Austin Real Estate Blog

Most people won’t do something for nothing, even if it benefits them and their surroundings, because few can see the long-term benefits. As such, there are a number of government agencies that are putting out the incentives for consumers to help motivate them to change their lifestyle toward a more environmentally friendly one, but it can sometimes be hard to find information about these programs. GreenMadeSimple has a tool now in beta testing to help people find the rebates and programs available in their immediate area aimed toward encouraging conservation of energy and resources.

Programs such as Energy Star for appliances, rebates for hybrid vehicles and discounted mortgages for energy efficient homes are available nationwide. If a home owner wishes to find other local programs, they only need to enter their ZIP code, select the type of purchase they’re planning to make – appliances, financing for a home, cars, solar power, or lighting – and the tool searches the database to find state and county programs available in the area.

Another search tool on the site can find you local home products and services that either contribute to reduced energy use or use recycled or reusable products. Contractors and manufacturers are listed and a Google map is provided for ease in locating the business.

The site also has testimonials from other home owners on their energy saving tips and projects that can serve as inspiration to others. Most of the projects are simple enough for do-it-yourselfers, some require a professional, but most are worth it in long-term energy savings and reduced depletion of resources.

With the price of fuel spiraling upwards, it’s no wonder the cost of everything else is following suit. Food is no exception. If one has to choose between eating cheaply and eating ethically, the higher cost of organic and “green” produce and meats is the reason eating ethically often loses the game. There are ways, however, to maintain a healthy diet, purchase environmentally friendly food, and keep the costs at a reasonable level.

One huge step is to stop eating meat. The financial and environmental cost that goes into producing meat is enormous and is reflected in the supermarket price. Total vegetarianism isn’t an option for many carnivores, however, but there are a few ways meat eaters can lower their budgets.

Cut back on the amount of meat you eat weekly. A few meatless meals thrown in once in a while are not only good for the wallet, but good for your health. Buy the cheaper cuts and prepare them using slower cooking methods such as stewing or slow roasting. Cheap doesn’t have to mean tasteless: a dry-rubbed pork shoulder in the crock-pot in the morning means tasty pulled pork sandwiches for dinner.

Watch for sales, check the circulars, and plan menus ahead of time. When you go to the supermarket, make sure you’ve made a list and stick to it. Try to resist the impulse buying urge.

Buy in bulk if you can. Make enough at dinnertime so you have leftovers for lunch the next day. Use coupons. Eat for the season and try to buy locally, or grown your own! Join a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. This is where you buy shares from a local farmer and, in return, you get regular deliveries of produce fresh from the farm.

See how easy that is?

Newsweek’s annual list of nationally ranked top high schools this year includes three Round Rock Independent School District schools. Westlake High School was the highest ranking of the four Central Texas schools, coming in at 52. Among the Round Rock schools that ranked is Westwood at 78, McNeil High School coming in at 680 and Round Rock High School at 827. This is out of a 1422 schools that submitted their data to the Newsweek staff.

Jay Mathews, a writer for Newsweek, created the ranking using a ratio derived by taking the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and/or Cambridge tests taken by students divided by the number of graduating seniors. Other statistics gathered by the author include percentage of subsidized lunches and percentage of graduating seniors that have at least one passing grade on one Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test.

This is Westwood’s fifth appearance on the list, having taken rankings of 92, 104, 76, and 60 in 2007, 2006, 2006 and 2003 respectively. McNeil has been on the list twice previously, in 2006 and 2007. Westlake has also appeared in 2007, 2006, 2005 and 2003 with rankings of 97, 106, 72, and 37 respectively. Round Rock has made the same number of appearances, in the same years, ranking 671, 433, 448 and 475.

There were a number of other Austin area schools included on the list. LBJ, which showed up on the list last year has moved up in the rankings, from 144 in 2007 to 97 in 2008. L.C. Anderson also appears for the second time. Other Austin schools on the list are W.Charles Akins, David Crockett, Stephen F. Austin, McCallum, Lake Travis, and James Bowie.

So, you’ve got your tax rebate check and you’re ready to go out and stimulate the economy. What’s the best way to spend it and still maintain your determination to “go green”? This article cites five great ecologically friendly ways to do just that.

