The Austin-Round Rock area tied for first on a list of large metros where the recession is easing. Austin has also maintained relatively lower jobless rates, though the number increased to 7.6 percent last month from 7 percent, according to the Texas Workforce Commission. Statewide, the rate was unchanged at 8.2 percent from December to January, compared to 9.7 percent nationally. Read more...
The sushi specialists at Austin's Uchi on South Lamar have done it again. The restaurant was voted best food in Austin, according to Zagat survey. The New York business reviewer released the results of its latest Texas restaurant survey today, which includes more than 1,800 Central Texas eateries. The Salt Lick made the favorites list, taking the "most popular" crown, while the Driskill Grill was noted for "best decor" and TRIO took the cake for best service. Read more...
On April 20, Antone’s will be taken over by suits who are hard working by day and hard rocking by night. These on-the-side musicians will be rocking out in support of The Health Alliance for Austin Musicians Fundraiser Corporate Battle of the Bands. Eleven bands will be battling for awards and prizes during the showdown at Antone’s. Read more...
Austin could land a solar panel manufacturing plant and a local office for the Facebook social networking service, projects that together could bring 500 jobs within the next few years, city and state officials said Thursday. Facebook Inc. plans to create a 200-employee sales and operations center in Austin, and Yingli Green Energy Americas Inc. is considering Austin and Phoenix, Ariz., for a large solar panel manufacturing plant and its North American headquarters. Read more...
Austin City Council members took a wait-and-see stance Thursday on the expanded downtown rail plan that city staff unveiled this week. They'll wait for specific answers about the costs and how to pay for what would be light rail or streetcar lines throughout downtown, then consider putting rail bonds before voters. But they emphasized that such a bond package would also have road, bicycle and pedestrian projects. Read more...
Downtown Austin would have two north-south passenger rail corridors, a more expansive network than previously envisioned, under a recommendation that City of Austin staff will present today to the Austin City Council. The proposed rail system — which would be in addition to Capital Metro's commuter rail line scheduled to open next month — would link the Mueller development in East Austin to the University of Texas to downtown to the airport. Read more...
Capital Metro plans to resume full-speed commuter rail testing next week, in preparation for a March launch of the much-delayed Red Line, an agency official said Monday. Federal railroad inspectors will be on the scene next week and likely will stay until the line opens to the public. "These are not showstoppers," said Elaine Timbes , an executive vice president with the agency and overseer of the rail project. "These are just things they want to observe."Read more...
The partnership behind The Driskill Hotel restoration and Driskill Grill have planned two restaurants for the downtown Austonian luxury high rise. The 178-unit luxury condominium building — which claims to be the tallest residential building in the Western U.S. – opens in June and the two new eateries are expected to open this fall. The La Corsha Restaurant Partners is leading the new restaurants, reuniting Driskill developers Jeff Trigger, David Bull, Scott Walker and Jeff Rhein. Read more...
The Austin City Council unanimously approved an incentives agreement Thursday aimed at persuading LegalZoom.com Inc. to establish a regional headquarters that could bring 600 jobs to Central Texas over the next five years. The deal will pay Los Angeles-based LegalZoom $20,000 a year for 10 years, tied to job creation targets. The Texas Enterprise Fund, a state incentives fund, would provide $1 million. Read more...
The City of Austin is getting ready to make a bid to become a site for Google Inc.'s proposed ultra-fast broadband network project. Google last week said it planned to build one or more high-speed networks to demonstrate the advantages of very fast access to the Internet. Google has described its proposed experimental network as "Think big with a gig" — a reference to the proposed 1-gigabit speed of the network, which would make it 50 to 100 times faster than the fastest commercial broadband services commonly available in the U.S. Read more...
The Austin City Council should swiftly adopt a plan to significantly increase the amount of renewable energy the city uses and decrease the use of traditional sources, such as coal, by 2020, a coalition of environmental activists, nonprofits and businesses said at a Wednesday news conference. Members of Clean Energy for Austin said Austin Energy's proposal would help the environment, attract jobs and protect the city from sharp increases in the cost of coal. Read more...
Texas' construction activity is expected to improve this year with Austin fairing the best, according to a McGraw-Hill Construction report Thursday. The 2010 Texas Construction Outlook shows construction starts value increasing 16 percent this year to $52.5 billion statewide. Austin is expected to experience the largest growth, rising 30 percent in value, followed by Houston, growing 17 percent. Dallas is projected to increase 16 percent and El Paso should add 8 percent value this year. San Antonio is expected to see 6 percent growth. Read more...
Austin is faring better than other big cities and is poised to emerge strong from the recession, Mayor Lee Leffingwell said in his annual State of the City address Tuesday. "Austin is full of smart, driven people who make things happen," he told 420 people at a Real Estate Council of Austin luncheon at the Four Seasons Hotel downtown. "For that reason ... even during this monumentally difficult moment in history, the state of our city is strong." Leffingwell rattled off several No. 1 rankings the city has achieved and said Austin has lost fewer jobs and had a more stable real estate market than other cities. Read more...
The Austin-Round Rock region lost the least number of jobs in Texas last year, shedding a net 2,300 positions, or 0.3 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics year-end report released today. The area's workforce performance was second only to the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission region, which was the only Texas area to add positions year-over-year. Victoria, Texas reported the highest job losses between 2008 and 2009, dropping 4 percent. Read more...
Next month, a Beverly Hills, Calif.-based firm will auction 27 units in the Sabine on Fifth, a downtown condominium project whose future until recently had been clouded by a lawsuit and a foreclosure action. Bids will start at $85,000 and $135,000 for the lowest priced one- and two-bedroom units, previously listed at $204,900 and $409,900, said Rhett Winchell, president of the Kennedy Wilson Auction Group , which will conduct the sale Feb. 28 at the Hilton Austin hotel downtown. Read more...
Town Market has opened below the Legacy apartments on Rainey Street. It’s a unique space. Leasing a live/work unit on the ground floor of this downtown Austin apartment tower, Town Market is a two story affair with wine, coffee, sandwiches on the ground floor and dry goods on the second floor. The Town Market concept comes from the same people who brought you Cissi’s on South Congress. The store is 50 paces from the Hike and Bike trail, so I expect they will do well during breakfast and the early evening hours. The Rainey Street District has one of the highest residential concentrations in Austin, and Town Market is a welcome addition to the downtown Austin neighborhood. Read more...
Spire Realty Group is the new owner of the 35-year-old Chase Tower in downtown Austin, the first major office acquisition in Central Texas in more than a year. Dallas-based Spire said it is planning more large office acquisitions, including in Austin, over the next two years. Ruff said Spire likes the stability of the Austin market, particularly downtown, where it will look for other buying opportunities. "We like Austin. We want to be in Austin, and we plan on being there a while," he said. Several experts said the acquisition is good news for Austin — an omen of an improving office market and solid growth prospects for its economy. Read more...
Although Auditorium Shores is one of Austin's most popular green spaces, it lacks parking and amenities for the many pedestrians, cyclists and dog owners who converge there daily, city officials say. To fix that, the city is planning $4.2 million in improvements to Auditorium Shores and nearby Butler Park. They include more parking, new restrooms, a pier over Lady Bird Lake, a children's play area and a path that splits off of the hike-and-bike trail to ease congestion and redirect joggers, cyclists and walkers away from dog owners and their pets. There are no plans to make the off-leash dog area an on-leash area. Read more...
Sales of existing homes in Central Texas were down 6 percent in 2009 to a six-year low of 19,005. But the market got a late boost from a federal tax credit for first-time buyers and is poised for a better 2010, said John Horton, chairman of the Austin Board of Realtors. "We're seeing encouraging news from many sources that 2010 will be an improvement over 2009, and I think this report is one more indicator the outlook is beginning to brighten," Horton said. Read more...
