A great Commercial opportunity awaits on this 7.1-acre tract which boasts prominent frontage on Ranch Road 12, is Ag Exempt, and also fully entitled and permitted for a massive 42,000 sq.ft. of flex commercial space, primed and ready for construction. For Sale - $2,285,000 REALTOR®
22601 RR 12
Dripping Springs, TX 78620
scott@stanberry.com Ashley
Rosshirt
john@stanberry.com
Perched on Hillside Drive, this home delivers long range views both in the house and on the patio, minutes from downtown Dripping Springs and closer to the High School! Nestled on a unique .5-acre corner lot, the great floor plan features upscale kitchen, luxurious owner suite! MLS8512391. In the 700’s.
REALTOR ® 512-627-5804
lesbolton@stanberry.com
Lot 8 B Broadwing Cove
SW Austin 78737
1+ acre corner lot in the New Custom Home Gated Development of Hawkridge just minutes to Austin in the heart of the Texas Hill Country. This lot features mature oaks, views, excellent building sites in the acclaimed DISD and City Water.
at: $899,000
Priced at $479,990
brooke@stanberry.com
Custom Home Lot in Exclusive Gated Community
Arrowhead Ranch!
439 Vail River Road
Dripping Springs, Texas 78620
192 PINK GRANITE
3.366 acres ready for your custom home
DRIPPING SPRINGS, TX 78620
4 bedrooms 2.5 baths
Level build site and hill country views for miles! Feeds to acclaimed DSISD Building plans available!
3.366 Acres | $380,000
$699,900
Contact me to get your home ready for Spring!
The 14th Annual Dripping Springs Fair and Rodeo May 23-25, 2025 DS Ranch Park 1042 Event Center Dr BRIANNA CIRCLE
JOHNSON CITY, TX 78636
ONLY TWO LEFT! Nice lots being sold separately or together. Subdivision is for a site built or manufactured home in Johnson City! All utilities are in place. Ready for your new home! Priced at $70,000 each.
“I THANK YOU GOD FOR THIS MOST AMAZING DAY, FOR THE LEAPING GREENLY SPIRITS OF TREES, AND FOR THE BLUE DREAM OF SKY AND FOR EVERYTHING WHICH IS NATURAL, WHICH IS INFINITE, WHICH IS YES.” – EE CUMMINGS
Editor
Publisher
Cyle Elizabeth Johnson
Creative Director
Nico Johnson
Cover
Gene Verlen
Contact us
Cyle@ValentinoPublications.com
512 375 5590
The Dripping Springs Outlook, a subsidiary of Valentino Publications, is mailed monthly to all street addresses serviced by the Dripping Springs Post Office in 78620.
I recently read that our calendar starts off in the wrong season. That the beginning of the year should coincide with the beginning of spring as this is a time for renewal and rejuvenation. As the flora slowly begin to emerge again and life abundant is reborn, so are we. As for summer – summer is the time for expansion and realization.
This issue is filled with ideas and resources for expansion and realization in your life. Whether you desire to expand in mind or realize goals in body, there is something here for you. Our amazing community of contributors offer you myriad ways to heal, to grow, to be inspired. Every page has something to offer you or those you love.
I wonder sometimes, where is that line between the insanity of trying the same thing over and over again expecting a different result and actually realizing the goal. Is it the finetuning that makes the difference? Is it the trial and error that finally gets us across the finish line? Maybe it’s the essence of the dream, the energy fueling it, that gives it life. Whatever it is, I’ll keep trying.
Wishing you a beautiful time of expansion and realization as we glide from spring into summer.
EDITOR
Cyle ElizabethJohnson
It’s Time to Tackle Chronic Pain
by Breca Tracy, PhD
Have you considered what life could look like without pain, specifically joint pain? Today, let’s focus on how this could become your reality. Over the last decade, regenerative therapies have provided solutions for patients with joint pain. These therapies have given patients a natural alternative to the traditional standard of care, non-natural approaches.
Regenerative approaches, such as utilizing quality regenerative tissue products, have the capability to become more permanent solutions for joint pain. The science behind how this process works, as we understand it, is phenomenal. For instance, once a regenerative tissue product is injected directly into a joint or tendon, several things can happen. The recipient can start to experience
an anti-inflammatory effect, as the body responds to the injected product. Many components exist within the tissue products that play roles in the healing process. There are agents that signal communication to the body on how to repair itself. There are also components that serve as scaffolding to provide a protective cushion to support damaged joints, cartilage, tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissues.
In conjunction to the anti-inflammatory benefits, the regenerative aspects are also present. Soft tissue restoration and cushioning become permanent for the recipient. Regenerative therapy is a means to introduce a new cushion – newly incorporated soft tissues into your body – which become a part of you for life.
