Some truths about Austin from someone who's lived
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5/31/2006
Positives:
1. Lots to do outdoors
2. Very safe here (in general)
3. Housing is some of the cheapest in the country
Negatives:
1. Allergies are terrible here. Rates #2 worst place in the US. Never had any problems before I moved here, now every year around Cedar Fever season (look that up), me and about 50% of the population stay inside for several months. Starts in December and runs through March or so, fun stuff. Oh, remember all those great outdoors stuff I talked about above? Well, you have a 50/50 chance of forgetting about them in the late fall and early spring.
2. Traffic here has gotten to be *very* bad and the 'solution' the state came up with is to build (drum roll please) - toll roads! Welcome to New Jersey - yuck! If you've spent much time on toll roads you can appreciate how bad they can be and, joy of joys, you get to pay for them each and everytime you use them.
3. It is HOT here. Right about the time Cedar Fever season and then normal spring allergies are ending & you're really ready to get outside it starts pushing the upper 90's and then sits in the 100's for most of the summer. Fun, fun, fun!
4. Remember the cheap housing here? Well, the flip side of it being cheap here is that you can probably expect more of the same as long as you live here which means you shouldn't expect much appreciation. There's been some great research by some Harvard profs about what really drives realestate prices. Turns out that it is largely, a) a lack of available buildable land and, b) a high regulatory burden that curbs density increases. Guess what? We have neither problem here! There is NO END of land around Austin, Round Rock, Cedar Park, etc., etc. And, Texas has one of the lowest regulatory burdens of any state in the US so best of luck on your home appreciating. I've lived here almost 10 years and if the Internet bubble hadn't come along I don't think we'd have any equity in our home.
So, just a few things to think about before you make that move. I'm not sorry we moved here, but we don't plan to live here much longer. Good luck!
Ed | Round Rock, TX