Texas will be "last in, first out" among states battling the recession, although a recovery that has already started will require patience, a leading economist says. The Lone Star State proved resilient because of advantages such as weather, stable home prices and a political climate favorable for companies seeking new places to do business, said Ray Perryman, head of the Perryman Group and a longtime Texas economist. Still, Perryman said Texas has seen its share of difficulty since the state got caught up in the national economic downturn in the summer of 2008. Job losses mounted last year, and the outlook remains bleak for commercial real estate. Read more...
Although Austin hasn't been immune to the recession, its economic and housing fundamentals are the strongest among the more than 40 housing markets across the country tracked by MetroStudy, said Eldon Rude, the Austin director for the housing research firm. Because of the stability in the local housing market, he said, "when the U.S. economy improves, Austin will be one of the first markets that shows stronger growth in its housing market." Read more...
Austin, Texas: A growth bastion, Austin’s low state taxes and a pro business environment are expected to contribute to future growth and continuing corporate relocations. Austin fits the “brainpower” model with its state capital, large state university, and offshoot tech and software businesses. Read more...
After two years of steady decline, Austin's apartment occupancy rate ticked up by the end of 2009, settling at 90.4 percent in December, up from 89.5 percent in June, according to Capitol Market Research, a local real estate consulting firm. Healthy leasing activity helped landlords maintain rents, which had been declining for more than 18 months, said Charles Heimsath, the firm's president. Rents averaged $942 for a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in December, unchanged from June but down from $962 at the end of 2008. Read more...
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A bottom is in sight for Central Texas' new-home market, with a slow recovery expected this year, according to Residential Strategies Inc., which tracks the housing market. Builders started 1,389 new homes in the fourth quarter of 2009, down 7.2 percent from the same quarter of 2008, Residential Strategies reported Monday. By comparison, in the last three months of 2008, starts were down 50 percent from the year-earlier quarter. Read more...
Austin has the best prospects for commercial real estate investment this year, a Grubb & Ellis Co. (NYSE:GBE) forecast reported today. The Santa Ana, Calif-based real estate services and investment firm said it expects commercial real estate will continue to falter this year, but at a slower rate, according to the 2010 forecast. Most property types will reach bottom pricing near the end of 2010 with a slow recovery beginning in 2011, officials said. Read more...
Austin-area home resales jumped 58 percent last month from November 2008 as buyers scrambled to take advantage of low mortgage interest rates and a tax credit for first-time buyers. November's percentage increase was the biggest in more than a decade and followed a 38 percent jump in October, according to the Austin Board of Realtors. However, the 997 sales in November 2008 were unusually low, reflecting the worsening economic downturn at the time. Read more...
Developers are seeking a zoning change to build a tower with 27 or 28 stories of condominiums and office and retail space just east of Whole Foods Market Inc.'s headquarters. The complex would be the biggest commercial project downtown since the Frost Bank Tower opened in 2004. Schlosser Development Corp . is proposing a tower with 90 condominiums in seven floors above 16 floors of office space, with parking and street-level retail. A companion building would have three levels of office space above ground-floor retail. The 2.7-acre site, currently used for parking, is bounded by West Fifth, Bowie and West Sixth streets and Shoal Creek. Read more...
White Lodging Services Corp., the developer of the as yet unbuilt 1,000-room Marriott hotel on Congress Avenue, is planning to build a second downtown hotel: an upscale, 276-room Hyatt Place that the company hopes to build once the economy and hotel industry improve. "We believe there is a continued niche for premium-branded, upscale hotels in downtown Austin, and the Hyatt name carries a very strong reputation," said Deno Yiankes, president and CEO of investment and development for White Lodging. However, "we'd need to see a rebound before we'd feel comfortable moving forward," he said. Read more...
The Austin City Council on Thursday ordered a review of rules on granting historic landmark status to homes — and the tax breaks that come with that designation — amid concerns from some council members that a rush of new historic zoning cases could undermine the city's tax base. On Thursday, the council heard 25 requests for historic status, most from the Pemberton Heights neighborhood, just northwest of downtown. That amounted to more historic cases than the council usually considers in a year, Council Member Bill Spelman said. Read more...
When the Austin City Council decided in 2006 to limit the sizes of new or renovated houses in the central city, council members said they wanted to preserve the character of older neighborhoods. Now, residents of some South Austin neighborhoods say their communities have character worth saving, too. Today, the Austin City Council will consider a resolution asking City Manager Marc Ott to work with South Austin residents to identify boundaries for a potential expansion of the city's Residential Design and Compatibility Standards ordinance, which limits the size, shape and location of dwellings on urban lots. Read more...
Developers on Thursday unveiled their latest plans for the art-themed 21c Museum Hotel, with the downtown project now calling for a 31-story apartment tower, along with a 13-story, 250-room hotel with a modern art museum open to the public. Officials with the Poe Cos. and 21c Museum Hotels presented their plans to the Waller Creek Citizen Advisory Committee. The project would be built on about 3 acres at East Cesar Chavez and Red River streets on the banks of Waller Creek. Read more...
Seattle has a plan. So do Tampa, San Diego, Portland, Denver, Nashville and Calgary. Vancouver is the exemplar, a city that has used a developer bonus system to encourage density downtown while assuring that the city core doesn't become a forest of bulky high-rises with a scarcity of parks, public amenities or places for moderate-income people to live. Now it's Austin's turn. On Dec. 17, the Austin City Council is scheduled to vote on proposals for a voluntary program under which downtown developers would be rewarded with extra space or height for their projects if they provide certain community benefits, such as affordable housing, child care services or cultural spaces. Read more...
If the thousands of people who travel Enfield Road every day needed a reminder of the recession, this is it: For two years, the unfinished structure of the Pleiades condominiums has stood, construction suspended, near the stoplight at West Lynn Street. Two years after markets began to falter, some economists are seeing signs of recovery in the Austin area, and soon activity could be stirring once again at the corner of Enfield and West Lynn. Read more...
Sales of previously owned homes surged for the second month in a row in October, climbing to the highest level in 2½ years as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of an expiring tax credit. The National Association of Realtors on Monday said home resales rose 10.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.1 million in October, from a downwardly revised pace of 5.5 million in September. It was the biggest monthly increase in a decade, far above the 5.6 million pace expected by economists, according to Thomson Reuters. Read more...
Appearances can be deceiving. Just 408 condos remain available for sale in Downtown Austin. Because of tight financing, no new projects are likely to go up for another four or five years. The number of residents living downtown has doubled in the past decade to 8,000 people, but that growth will be slowing down. Read more...
Central Texas existing-home sales jumped nearly 38 percent in October as buyers took advantage of a federal tax credit for first-time homeowners and favorable mortgage interest rates. It was the biggest year-over-year percentage gain in more than four years and encouraging news for a housing market that struggled for much of 2009. The Austin Board of Realtors reported Wednesday that 1,823 single-family homes were sold last month, compared with 1,322 in October 2008. Pending sales — transactions expected to close in November — were up 47 percent, an indicator of another strong month. Read more...
The City of Austin and car2go, a subsidiary of Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler AG, launched a car-sharing partnership and released about 200 of the truncated two-seaters in the city's core. The stubby vehicles — they're less than 9 feet long and get about 33 miles per gallon in city driving — will be parked here and there around town, and city employees who register as car2go members will be able to use them free of charge for errands related to city business. They'll be able to use them for personal business as well but will have to pay 35 cents a minute during those trips. Members can either make a reservation up to 24 hours in advance or walk up to an available car2go vehicle and, after completing a series of steps, drive away. A Web site will show where each available car is at any given time. Read more...
The Austin-Round Rock area was named the best performing city on the 2009 Milken Institute/Greenstreet Real Estate Partners Best Performing Cities Index. The index ranks U.S. metro areas based on their ability to create and sustain jobs, measuring employment, salary growth and technology output. Read more...
Texas is a national leader in the number of Energy Star qualified homes in the United States, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. “By making smart energy choices, thousands of Texans are saving millions each year,” says EPA Acting Regional Administrator Lawrence E. Starfield in Dallas. “By taking a few common sense steps to conserve home energy use, we can get the most out of our energy dollars and save on utility bills.” Read more...
