Duval Springs Neighborhood
"In 2004, I decided that it was the right time for me to buy a home. Before I started my search, there were three important criterion that needed to be met before I made an offer. First, the price of the home had to be in my price range. I did not want to get into a home that would have a major impact on my current lifestyle. Second, the home should be in an growing area both residential and commercial so the value of the home increased every year. Last, the place should not be too far away from downtown Austin or away from the major parks. With these conditions in mind, I started to look.
I was referred to a real estate agent from a co-worker. I discussed my conditions with my agent and he was able to find several listings. Of course, I went through many showings before I came to the one I choose. The home was everything I was looking for. It was in the price range I was willing to pay. There was new high commercial mall, The Domain, that were in the plans of being developed, and the drive to downtown and the parks were decent. With these conditions met, I was able to buy the home and live in a great community. The neighbors were friendly and the Condo boards were great. I enjoy my time there and I would recommend this community to anyone."
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Story By: Sajid, Austin, Texas |
| Shared: January 12, 2010 |
| Neighborhood: Duval Springs |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Close Date: April 2004 |
| Age: 30-39 |
| Gender: Male |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: 1 |
| Number of Children in Home: 0 |
Duval Springs
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Highland VIllage Neighborhood
"Finding and purchasing a house can be described as exhilarating and disappointing, all in the same breath. Take my experience for example.... I was an early twenties bachelor trying to sew my oats in the world and I got this great idea that I would buy a house. This was at the peak of the housing boom and I really wanted a piece of the pie for myself. Getting approved for the loan proved harder than I thought it was going to be. One, I needed more money for a down payment, and two my realtor and my loan officer were NOT going to allow me to get one of those nightmare loans that have adjustable rates and hidden fees. Once I had my finances in order it was time to start hunting.
I was concentrating South, seeing that was where I worked and there seemed to be more houses in my price range. I wanted an older house that had some style and flair so thats what I went for. I had found the perfect house for a great price and everything was looking as smooth as butter when the contract on the house was rejected for a better offer. I was crushed! I didn't think I would have such an emotional reaction. Like someone shot my dog.
Well after a few days of sulking in my own pitty I started the search again. This time I found a newer house but a much better location. This was it. Surely I wouldn't have two houses snatched up from underneath me. Right? Wrong! Another dream was crushed and I was starting to become pretty jaded. Especially since we were approaching month number three of house hunting. Thats when it happened. My realtor, on a whim, had heard of a 1950's style house that was a for sale by owner. The only way to hear about this place was to drive by it, and that we did!
I put a contract on it that day and wouldn't you know, I got it! I was the proud owner of a 2-1 on a corner lot, in a budding north-central neighborhood. I did it! I had reached my goal of home ownership! Looking back I feel like everything happened for a reason. I am so happy with my house I wouldn't trade it for the other two I lost. It definitely took the disappointments to make the end result all that more exhilarating!"
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Story By: Mike G., Austin, TX |
| Shared: January 6, 2010 |
| Neighborhood: Highland Village |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Age: 20-29 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
Highland Village
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Stillwood Neighborhood
"We rented a house with a fenced in yard, sight unseen, on the east side of 15th and Airport when we moved to Austin from Atlanta. It served it's purpose, but 3 months after our wedding we decided to buy a house. My mom wanted us to use a Jewish real estate agent, and so began our house hunting with Josh Bushner, who was recommended to us by Rabbi Freedman.
We quickly realized that Hyde Park, Clarksville and South Congress were out as far as our budget was concerned. And since needing a backyard for our four dogs to play in was a concern also, Josh suggested that we look farther away from downtown. My wife and I knew nothing was up north except for farm land so we decided to look south. That said, neither one of us had really been past Braker since 2004, so we just assumed it was still all farm land.
My wife worked in near 40th and Lamar, and I was at the Apple Store in Barton Creek, so we thought south would be a safe bet. It turns out that we'd have to had lived so far south that everything was a cookie cutter home and 40+ minutes from downtown. As we chowed down on some tasty Thundercloud subs, Josh suggested we look north. I told him I went to Cool River once in college and as far as I was concerned, Parmer was on the edge of the earth. Josh laughed and told me to keep an open mind. Not only was Parmer only 15-20 minutes from downtown, a lot more businesses and people were too!
