Luxe Austin Homes

"Prices, construction timeline revealed for luxury Lunaroya neighborhood in Dripping Springs"

Austin Business Journal reports, "pieces are falling into place for a new luxury single-family community in Dripping Springs, including its name.

Nashville-based Southern Land Company LLC said March 1 the neighborhood, first revealed in January 2022, will be called Lunaroya. Prices for the 28 homes will start at "under $2 million," said Jenna Lefever, SLC director of public relations.

Infrastructure work has been underway on the 70-acre community since the third third quarter of 2022 and home construction is expected to begin in September 2023.

The floor plans and square footage range of Lunaroya’s homes are still being finalized, Lefever said. The neighborhood will consist of 10 1.5-acre home sites and 18 two-acre home sites across the…

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"What Is an Escalation Clause in Real Estate and When Should You Use One?"

Realtor.com shares, "when you’re deciding on what price to offer on a home, the situation might call for a single price or, in some cases, numerous prices via an escalation clause.

In a fast-paced, competitive market, having an escalation clause as part of your offer on a house can benefit the homebuyer and seller alike. But it does come with some downsides, so it’s important to know the pros and cons before you include one in an offer (or accept one as a seller).

Here’s what to know about an escalation clause, and when it’s a smart tactic for your real estate deal.

The basics of an escalation clause

An escalation clause is a real estate contract, sometimes called an escalator, that lets a home buyer say: “I will pay X price for this home,…

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"These towers could raise the bar for North Austin's skyline"

Austin Business Journal writes, "while The Domain and its surroundings are often referred to as Austin’s second downtown, buildings there have never reached the heights of the Central Business District. But that may be starting to change.

In February, Austin City Council approved revised building regulations for the region known as North Burnet/Gateway that allow for denser and taller construction up to 491 feet, or about 45 stories. The previous limit was 360 feet.

While some towers were already planned to reach 300 feet in this area, more recent projects are stretching toward the new upper limit of construction,

"They are responsive to energetic growth in this area of my district," said Council Member Leslie Pool, who represents District 7,…

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"Is the Housing Market About To Hit Rock Bottom? Here’s What That Means, and Why We May Be Here for a While"

Realtor.com writes, "today’s housing market has been in some deep doldrums by many standards, but the latest real estate statistics suggest something more serious might be ahead—that the market might be careening toward some sort of rock bottom.

“Taken as a whole, this week’s data lines up with other indicators that are pointing to a potential bottom in housing market activity at a fairly low level,” notes Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale in her most recent analysis.

The only upside we can think of is that there’s typically nowhere to go from there but up. So, does that mean the worst days of real estate will soon be over? Not quite, since the big four harbingers of housing—home prices, inventory, days on the market, and mortgage…

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"Austin is the No. 1 fastest-growing U.S city for millionaires—see where else made the list"

CNBC reports, "cities like New York City and L.A. might be some of the wealthiest in America, but it’s smaller cities that are becoming more and more appealing to millionaires.

According to Henley and Partner’s 2023 wealth report, cities like Austin, Texas, and Scottsdale, Arizona, are gaining millionaire residents, while bigger cities like Chicago, and New York City are losing them.

Top 5 fastest-growing U.S. cities for millionaires

1. Austin, Texas
2. West Palm Beach, Florida
3. Scottsdale, Arizona
4. Miami, Florida
5. Greenwich and Darien, Connecticut

The No. 1 city on the list is Austin, Texas. According to the report, the Texas city saw a millionaire growth rate of 102% from 2012 to 2022. In December 2022, Austin was home to…

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"Meet Verde Square, Giving Austin’s Soccer Stadium a Brand New Skyline"

Towers reports "with new towers and height-friendly rezonings throttling up the pace of growth around the Domain area of North Austin all the time, it’s kinda hard to keep up with everything planned here — but there’s one upcoming project you really ought to know, since it’s one of the most promising steps in this ongoing experiment of converting the suburban sprawl around the intersection of Burnet Road and Braker Lane to an almost downtown-like urban environment.

Verde Square, planned by local firm Ironwood Real Estate in partnership with Austin-obsessed global real estate firm Karlin, imagines a four-building complex on more than six acres of land along Burnet Road located just west of the new Q2 Stadium, taking full advantage of this…

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"Report shows Southwest Austin home prices down, inventory up"

Community Impact shares, "the latest Austin Board of Realtors report shows home prices are down and inventory is up in Southwest Austin compared to this time last year.

For the month of January, the median home price in Southwest Austin was $537,450, down from $587,100 in January 2022.

Southwest Austin is not alone with this downward trend, as median home prices throughout Austin decreased 6.3% to $450,000 in January 2023. This is the largest drop since July 2011, according to the ABoR report.

While prices are dropping, inventory is going up in the area, according to the report. In January 2023, there were two months of inventory compared to January 2022 when there were 0.4 months of inventory, the report shows.

"January's data demonstrates the…

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"Austin retires into 19th best spot in the country to put away your work boots"

CultureMap Austin reports, "if 2023 is your year to relocate for a new life in retirement, or you’re a future retiree looking for that next move, Texas should be on your search list. Rental marketplace Zumper analyzed data from 100 cities nationwide to find the best American cities to retire, ranking Austin at No. 19.

In their latest report, Zumper looked at housing affordability, transportation, satisfaction of renters aged 45 and older, and other metrics to determine the cities in which current and prospective retirees would find the best benefits.

Texas was great overall for retirees based on the lack of state income tax and state-level taxes on Social Security. Good news for those who'd like to stay in Central Texas: San Antonio ranked No. 6…

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"Cash is still king in the housing market. It could become even more important."

Austin Business Journal writes, "increasingly, if you want to buy a home in America, you need to bring cash to the table.

Nationwide, all-cash purchases accounted for about 36.1% of total home sales in 2022. That’s the highest rate since 2013, according to ATTOM Data Solutions. In 2011 and 2012, coming off the Great Recession, cash sales were about 38.5%.

It's also up from 34.4% in 2021 and just 22.7% in 2020. And it’s likely to keep increasing, according to Rick Sharga, executive vice president of market intelligence at ATTOM.

“Cash buyers — many, but not all of whom are investors — are in a position of competitive advantage in today’s higher interest rate environment and will continue to account for a higher-than-usual share of market at…

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"Mortgage Rates Rise for Third Week in a Row, Returning to Highs Seen in November"

Realtor.com reports, "the numbers: Mortgage rates are up sharply, putting pressure on the housing market once again.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.5% as of February 23, according to data released by Freddie Mac on Thursday.

That’s up 18 basis points from the previous week. One basis point is equal to one one-hundredth of a percentage point.

The 30-year rate was last at this level in November 2022.

Last week, the 30-year was at 6.32%, compared with last year, when it was averaging 3.89%.

The average rate on a 15-year mortgage rose to 5.76%, from 5.51% the previous week. The 15-year was at 3.14% a year ago.

Freddie Mac’s weekly report on mortgage rates is based on thousands of applications received from lenders across the…

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