The Senate approved a $45 billion plan Wednesday to expand a tax credit for first-time homebuyers, extend jobless benefits and provide tax refunds to money-losing companies. Under the bill, the $8,000 homebuyers' tax credit, slated to expire this month, would continue until April 30 and be expanded to include people with higher incomes and some who already own homes. The measure also includes $2.4 billion to extend unemployment benefits for as many as 20 weeks, enough to aid the jobless through the holiday season, and would loosen tax rules for businesses, allowing them to claim refunds by deducting losses sustained in the past two years from the past five years' worth of profits. Read more...
Austin area home values have begun to stabilize, according to the Fiserv Case-Shiller Home Price Index, a home price trends analysis released by Fiserv (Nasdaq: FISV), a financial services company. From the first quarter 2009 to the second quarter 2009, home values in Austin fell about 1.3 percent, the report said. Home prices in the area have risen 0.1 percent in the past 12 months, the report said, but are projected to slowly decline over the next year with a forecasted negative 1.8 percent price change. Read more...
Senators agreed Wednesday to extend a popular tax credit for first-time homebuyers and to offer a reduced credit to some repeat buyers. The tax credit provides up to $8,000 to first-time homebuyers but is set to expire at the end of November. Senators agreed to extend the existing tax credit for first-time homebuyers while offering a reduced credit of up to $6,500 to repeat buyers who have owned their current homes for at least five years, said Regan Lachapelle, a spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Read more...
Waller Creek is an unwelcoming place. Trash litters the flood-prone waters. Homeless people take shelter beneath the low bridges. And most buildings near the creek face coldly away from it. City planners envision a more vibrant, walkable district in that southeastern corner of downtown Austin, with people eating and shopping in creekside cafes and stores, living in mid- and high-rise buildings and biking and walking on new trails and tree-lined streets. Read more...
Austin, a high-tech center, is also home to the University of Texas. Employment in the Austin metro peaked in the fourth quarter of last year. Gross metropolitan product peaked in the second quarter. Home prices grew 2.5% in the second quarter compared with the same period a year earlier. And the unemployment rate in June was 7.1%, up 2.6 points from a year earlier. Read more...
Despite the nation’s unemployment rate hitting a 26-year high in September, many small businesses are getting ready to hire, according to a survey released Monday by Intuit Inc. Mountain View, Calif.-based Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU) said its survey found that 44 percent of small business owners polled are planning to hire new employees within the next 12 months. Read more...
After eight months of looking, Stratus Properties Inc. said Wednesday that it has a new lender that will allow its W Austin Hotel & Residences project downtown to be completed as scheduled in December 2010. Austin-based Stratus and its partner in the project, the Canyon-Johnson Urban Funds, closed on a $120 million loan funded by Beal Bank Nevada and originated by Beal Bank Nevada's lending subsidiary, CLG Hedge Fund LLC. Read more...
As downtown Austin becomes more vibrant, with shops, restaurants, grocery stores and sky-scraping condominiums, more people are considering downsizing to be close to where the action is, agents say. And it's not just for the wealthy. Most condominiums at or near downtown offer options below $300,000 for less than 600 square feet. Kevin Burns of Urbanspace Realtors says smaller units encourage home-hunters who would ordinarily be priced out of downtown to buy. Read more...
The recession ended in August in one out of every five metro areas in the United States, including Austin and other major cities of Texas, according to the latest Adversity Index from Moody's Economy.com and msnbc.com. The report from msnbc.com said this is the first month this year that any metro has moved from recession into recovery, indicating that its economy grew from six months earlier. No city is yet categorized as in "expansion." That label is given to those areas where the economy has grown past its previous peak. Read more...
With so many Americans in the unemployment line these days, a growing number are looking at entrepreneurship as an option. That's what makes this year's list of the best cities to start a small business from Fortune all the more timely. The folks at Fortune rank Austin eighth on this year's list, behind cities such as Houston, Raleigh, N.C. and No. 1 Oklahoma City. Austin got kudos for its angel investment groups, business-friendly tax structure and support for business development in sectors like tech. Read more...
A Rio Grande Valley developer wants to build a 12-story mixed-use project with apartments, offices, shops and an upscale restaurant near the Capitol. Palmco Inc., a builder with offices in Austin and McAllen, is proposing to erect its Capitol Terrace project for the southwest corner of Lavaca and 14th streets. It would have 30 apartments — housing aimed at lobbyists and others with business at the Capitol or state agencies — as well as 61,000 square feet of office space on five floors. Read more...
If you were a recent college graduate in a recovering economy launching a career, looking for a mate or both, where would you choose to live? Predicting cities that will emerge as post-recession meccas for the young is easy to argue about, but impossible to forecast empirically. Whether you prefer hip, casual Austin, Texas, over the cosmopolitan allure of New York City is partly a matter of personal taste. A state capital and the site of a big University of Texas campus, Austin has become a gathering place for tech- and arts-conscious young adults. Read more...
Downtown Austin is one of the few places in America that has seen the number of restaurants grow during the past two years. The full-service restaurants that offer a unique lunch or dinner experience to downtown’s core audience — business customers — and keep their menu prices modest will survive and grow the most, said Chuck Smith, founder of Moonshine Grill. Customers like Foster have helped increase sales 5 percent this year compared with last year for Moonshine Grill, Smith said. “Forbes magazine said that Austin will be one of the first cities to emerge from the recession,” he said. “My question is: What recession?” Read more...
Leslie Gandy opened the Dress Shop last month at 315 Congress Ave., — the first women's clothing store on Congress downtown in more than a decade. Business has been brisk at the 1,500-square-foot store. "Congress is the main street of Austin, and it should have women's retail," Gandy said. Downtown's main street has struggled to revive its retail character even as other areas, such as the Second Street District, have grown and flourished. Read more...
To qualify for an FHA loan in Travis County the purchase price of the residence must be under $288,750. It’s a buyer’s market all over town. If you are a first time home buyer, the government will give you $8,000 to play with towards your down payment. And, for FHA loans, you only need 3.5% down payment. And And, interest rates are at historic lows. Read more...
Next month, the Austin City Council will consider proposals that would significantly change the rules for building downtown, requiring developers who want to build taller, larger buildings than city rules allow to offer in return specific public benefits, such as park space, live music venues or affordable housing. Currently, developers can request variances to zoning rules, and the city decides on a case-by-case basis. Developers seeking more square footage or height for their projects are expected, although not required, to offer something in exchange — such as building a park nearby or setting aside some of the housing for people who make less than the area's median income. read more...
As part of a special zoning agreement, a developer who wants to build an upscale East Riverside Drive apartment complex has offered almost $4 million for low-income housing in Austin. But as the City Council prepares for a possible vote today on the plan, a last-minute question has emerged: Is $4 million enough? Grayco Partners says it's giving the city a generous contribution to offset the loss of 600 relatively low-cost units, in addition to enhancing public waterfront access and numerous other concessions. Read more...
Texas improved its position on Forbes' Best States for Business this year. The Lone Star State ranked 8th on this year's list, up from 9th in 2008. Texas ranks No. 1 in the land for overall economic climate and third for growth potential. But the state ranked fairly low (39th) for quality of life and was 29th when it comes to cost of doing business. Read more...
Mr. Bone's Barbecue, frozen yogurt concept Yo So Cool, Central Texas Pediatric Dentistry and EyeMasters are joining the retail mix that includes Bed Bath & Beyond, Home Depot and others. "Mueller is emerging as a strong business and community center for the city of Austin and that kind of growth is encouraging for entrepreneurs like myself looking for a great place to do business," Goode said. Read more...
