd be looking at $275k max if the house and area was the right fit for us. I'm going to look into the areas you mentioned, are these considered 'walkable' neighborhoods? Thanks again.

- Cathy

[TexasHorseLady]

Depends on what you mean by walkable. We used to live in Barton Hills (sort of on the edge towards Lamar) and could walk to the grocery store (first it was Whole Foods, then Sun Harvest), restaurants, Half Price Books, various kinds of shopping, etc. But no sidewalks for the most part.

The other areas are similar. Crestview is further north, but has similar amenities within walking distance. Allandale might be a possibility, and also the area in the 38th/45th/Guadalupe/Lamar area might have some houses, though they may be over your budget.

If you don't mind not being in Austin proper, Old Town Georgetown is another possibility.

[Cathydam]

What you described - that's exactly what I meant by 'walkable.' Being able to get to shops, restaurants, the park, without having to get in the car (and I can live without sidewalks, I guess ). Is it easier for me to research these areas by name or by zipcode? Thanks...

- Cathy

[atlanta hope]

Depends on much sq footage you'll need. We had similar criteria but didn't want a small house. Also take a look at property taxes to see what your price range really is. It's bit of a sticker shock for us out of state transplants.

Overall Austin is a great place to raise a family IMHO. The public schools are FAR superior to the ones we left behind in Atlanta. You'll hear Westlake is the best -- but there are other schools that are really good. There's a strong home-schooling community here. There's even a school called Home Base that supports some part time schooling for homeschooled kids (I don't know that much about it but it sounds cool).

Pretty much all the central neighborhoods offer the lifestyle you'd like. If you look on AustinHomeSearch, try Crestview and Allandale. They're the more affordable places. If you don't mind an "up and coming" part of town, East Austin is interesting. There's the Mueller development that is interesting if you like the new modernism of shared space and not much personal space. We were interested but couldn't get over the postage stamp size backyard. We also liked Barton Hills but it was too pricey for us and we were in the $350-400K price range. I think in your range, anything you find is going to require some work -- even in our range, a lot of the places needed work.

We chose to go to SW Austin, a little further out than we wanted... but we have good schools, cheaper property taxes and a 3,000 sq ft home that was pretty updated with a really nice lot. We don't have a mandatory HOA so our house is kind of funky and not cookie cutter.

[TexasHorseLady]

Originally Posted by Cathydam

What you described - that's exactly what I meant by 'walkable.' Being able to get to shops, restaurants, the park, without having to get in the car (and I can live without sidewalks, I guess ). Is it easier for me to research these areas by name or by zipcode? Thanks...

- Cathy

I've DM'd you some info.

[S6Sputnik]

Newer, but very active. River Place (off 2222 )

[corntortilla]

I posted this on another thread already (so sorry for the repeat), but I think the personality quiz here: Austin TX Neighborhood Quiz is really handy. Kind of takes your interests and spits out a good place for you.

I would definitely look within Central and South Austin for what you're looking for. For $275k, you can find something on the outskirts of Hyde Park, which is a really old and funky neighborhood, tons of character.

[BeverlyForeman]

We live in South Austin in circle C and love it.. Easy drive downtown and our area is A+ in my book..