Replace your old water heater with a high efficiency model. Newer model water heaters cut energy and water use, lowering your utility bills and lessening your carbon footprint. And, keeping money within the US economy, you should buy an American-made water heater. There are several makes on the market for between $600 and $1200, plus installation.

An insulation overhaul not only reduces heat loss in winter and cooling loss in summer, but can be an eco-friendly upgrade. There are a number of US-made products on the market that use recycled or sustainable materials – newspaper, denim, and even soybean oil. As an added bonus, many utility companies offer rebates when you upgrade your home’s insulation.

Replacing an old appliance with an Energy Star model will save you money and energy in the long run. And, as in the case of an insulation upgrade, your utility company may offer a rebate on this as well.

Using native plants in your landscaping scheme can help cut down on irrigation needs, especially in the southern regions. Find a landscaping service that specializes in native plantings and replace some of that water-guzzling lawn with plants that are low water use.  This type of landscaping is called Xeriscaping.

Lastly, go through your house and change out old-fashioned incandescent lights for compact fluorescents. The savings in electricity and replacement bulbs can be significant as fluorescents can last up to 10 times longer. Check your shower heads as well and replace them with low-flow shower heads. You will save thousands of gallons of water a year.

Most home buyers are well aware of the importance of hiring a qualified home inspector. But is it fair to hire an appraiser to inspect a home, then blame the appraiser when structural problems are missed? This case, brought to court in Washington state in the mid 1990s, has become a precedent by which similar cases are judged.

There is a difference between the duties of an appraiser and those of a home inspector. An appraiser considers the quality of the features and amenities of a house, compares it with other homes in the neighborhood, and produces an estimate of market value of the house.

A home inspector’s responsibilities go far beyond those of the appraiser. An accredited inspector should be knowledgeable in maintenance and repair and is more qualified to make judgments on the integrity of such structural elements as roofs, siding, and foundation, as well as the utility systems of the house – plumbing, electrical, and the like. It would therefore seem to be unreasonable to expect an appraiser to catch problems like a leaky roof.

The trial court apparently agreed, as it found the appraiser “owes no duty to a prospective purchaser”, especially when that purchaser was already fairly certain he would need to replace the 16 year old roof. An appeals court did find, however, that the appraiser has a “duty of care” responsibility toward the buyer but, in this particular case, didn’t hold the appraiser liable because, it turns out, the buyer didn’t rely on the appraisal to purchase the house.

The courts seem to be saying that an appraiser is not an inspector and should not be held liable for missing problems that an inspector would have discovered. It’s incumbent upon the buyer to hire the proper professional.

It was announced in May of 2008 that the city council of Austin wanted to institute a new ordinance that would require all new homes to be built using the ‘visitability standards’ currently required on homes built using public funds.

Should the city of Austin pass the ordinance, new home builders would be required to provide access designed for disabled and elderly individuals, regardless of where the funding to build the home comes from. Heretofore, the city’s ‘visitability standards’ applied only to those homes built with public funding. The proposed requirements compel the builder to include at least one ramp or no-step entrance at a first floor entrance, 32 inch wide doorways with level thresholds, 36 inch wide hallways and first floor rest room walls reinforced for possible installation of supporting grab bars.

Protest was raised by home builders who said the requirements are not worth the added cost to build the house for the convenience of 1 percent of the population. One home builder cited a figure of an additional $5000 added to the cost of a home to widen the door ways because of the additional square footage. But the city claims the cost would be a more reasonable $200 to $500.

Austin has passed other ordinances that have added to the cost of building and inspections. In the past year, water and energy conservation ordinances have passed and there’s another upcoming proposal requiring point-of-sale energy efficient retrofits. Adding the proposed ‘visitability’ ordinance to the already high cost of home building is angering home builders and buyers alike. In response, the city scaled back the requirements a bit, including a waiver for houses on rough terrain.

A scaled down version of the ordinance passed on Wednesday, June 18.

Part 3: The Market for Condos

The market for commercial condominiums has been steadily rising for the past decade.

The office condo market is filling a need for small businesses and professional service providers as the owners realize the benefits of owning their own office space. Tax benefits, mortgage payments that can be potentially lower than lease payments, as well as the real estate equity owned by the business all help the bottom line and many businesses are take the plunge into owning their own space.

Owning ones own place of business means the occupant can make the office into a signature space. By purchasing a “shell” – unfinished space – the buyer can customize the finish out, putting their own touches on the space and benefiting, in the end, from any improvements made.