In the first major hotel project to be announced for downtown Austin in nearly two years, developers plan a 17-story hotel that could mark the debut of a new global brand. The hotel, proposed for the southwest corner of West Fifth and Colorado streets in the Warehouse District, would be a concept called 1 Hotel, by Starwood Capital Group. Starwood Capital has billed the concept as the first luxury eco-friendly global hotel brand. Starwood has hired Woodbine Development Corp. to build the hotel, which would have about 250 to 275 rooms. Read more...
For the exasperated job-seeker to whom employment opportunities seem bleaker than ever, salvation may lie in the Lone Star State. Texas, home to dozens of energy heavyweights and nearly as many innovative small companies, has three of the best cities to earn a living: Dallas, Houston and Austin. Read more...
Price cuts as steep as 25 to 30 percent have helped developers of two downtown-area condominium projects, the Shore and Bridges on the Park, sell off many of their remaining units. However, agents and developers of four other downtown projects — the newly opened Spring and three under construction — said they are holding firm on their pricing, confident in the strength of the downtown market, especially as the economy recovers. And several predicted that there will be a shortage of downtown condominium units within a few years, with no new projects in the planning pipeline. Read more...
Sales of new homes surged nearly 10 percent from June to July in another sign of a gathering turnaround in the country's long-suffering housing market. The Commerce Department reported that new-home sales rose 9.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted rate of 433,000 in July. The numbers came on the heels of other reports that have showed housing prices rising in many big cities and sales of previously owned homes picking up. Sales, however, were still down 13.4 percent from a year ago. Read more...
Sit at Opal Divine’s patio on a Saturday night on West Sixth Street, and it won’t take long to realize that the people watching is almost as tempting as the brews. Every weekend, women in trendy dresses and men in button-down shirts descend on the area heading to the dozen or so bars, lounges and restaurants that are shoe-horned between Lavaca and West streets. Read more...
Central Texas' retail market is holding its own during the recession, with occupancy at midyear at 92 percent, down from 92.5 percent a year ago, a new report says. The Austin area "continues to see one of the most active leasing markets in Texas," spurred in part by job growth that, until recently, had remained in positive territory during the economic downturn, according to the Weitzman Group, a Dallas-based retail brokerage firm. Read more...
Entrepreneur magazine’s August issue ranks Austin the tenth-best start-up city in America. The magazine’s look at new business-friendly cities addresses issues such as government incentives, population growth, affordability of commercial rents, and openness to new ideas. Entrepreneur calls Austin the “cross-pollinator” among the top 10 cities. The magazine cites the multiple "scenes" that shape Austin, from music to tech, and how they feed off of one another. Read more...
New home sales rose last month at the fastest clip in more than eight years as buyers eagerly took advantage of bargain prices — a clear sign, economists said, that the real estate market may finally be bouncing back. Historically low interest rates and a federal tax credit for first-time homeowners also helped push home sales to their highest level since November, the Commerce Department reported Monday. While home prices are still falling around the country, sales have now risen for three months in a row. Construction of homes is at the busiest level since last fall. And home resales rose in June for the third straight month. Read more...
Fueled by record high energy prices, Texas is America’s Top State for Business in 2008. It is not a huge climb—Texas was number two last year. Just like last year, our study shows Texas has the best all-around economy in the nation. But the Lone Star State made strides this year in Transportation—where it went from number five to number one—as well as Business Friendliness, Cost of Living and Quality of Life. Read more...
From now until the end of 2010, the Austin economy is projected to grow by $5 billion. That, coupled with relatively subdued unemployment, has the Texas Capital poised for the quickest economic rebound in the nation, according to Forbes.com. Overall, many economists expect the national economy to return to growth later in 2009, perhaps as soon as this summer. But, as the Forbes writers point out, that won't be the case everywhere. While some cities are positioned for a quick rebound, others face a slow crawl to recovery that could take years. Read more...
Austin-area sales of existing homes hit the highest level in a year last month, according to figures Monday from the Austin Board of Realtors. Last month, 2,135 single-family homes were sold in the area, down 4 percent from a year earlier. That was the smallest decline since a 2 percent drop in July 2007, when the market began to soften amid an emerging national mortgage crisis. Pending sales — those in the pipeline to close in July — were up 4 percent, to 2,084. "We've seen the year-over-year gap in sales volume close steadily throughout 2009, and that momentum continues this month," said Jay Gohil, chairman of the Board of Realtors. Read more...
Environmental news and information group The Mother Nature Network has named Austin as one of the nation’s 10 greenest cities. The network praised the city of Austin’s Climate Protection Program, a plan to go carbon-neutral by 2020; and the city’s electric utility Austin Energy, the nation’s largest provider of renewable energy, among its reasons for naming Austin a leader in green. “Austin is a green city because of our engaged community, and we hope our residents will continue to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions,” said Ester Matthews, director of the Austin Climate Protection Program. read more...
Commercial real estate firm T. Stacy & Associates Inc. has launched an executive suite in its downtown Austin Centre building at 701 Brazos St. Austin Centre Executive Suites spans the entire remodeled fifth floor of the Austin Centre office building and includes 80 fully-furnished suites. The suites also have four conference rooms, three kitchens, a mailroom, shared office equipment, virtual office capabilities and secretarial services and centralized phone-answering capabilities. Read more...
Inspired by the recent Austin Magazine column, I thought it would be interesting to research the purchasing power of $300,000 in Austin’s urban core. The properties below are currently available to purchase and are listed between $290-310k. I left out several properties, but wanted provide a broad spectrum of product. Read more...
urbanspace commercial team would like to thank those who joined us at our discussion forum and networking event at the urbanspace Downtown office and threshold Interiors.
In particular, we would like to extend a warm "thank you" to our guest speaker, Diana Zuniga, for her presentation on the Austin Downtown market and its developments.
Lastly, we would like to thank our sponsors - Whole Foods, Paula's Texas Spirits, and The Monarch - for their graciousness and support of this event.
The Austin area continued to add jobs in May, the only large Texas metropolitan area that has done so for the fourth month in a row. The Austin-Round Rock area gained jobs at a 0.5 percent rate last month compared to a year earlier, the Texas Workforce Commission reported. That translates to 4,200 jobs, bringing the region's job count to 781,400. Hiring in the government and broad services sectors led growth in Central Texas. Read more...
Texas has been named the country's No. 1 state for business once again, this time by Directorship, a publication that caters to corporate boardroom leaders. According to its Web site, the magazine's mission is to provide corporate boardroom’s and governance committees with the best intelligence on the U.S. business environment. Texas nabbed the No. 1 spot due to its ability to attract Fortune 500 companies, its solid economy, affordable cost of living and its pro-business tax climate. Read more...
(This is a guest post from the Downtown Austin Blog, downtownaustin.wordpress.com). The word “penthouse” is used frequently to describe the residence(s) on the top floor of a building. There is an undeniable air of exclusivity. Ceilings are generally higher and the views are typically the best in the building. For instance, a residence on floor 12 is easily substituted for a residence on floor 14, but a top floor unit has no substitute. Read more...
Metro Austin continues to lead the nation in job performance. The region added about 3,400 jobs between April 2008 and April 2009, making it the only one of the nation's 38 largest cities to post a job gain, new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows. This is the third consecutive month that Austin has outperformed all of the other U.S. cities with labor forces of 750,000 or more. The unemployment rate for April stood at 5.8 percent. Read more...
Vacant and overlooked for four years, a 55-year-old downtown Austin building once heralded as an icon of midcentury modern design is about to be restored largely to its original state and will have McGarrah/Jessee, an Austin advertising agency, as a lead tenant. Kemp Properties will seek restaurants, plus shops and nightlife venues for the retail space, creating what Ball hopes will become a distinctive entertainment and dining hub in that part of downtown. Read more...
The Austin metro area added 4,900 jobs in April, helping bring the unemployment rate down from 6.2 percent in March to 5.8 percent last month. Austin had roughly 781,400 jobs in April, up from 776,500 in the prior month. That's also a 3,400-job increase from April 2008. The sector posting the biggest month-over-month gain was leisure and hospitality, which added 3,000 positions. Read more...
