What is Bee Cave like? (Post: condo, house, living)

[hoffdano]

My commute is similar. My afternoon drive (usually hit Bee Cave around 5:45 p.m.) isn't pleasant, but it isn't much different than in the past. For some reason lately the backup at Cuernavaca has gotten much worse. I wonder if the light timing was changed?

[sliverbox]

Agreed. Hard to believe but in 1950 the average size of a home was just under 1,000 sq. ft. And you have to remember this was in the booming post war era.

Yup, and what's more, the average family had a single family car ( but then again mom didn't usually work), a single TV set, and a single phone. 1955 was also the highest recorded percentage of general contentment in the US. Funny how now that feeling has totally reversed even though the houses are almost 4 times as large, the number of cars and TV sets has almost trippled, and the amount of crap people own is also a lot higher.

I think what's happened is that we went through this 40 year period where Americans thought and expected to have things better than their parents generation after generation. Of course that is what happened for awhile but for the past 30 years its been mostly fueled by consumer debt and easy credit. That and people generally feel that they simply MUST have a house and a big one at that. Those days are gone, and perhaps for good.

California was a wakeup call for me. Its like a third world country and the further time marches on the worse it gets for the future generations as far as what they can afford. people 30 years ago could just barely squeeze into a decent sized, 2 story home in my neighborhood. People in my generation can just barely squeeze into a teardown shack here.

I can't wait until we move out of here. It will seem like a real luxury to be able to afford a decent home. Not a HUGE home, but a reasonable, boring ole' suburban home.

[jazznblues]

I think this recession we are in is a serious wakeup call for many. It is painful, but maybe overdue.

California leads the way in many things, and not all of them are good. I think it will be a long time before Californians have a general sense of "the good times are back."

They aren't great here, but the good news is that California is showing us how not to do it.

[sliverbox]

They aren't great here, but the good news is that California is showing us how not to do it.

Its pretty bad here but what people say about it who don't live here is pretty overblown. The truth is that the state has been operating in the red for decades and has had serious management and budget issues since the late 70's. The problem with California is that the quality of life for the middle class has slowly degraded primarily due to the rising costs in housing. This has been caused by a combination of past tax regulations tied to real estate that heavily favors older residents and raises property prices, building and development restrictions, and lots of red tape tied to building anything new. Most districts in an around where I live have strict regulations that make building new housing prohibitive.

So over time the housing situation has become a one-way funnel with each upcoming generation able to afford less and less. Its gotten to the point where not even upper middle class people ( I'd probably put myself in that group) can't reasonably afford a decent home with severe financial sacrifice. Thus why so many people my age are moving away.

Not sure what the future holds for California. Rich people will always want to live there so at least it'll have that going for it. Hopefully other states won't follow its lead.

[Miss Julie]

Spicewood may be just the place for you!

[kpaigethomas]

OK, on this note. I do not know Austin at all. Planning on moving in summer. Visited recently for 2 days. loved cat contain. is there a rural, agricultural part outside the city that is cool? Near water, with a view? Just cool. No mcdonalds, no chill fil as, regular old cool.

[scm53]

Originally Posted by kpaigethomas

OK, on this note. I do not know Austin at all. Planning on moving in summer. Visited recently for 2 days. loved cat contain. is there a rural, agricultural part outside the city that is cool? Near water, with a view? Just cool. No mcdonalds, no chill fil as, regular old cool.

Like the person said in 2010, Spicewood. West of Bee Cave on Hwy 71. Great bar - Poodie's Roadhouse, founded by Willie Nelson's late road manager. Opie's Barbeque - one of the Fifty Best in the state. Nice famiky owned steakhouse -5J's.

Check it out.

[hoffdano]

You must mean J5 steakhouse. A nice place, but the steaks are nothing special. Price is reasonable - so you don't have to budget for it.

[hound 109]

Originally Posted by kpaigethomas

OK, on this note. I do not know Austin at all. Planning on moving in summer. Visited recently for 2 days. loved cat contain. is there a rural, agricultural part outside the city that is cool? Near water, with a view? Just cool. No mcdonalds, no chill fil as, regular old cool.

Where is you work location?

(& just curious......why would you plan on moving, if you "do not know Austin at all" ? The only thing that we know about you is that you "loved cat contain" - I assume you meant to say cat mountain.)

North Shore might work if you don't need to commute. No McD or Chili's....but there IS a Sonic in LV.

[G Grasshopper]

I'm the OP on this thread. I can't believe how different life is now than when I wrote that post(2010.) We long ago moved to a smaller one story house in Circle C. We are happy that we are not out in Bee Caves or Lakeway because we take many trips weekly into town for medical reasons. I can say that I was right in my feeling that as you get older, it is best to move toward one story living. But many other priorities are different. Life is funny that way; you think you know what you want, then everything changes in an instant, and you want completely different things. At any rate, we are satisfied with our Circle C house and its location.