$200-300k for 4-5 bdrms/2500+sqft - is there a catch? (Austin: cul-de-sac, condo)

[Minier]

So I'm looking at homes in the Bastrop area (as recommended in my other post). Once I extend my search outside of Austin, I see so many homes in the 200-300k range that are 4-5 bdrms over 2500sqft, some land, etc.

Is this realistic for a decent quality home in Texas or should I assume that there's some sort of "catch" (as would be the case around where we live, where that price would get you a trailer park if you're lucky)?

And another question for those in the know, I'm finding some stuff on my own that looks interesting, do I just forward it to our realtor? (Can you tell I'm such a newbie at this house hunting/ buying thing )

[FalconheadWest]

Yes, you should forward everything you find, that you're interested in, to your Realtor so he/she can have a better idea of what you're looking for.

As for price, there is no catch. Land is much less expensive outside the main city of Austin so it's very possible to easily get a newer home of over 2500 sqft for under $300k. Many people think Texas should have multiple acre lots for every house, but most don't realize that Texas is a bunch of track home neighborhoods too, and when you can stack 4-8 houses on 1 acre of land, things get cheaper.

[atxcio]

The catch is almost certainly the location, but that isn't necessarily a big catch. It might be a good neighborhood, just not close-in or in a less than desirable school area. In fact, once you get about 10 miles from downtown in any direction except west, prices become reasonable (or even cheap) very quickly and there are some great areas. It's really only the central and west areas which are expensive.

$200-300K for 2500 sq ft can still be a quality built home, especially in Texas. I've seen some very nice homes for $250K that meet all your criteria (and actually, a lot bigger than 2500 sq ft) in places Cedar Park, Round Rock, Pflugerville... I'd imagine it's similar, or even cheaper, around Bastrop.

[FalconheadWest]

Originally Posted by atxcio

...or in a less than desirable school area.

Overall, the actual Austin school district is ranked much lower than most of the suburbs, especially Lakeway and Round Rock.

[carolinajack]

200k and more can be actually high, you can find many good ones for 150k in Texas

[iceshots]

Depending on where you are looking, you will see prices at $100 - $150 per square foot. Further out from Austin, they will drop even further, maybe $80-90 per sq ft. So the prices you see should not have a catch.

One thing I noticed during our housing search is that 4/5 bedrooms in 2500 sq ft will result in some pretty small bedrooms. If you definitely need that many bedrooms, I suggest also finding some houses in the 3,000 - 4,000 sq ft range and compare features and prices. Put a couple of these on your short list so that you can compare room sizes versus purchase price.

I found that most of the houses we looked at dedicated a lot of space to the common areas (kitchen, family room , game room etc.) at the expense of bedroom space.

One related question, are you coming from a part of the country that has basements, and normally uses the basement for additional living space, rec room etc?

[CarnivalGal]

Welcome to Texas! Yes, houses are really that reasonable here, especially in outlying areas like Bastrop. Yet people seem to always complain that houses are so expensive here.

When we bought our 3100 square foot, 4 bed, 3.5 bath house on Steiner, with 1/3 acre, cul-de-sac, greenbelt lot, I actually went and checked to MLS in my old zip code in the NE to see what we could have bought there for the same price. There were ZERO, count them ZERO properties (out of hundreds) for that price - not even a one bedroom condo.

[texastrigirl]

The houses aren't expensive but the property taxes are!

[carolinajack]

property taxes are nothing like they are in the Northeast US, and the West Coast, they are pretty decent in Austin

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by Minier

So I'm looking at homes in the Bastrop area (as recommended in my other post). Once I extend my search outside of Austin, I see so many homes in the 200-300k range that are 4-5 bdrms over 2500sqft, some land, etc.

Is this realistic for a decent quality home in Texas or should I assume that there's some sort of "catch" (as would be the case around where we live, where that price would get you a trailer park if you're lucky)?

And another question for those in the know, I'm finding some stuff on my own that looks interesting, do I just forward it to our realtor? (Can you tell I'm such a newbie at this house hunting/ buying thing )

in a land far far away...

bastrop is far