Despite the overall economic slowdown, some parts of the country keep on moving ahead, attracting more and more newcomers — even if it's at a slower pace than in more sound economic times. These places still offer a semblance of stability, as well as great weather, cultural life and, in many cases, affordability. Read more...
Austin-area home sales last month were the highest since September, and several agents said they're seeing signs the market is stabilizing. The Austin Board of Realtors said Wednesday that 1,601 single-family homes sold last month, with a median price of $189,000. "With each month, the gap in sales volume from 2008 to 2009 is closing," Gohil said. Read more...
Austin is the best city in America to get a fresh start, according to a new report from Relocation.com. The online moving service company ranked Austin No. 1 on its list of the best cities to start over and seek out new economic opportunities. Relocation.com used the following elements to create its list: city "popularity" based on consumer requests for moving quotes to move to that city; economic-growth prospects; home affordability; and the strength of a community as reflected by volunteerism rates. Read more...
Texas banks, especially those in Austin, are doing better than banks across the nation, according to a report released Tuesday. Sheshunoff and Co. Investment Banking, a banking merger and acquisitions advisory firm, reported that Texas-based banks as a group had higher profitability levels in the first quarter than the national average, and lower ratios of problem loans to assets. "As a whole, Texas banks are a very solid, stable group," said John Blaylock, associate director at Sheshunoff. Read more...
Austin is the place where people pay the least to get the most. Four other Texas cities make the list of America's Best Bargain Cities, but none come close to Austin, whose 5.5% unemployment is the best in the country and about half the national average. Read more...
Existing home sales in Central Texas rose 6.4 percent in September, the first year-over-year increase in more than two years, and the median sales price also was up, rising 2 percent to $185,250, the Austin Board of Realtors reported Tuesday. Sales were buoyed by factors including a federal tax credit of up to $8,000 for eligible first-time homebuyers and mortgage interest rates that are hovering around 5 percent. Read more...
The Federal Housing Authority announced today that they will allow first time homebuyers to apply their $8,000 tax credit as a downpayment when purchasing a house. Previously, most buyers wouldn't receive the funds until after they filed their tax return, and that deterred some people from using the credit. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® has been calling for the change. Read more...
With a high-tech workforce of more than 54,000, Austin ranks seventh on a list of the nation's biggest tech cities from bizjournals. Texas' Capital City is home to roughly 2,600 tech companies, which employ an average of 20 employees each. Austin also has a relatively educated populace--11 percent of residents have a master's degree or higher. State government and the University of Texas also help make Austin a dynamic tech market. Read more...
La Condesa is a hot new addition to the 2nd street district in downtown Austin. La Condesa offers a "neo-mexicana" cuisine, cutting-edge Mexico City-style food and cocktails. The architecture and design of the restaurant is awe-inspring and was designed by Michael Hsu. We highly recommend that you stop by and check out this new edition to the emerging 2nd St. District. Read more...
The Waller Creek Citizen Advisory Committee invites members of the community to attend a Master Plan Workshop on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 from 6-9. At this event, you will have a chance to share your thoughts on the future of Waller Creek with ROMA and City of Austin planners. You will also be able to visit with the tunnel design team and learn how this engineering marvel will provide effective flood protection. Read more...
Sales of newly constructed homes are showing indications, ever so slight, that the housing decline may be near an end, a government report showed Friday. Texas has largely avoided this housing decline but its always good to hear that the rest of the nation may be recovering. Read more...
Austin Farmer's Market is throwing a big party today to celebrate Earth Day. Events will include the farmer's market, art shows, and a solar powered concert. It should be fun if you have the inclination to attend. The event runs 9-3p.m. Get more information here...
For the second consecutive month, Austin's unemployment rate has decreased as the region tries to regain the losses it's sustained in the recession. Austin added 5,100 jobs in the month of March, helping drop the metro area's unemployment rate from 6.3 percent in February to 6.2 percent, according to the latest figures from the Texas Workforce Commission. Read more...
urbanspace can help you find the perfect unit to rent at the monarch in downtown austin. our downtown lifestyle experts can assist you in your search. Start your search here
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Of the 10 large cities with the best employment prospects, Austin is the leader. Job growth between 2004 and 2008 was a whopping 14.8%--and even between 2007 and 2008, overall growth remained in the black. Read more...
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A new report from online consumer resource group Relocation.com backs up recent Census data showing that Texas, and more specifically Austin, continue to see a population influx as people move from other parts of the country being more seriously affected by the recession. Read more...
The White House has approved using $116 million in federal stimulus money to pay for a long-delayed federal courthouse for downtown Austin, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett said Tuesday. "This $116 million means local construction jobs now when we need them most, a significant addition to downtown Austin, and a long overdue improvement benefiting all who rely upon our federal justice system," Doggett, said in a statement. Read more...
Threshold Interiors is the brainchild of Lindsay Burns, wife of downtown realtor Kevin Burns. The 3,500-square-foot shop emphasizes warm, modern furnishings. There is also an 800-square-foot patio area with outdoor furnishings. The shop is part of the ground-level retail space under the Monarch building’s garage. Read more...
Forbes.com ranks Austin the 8th best place for business and careers in its latest list. Texas' Capital City rose significantly from 47th on last year's list. Austin was behind cities such as No. 1 Raleigh, N.C. and No. 4 Fayetteville, Ark. The list was ranked according to factors such as cost of doing business and projected employment growth. Read more...
n the wake of the Federal Reserve’s new effort to boost the housing market, rates on 30-year mortgages plunged this week to the lowest level on record. Mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac said Thursday that average rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped to 4.85 percent this week, from 4.98 percent last week. That is the lowest rate in the history of Freddie Mac’s survey, which dates back to 1971. (Source: Austin Business Journal)
Austin was the nation’s second-fastest-growing metropolitan area between 2007 and 2008, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The population in the Austin-Round Rock area grew 3.8 percent to 1.65 million between July 2007 and July 2008. Among major U.S. metros, that growth rate was second only to Raleigh-Cary, N.C., which experienced a 4.3 percent population uptick during the 12-month period. Read more...
Texas holds its place for the fourth year in a row as the best state to do business in, according to Chief Executive magazine. The magazine ranks the states on what it calls “a broad range of issues” including natural resources, regulation, tax policies, quality of living, education and infrastructure. Texas was giving top ratings for both transportation and economy, and was also noted for its access to capital and technology and innovation. Read more...
“The best news that we’ve had in the past year in downtown Austin is that several of the announced projects are on indefinite hold. It is terrific for our local downtown residential economy. It’s going to bolster the price of our existing units,” said Realtor Jude Galligan of Downtown Austin Blog. Read more...
With the national economy and the housing markets in financial meltdown, Austinites are wondering about the luxury-condo and apartment-tower boom. Is it over? While Austin's real estate market has weathered the recession better than those of many other cities, many wonder about the demand for all the luxury units under construction. To get a sense of the current market dynamics, we talked to local representatives of the development teams behind major condo projects Downtown. Read more...
WILL STEAKLEY, BRYAN CADY, KEVIN BURNS [team] - combined TOTAL SALES of over $60M
as the majority of the nation grapples with economic woes, austin's economy has fared well relative to the national average, especially with regards to growth in median home prices, employment and population. listed as one of "american best-value cities [forbes 2008], austin's strengths are reflected in the performance of urbanspace top producers, along with that of its entire sales team. Read more...
We would like to extend a heartfelt "Thank You"to all who attended our Opening Celebration of our new Downtown Austin headquarters. It was a huge success and could not have been possible without the support of our clients and the Austin community.
In particular, we would like to thank our sponsors for their help and graciousness:Whole Foods Market, Paula's Texas Orange, Pepe's Tequila, Exquisite Petals,Red Bull and Annie Ray Photography.
We are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for Austin, for urbanspace, and for the GREEN movement that has captured the interest and spirit of so many in our community. Our move into the new office marks a significant milestone for urbanspace and our continued commitment to GREEN living.
