William Travis gave her a ring from his family and asked her to carry the story of the Alamo to Sam Houston. Continue reading
Mules? Jitneys? What a difference a century makes! Continue reading
While Austin has certainly felt the effects of the recession, I see good news in the TWC data. Admittedly, I am a “glass is half full” kind of guy, but I can’t figure out how to interpret that actual data negatively! Continue reading
We all read and hear so much bad news about the national real estate market that keeping a realistic perspective about the Austin/Central Texas area is difficult. The average sale price in December 2009 was about 4% higher than in January 2008, and the median price increased about 2% during that same two-year period. Continue reading
I view my relationship with my clients as primarily consultative. I provide information about neighborhoods, commuting considerations, schools, potential property-related issues before and after inspections, etc. Good third-party advice is always valuable, though … Continue reading
Warren Buffet has made a lot of money by being right in his forecasts more often than he has been wrong. Bloomberg News reported yesterday on his recent report to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders. Continue reading
Two months of consecutive decline is worrisome, and even Austin and Central Texas participated in this weakness. As always, I the movement of the Austin Metro real estate market on my AustinMarketDashboard, and the decline is visible there, as is the usual price weakness that accompanies weak demand. Average home prices in Austin have now been below the long-term trendline for more than a year. Continue reading
In my opinion, continued artificial support will only make the correction worse when it does happen, so we should allow the market to seek its own course, with minimal external manipulation. Continue reading
The challenge is growing without sacrificing Austin’s wonderfully unique culture and lifestyle. There are a lot of people here who think we already missed that boat, but I think we’ve done pretty well, as evidenced by the fact that these young, leading edge firms continue to find the area attractive.
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Even though Austin is in far better shape that many other places, these Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will continue to struggle for a long time to come. Continue reading