One might ask how long these types of materials last or how long the effects last post injection. The answer is simple, but two-fold. 1) These materials incorporate into your body and become a part of you for life; no one can take them from you. 2) The longevity of these newly incorporated materials depends on how well you take care of the injected area and how far you push your body and joints post injection(s).
Let’s discuss the best physical example for lifespan of a newly injected area. For example, if you are a marathon runner and decide to start swimming, giving your knees a break knowing that pounding the pavement causes deterioration, the longevity for your knee(s) post injection should be much longer than if you continue to train and run marathons. On the other hand, in most cases, if you push yourself too quickly and/or continue to run marathons, the injected area(s) either will not have time to fully heal or will be broken down quicker than if you took up swimming or gave the injected area adequate healing time. Does that make sense?
While traditional therapies for joint pain exist, such as steroid and gel injections, these methods are most likely temporary and sometimes have negative long-term side effects. For more information, please contact REGENERATE for a complimentary consultation. We would love to further educate you on the regenerative therapies we offer here in Dripping Springs. Let’s see if our natural therapies are something that could help you tackle your chronic pain.
Bonus: Why go out of the country when you can stay right here in Dripping Springs?!
TESTIMONIALS
“THE FIRST FEW MONTHS AFTER MY REGENERATIVE INJECTIONS, MY PAIN CAME AND WENT. FOUR MONTHS OUT, THE PAIN LEVELED. AT FIVE MONTHS, I FELT NO PAIN AT ALL AND REGAINED MOBILITY. 11 MONTHS LATER, I FEEL GREAT. I’VE ONLY HAD ONE TWINGE OF PAIN IN THE LAST SIX MONTHS. OH, MY!”
“WE REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYTHING YOU ALL HAVE DONE. I WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SPEND THE AFTERNOON WITH MY FRIENDS AND HAD DINNER TONIGHT BEFORE MY INJECTIONS. IT’S TRULY BEEN A BLESSING.”
“I SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN A COMMERCIAL WHEN I LEFT YOUR BUILDING! I HAD NO PAIN; LIKE MY HEAD WASN’T EVEN ATTACHED TO MY NECK! AM I GOING TO FEEL THIS GREAT FOREVER?”
“THE STAFF AT REGENERATE ARE DEDICATED AND CARING. THEIR OFFICE MAKES A GREAT IMPRESSION RIGHT UP FRONT. VERY HOMEY AND COMFORTABLE.”
“I’M YOUR BIGGEST CHEERLEADER. MY SHOULDER FEELS AMAZING. I TELL EVERYONE ABOUT YOU ALL.”
“I APPRECIATE THAT YOU CALLED TO CHECK IN ON ME AND MY KNEE. THAT MEANS THE WORLD TO ME.”
We have a very unique team of experts. Come see us, call, or email us! Dr. Breca Tracy currently serves as Director of Science & Operations at REGENERATE Dripping Springs. Breca has resided in Dripping since 2007 after obtaining her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Contact us at 512-368-4548, 800 Hwy 290 W, Building F, Suite 200. NaturalHealingTX.com.
A NEW ERA OF WELLNESS:
TRADING PILLS AND POURS FOR PLANTS AND PURPOSE
By Christina Cruz
There’s a quiet revolution happening—one that’s gaining momentum not just in big cities or wellness enclaves, but in everyday neighborhoods like ours. More people than ever are turning away from pharmaceuticals and alcohol in search of more natural, holistic approaches to feeling better, sleeping deeper, and managing the stress of modern life.
At Haus of Jayne, we see this shift daily: moms seeking something that helps them stay balanced without the fog, professionals swapping cocktails for calming cannabis elixirs, and younger generations saying no thanks to alcohol altogether. In fact, a 2023 report from Berenberg Research shows that nearly 50% of Gen Z say they’re actively trying to drink less alcohol, and 34% of millennials have reduced their alcohol intake over the last year alone.
Instead of numbing symptoms or powering through, more people are learning to listen to their bodies—and they’re finding support in alternative medicines like cannabis. And this isn’t just about getting high. It’s about living well.
Summer is a season of expansion —a time when longer days invite us to explore, move more freely, and reconnect with what nourishes us.
Products are evolving, too. Today’s cannabis consumers are sophisticated, informed, and intentional. At Haus of Jayne, we carry elevated formulas where cannabinoids and terpenes are precisely crafted for purpose: relaxation, creativity, pain relief, focus, or better sleep. These are tools for well-being—not just trends.