If you were not able to make it to our party Friday evening, please stop by any time and visit with us!
Checkout some of our Party Pics! Party Pics
Developers of the Spring condominium tower held a high-rise party Tuesday night to celebrate work under way on the final floor of the 42-story, $125 million project. About 55 percent of the 248 units in the building, a block south of Whole Foods Market, are under contract with 10 percent nonrefundable deposits, said Diana Zuniga, one of Spring's developers. Read more...
Texas dominated the small list of markets that added jobs last year, nailing down the top three positions, and four of the top five. Houston had the best year of any market, picking up an additional 57,300 jobs. Rounding out the top five were Dallas-Fort Worth (up 43,300 jobs), San Antonio (up 14,900), Washington, D.C. (up 11,800), and Austin, Texas (up 9,600). Read more...
The AustinTowers | urbanspace Downtown Austin Condo Market Index provides a month-by-month snapshot of the strength of the downtown Austin condo market. The index tracks reported condo sales but does not include a large number of units offered directly by developers. In 2008, for example, 130 units were sold by realtor while an estimated 400-500 units were sold directly by developers. The Index does, however, accurately record sales of previously owned units sold through realtors. Read more...
he Spring Condominium will celebrate its topping out Feb. 24. The 42-story project at 300 Bowie St. began construction in 2007 and will be the first downtown Austin condo tower completed this year when its delivered in July. The project has pre-sold 55 percent of its 246 units, according to one of the development partners. Read more...
Nine years ago, during the tech bust, some builders felt that Austin was too crowded and left. The bloom is back on Austin’s yellow rose now; it moved up the leader board to become the sixth largest home building market last year. Read more...
urbanspace realtors announces the opening of our new downtown main office. We have now moved across the street into the monarch, a full green-star approved building. As Austin is growing, so is urbanspace. In the past six months, we have welcomed 12 new agents to our team. We are expanding in order to better serve our clients in this dynamic austin urban market. We would like to invite you to visit our exciting new home!
MSNBC lists its favorite 25 things about Austin, TX including breakfast tacos, live music, bike trails, and natural places to exercise. Read more...
As Austin looks for new transportation options to deal with the increasing number of commuters, the city is set to unveil plans for a proposed transportation system that is Austin’s own blend of rail: urban rail. Read more...
An index that tracks signed contracts to purchase existing homes rebounded in December, as buyers snapped up properties at deep discounts, especially in the South and Midwest. It was the second positive sign in the past two weeks for the troubled U.S. housing market, and may indicate that a bottom is forming — at least for home sales. Analysts, however, say prices are likely to keep falling through 2009 and say that the outlook for home sales is uncertain, especially as layoffs mount and banks' lending standards remain tight. Read more...
While Austin has seen a drop in housing starts, its decline from the market’s peak has been relatively gentle compared to other cities, according to research from Houston-based Metrostudy. A study released Jan. 29 from the housing industry research firm said Austin has experienced a 66 percent decline in housing starts from its peak in the third quarter of 2006 to the end of 2008. That’s the smallest decline out of the 81 markets Metrostudy researched. Read more...
If you live in Downtown Austin, or have an interest in its growth, then you should consider joining DANA. The Downtown Austin Neighborhood Assocition recently transitioned its leadership team. Read more...
Austin has the strongest retail market in the state, but it will still feel the effects of the sharp national retail downturn and global recession that will lead to more store closings and bankruptcies in 2009, local retail brokers say. Austin's retail market had a 93 percent occupancy rate at the end of 2008, the highest level in Texas and up from 92.5 percent in mid-2008, according to the Weitzman Group, a commercial real estate brokerage. Read more...
In an increasingly volatile global real estate marketplace, Austin remains an attractive play for foreign investors looking for opportunities in the United States, a new report shows. The report from the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate ranks members’ top cities for U.S. and global investment in 2009. Austin ties for 11th place in the new survey, up from 16th place in 2008. Read more...
WHILE the Titans of Wall Street now tremble at the thought of buying an apartment in this faltering real estate market, an emerging group of buyers is brave enough to look the Cyclops of uncertainty in the eye and begin shopping and even sign purchase contracts. Read more...
Austin developer Tom Stacy and his partner Walton Street Capital have secured $44 million through the refinancing of an existing loan to redevelop a prime Congress Ave. block. The 30-month loan came from CapitalSource Finance LLC, and proceed will go toward future lease-up fund the property’s capital improvement costs. Read more...
A faltering economy and an ill-timed apartment construction boom in 2008 have created a renters market in Central Texas that's likely to continue through the end of the year. The occupancy rate among Austin-area apartment complexes fell from 96.6 percent in 2007 to 91.4 percent at the end 2008, resulting in the highest vacancy rate since 2004, according to Capitol Market Research. Read more...
Central Austin’s Mueller development will soon see new retailers and another multi-family housing project, this one aimed exclusively at senior residents. Catellus Development Group, master developer of Mueller, announced on Jan. 7 that it has selected DMA Development Co. and Carleton Residential Properties, both Austin-based, to build the 200-unit project. Groundbreaking is scheduled for spring 2010, with completion slated for fall 2011. Read more...
The Austin area added 6,200 private-sector jobs in the 12-month period between November 2007 and November 2008—the 10th biggest gain in metro employment in the country—according to figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Read more...
Most people probably think that sellers of homes might be "motivated," given the current slowdown. But that's not necessarily so, as the past year has shown us in Austin. Take, for instance, the case of Michael G. McCarthy, a former software executive, who has had his home on the market for more than two years. Priced at $13.5 million, it's the most expensive home for sale in Central Texas. Not once has the price of the property on Selma Hughes Park Road been reduced. Read more...
The economic downturn has claimed a major downtown Austin project as victim, the proposed Museum Tower office building and the Austin Museum of Art’s proposed new home. Hines Interests LP will not renew its option on the land owned by the Austin Museum of Art when that option expires this afternoon, the last day of 2008. That land had been slated for a 30-story, 425,000-square-foot office building dubbed the Museum Tower and a new home for AMOA. Read more...
The saga engulfing downtown Austin’s Las Manitas Avenue Café took one last step on Dec. 22, as demolition crews tore into the building that also had housed neighboring Escuelita Del Alma and the Tesoros gift shop. It is still unclear if the restaurant will reopen at another location. Both the school and Tesoros have reopened at new locations. Read more...
Austin’s 21c museum residences and hotel may be on hold for now, but this morning NPR gave a glowing review of the original concept in Louisville, Kentucky. The NPR story incorrectly states that the Austin 21c is under construction; however, Marriott’s decision to not build 1,000 hotel rooms should reflect favorably on 21c’s pro-formas. 21c was originally planned for development at the Whitley paper building on 3rd and San Jacinto, however, plans changed to locate the building(s) at Red River and Cesar Chavez, along Waller Creek. Read more...
Cyclists in Austin feel safer than those in other major Texas cities, according to a new report from the Center for Transportation Research at the University of Texas at Austin. Almost 70 percent of respondents in the statewide survey said they feel bicycling is “very dangerous” or “somewhat dangerous” in terms of traffic accidents. By comparison, only 21 percent of respondents said bicycling is “somewhat dangerous” or “very dangerous” in the context of crime. Read more...
Construction could begin by late next year on the $117 million redevelopment of the former Seaholm Power Plant in downtown Austin. The public-private venture is expected to transform the decommissioned power plant on West Cesar Chavez Street into a mix of shops, offices, condominiums, a boutique hotel and special-events space. Read more...
Central Texas employers have modest plans to add jobs in the first three months of 2009, according to a Manpower Inc. survey set to be released today. The employment services firm, which surveyed a sample of employers in the country's 200 largest metropolitan regions, found that 15 percent of firms in the five-county area planned to add jobs in the first quarter of the new year. Read more...
Long gone are the days of the West Campus portrayed on Richard Linklater’s Austin film “Slacker,” where shabby houses shared quiet streets with corner markets and vacant lots. Today high-rise condominiums, commercial and retail businesses are beginning to fill the streets as the city’s university neighborhood overlay plans for the area come to fruition. Read more...
