Where to Live in Austin (or at least where to start looking)
Where to Live in Austin (or at least where to start looking)
One of the great things about Austin is its vibrate and diverse culture. Generally speaking, we all love each other, but that doesn’t mean we’d like to trade houses for a week.
Deciding where to live in Austin when you’re new is always a little hard. Regardless of whether you’re buying or renting, prices and your job location will probably sway you towards one area of town over another. Below is a general idea of how Austin lays out based on a few key elements. Then, I’ve followed it up with a bunch of great resources I used when moving to Austin.
Prices
In general, prices vary all over town. Taking away the obvious factors like age, indoor space, outdoor space and fees, you can expect to pay more:
Downtown and on Rainey Street
Basically anywhere overlooking the lake
South Congress
Zilker
Around UT
Hyde Park
Rosedale
Brentwood
Crestview
Anything feeding into Eanes ISD in Westlake
Everything feeding into Westood High School up north
Other things to keep in mind related to price (again, all generally speaking):
The closer you are to central Austin, the smaller the lot sizes and the smaller the houses. Which means the farther out you go – Round Rock, Lakeway, Leander, Manor, Manchaca – you can find homes with bigger lots (1+ acres). Overall, though, I’ve been routinely impressed by how land-conscious Austin and its builders are when it comes to creating new subdivisions. If you wanted a 1 acre lot close to downtown, you’re either going to have to pay a lot for it or change your geography.
The closer you are to central Austin, the older the houses get. Most of the central corridor was built by 1960. The great thing is, it adds a lot of character to the neighborhoods and there aren’t many HOAs. If you want something brand new, though, (just like before) you’re either going to have to pay a little more for it, remodel yourself, or go north/west/east/south. Round Rock, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Leander, Lakeway, Manor, etc. all have gorgeous new subdivisions with pools, walking paths and parks all manicured and ready to play.
Traffic (and your commute)
Hopefully, your job will also play a huge part in where you chose to live because Austin traffic is no walk in the park. Most of the traffic is built up over Lady Bird Lake (Lady Bird Lake, Town Lake and Lake Austin are all the same body of water, by the way, just separated by dams – email me if you want info on this in detail) around Downtown. Think of it this way, in the morning, everyone is going towards downtown and in the evening, everyone is going away from downtown. Now, that isn’t always true, but think about it that way at least until you figure out the traffic patters on your own.
Here’s two examples of traffic today at 4:26 p.m.
1. You are thinking about buying in Avery Ranch and you will take Mopac from your house to work, the traffic is heavier going south (towards downtown) in the morning and going north (away from downtown) in the evening. Yes, there is an express lane on Mopac now, but are you going to do this every day? Here’s your commute (no toll lane) home:
2. You are thinking about buying in Dripping Springs and you take 290 to Mopac into Downtown on your commute. Here’s your commute home:
The only two caveats to the above theory is A. the 35 is pretty bad no matter which direction you’re going and B. all the bridges and the downtown area are pretty crowded no matter which direction you’re going during rush hour. If you are north, use the light rail to get out of downtown and save yourself the headache. The new express buses are pretty amazing, too – very new, clean and with free WIFI.
Lastly, and this one really took me by surprise when I moved, be prepared for traffic to start in these areas by 4 p.m. every day. The morning seems to pick up between 8 and 9 a.m. and the evening traffic starts about 3:30 p.m., especially on Fridays. Also be careful for UT games during the late summer and fall if you’re anywhere near Downtown. I will not caution you about SXSW or ACL… may the odds be ever in your favor.
Awesome Tools
The Leaman Group has created an amazing interactive online mapping website that made moving here super fun. You can even order a printed book for free. The maps detail every little facet of Austin, from Aqua Verde all the way to Logan Ranch. It will make everything easier if you start here.
ALL of the things described in this post will happen to you. (And the owl building tale is not real, BTW; so when the Uber driver tells you this, tell him he’s been fooled.)
The Austin Relo Guide is pretty great and also a little overwhelming; you can get the digital copy of it now, which is so great!