Talk to anyone who has resided in the Texas capital for a while and you are bound to hear a variation of the same refrain: I wouldn’t live anywhere else!

The city is also an intellectual mix of technology, education, government, and music. Finally, it’s a scenic city that combines the best of the Texas prairie and scenic Hill Country. With hills, creeks, parks and a river flowing through the heart of a town lush with oak and pecan trees, many visitors just can’t believe they’re in Texas.

• The capitol of Texas is considered the Live Music Capitol of the World
• The most highly educated community in the U.S. (among 250,000+ population cities)
• No corporate or personal income tax - state or local; sales tax only 8.25%
• The 2nd fastest growing city in the U.S.- population 1,057,000 in the metro area
• Within 200 miles of 3 of the 10 largest cities in the U.S. (Houston, Dallas & San Antonio)
• A 150 mile chain of lakes wind through the Texas Hill Country into Austin
• Austin has 11,800 acres of uncultivated land used for parks and recreation
• Average resale home price: $127,100 - Range of home prices: $49,000 - $8,500,000+
• Ranked 7th in the Best Cities for Business with over 850 high-tech firms

Austin Area Links
Area Attractions Austin Children’s Museum Seven Wonders of Austin Austin Zoo Hill Country Flyer Lone Star River Boat Zilker Botanical Gardens Hot Air Ballooning Arts & Entertainment Austin360 Entertainment Movies in Austin Live Music in Austin Austin - Dance Guide Austin Shakespeare Festival Austin Theatre for Youth Austin Family Events Calendar Chambers of Commerce Austin Chamber of Commerce Women’s Chamber of Commerce of Texas	Employment Resources Employment in the Austin Area Austin360 - Jobs Austin Jobs - Craigslist City Guides Austin360 Austin CitySearch Boulevards Austin Community Services Hospitals and Emergency Assistance Public Safety Austin Energy Education Austin Independent School District University of Texas Austin Community College	Food & Dining Austin360.com-Dining DiningDiscovery.Net ActiveDiner - Austin Austin Dining Guide Austin Vegetarian Restaurants Sushi Guide For Austin

1) Make sure your home is competitively priced.
The appraised value is not the same as the market value of a home. The appraised value is just one person’s opinion. The market value is what other buyers are paying for homes in your neighborhood. Studies show that when homes are priced competitively, 60% of the available buying market will see that home. If it’s priced just 10% over that amount, the percentage of viewers falls to 30%!

2) Develop a comprehensive marketing plan. Our marketing plan should expose your home to as many prospective out-of-town and local buyers as possible. A comprehensive marketing plan will include Internet, email and mailing components, as well as open houses to meet prospects face to face. It should also include an agent office tour, a citywide agent tour, and it may include professional photography and a virtual tour.

3) “Stage” the inside and outside of your home to make it shine in the marketplace.
Look at your home with an objective eye. What can you do to lure potential buyers through the front doorway? Is it new sod in the front beds? Exterior lighting? A new front door? Eliminate clutter. Store unnecessary furnishings. Box half of your closets’ contents. (You’re moving, after all.) Whatever it takes to create the impression of space. Give your bathrooms a luxurious feel with new, thick towels. Make sure your home smells good and sounds good (think about background music, for example.)

4) Know the market in your area.
This goes beyond knowing what’s for sale and the asking price. You also need to know what homes in your area have sold for, how long they were on the market, and what concessions might have been given by the sellers to cement the deal.

5) Learn what buyers want. In a buyer’s market, it’s common for sellers to offer “concessions.” A concession is anything of value added to the transaction by the seller. It may include any closing costs that would normally be paid by the buyer, or the payment of discount points on the buyer’s mortgage, or dollars for repairs to be done following the sale.

6) Know your competition.
Visit open houses in your neighborhood. How do those homes compare with yours in terms of appearance, price and condition? What are they offering that you might be able to offer?

7) Make your home as easy to show as possible. Although it’s not always easy to be available when the buying public comes knocking, do all that you can to make your home available for viewing by real estate agents and their buying clients. When agents are asked to skip houses on their buyer tours, their clients often end up never seeing the home that was skipped. Plan to be inconvenienced for a short time so that your home is seen by as many people as possible.

The number of active listings are up 21.66% over last year.The number of new listings are down this week by just 12.04% (compared to the same week last year). Pendings and solds are also down.

How are we doing on sales prices? To get the full picture, check out the our web site for latest sold data. For additional information on the current market, please visit out web site. Week in Review July 13-July 19, 2008(compared to the same week in 2007)New listings down this week 12.04%Pendings down 76.86% Solds down 17.10% As for Average Prices: July 13 - July 19, 2008(compared to the same week in 2007) Sold average sales prices increased 12.29% to $322,010. In 2007 it was $286,762 for the same week. Month in ReviewJune 2008Units for sale (compared to June 2007)New listings were up 23.22%. Pendings were down 53.42%.Solds decreased by 18.27%.As for Average Prices:The “New Listings” average list price is down 2.79% to 316,032. In June 2007 the average list price was $325,115.  Sold average sales prices increased 4.71% to $266,175. For June 2007 it was $254,211. Did you know?????That we had 10,594 active listings during the same week in 2007? Today there is 12,889 active listings! That is a 21.66% increase from last year.