The city of Austin approved the creation of a tax increment financing reinvestment zone to pay for public improvements for the Seaholm redevelopment project. The TIF will be within the area bounded on the west by the planned Seaholm Drive, on the south by Cesar Chavez Street, on the east by West Avenue and on the north by Third Street. Read more...
La Vista on Lavaca, a 66-unit, mixed-use project in downtown Austin where construction was halted earlier this year, has new owners who say they plan to resume work on the $30 million development soon. The Sutton Co. and two undisclosed local investors have purchased the partnership interests in the eight-story project at 17th and Lavaca streets, said Mac Pike Jr., a partner in the Sutton Co. with Wally Scott III. Read more...
"Rapture in Rupture reveals aspects of our conflicted culture through the lens of four young artists. Their mesmerizing objects or fantastical artistic worlds move between two, three, and even four dimensions, frequently shuttling back and forth between figuration and abstraction. The "ruptures" in their respective works express (sometimes gleefully) chaos, irresolution, and discomfort, perhaps alluding to the imploding rapture that has come to define our specific time and place in the world." – Elizabeth Dunbar, Arthouse Curator. Read more...
Fun Fun Fun Fest made its first appearance on a cold Austin Friday evening at Waterloo Park in 2006. It was a unique approach to festival booking…filling stages with what is happening now, what sounds great, and what is making an impact, regardless of what Pollstar or the mainstream media said was cool. What started out as a show for a few touring acts and local favorites became a movement, and a festival that fans and bands alike realized needed to be experienced year after year. Read more...
MORE than 200 live music sites, weather with annual temperature averages in the 70s, and thoughtful urban planning make downtown Austin an appealing second-home location. Read more...
The economic downturn hasn't derailed plans for the biggest redevelopment project proposed along East Riverside Drive. Houston-based Grayco Partners is moving forward with most of its proposed 30-acre project between Riverside and South Lakeshore Boulevard, where it plans to replace blocks of aging apartments and retail strip centers with a dense district of townhouses, condominiums and higher-end retail. Read more...
Schlosser Development Corp. announced on Tuesday that it will build a new 85,000-square-foot building downtown to house the corporate headquarters of Web-based vacation rental company HomeAway Inc. Read more...
"Artists send the signal," said Corbett. "The artists are the early adopters.…They do it in real estate the same way they do it in fashion, furniture design, and graphic design." And the winners? We’ve copied the top 3 best places to buy for those who’d like the experts takes on where their home prices will skyrocket.(East Austin is the only Texas city). Read more...
The economic storm sweeping the country has left Americans with few places to hide. But those looking to hunker down might want to head to Texas, where they can get the best value for their dollar. That's because Austin and San Antonio lead our list of places where your money goes farthest. Residents of both enjoy affordable housing and promising prospects for job growth in coming years. Houston and Dallas also land in the top 10, at Nos. 4 and 7, respectively. Read more...
El Sol y La Luna, a South Congress Avenue institution since 1995, is moving to Sixth Street, where a larger restaurant will allow room for more seating, a dance floor and a stage for live music performances. "Sixth Street won't know what hit them," El Sol co-owner Nilda de la Llata said Thursday outside her new location at 600 E. Sixth Street, on Red River Street in downtown Austin. Read more...
Capital Metro trains will pull out of the station beginning March 30, the transit agency decided Wednesday. But even before the trains run, Capital Metro officials, on the presumption that the Leander-to-downtown-Austin line's initial capacity with just six rail cars will be insufficient, probably will put in an order for another dozen cars. Read more...
New reports show home construction and closings of recently completed homes in Austin remain depressed, but that’s unlikely to bring prices down any time soon. Read more...
Austin's job market has slowed, but the region continues to gain jobs while many other parts of the country are losing them. The Central Texas job growth rate was 2.4 percent in August, meaning the region had 18,100 more jobs than it did a year ago, the Texas Workforce Commission reported. Unemployment was 4.5 percent, up a tenth of a percent from July and up from 3.7 percent a year ago. Read more...
After Sunnyvale, Austin, Tex., another high-tech center, comes in second at 68 days. The third-fastest-selling Zip is the Scripps Ranch neighborhood of San Diego, a wealthy inland market where listings were typically 70 days old, a span that would have been unthinkable during the real estate boom. Read more...
A new 90-room boutique hotel will soon rise on South Congress Avenue. The mixed-use project designed by Dick Clark Architecture is planned for the half-block just south of the Congress Baptist Church and across the street from Allen’s Boots and Vespaio. The site, which is owned by the church, is currently a parking lot and home to mobile retail startup Hey Cupcake! Read more...
Original plans for the project, announced in November, had 74 condominium units at the eastern edge of the park. The new design includes 40 condominiums and a 65-room boutique hotel whose operator Wooley said he's not ready to disclose. Read more...
A growing number of first-time home buyers - 41 percent - say that when it comes to finding a new place to live, proximity is their top priority, according to an online survey of Coldwell Banker brokers nationwide. Read more...
The City of Austin is finalizing plans to let a California firm build luxury hangars at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Business groups say the hangars will help Austin recruit companies whose executives prefer to fly on private aircraft. Read more...
In the coming year Austin will outperform the rest of the country in job growth and in the health of its housing market, according to Mark Dotzour, chief economist at Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center. Read more...
The Austin-area real estate market continued to outperform the nation in the second quarter of 2008, a new report from the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. Median home prices in the Austin area rose by 4.1 percent, to $194,200, from the year-ago period, while the national median fell 7.6 percent, the real estate group said. Read more...
The eight-story building is planned for the western end of West Fifth Street, which is becoming a newly revitalized gateway to downtown. Retail space and more than 300 apartments are under construction on the stretch of West Fifth between MoPac and Lamar boulevards that for years was lined mostly with car lots and warehouses. Read more...
The University of Texas campus provides young blood and research-related jobs to No. 2 city Austin. This state capitol is a hip area on the rise. The vacancy rate has fallen by 37.5% in the last 24 months to just 1.5%, despite a lot of building in recent years. And buying isn't much more expensive than renting. An average mortgage payment is $1,022.40, and average rent hits $767. Read more...
If the price of your suburban home has crashed, you're a victim of more than bad timing. You may have bought into an American way of life that's no longer sustainable. Read more...
Homes in Austin are up for sale and buyers are snatching them up. The nation may be struggling in a declining housing market with home prices plummeting because demand isn't meeting supply, but in Austin real estate agents say there's a healthy medium. Austin missed the housing slump so far. Read more...
Austin ranks 13th among 69 U.S. cities as a place to build wealth, according to a survey from Salary.com. Another Texas city, Plano, tops the list, followed in order by Aurora, Colo.; Omaha, Neb.; Minneapolis; and Albuquerque, N.M. The 2008 Salary Value Index ranked New York City as the worst metropolitan area to build wealth. Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Honolulu, and San Francisco rounded out the worst five cities. Read more...
Real estate appraisers from around the country were in Austin earlier this week for a seminar on how green-building components can affect property values. Read more...
In recent years, a generation of young people, called the millennials, born between the late 1970s and mid-1990s, has combined with baby boomers to rekindle demand for urban living. Today, the subprime-mortgage crisis and $4-a-gallon gasoline are delivering further gut punches by blighting remote subdivisions nationwide and rendering long commutes untenable for middle-class Americans. Read more...
Four urban living projects filled with condos and lofts are coming or expanding on South Congress Avenue, but they are a little less expensive than some of the developments just a few miles north, with prices starting in the low $100,000s. That is because they are all south of Hwy. 71. Read more...
Austin ranks sixth on Kiplinger's Personal Finance's newest list of top 10 cities in which to live, work and play. The list, published in Kiplinger's July issue, ranks cities based on the strength of their economies, abundance of jobs, reasonable costs of living and activities. Read more... Photo Close loading indicator
To the CEO of modern decor retailer Essenze, only downtown had both the cachet and the demographics that would work. "Austin is the creative center of Texas, and downtown is the place to be in Austin," says Cook. Read more...
