Pflugerville vs. Steiner Ranch - Need advice (Round Rock, West: homes, neighborhoods)

[gigi927]

Originally Posted by Jenbar

PF is new and less established? I don't "know" one way or another - we just moved here... but my sister lived there 10 years ago.



What's your source on this? NOT being snotty, I mean that sincerely, and I am very interested to read about that for my personal education!

It's my understanding, from the reading I have done, and talking to the various real estate agents and sales people in the new home places - that *most* of the area (North Austin Suburbs - extending to Georgetown) are not really getting much appreciation because of the vast amount of building and construction going up - pretty much all over! Pretty consistantly people told me that to not expect real appreciation, or equity on a house investment in this area for the next 6 years.



She also said she was looking for a home under $350k.

Hey, I am not fighting for PF! Like I said, I don't particularly prefer it. I am just responding based on what it sounds like the OP might be looking for - reducing her mortgage, scaling back. Which totally makes sense. I am not sure she can achieve that in Steiner Ranch.

The "smarter real estate choice" is to stay within a resonable budget and not make yourself "house poor". It sounds like, in her mind she's telling herself, I need to address this - but her heart is still in Steiner...

My source for the appreciation stats is a real estate group website that I cannot post here because it would be advertising, but I would be happy to PM it to you if you want it.

When I said "less established" I specifically stated that I meant more new construction going on there. I fully realize that Pflugerville in terms of pure age is an older community.

I didn't say she should make herself house poor to live in Steiner. I am not trying to sell her on Steiner. What I said was that if she has the same $ to spend it's wiser to spend it in a better location, better being part perception, and part borne out by historical #s and present average home price. If the $ is not there to buy in Steiner, you don't bankrupt yourself to live there. Granted, she doesn't want to spend $488K, but there are houses under $488 K in Steiner. You admitted yourself you've never been there, Jenbar

[jwb123]

You admitted yourself you've never been there, Jenbar

I am not sure what that comment was for? You are right, I did say that.

I am NOT dogging Steiner. It's a fine place, I am sure. It looks pretty nice from the pictures that someone posted here. The website is nice. The homes look nice.

I am also not trying to be argumentative to you... like I kind of feel you are being with me.

I don't love PF, and I wouldn't want to spend over $300k on a home right now.

Been there, done that - and moved away from it.

I didn't say she should make herself house poor to live in Steiner. I am not trying to sell her on Steiner. What I said was that if she has the same $ to spend it's wiser to spend it in a better location, better being part perception, and part borne out by historical #s and present average home price.

She had already said that the area was getting too expensive for her.

Look, I am not going to argue about the OP like she's not reading, or something.

I was just trying to post positively about PF - because, and especially the area she's asking about, it's an ok place, and sounds like it might be where she is in her life right now.

[gigi927]

I agree that she can be absolutely happy in either place. It's all about priorities and what's important to the individual. Some people don't look at real estate as an investment, it's first and foremost a home, and when that's the case, everything I said doesn't matter a hill of beans. But, she can afford Steiner with the right amount of looking.

[luzababy]

As much as convenience is a necessity for us, we also want to ensure that our money is going to be invested wisely -- not only will I think of my new home as security, but I also think of it as an investment for our future. At this point, because PF is still growing and houses aren't appreciating as well as Steiner, we have chosen towards Steiner.
My husband and I love to be outdoors and the scenery in Steiner is beautiful. Lakes are very convenient and the community is VERY family oriented. For us, I think this is the best choice for us.

[AustinTraveler]

Congrats on your choice Luzababy!! Are you going to build new or buy an existing home? Keep posting and let us know how your plans progress. You can become our new Steiner Ranch expert!!

[austin-steve]

Pflugerville Vs. Steiner = Yugo Vs. Volvo

A couple of things -
Don't take the stats you read in the paper on face value. They may be partially right but are often misleading as they don't dig into the underlying factors. Namely, resale home stats are mixed with new home sales from Builders who list inventory in the MLS. In an area like PF, this substantially skews the average and median prices upward due to the higher priced new subdivisions. Those of us in the business (and any owner who's tried to sell) know that a resale home in parts of Pflugerville is very hard to sell, especially if competing against nearby new homes. That's true for all newer areas east of IH35 in particular, whether north or south in Austin.

When you purchase a home, from an investment/resale standpoint, you want to spend at or below average and median price range for the area in most cases.

If you can spend up to $350K, and you look at Steiner, there are currently 106 homes for sale, 33 of which are priced below $350K. The average sales price is $577K, including 7 homes priced over $1Million. Plenty of upside price point potential there. This is a good place to buy a home from an investment/resale point of view. All of the new construction is priced substantially higher than the comparable resale homes. This makes it easy to sell a resale home.

