Monterone Steiner Ranch x Gables Grandview (Austin, Round Rock: real estate, apartment complexes, rental)

[twoboys4me85]

Hello,

I am new here . We are moving from South FL to Austin Texas ... We know nothing about austin ... We are lost

We are already going to change our kids life ... The only think we are really loooking for , would be a place that have kids in the neighborhood, Great schools and nice area .... We are not going to be able to visit the neighborhoods we are doing everything online ...

We are going to work in the Arboretum area ...

We are not sure what would be the better choice for us to live .

Monterone Steiner Ranch or Gables Grandview ?

Thank you very much !

[orbius]

I'd advise renting a house especially with a family, home rents are reasonable because of the weak real estate and you have about 1000x less things to worry about than with an apartment.
Monterone is a poorly built dump I'm not going to mince words. Thin walls, poorly built, becoming increasingly low rent, hostile management. Getting an apartment in Austin is a bit like traversing a minefield because of the lax Texas laws governing landlords and the virtually non-existent building codes.

[twoboys4me85]

really ? i thought would be more money .... Here we do live in a big house .. we wanted to starts slow .. That's why we've thought about rent community ...

Which neighborhood would u suggest since we will work on Arboretum area, and we need schools " A " ?

[orbius]

Theres a lot of neighborhoods off Hwy 183 North of the Arboretum. Also theres a lot of homes between Hwy 1(Mopac) and I35 East-North East of the Arboretum. Both locations would give you a reasonable commute. Or you could live near Mopac further towards downtown but rents will be higher in that part of town.

[CarnivalGal]

I agree about renting a house or even a townhouse instead.

I live in Steiner and love it, but Monterone is a nightmare. Check out their BBB ratings and such. But there are houses in Steiner for rent for not much more than the apts. There are also areas outside of Steiner that feed into the same schools.

Or you could check areas near the Arboretum / Jollyville area. Look for places that feed into the Round Rock schools as a safe bet.

[CATXTransplant]

MM - that is an incorrect statement. The rental home market here in Steiner has been tight all year. Currently there are only 9 available on MLS with prices ranging from 1824 to 3800. She can get a place in the Monterone or Gables, or several other places in town much cheaper. And those areas off Mopac others have mentioned are not the greatest schools. Homes are generally not less to worry about than apartment complexes (expecially the newer ones), like the Alexans. In a home, you usually have the owner managing it, or even worse, some off site management company. Apartments have someone that can usually come fix somethign right away. Most homes require the tenant to pay for the first $X of repairs, and maintain the lawn.

[paul6835]

I used to rent at Gables Grandview, generally I had a positive experience. Some pros and cons:


1. Its a bit pricey, if you're going to rent there, make sure you get an apartment with a view otherwise its pointless to pay that much
2. Avoid the apartments over the dumpsters, if you're near it, your balcony will stink in the summer
3. The views there are amazing.
4. The pool is fantastic with an infinitiy edge at the top of a hill looking down and across to the next hill
5. there is some noise off of 360 traffic outside, but not horrible.
6. if you like to run, you won't have anywhere because its all hill and the closest flat area is a highway
7. if you have a dog, the offleash park nearby (bull creek) has been closed to dogs due to bacteria levels.
8. you can be downtown in 15 minutes/25 in rush hour

[paul6835]

edit, forgort some things:

8. We were building while renting, they weren't too flexible in ending our lease early, but when the build went long they did give us a month to month at a higher rate.
9. The office is conveniently located towards the entrance and you can drop off your rent there. Don't be late, they're very stringent on late fees. Something to consider since you'll be all over the place with moving and if you travel for work.
10. I've heard people complain about noise/wall thickness, but it was never an issue for us, though I think we were on the top floor
11. I don't remember there being elevators, and if you have a view, you'll have to climb stairs.

[twoboys4me85]

Paul , is there kids in the Gables Grandview ?

[CarnivalGal]

Originally Posted by CATXTransplant

MM - that is an incorrect statement. The rental home market here in Steiner has been tight all year. Currently there are only 9 available on MLS with prices ranging from 1824 to 3800. She can get a place in the Monterone or Gables, or several other places in town much cheaper. And those areas off Mopac others have mentioned are not the greatest schools. Homes are generally not less to worry about than apartment complexes (expecially the newer ones), like the Alexans. In a home, you usually have the owner managing it, or even worse, some off site management company. Apartments have someone that can usually come fix somethign right away. Most homes require the tenant to pay for the first $X of repairs, and maintain the lawn.

Actually, there are some available for less than $1824 that are not listed on the MLS (check craigslist). I even saw a 4 BR 3.5 bath on the UT golf course for $1500. A 4 BR place at Monterone is going to run about the same price. And that doesn't even touch the bad reputation they have and poor rating by the BBB. And there are areas further down Quinlin Park by the lake that are even less and feed into Steiner schools.