A typical condo buyer is looking for between 2,000 and 3,000 square feet, the business is five to ten years old, and their employment numbers are generally stable. Much like a first time home buyer, the business owner buying a condo has realized the futility of paying rent year after year, and is looking to add assets to the financial sheet.

The limited space requirements shouldn’t be a show stopper for those businesses with the potential for expansion, however. One option open to this sort of business is to purchase a larger space and lease out extra offices to other businesses. When the time comes to expand, the space is readily available to the growing business.

Part 2: Which Location, Location, Location?

The three most important words in real estate and business absolutely apply here: location, location, location. Deciding what the most desirable area is depends on the type of business and the desired clientèle. As the commercial condominium market heats up, though, an argument can be made for either a downtown location or the heretofore more typical suburban areas.

Traditionally, office condos are located outside the more desirable downtown and centrally situated areas. However, a movement is underway to renovate downtown spaces and offer them as office space for sale. As gas prices rise, business owners look for locations convenient to their employees and customers alike. Downtown areas are experiencing revitalization, also. There is a movement on to look closely at rejuvenating the downtown neighborhoods and commercial zones as urban sprawl becomes a concern.

Still, the outer edges of the city remain desirable for many reasons. The lower costs of real estate, room for expansion, room for parking, less congestion, are all good reasons to locate outside the city. Parking is a concern, though more employees are looking at public transportation options. Regardless of location, though, the benefits of purchasing ones own business space are many.

With a decline in new construction, existing properties are being snapped up. And vacancy rates are steadily declining, both downtown and in the outlying areas, particularly the northwest, over the past five or so years. And, as more companies and professional services move into the Austin area, desirable spaces are more and more in demand.

Part 1: Shoal Creek Plaza

The office condominiums at Shoal Creek Plaza are available for sale, many ready for immediate occupancy. Ranging in size from 400 to 10,000 square feet, these offices are located in a prime area and priced at between $165 and $176 per square foot plus the cost of finishing. Walls of windows and exposed brick add natural light and character to these spaces. The buildings are in a prime location, near the Arboretum and Domain shopping centers, one half mile from Mopac and US highway 183.

At 8500 Shoal Creek Boulevard, the Shoal Creek Plaza is an attractive prospective location for several different types of business. The property was bought in March of 2002 by Ogle Properties and renovated to be sold as condos. The plaza consists of four buildings with a total of 92,000 square feet of office space, some partially finished out, some ready as shells for the owner’s personal touches.

Formerly occupied by URS Radian International, for twenty years, it was a good time in the softening real estate market to make the move to split up the property into smaller office spaces and get on the commercial condominium band wagon. As the real estate market warms up again after a brief and mild market downturn, the Shoal Creek Plaza already begun to sign up a good set of tenants. The prices and reasonable, the location is ideal, and the terms are favorable for many types of small businesses and professional services.

More than thirty years after the first big environmental movement began, big cities are finally starting to smarten up about sustainable and ecologically friendly improvements in services, construction, and planning. Austin is usually the model city held up to these standards, but other cities are starting to gain ground in the green movement. Notable among these cities is Dallas.

Once known as the worse offender of urban sprawl, Dallas city officials have stepped forward with a bold plan to engage the residents in revisiting city planning, revitalization, transportation, and housing. Called forward Dallas!, the city council has adopted a comprehensive plan to address issues of sprawl, pollution, crime, and land use.

The plan calls for stabilizing residential neighborhoods, while addressing growth and increasing housing needs. Public transportation is an issue as gas prices rise and congestion on existing infrastructure becomes a concern. Development around DART stations is supported as well as small business development, retail growth, and other business recruitment and retention. City officials are actively seeking public input on these issues through workshops held around the city. Participants are invited to share ideas about where growth should occur, what areas should be left as open space, where to make improvements on roads and transportation, as well as myriad other urban concerns.

Dallas has also adopted the ambitious Green Dallas Program, aiming for a goal of obtaining 40 percent of its energy from renewable sources in 2008. City government passed an ordinance in spring 2008 mandating green-building standards for new construction and improvements in energy efficiency for existing buildings. Dallas had an existing green standard for city-owned building under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver standard; this ordinance adds private developments and residential properties to the standard.