SPRING TIME IN AUSTIN IS A BEAUTIFUL THING. THE SUN IS OUT, FLOWERS ARE BLOOMING, FUN FESTIVALS ARE HAPPENING EVERY WEEKEND, AND WE'RE STILL A COUPLE OF WEEKS AWAY FROM 100 DEGREE TEMPERATURES. TO HELP YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS BEAUTIFUL SEASON, READ BELOW TO FIND IDEAS FOR AWESOME STUFF TO DO IN MARCH, APRIL, MAY, AND JUNE!
7 Austin Things You Must Do This Winter
1. Ice Skating at Whole Foods in Downtown (Nov 29 – Jan 11) – even if you’ve never ice skated before, all the fun of making memories with your friends will be worth the few times you slip and fall on the freezing cold ice! For just $5, you’re given music, the perfect backdrop for pictures, a magical view of Downtown Austin’s beautiful skyline, and even the option to buy a cup of hot cocoa. Unfortunately, missed this opportunity last year, though this year I certainly plan on going!
Article written by: Golbou S.
Austin's Economy, Real Estate Show No Signs of Slowing
The Central Texas real estate rush shows no signs of slowing down. With international events like South by Southwest shining the spotlight on Austin and influential magazines like Forbes putting Central Texas city's at the top of the best lists almost every month, its boom time.
"We cater to a global audience and Austin's become a global city," said J. Kuper with Sotheby's International Realty.
Sotheby's International Realty just celebrated a record year in 2013 with home sales up by 45 percent.
"Normally I would think that's a once in a lifetime sort of thing," said Kuper. "In this case I don't. I think lightning will strike twice if not multiple times year over year in the Austin market."
Economist Mark Sprague says all signs point to a sustained boom.
"We're two and a half years into a major recovery," Sprague said. "The longest I've ever seen is six years in Texas other than a catastrophic event I don't see it slowing down for 10 years."
He credits a low unemployment rate and a business friendly culture for this economic surge.
Read the full article here: http://www.keyetv.com/template/cgi-bin/archived.pl?type=basic&file=/news/features/top-stories/stories/archive/2014/03/vf4yEEqo.xml
List of things to do in Austin
Austin is paradise, or as Patton Oswalt put it, a “weird, magical, fairy-bubble of sanity.” We don’t think he’s too far off either. Inevitably, all Austinites run into the same dillemma: You’ve been to every bar on Rainey St. and East 6th more times than you’re comfortable admitting. You love Torchy’s Tacos but your taste buds are thirstin' for a little more adventure. Waterloo is great but it’s probably time to branch out. You even went on a tour of the Capitol that one time when your friend from out of town visited. Been there, done that. So what is there left to do in Austin now? We understand how you feel, so we made it our mission to put together a niche AToX list of things to do in Austin specifically for Austinites. (Don’t know what an Austinite is? It’s probably best you head over to our AToX list for Austin Newbiesand knock those out first.) We did a lot of digging and checked out a lot of new places to create this list for all you Austinites looking for something fresh to do. We hope you enjoy!
Click this link for full article: http://www.realtyaustin.com/top-things-to-do-in-austin-for-austinites.php#top
Austin's economy ranked No. 1 in the country
Austin's reputation as a job-creation machine has again propelled it to the top of a monthly report measuring economic indicators for all major U.S. metro areas.
With an overall score of 83.9 out of 100 based on 18 economic factors, Austin tops the list of 102 cities measured in the monthly report by The Business Journals' On Numbers.
The Texas capital, with an unemployment rate of 5.2 percent and five-year wages growth from October 2008 through October 2013 of nearly 15 percent, had held first place for eight of the first 10 months in 2013. The city's average weekly earnings per worker are now $919.12.
The biggest reason why Austin remains No. 1 is its job-growth record. On Numbers reports that Austin is the only city in the nation — pause for a second, and let that sink in for minute — with double-digit percentage job growth in that five-year period, at just under 11 percent. By comparison, no other U.S. city has seen five-year job growth higher than 8 percent.
Dallas-Fort Worth is No. 2 in the country with a total score of 81.3, in a virtual tie with Provo, Utah. Houston comes in at No. 4 at 76.9 while San Jose, Calif., rounds out the top five.
At the bottom of the U.S. list is Bridgeport, Conn., with a score of only 21 out of 100.
Just this week, a study by the Brookings Institution showed how Austin's economy is rapidly evolving its global reach.
#1: AUSTIN, TEXAS
#1: AUSTIN, TEXAS
Projected annual job growth: 4%
Median Household Income: $59,544
Unemployment: 5.5%
According to an Article in Forbes, "Austin Heads List of Best Cities for Job Growth", claims that "Austin leads a list of seven Texas metros that rank among the 10 areas expected to have the fastest job growth through 2015 (we limited our look to the 200 largest metros areas). Austin's employment is expected to increase 4% annually, according to economic research firm Moody's Analytics"
Are Online Estimators Like Zillow & Trulia Giving a False Perception of the True Real Estate Market?
These sites make for attractive tools on real estate search websites, for prospective home buyers and sellers, by providing automated house value estimates. Yet they fail to provide disclaimers on the limitations that these models tend to magnify price in housing markets and hurt house sales. Online home value estimators use complicated statistical models that attempt to predict a home's price based on comparisons with similar properties by using county property record data on a variety of attributes (sq ft, # of bedrooms and bathrooms etc).
A danger in using this data is that there is a great deal of variation in the quality of information captured by these recording offices. Sq ft can be wildly off, as well as the characteristics of the properties. They tend to work better on homes of similar type and quality but break down quickly on custom homes, homes in rural areas, small neighborhoods and nonstandard property features. Further, no statistical model can understand the market and condition issues of a particular property. For example, these models cannot factor in property upkeep or whether the property sits directly across the street from a gas station, which could reduce its value.
This is of some concern, is the trade off between the % of homes where an automated valuation model could be used accurately. The greater the use of the model across property types, the higher the valuation errors, typically. In the specific application of online valuation engines, buyer offers can be highly influenced by the estimates generated from these models. In forming an offer, a buyer needs to obtain a reasonable view of what a home is worth. The values displayed by online real estate sites provide an easy way for a buyer to develop an offer. However, they do not consider many other factors, for example, a recent remodel. This could lead to low bidding by the buyer, resulting in losing the opportunity to buy.
Such outcomes create an artificial drag on house values during recovery periods and amplify price appreciation trends during boom periods given potential data lags in market pricing. In addition, the use of such valuations in forming bids can lengthen or prevent real estate transactions from being consummated given large potential gaps between sale and offer prices using these estimates.
Quirky Trends in Real Estate
As the housing market continues to recover, a bevy of interesting trends have been emerging in the sector, affecting everything from buyer and seller behavior to design and everything in between.
Try before you buy
Want to spend quality time in the home you’re interested in buying? Perhaps spend the night and check things out before putting a single penny down? Real estate agents are now letting some qualified, serious buyers do just that! And this unusual strategy, which can ultimately help buyers make an informed decision, is catching on in markets across the country.
Dogs are people, too
Builders aren’t just turning to upgrades and financial carrots to help offset rising buying costs. They’re also getting more creative with the “extras” by taking pet friendly to a new level. In fact, some high-end apartment buildings offer pet food-centered room service menus, and will even walk, groom and arrange play dates for residents’ dogs.
Boutique-style closets
While you likely know that screened porches and outdoor living rooms continue to interest homeowners, you may not realize that master bedroom closets designed with a coveted, boutique-like feel — think illuminated rods, compartmentalized storage, shoe walls, vanity areas and other focal points — are also becoming a virtual must-have, according to architects and high-end home builders.