Hyde Park? (Austin: apartment, rental, houses)

[maddisonviolet]

What are your thoughts re: living in Hyde Park? I like in-town neighborhoods but can't get a feel for Hyde Park. I have two young children and moving from LA. Thanks.

[Phisch]

Judging from the MLS listings, it's kinda pricey for the square footage. I remember seeing one listing for nigh $1mil. but to be fair, that one sounded like it was a b&b.

The homes are kind of quaint and (if it's the area I'm thinking of) there's supposed to be a little "main street" with shops and coffee places where people like to gather.

[txgal78]

When I first moved to Austin, I looked at Hyde Park, but realized quickly that relative to the other central, historic neighborhoods, it has alot of drawbacks. I currently live in Rosedale, which is immediately west of Hyde Park (west of Lamar, between 38th and Hancock), and it has a great mixture of 30s and 40s bungalows. In general, Hyde Park has alot of rental units, run-down apartment buildings mixed in, and lots of students. The fixed-up houses are great, but they are often next to run-down places. If you like that general area, Rosedale and BrykerWoods are about the same price/sf, but the houses tend to be better kept and are still within walking distance to shops, restaurants, and grocery stores.

We are now buying a property in Travis Heights, which is another great in-town, historic neighborhood, and again, I prefer it to Hyde Park. I know some people who love Hyde Park, but it just depends on what you are looking for.

[AustinTraveler]

Totally agree with txgal but it's all a matter of what you're looking for in a neighborhood. I live in Rosedale too and it's a great place - very family friendly and convenient to everything. Hyde Park is just too close to UT for me.

[Derek ATX]

I would have to agree with the above. Each has it's own charm (Hyde Park, Travis Heights, and Tarrytown) If you haven't been here yet then my best suggestion would be to just pound the pavement. Get out there and look around as much as you can and ask as many questions as you can so you can figure out which neighborhood offers what and how well each suits your needs. All three are great places to live.

[TheHarvester]

I've lived in Hyde Park (2 different locations in the area) and loved it. You can find everything you want within a mile of any house in that part of town. You're close to the mega-HEB grocery store, the cute friendly funky Fresh Plus, several local coffee houses, some good restaurants, and all the best medical facilities in the Austin metro area.

The fact that there are very nice fixed-up houses next to funky run-down places is a PLUS to me. There is diversity in Hyde Park. The closer you get to the University, the more it's dominated by students. Some sections of the area are mostly family homes with few UT students.

When I lived there I was surrounded by families with young children. I also know some young adults who grew up in HP and they had a fantastic experience. All in all, I think it's a no-lose situation. It's a wonderful place. My only complaint is a personal one, which is simply that I prefer hills, and Hyde Park is mostly flat with a grid-like street layout. I prefer a bit more chaos like one finds in Bouldin or Barton Hills. But that's simply personal preference and has little influences on the quality of the neighborhood.

Go for it. Check it out! I can introduce you to people who have children there if you want.

[satanoid]

I chose Travis Heights (well, more like bouldin creek) over Hyde Park because of the premium you pay for living so close to campus.

Hyde Park has some of the most beautiful homes in the entire state, but damn... they get pricey.

[Trainwreck20]

I don't know what AISD schools support Hyde Park..I am guessing McCallum HS? Not sure, but you may want to check that out, too. Quite a few people use one of the fairly numerous private schools that are in the area, so I would guess there is a fairly low elementary-school-age-child density in the neighborhood for the public schools.

[fil]

What cross-streets have the beautiful homes in HP?

We looked down there, but everything seemed run down or college-oriented.

[txgal78]

Trainwreck20 makes another good point for someone with kids. I believe that Hyde Park sends kids to McCallum High, while Rosedale (south of 45th) and BrykerWoods send kids to Austin High. Although I don't have children, I know that in general, people prefer to be in the Austin High district. We had several people ask about that when we were selling our Rosedale home.