Summer is a season of expansion—a time when longer days invite us to explore, move more freely, and reconnect with what nourishes us. It’s also the perfect time to reassess your wellness routine. Could better sleep come from a botanical blend instead of a pill? Could a sparkling THC or CBD drink replace the nightly wine? Could you feel more like yourself with less of what weighs you down?
We believe you can. And we’re here to help.
Step into Haus of Jayne this season and let us guide you to products that support your healthiest, happiest self. This summer, don’t just unwind—elevate.
Christina is the Community Relations and Marketing Specialist at Haus of Jayne, boutique hemp dispensary. Native Austinite and nature enthusiast, Christina is passionate about holistic wellness and educating the community about the benefits of cannabis. She spends time reading about the world around us and learning everything she can about history, the arts, and sciences.
Ways Hidden Anger Resurfaces
She was picture perfect. Her hair was neatly groomed, makeup tastefully applied, and she was dressed to the nines. And she smiled – all the time. The only crack in the façade of her glossy exterior was her right hand that kept curling into a tight, little angry fist.
Jane (not her real name), sat with the other patients in the psychiatric hospital where I worked, and talked about what had brought her into group therapy. She mentioned she was having a hard time adjusting to her children getting older and needing her less. She mentioned that her husband was controlling and she was afraid to ask him even basic questions, such as what their financial status was since she wasn’t allowed access to their investments? All the while she unconsciously curled, and uncurled, her fist into that little angry ball, and never allowed her tight smile to slip or falter.
“What are you angry about?” I asked.
“Angry? I’m not angry. I’m here to deal with my depression. I have nothing to be angry about. Actually, I have much to be thankful for.”
“Then why do you smile even when you talk about things that you find painful?” I said, noticing that her fist had tightened until the knuckles stood out white as chalk marks.
Her smile faltered and her eyes brimmed with tears. I asked her, “If your anger was water, how high would it fill this room?”
“To the ceiling,” she said softly.
“What color would it be?”
by Leslie Tourish, LPC
“Dark red with streaks of black,” she said, with just the edge of steel in her voice. At that point, the real Jane entered the room and she began the vulnerable journey of unpacking the underlying issue of her depression – her anger.
It’s been said that depression is anger, spread thin. Nonproductive ways of expressing anger are to be passive, aggressive, or passive-aggressive. Therefore, people may deal with their anger by either stuffing their feelings (like Jane), spewing their anger at whoever is in their path, or being indirect and misleading rather than expressing their feelings openly.
People who stuff their feelings may have what is called hidden anger. Warning signs are as follows: Procrastination in the completion of imposed tasks. Perpetual or habitual lateness. Sarcasm, cynicism, or flippancy in conversation. Frequent sighing. Over-politeness, constant cheerfulness, and smiling while hurting. Frequent disturbing or frightening dreams. Over-controlled, monotone speaking voice. Excessive irritability over trifles. Clenched jaws or grinding of teeth while sleeping. Chronic stiff or sore neck or shoulder muscles. Ulcers.
For every behavior there is a purpose or a benefit. The neurotic rationale of hidden anger are as follows:
Avoid facing your real feelings. Anger is a natural response to hurt. If you avoid anger, you avoid the underlying emotional injury.
Can feel mistreated and abused. You can complain about others mistreating you and avoid taking responsibility for yourself.
Give yourself headaches or ulcers as a result of channeling your anger to yourself.
A way for you to get sympathy and not face an unpleasant feeling, such as repressed anger.
Get approval from others for being a doormat. You’re a nice person but you give up power by denying anger, resulting in a diminished sense of self and feelings of helplessness.
Avoid responsibility for taking control of your life. If you avoid expressing anger, you wind up feeling helpless and powerless. This may backfire into assuming the general belief that you cannot affect your life in a direct and meaningful way and you are not able to attain your personal goals.
A quote by Charles R. Brown reads, “The white light streams down to be broken up by those human prisms into all the colors of the rainbow. Take your own color in the pattern and be just that.” Perhaps our greatest achievement may be learning to be true to our nature without suppression or aggression. Being able to express our feelings and thoughts, openly and honestly, are the first steps in dropping the mask and letting our true light shine.
Leslie Tourish, LPC, is a Dripping Springs psychotherapist in private practice. To contact Leslie, visit LeslieTourish.com orLATourish.com
ASK GEORGE
GEORGE ALTGELT OF GEO GROWERS ANSWERS QUESTIONS ABOUT SUMMER GARDENS, SOIL FERTILITY, AND WHAT MAKES PLANTS THRIVE.