After a rather neutral start in 2008, the real estate market for residential homes in Austin has increased its inventory of homes for sale, according to statistics from the Austin MLS. This is happening despite a continuation of one of the highest metropolitan growth rates in the country and a strong and growing local economy.

According to different Austin real estate agents, bad economic news from other parts of the country are causing prospective buyers to hold off as they wait and see what the economy might do. Some of them may be hoping that prices will fall even more before they buy, even though buying prospects are strong right now. Current mortgage rates are the lowest they have been in 35 years. The last time rates were this low during a buyer´s market was in 1973.

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At the same time, 81% of home buyers are still nervous about the current housing market and report the existence of barriers between them and homeownership. Today’s home buyers perceive the cost of a down payment (28%), their annual income level (20%), lack of confidence in the economy (26%) and high home prices (31%), especially in the Western states (39%) as barriers to buying a home.

Despite these reservations, the survey indicates underlying demand for homeownership is healthy. While nearly half (41%) of current homeowners do plan to purchase a home again, 80% of all renters plan to purchase a home someday with 47% planning to purchase a home within the next five years. More people who plan to move will do so for space-related (26%) and life-stage change reasons (17%), such as having children (2%) or downsizing to a smaller residence (9%), not financial ones including an increase in rent (2%) or an expensive mortgage (less than 1/2%).

Most home buyers (78%) are also willing to make sacrifices to save and earn extra income for down payments and will compromise on neighborhood features and residential amenities in order to buy a home in the current market. Many of their choices may reflect changing values, including a growing concern over the environment, the importance of community features and the rising cost of fuel.

“These findings show that despite the difficulties home buyers face in the wake of the subprime crisis and their concerns about economic uncertainty, underlying demand appears relatively strong. Consumers see better times coming,” said Lorna Borenstein, president of Move, Inc. “This is great news to us and our colleagues in the real estate industry. As the leader in online real estate, we pay close attention to consumer perceptions and behaviors. This important feedback enables us to identify ways in which we can enhance the search experience so it meets the needs of today’s consumers who will become the homebuyers of tomorrow.”

Buyers Face Barriers to Homeownership

While about four out of five home buyers (81%) say they face barriers to buying a home in the current market, the greatest single barrier to homeownership today is high home prices (31%), a concern that was much higher in the West (39%), than in the South (27%) or Midwest (26%).

The second greatest barrier keeping buyers out of the current market is coming up with the money for a down payment (28%), with lack of confidence in the economy (26%) ranking third. Financial concerns generally are higher among people in the West (45%) compared to the South (33%) and about one-third of those ages 18 - 34 said lack of money (38%) or poor credit (18%) is a concern compared to only 11% and 5% (respectively) of those 55+.

Four out of five adults (84%) say there is something about buying a home that is intimidating, and one out of three (34%) say money-related issues being a concern. Finding the right home is the most intimidating part of the home-buying process for about one out of five (19%). About two thirds of adults (62%) have visited an online real estate web site and once on the site, 23 percent are looking to purchase and 52 percent are looking at what’s on the market.

“This survey surfaced important feedback that Realtor.com addresses by delivering the largest and freshest collection of listings and new features like Find a Neighborhood and Find Home Values to empower consumers,” said Realtor.com President Errol Samuelson. “We want to help remove uncertainties from the home buying process by making it as transparent and as consumer-friendly as possible. Providing the most comprehensive information, relevant tools and connections to local Realtors are only a few of the many resources consumers will find at Realtor.com to help make the process of buying and selling a home easier and less stressful.”

Trade-offs Favor Community, Environment

Today, adults rank crime rates (56%), proximity to daily conveniences (47%) and property taxes (46%) as the top three factors in choosing a neighborhood. Home buyers are more willing to sacrifice cultural and recreational amenities (18%) than green features (16%) like solar heating and energy-saving appliances, or forego proximity to work (7%) and daily conveniences (11%) to buy a house in today’s real estate market.

Concern over the cost of gasoline and the importance of community is evident in the importance buyers place on accessibility. Only seven percent of home buyers would be willing to sacrifice proximity to work and six percent, proximity to shopping. Only three percent would give up proximity to public transportation in order to buy a home in today’s real estate market.

About half of adults (49%) say green features like solar panels, energy saving appliances and low usage water heaters are “important” features. More care about green features (49%) than luxury amenities (31%), yet some would give up green features (9%) before storage (7%), luxury amenities (7%) or numbers of bedrooms or bathrooms (6%). Women rate green features higher than men (52% to 46%) and consumers aged 18 - 34 years of age rate green features the lowest (40%).

Kitchens (67%) and the number of bedrooms (69%) are the most important features today’s buyers are looking for in a home. Storage space (66%) and the number of bathrooms (62%) rank three and four on their list of priorities.

