Barton Hills? (Austin, Spring, Canyon: real estate, HOA, condos)

[ContinentalGT]

Can anyone advise on what kind of area Barton Hills is? I found a condo there that I am very interested in, but want to get a clearer view of the demographic (I am not from TX).

It seems to be only 3 miles from Downtown (is this correct?) Is downtown where a lot of the "action" is?

Is there anything I am overlooking?
What is the area like?
Is it a developing area? Developed area? Small town family area?
Are there any clubs/bars/nice restaurants nearby?

Thanks!
Joe

[atxcio]

It's a very nice area. I would live in that area in a heartbeat, if the opportunity was right. Established, close proximity to restaurants, entertainment areas (clubs), downtown, etc. Single family homes in the area are quite pricey. Although the Barton Hills area is one of the more quiet, family-friendly residential areas of 78704, 78704 itself is a bustling, "hip" zip code near the center of town. So I wouldn't call it small town feeling at all (although 50 years ago it might have been).

The condo could be new construction, old, or remodeled -- but the area itself is a long established one.

Things you might need to be careful not to overlook:
* Make sure about the Barton Hills location. It's very typical for real estate advertising to fudge a little about the actual neighborhood it's in. Although everything in that area is immediate area is pretty good, if you can post the nearest cross street then we can evaluate better the Barton Hills claim.
* Some of the older stuff, and by older we are talking 60's-70's construction, might have condition issues which could require a chunk of change to fix. These could be specific to your unit, or could be something that will be addressed with an HOA assessment.

Overall, though, I think it's a great area for property value security and potential appreciation (over a long time, though -- it's already gone up so much). Condos generally aren't a great investment in Austin UNLESS they are in one of the few well established, central, and highly desirable areas like Barton Hills/78704.

[doctorjef]

We lived in Barton Hills for the last few years we were in Austin and it was a super-convenient neighborhood, easy to get into downtown but with South Austin charm. It's also easy to get onto 360 from there and not too difficult to access MoPac (although can be tedious at rush hour). Quite easy to get over to South Congress Ave as well. Good solid middle to upperish middle class neighborhood (Barton Hills that is).

[ContinentalGT]

Originally Posted by atxcio

Things you might need to be careful not to overlook:
* Make sure about the Barton Hills location. It's very typical for real estate advertising to fudge a little about the actual neighborhood it's in. Although everything in that area is immediate area is pretty good, if you can post the nearest cross street then we can evaluate better the Barton Hills claim.

The address of the condo I am looking at is: 3314 Westhill Drive

If you can advise anything you know about that specific location, that would be great!

And thank you both for the help, being close to things is what I am ultimately looking for.

[BentBow]

Originally Posted by ContinentalGT

Can anyone advise on what kind of area Barton Hills is? I found a condo there that I am very interested in, but want to get a clearer view of the demographic (I am not from TX).

It seems to be only 3 miles from Downtown (is this correct?) Is downtown where a lot of the "action" is?

Is there anything I am overlooking?
What is the area like?
Is it a developing area? Developed area? Small town family area?
Are there any clubs/bars/nice restaurants nearby?

Thanks!
Joe

Shhhhh!

Austin's hidden secret!

I grew up there, my dad still lives in the same house. Good schools, great neighbors.


It's just plain awesome!

[TexasHorseLady]

Okay, those condos are still under construction. (I own a house, and lived in it for some 8 years, on that block.) Smallish condo development.

They are right on the Greenbelt. Easy walk to South Lamar (though it'll be uphill), on a part of South Lamar where you can walk to restaurants, shopping, grocery stores, and it's expanding and getting more "hip", I suppose. In a neighborhood of single family homes for the most part, with a couple of duplexes.

If I were going to move back to Austin, I'd move back into that house to be in that neighborhood.

[yam]

I've noticed there are several (fourteen) new properties being built on a shared lot in Barton Hills. From the MLS listing blurb, they sound pretty nice. How is this likely to affect the pricing of the existing inventory in this neighborhood? Seems like an awfully big jump in the available supply, and in much better condition that most of the existing housing stock too.

[TexasHorseLady]

Where is that? I'm finding condos on Barton Springs Road that are being built (Villas of Lost Canyon), but nothing like that on the MLS in Barton Hills. Where exactly they are would impact the answer to your question.

[yam]

1303 Robert E Lee road. One of them is mls 3096543. These are single family houses, not condos.

[TexasHorseLady]

Oh! That would explain it. Sounds, though, like detached condos, if it's that many on a shared lot. The plans look like it, too. (I've had clients purchase those - look like houses, have an attached garage and a little back yard, but it was actually a condo community in disguise.)

Wonder what wonderful old Austin properties they're tearing down and what neighborhood they're destroying to build those? I'll have to drive by this week and take a look at where exactly it is. Looking at the map, I have a sinking feeling about it.