Austin Real Estate News

We recently added a new page that lists all of the developments going on downtown with the new Austin Condos and Lofts. You can access here by clicking Austin Condos and Lofts.

The Austin Board of REALTORS, the organization that manages the Austin multiple listing service data, recently modified the Austin MLS area boundaries. For example, the old central Austin areas 1b & 4 have given way to the new areas DT & UT with the old area 4 moving up to northern part of area 1b all the way to Hwy 183. Confusing? Here’s a real life example for fans of central Austin. A home in Rosedale north of 35th street and a home in the Allandale area south of Koenig lane used to be considered area 1b. Now, those same homes would be listed in the new area 4. (On a side note… I believe the 1b area designation helped the value of those homes because it grouped those homes in with Tarrytown, Brykerwoods, and the always tony, Pemberton. That’s another post.) So, if you are used to searching 1b only you may consider new areas such as areas 4, DT and UT. One other solution to finding homes is to use our map search tool which allows you to effectively create your own areas. For those people that use the Austin MLS areas for their searches, our search tool is still showing the old map, but we are working closely with our programmers to get the new area map up and running.

As always, if you can’t find exactly what you are searching for on www.austinhomelistings.com please contact the REALTORS at Great Austin Properties directly at 512.577.6441. We have access to the real MLS tools and can help you find exactly what you are searching for.

Catellus Development Corp, the master developer behind the redevelopment of the old Robert Mueller Municipal Airport into a 711 acre “mixed-use urban village”, today announced the process for getting on the list to purchase a new home. (If you don’t yet know about the Mueller project, I recommend visiting the site, http://www.muelleraustin.com.) Because of the great demand for these homes, the developer has a instituted a registration program called the Mueller Pioneer program. An important note about this process is that it is not on a “first come, first serve” list. There is timeframe to register and after the deadline, a company will be hired to randomly create a priority list of buyers.

This is the process to registering as a Mueller Pioneer.

Starting March 5, 2007 until April 30, 2007, complete a registration form, which will be available online or at Mueller Central, 4550 Mueller Blvd. (703-9220). They want to know which home type from which builder you’re looking to buy. (The builders were announced today.) Registrants may only select one home type and one builder. Due to anticipated high demand, families that register for more than one builder will be disqualified from the Pioneer program. Next, obtain a pre-qualification letter from the builder’s preferred lender. Obtaining the pre-qualification letter requires a $50 nonrefundable payment to the builder’s preferred lender. For those people, interested in buying an affordable home, the registration form is the same, but the pre-qualification will also include income certification from the homebuilder’s preferred lender and, if you need it, consultation with credit counselors.

This is the process after the registrations are submitted:

Catellus will build the list of prospective Pioneers using a randomizing process, overseen by a third party, to assign priority numbers to each Pioneer registration. Each builder will then work directly, in order, with each prospective Pioneer to complete home sales. Catellus will not sell Mueller homes directly. Please note that some builders will not enter into a contract with you if the purchase of a home in Mueller will be contingent upon the selling of your current house.

For more information stay tuned to www.austinhomelistings.com for more exclusive Austin Real Estate News.