Mortgages Are a Mystery

Understanding mortgages and the financing process during these times of change in the credit industry is a major issue with a large number of buyers. Eighty-one percent of today’s home buyers and three quarters of adults (78%) say they wish the process of taking out a mortgage was easier to understand. In fact, some say that either understanding financing (9%) or the uncertainty of the mortgage process (6%) is the most intimidating part of buying a home.

For many buyers, changes in the amount of a down payment required for a mortgage is a significant issue. The lack of cash for a down payment is keeping about one quarter (28%) of buyers out of homes–more than those who have poor credit (15%), low household income (20%) or those who lack of confidence in the economy (26%).

Seventy-eight percent of home buyers are willing to make sacrifices to save money or earn extra income in order to be able to buy a home in the current real estate market. First to go would be spending (65%) on items such as personal luxuries (46%) and clothes, shoes and accessories (43%). Next, home buyers would go out less often (52%). Nearly half would clip coupons (47%) and 27% would cancel a vacation.

About the survey

The Homeownership study was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Move, Inc. between May 21 and 23, 2008 among 2,462 U.S. adults ages 18 and older, of whom 1,377 plan to buy a home in the current real estate market. These online surveys are not based on probability samples and therefore no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For full survey methodology and all survey results please contact Lindsay Scalisi at 415.844.6217.

Once merely a bedroom community of Austin, Round Rock today is very much its own city thanks largely to three things: affordable housing, excellent schools and computer maker Dell, which has established its headquarters here.

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Story Courtesy of the Austin Business Journal (link)

The city of Austin plans to issue a request for proposals to buy and develop almost two acres of prime land in East Austin for mixed-use in an area that has long been tapped for revitalization.

The RFP would be for so-called Block 16, mostly undeveloped land bounded by East 11th, Juniper, Branch and Curve streets. City staff are drafting the RFP and plan to release it in October, says Margaret Shaw, director of the city’s Neighborhood Housing and Community Development Department.

There is ongoing feedback from the community about the RFP’s criteria for an area some say has been too slow to flourish. The RFP will include an evaluation matrix based on project values and goals such as pedestrian-oriented mixed use, job creation, small and minority-owned businesses, community parking and affordability, Shaw says.

A historic home on Block 16 once owned by one of the first freed slaves in Travis County would either be restored or demolished. It it’s destroyed, a proposed African-American cultural and heritage facility near Block 16 would be included in the RFP. The city would contribute $1.5 million from bonds towards such a facility and would own it, Shaw says.

Zoning changes, which would allow greater density on Block 16, will be considered by the Planning Commission on Aug. 12, and City Council is expected to review those changes in October, says Jerry Rusthoven, manager of the city’s zoning division.

That would pave the way for issuing the RFP, says Kevin Cole, chairman of the Urban Renewal Board, a city agency tasked with overseeing revitalization in the once-blighted, drug-addled area. The RFP has been made part of an overall plan to accelerate revitalization along the East 11th and 12th street corridors.

Another entity, the Austin Revitalization Authority, a nonprofit community development board, has been responsible for bringing development, commercial uses and housing to the area. But many feel they have been slow to deliver, Cole says.

“There’s been a lot of criticism of the Austin Revitalization Authority, the Urban Renewal Agency and the city for not having done any significant development on the city-owned property along the 11th Street corridor,” Cole says. “The hue and cry that our board has worked to respond to is that it’s taking far too long to get development on that corridor.”

The Revitalization Authority is planning to bring an estimated $33 million four-story, 66,000-square-foot, mixed-use building on a block adjacent to Block 16. The authority is planning similarly scaled projects for the East 11th Street corridor, but Cole says there’s a possibility of them being included in one or more RFPs.

“We would have liked to have seen things move faster,” says Byron Marshall, CEO of the revitalization authority.

But he says there were mitigating factors such as the downtown office market, which had excess supply and not enough absorption. Starting a project with a large office component made no sense to him.

“So now we both think this is the time to move forward,” Marshall says. “Rather than arguing what could have been we’re just going to do what can be done now.”

jkwon@bizjournals.com | (512) 494-2528

http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/theticker/entries/2008/07/07/indymac_bancorp_will_stop_maki.html

IndyMac slashes workforce, keeps Austin mortgage center

By American Statesman staff | Monday, July 7, 2008, 03:54 PM

IndyMac Bancorp will stop making most new loans and cut its workforce by more than half to confront a deepening capital crisis.

The bank, based in Pasadena, Calif, said it would keep open its mortgage servicing operations in Austin and Kalamazoo, Mich., which together employ 1,100 people.

The company said curtailing new loans is the best way to maintain sufficient liquidity.

IndyMac opened is Austin operations last year, leasing 100,000 square feet at Freescale’s North Austin campus.

At the time, the company said it planned to hire 300 people and could expand to 600 or more within a few years.

But IndyMac — the country’s second largest independent mortgage lender — has been hit hard by the mortgage crisis. It has lost almost $900 million in the past three quarters and its stock price has plunged by 98 percent in the past year.

In a letter Monday to shareholders, CEO Michael Perry said the bank does not expect to be able to raise new capital until the national housing and mortgage markets stabilize.

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