If you can spend up to $350K, and you look at Pflugerville, there are currently 386 homes for sale, 380 of which are priced below $350K. The average list price is $194K, including only 6 homes priced over $350K. Much of the new home construction is priced about the same as the average resale values, which makes it really hard to sell a resale home. This will be the case for many years to come. Spending more than $200 on a home in Pflugerville would not be a wise move, unless you do so in a resale neighborhood where the average/median prices are already above $200K and there is not immediate competition from new home sales.

From strictly an investment standpoint, it isn't even a contest. You buy in the lower end of a high end area, not the high end of a lower end area. You buy in Steiner, not Pflugerville.

Now, to be fair, not every home purchase should be strictly from an "investment" perspective, but I absolutely guaranty you that none of the Buyers who follow my logic are stuck upside down with homes they can't sell two years later.

What I don't like about Steiner - being trapped with only two ways in and out on 620. I wouldn't personally live there because of the drive, but I would invest there. Pflugerville has a much better location if you can situate yourself where you don't have to pay daily tolls. I would live there if I wanted an easy commute, but I wouldn't invest there.

Hope that makes sense.

Steve

[luzababy]

Thank you Austin-Steve. It makes perfect sense. I'm glad you said that because I was laying in bed this morning wondering if we're making the right decision. I know that Steiner homes are a great investment -- I believed that for years. It's the drive I'm not too keen about.
I noticed on another forum you mentioned Circle C. I thought about that area, too, but felt it might be too South. There's also new subdivisions opening around Hwy 71 and 620...do you know much about these areas?

[jwb123]

Your post makes excellent sense if you are looking at a home purchase strictly as an investment. I have to say that I completely agree... but sometimes people have changes, and whatnot in their lives and they have to look at the whole picture (less expensive, easier commute, while not sacrificing neighborhood and school district quality - in this case).

I guess I was just reading the other parts of her post as saying while she liked the Steiner area, it really wasn't what they felt comfortable with spending on a mortgage - so while making smart financial moves are important, sometimes there are other factors which add more weight to the decision, outside of investment.

We could blah blah blah about this all day, probably

[austin-steve]

I noticed on another forum you mentioned Circle C. I thought about that area, too, but felt it might be too South. There's also new subdivisions opening around Hwy 71 and 620...do you know much about these areas?

As my wife and I (both in the real estate profession) spend a LOT of time driving to various parts of Austin at different times of the day, we've personally come to the conclusion that we'd never live out off of 620, whether it's near Hwy 71 or 2222 because of the current and future traffic conditions.

I saw a string of cars the other day backed up from 71/620 all the way to Southwest Parkway (I was coming from 620 on 71) and I didn't even see a wreck. People were doing u-turns on 71 to head the other way back toward Oak Hill. RR 2222 is already over-capacity with no plans to expand it, and lots of new development coming in right on 2222 (see the recent Statesman article).

Circle C is not as glamorous as Steiner, but it's a degree of difference hardly worth noting in my opinion. You give up the Steiner Lake Austin HOA park, and quick access to Lake Travis, but that's about it. The schools are very good in South Austin and there are plenty of parks and other amenities, Circle C golf club, and we have the Salt Lick 15 minutes away too!

I'd say you should take a drive down to Circle C and South Austin neighborhoods near Mopac/Brodie/Slaughter/290W/1826 and see what it's like during your drive-time to the place(s) you'll be going most often. We live in Oak Hill and can get to Mopac/6th in about 15 minutes most of the time (not at rush hour in the morning), and there are multiple routes to take if the main one in (290 to Mopac) is jammed. Driving to Zilker Park or to eat downtown is SO easy. The drive isn't even a consideration. People we've know in Steiner describe the same trip as "having to drive into town".

Finally, and this is completely subjective and my personal opinion, I think the people/lifestyle in South Austin is much more laid back and relaxed than the north areas. I've been here since 1985 and I've always felt that way. Most newcomers from out of state end up in North Austin for some reason, and I think they bring with them something I can't put my finger on, but it's not the Austin vibe that's still alive and well in Central and South Austin.

[austin-steve]

Your post makes excellent sense if you are looking at a home purchase strictly as an investment.

It also makes sense if you might need to sell your home in a couple of years, due to job transfer or other unexpected reasons, and don't want to have trouble selling, or have to bring money to the closing table.

I'd say fully 75% of new home owners in Hutto, Manor, Pfugerville and any of the other fast growing new-home areas where homes sell for $200K or less are upside down in their homes due to a combination of making too low of a downpayment and buying in an area that will take years to build out and appreciate.

If you know you'll stay put for 10 years, buy wherever you want. But a wise buyer thinks like a smart investor and stays away from starter home areas where resale values are stagnant.

Check any of the foreclosue websites to see where owners are losing their homes in Austin. It's not Steiner Ranch or Circle C, it's mostly the areas East of IH35 where a lot of new construction still exists. Even if you put 20% down, the other foreclosures and new home sales near you will hurt your home's ability to appreciate.
Steve