My wife is the kind of person who can see the bones of a house right off the bat. I on the other hand, get wrapped up on the popcorn ceiling or terrible choice in music playing and sort of shut down. Definitely a property virgin thing to do. She fell in love with our house instantly. I guess I saw the potential after she said the magic word, "Remodel." I had a contractor come in and I asked if we could knock down a wall to open up the already sealed off garage. Once he said yes, I was on board.
Josh said we needed to talk to a mortgage lender also. He recommended a guy that sounded trust worthy, but I couldn't believe who he was. Mr. Max Leaman.
Max and I went to college together and lost touch after graduation. He house sat for me once and I figured if I could trust him with basically everything I owned, I could certainly trust him to be fair and accurate. He was and still is. He even set an alarm to go off when the rates get low enough so we can refinance to have a lower mortgage. He's a hell of a guy, and you can bet the ONLY one I'll ever use in Austin."
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Story By: Jeff R., Austin, Texas |
| Shared: January 4, 2010 |
| Neighborhood: Stillwood |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Age: 20-29 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
Stillwood
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Gracy Woods Neighborhood
"My wife and I just bought our first home. We were living in a small apartment with an infant and a dog and we were completely out of space. We moved around a lot, so making the decision to stay in Austin for the next several years was not easy. But the more we talked about it, the more we realized how much we liked it here. This was the place we wanted to raise our child.
We looked at houses all over the city. We eventually chose Gracywoods for its affordability, its proximity to shopping, and its proximity to our friends. I am confident that being near the Domain will help our property value rise. Our criteria for the perfect home was the following:
- a kitchen conducive for cooking-lots of counter space and cabinets
- an open floor plan
- 3 bed, 2 bath
- more than one living space
- low maintenance yard
- we didn't want to have to fix or modify anything major (not a lot of free time with a baby)
We must have looked at more than fifty homes. We kept hearing from people that when you see the right home, you'll know. And we had that feeling with the place we bought. I saw the house before my wife. When I took her through it, she had the same reactions to the same things that I did. She "oohed" and "aahed" at the high ceilings, just like I did. She loved the island in the kitchen, just like I did. We could see ourselves entertaining friends, cooking dinner and playing in the backyard. It had all the features we were looking for-we didn't compromise on anything!
We didn't know this until after we moved in, but we couldn't ask for better neighbors. They have been very warm and welcoming. Our street is turning over. There are more young couples moving in and there are 2 other babies on our block. We're right near Walnut Creek park, which is great for running the dog and biking.
We finally have the apace we need to be comfortable. Max Leaman guided us through our entire home buying process. He served as a trusted sounding board for all of our ideas and concerns. Max helped make a stressful decision just a little bit easier to swallow, and my family couldn't be happier."
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Story By: Josh A., Austin, Texas |
| Shared: December, 31, 2009 |
| Neighborhood: Gracy Woods |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Close Date: October 2009 |
| Age: 30-39 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: 1 |
| Number of Children in Home: 1 |
Gracy Woods
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Austin Highlands Neighborhood
"Yes, this is my first home. I knew I liked the vibe and feel of South Central Austin. I'd lived in 78704 for years as a renter during college and from my experiences in the area I knew I wanted the same relaxed attitude and friendly neighbors. I also knew I probably couldn't afford to live North of Ben White - I was still in grad school at the time. So I decided on Southwest Austin as a compromise between my price range and the prevailing disposition of the neighborhood.
I do recommend the neighborhood. It is not far from Crocket High. There is a good mix of young families, retirees and the neighborhood is pretty ethnically diverse. The result is a laid-back, tolerant feel, where nobody calls the cops if your party is too loud or if your band practice lasts until 2 AM. And some of the older folks have the time and the panache to do a neighborhood watch, so even if they can be a little nosy, the nieghborhood is safe. Plus, there's no HOA - the last thing I need is some bored yuppie telling me what flowers I can grow.