Providing more evidence of Austin's economic resilience, the region added 4,100 jobs last month with big gains in sectors such as hospitality and professional and business services. Read more...
Austin was named third on the Forbes.com list of the top 10 "Recession-Proof Cities" in the United States. For its part, Austin was lauded for being a hip town with one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country. Read more...
A light rail system proposal from ROMA Design Group, a consultant hired by the city of Austin, will be unveiled tonight during a public meeting. Read more...
The number of jobs in the Austin area held steady in March, while statewide employment gains were slighter than the previous month. Total Austin-area jobs rose by 6,400 in March, or a 0.8 percent increase, compared with February, according to the most recent Texas Workforce Commission report. The area now has a total of 773,300 jobs. Read more...
Those opposed to CWS Capital Partners LLC's plan to build condos close to Lady Bird Lake have reached an agreement with the developer. The groups Save Town Lake and South River City Citizens have agreed to new plans by CWS to build three residential towers at 222 and 300 East Riverside at least 200 feet from the lakeshore and at a height of no more than 96 feet high. The buildings would conform to setbacks outlined in the Waterfront Overlay Ordinance. Read more... Photo Close loading indicator
The Brazos Streetscape Project was initiated in 2004 as purely a reconstruction project. However, varying City of Austin priorities, funding issues, and the decision to align Brazos more with the Great Streets Program delayed the commencement of final design until fall 2007. Read more...
In a sign of the region's relative economic health, homeowners in Travis, Hays and Williamson counties can expect to see increases in their 2008 property appraisals when they begin receiving notices in the mail soon, appraisers say. The Travis Central Appraisal District is finalizing its proposed values for all real property in the county, including residential, office and retail properties. Preliminary values will be firmed up Friday, chief appraiser Patrick Brown said Tuesday. Read more...
Pat Junod knows why this home in an Atlanta suburb has been sitting empty for months. It isn't the market. Even during this nationwide downturn there are still plenty of potential buyers. So what is it? She sees the problem from her car as she drives up the street. The yard is, well, in need of some work. OK, a lot of work. Read more...
On Thursday, more than 1,000 people from around the world are coming to Austin to see how the city has grown. They're especially interested in the mixed-use development that has popped up over the last few years. The big buzz word with this type of construction is new urbanism. Read more...
Everywhere you turn in Austin a condominium seems to be popping up, especially downtown. Despite the mortgage mess nationwide, condo construction in Austin still seems to flourish. Read more...
A new research report questions whether some of the new condo projects on tap in Central Austin will move forward under their original timelines, or at all, given the decline of available financing. Read more...
The city was the only one in Texas to make the list of the 10 fastest-growing U.S. metro areas, ranking fifth, with a population increase of 4.3 percent in 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The Austin-Round Rock area had the eighth highest numeric population gain, with 65,880 new residents moving into the region in 2007. Read more...
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The steel and glass residential towers set to reshape the downtown Austin skyline aren't a pipedream. They're coming--and they're going to be filled, a new study shows. The analysis from Texas economist Ray Perryman suggests that while the nation battles a housing correction, Austin's residential market remains relatively healthy. Moreover, says Perryman, there is clear demand among Austinites to live in the city's vibrant downtown. Read more...
Texas ranks high when it comes to home values in college towns, according to College Real Estate LLC. "When it comes to bragging rights for attractive college real estate markets, Utah and Texas are the biggest winners," says Stuart Frazier, co-founder and director of client relations at Arlington, Texas-based College Real Estate. Read more...
check out the winners of the SXSW film festival. Read more...
The steel and glass residential towers set to reshape the downtown Austin skyline aren't a pipedream. They're coming--and they're going to be filled, a new study shows. The analysis from Texas economist Ray Perryman suggests that while the nation battles a housing correction, Austin's residential market remains relatively healthy. Moreover, says Perryman, there is clear demand among Austinites to live in the city's vibrant downtown. Read more...
Consider the experience of one Austin resident, Dan Clark. Forced by a job change to put his house here on the market, he wondered whether he would get anything like the $385,000 he paid for it a year ago. He was floored when the second potential buyer to look at the place snapped it up for $429,000. “Manna from heaven,? he said. Read more...
"This city is exploding downtown. Are all these people in high rises going to drive everywhere? We have to promote (bike) commuting," Armstrong said Wednesday, gazing up at the towering 360 condos rising next to the site of his new shop. "This can be a hub for that." Mellow Johnny's, named for the nickname Armstrong earned while wearing the Tour de France leader's "maillot jaune," or yellow jersey, will be housed in a yellow- and red-brick building next to the music venue La Zona Rosa. It is a block north of the Lance Armstrong Bikeway, a path that will cut east-west through downtown Austin. Read more...
But couples that live together have needs, too. In our round-up of the Best Cities for Couples, we've identified what this growing demographic requires to maintain a stable relationship while on the path to marriage or something less traditional. We selected the country's largest 40 metropolitan areas and collected data on marriage and divorce rates for the 20- to 34-year-olds that live there, the affordability of a starter home there, the area's income disparity and the availability of family counseling. Read more...
The Lone Star State shines brilliantly in a list of the best places to work in the U.S. when some economists peer into their crystal balls for 2008. "While the economy is cooling, Texas continues to generate more jobs than the national average," said Krista Piferrer, deputy press secretary to Gov. Rick Perry. "Unemployment is low in Texas, thanks in large part to a favorable business climate that encourages businesses to expand or relocate to our state."Read more...
Walk down nearly any street in Austin, Texas and chances are you’ll find a film shoot already in progress. That’s just the kind of film-centered folk that the city brings out. “Austin is very much a film town with over a dozen film festivals,? says Louis Black, co-founder of The Austin Chronicle and one of the founders of SXSW. Read more...
Whether you're looking for an investment property or a place to live, here's a look at the cities you should seek out and avoid in 2008. Round Rock and Austin have seen incredible job growth and very stable home prices despite the downturn nationwide. Jobs continue to grow here -- a factor for keeping inventory low and prices stable. Read more...
East Austinites will soon notice a streak of yellow around their neighborhood. The Lance Armstrong Foundation -- known, in part, for its yellow Livestrong wrist bands -- has ended months of neighborhood speculation by confirming that it will establish a permanent home in East Austin. Read more...
For people who go out to eat and the restaurants who love them, January can be the cruelest month. It's a month when cook and customer fight to keep each other fed. It's a month when specials - even the ones that ran during the fat times - take on a more urgent tone. You need to eat, and half-empty restaurants need the business. It's a time for specials, for half-prices, for two-fers. So here's a sampling of Austin's dine-for-less deals. Read more...
For people who go out to eat and the restaurants who love them, January can be the cruelest month. It's a month when cook and customer fight to keep each other fed. It's a month when specials - even the ones that ran during the fat times - take on a more urgent tone. You need to eat, and half-empty restaurants need the business. It's a time for specials, for half-prices, for two-fers. So here's a sampling of Austin's dine-for-less deals. Read more...
A new breed of hotels is dressing up walls, lobbies and guest rooms with original artworks from a mix of famous, midcareer and promising artists. Instead of hanging bland or factory-produced art that blends in with the background, they're choosing memorable — and in many cases, very expensive — works. A growing number of hoteliers think that art can help them create an experience that will draw more travelers.
At 21c, Wilson says, he has sought to balance serious, provocative works with whimsical works. The Wilsons don't want theirs to become one of those boutique hotels that "can get so cool, they're almost inhospitable," he says. Read more...
Courtesy of austintowers.net: Units in the Quorum Lofts will be big - ranging from 1,450 to 2,450 square feet with prices starting near $500,000. The project will include a rooftop infinity pool and lots of nice features such as high 10 foot ceilings, granite counter tops,and jetted soaking tubs. Read more...