I had looked at several other houses in my price range and geographic specifications and mine (which was a foreclosure) simply had the best bang for the buck. Lots of ammenenities and a recent (if not perfectly exectued) make-ready by the selling bank. Also, my home inspector gave it top marks and assured me it was in the best shape I could expect for a house built in the 70's."
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Story By: Travis K., Austin, Texas |
| Shared: December, 31, 2009 |
| Neighborhood: Austin Highlands |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Close Date: Summer 2006 |
| Age: 20-29 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: 2 |
| Number of Children in Home: 0 |
Austin Highlands
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Avery Ranch Neighborhood
"We are parents of two school aged children. We wanted a neighborhood in a good school district. This was a first priority. We also wanted to be walking distance to a community pool and park. We thought, in such a neighborhood, there would be lots of children for our kids to play with. We also wanted our children to have independence in going to the park and pool by themselves. Our children have enjoyed groups of kids their age and have grown up knowing them and their families. This have given them and us a community. When the children are happy and occupied, life is easier!
Being close to work was another consideration. We didn't want to waste life on the road.
We wanted a new house that we ourselves could choose style and colors. We wanted large bedrooms and a master bedroom downstairs with children's rooms upstairs for privacy. An upstairs playroom for the kids was also a must. Finally, we bought a home in a neighborhood with mature trees. Shade in our Texas heat is very important!"
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Story By: P.P., Austin, Texas |
| Shared: December, 29, 2009 |
| Neighborhood: Avery Ranch |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Close Date: May 2002 |
| Age: 40-49 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: 2 |
| Number of Children in Home: 2 |
Avery Ranch
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Balcones West Neighborhood
"We needed a bigger house.
We thought for years about how to add on to our house off 45th and Mopac. It was not feasible,so we began looking. This would be our 3rd house in Austin. Our first home was a charming 850 ft home in Crestview. We managed to live in the same geoghrapic area of Austin since then. What was the end of Mopac, and was considered North when we moved to Crestview in 1980, was more central when we began looking in 1994.
My spouse was called by the realtor to look in a neighborhood we had never seen, nor heard of. It was only two exits up from our house. The location and price were factors leading to buying the property. In addition, although the house was then 25 yrs old, it had an open look and flowed well. When we went to introduce ourselves to the folks next door, we were startled to find the seller of our first home in Crestview. We bought our first home from her mother's estate. Over the years, we really wished we had had the money to hang onto the houses in Crestview and off 45th and Mopac. Who would have seen the prices go so high?"
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Story By: L.R., Austin, TX |
| Shared: December, 29, 2009 |
| Neighborhood: Balcones West |
| Close Date: April 1994 |
| Age: 50-59 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: 3 |
| Number of Children in Home: 0 |
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Balcones West
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Northwest Hills Neighborhood
"My wife and I recently moved to North West Hills. We looked for about 2 years for a home - It was important to us that we would be able to stay in Central Austin and we wanted a home larger than 2000k square feet and under 500,000. Ultimately we spent a little more but we also got more footage than we ever expected. We found a 5 bedrooms and 3500 sqft home backing to a conservation easement. Needed some work but we are up to the project. In fact right now I need to go help my wife paint.
If your looking for a loan Max is a great lender. If he says it will happen it does."
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Story By: Paul R., Austin, TX |
| Shared: December, 29, 2009 |
| Neighborhood: NorthWest Hills |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? You bet |
| Age: 40-49 |
| Gender: Male |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: Too many to count |
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Northwest Hills
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Balcones Woods Neighborhood
"We needed a 4 bedroom home. We loved living in Allandale, but we got a much bigger home by moving only a few minutes north to Balcones Woods. The school district was also excellent, which was a top priority."
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Story By: K.R., Austin, TX |
| Neighborhood: Balcones Woods |
| Would recommend this neighborhood? Yes |
| Age: 55-60 |
| Property Type: Primary Residence |
| Lifetime Number of Mortgages: 5 |
| Number of Children in Home: 1 |
Balcones Woods
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