Is it too late to start planting? Actually, no, I never think it’s too late but here’s the caveat – if you’re planting something like squash you want the leaves to be big by now so they’ll shade the ground. But you can circumvent that with mulch. I recommend cedar grind. It’s a lighter mulch. It’s course and fluffier. If you go for a fluffier mulch it can conduct heat a lot faster. By the time you get into the heat of the summer you want the leaves on the plants to be nice and big to shade the ground. 4 inches of mulch should be enough. You want to keep the plants’ enzyme activity going; you want about 88 degrees. At 92 degrees the enzyme activity stops. The plant doesn’t die because its deep roots are in the cooler parts of the soil and it can still get water. The deep roots are what really saves the plant in hot weather.
Why is it that my plants in the yard do better than my pampered plants in pots? What you have in favor of the plant in the yard is a greater diversity in the microbiome. That would include a large array of nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Now the soil in the garden box, it’s possible it has been inoculated with a great diversity of nitrogen-fixing bacteria but it hasn’t has time to establish its colonization of the plant’s root.
So I should keep the same soil in my garden box and top it off? Yes, you can top it off but what you need to do is inoculate the soil in the garden box with a good compost tea – which is not fertilizer – but it very beneficial. We have it at Geo Growers. But you need really good fertility. Phosphorous is probably the most prosperous ingredient. Triple phosphate tends to burn your soil, it burns the naturally occurring fungus.
What exactly does “fertility” mean in the plant kingdom? You have the major nutrients, the minor nutrients, and probably most importantly you need the trace minerals. I’ll give you an example: When Texas agriculture decided to grow citrus way down south in the Rio Grande Valley, they grew citrus wonderfully and that went on really well for four or five years. But then what happened was the citrus trees were covered with flowers but they would not bear fruits. So all of sudden, no one was making any kind of citrus crop! Everyone was baffled because they were using plenty of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK). They called in scientists and what they discovered was that the soil was totally depleted of a trace mineral called molybdenum. So as it turns out – with molybdenum – that if one tree falls below one part per 600 billion the tree will not make fruit. They then brought in molybdenum as a foliar spray and sprayed the trees.
How does that relate to fertility in the plant kingdom? Bacteria plays an important role in transporting minerals into the plant through the roots. The real question you’re asking me is what role fertility plays in various crops; it will vary from crop to crop. Fertility is what is available to the plants so it will grow and produce fruit or seed. The major nutrients NP and K get so much press but what gets left out of the discussion of fertility are the other nutrients; manganese and molybdenum. You begin to see that fertility is a complex subject.
What can I plant now? It’s not too late to plant peppers, you might have some trouble with tomatoes but mulch might help. Another plant that handles the heat is okra.
How do I prepare my soil before planting? I’m going to recommend bone meal for two reasons: phosphorous and calcium. The chief of minerals is calcium and you’re not going to get calcium out of limestone because calcium carbonate is very different. You need useable calcium and the best useable calcium is going to come from gypsum. Calcium sulfate is an ionic bond so it will dissolve in water.
Do I add that to my thunder garden soil? This year we have been formulating the thunder garden soil so there’s not so much nitrogen. If there’s too much nitrogen, tomato plants will hold off on making tomatoes. You have to wait on the nitrogen until you see the tomatoes start forming on the flower. The bone meal has some nitrogen but not much. Two things you want to put in the bottom of container are Epsom salt and rock phosphate; I carry both of those at Geo Growers. Those two items plus a little layer of soil. The Epsom salts make the leaves dark green and the phosphate makes the leaves broad – which is a good sign of fertility. The nitrogen is also going to make the leaves green but hold off at first.
So if I have a garden box with thunder garden from two years ago and a heart that wants to grow summer herbs and vegetables what is my next move? If it’s from two years ago, you can bet you’ve used up a lot of nitrogen. You probably need to get some gypsum because you could be low on calcium. The role of calcium is very important in plant physiology. Without calcium the cell walls are not permeable.
Is that the same with us? In the case of human beings, you need sodium in the blood stream and potassium inside of the cell. That’s the ion pump.
I’ve been in business now for 30 years, but I started studying plant physiology and soil science way before that. What I enjoy is when I can find out new information. I have this whole mosaic picture built around the molecular structure of plant physiology and when I get a new piece of the puzzle I almost always know where it goes in that molecular structure.
What next for the soil? If you’re going to plant the heavy feeders like tomatoes, cucumbers, melon, squash, you’re going to want to revamp the nutrient package in the soil. I would make sure that you have some bone meal in there – the bone meal is not only supplying calcium and phosphorous but also trace minerals. If there are no tomatoes then use some form of nitrogen, the best being fish emulsion. The caution with fish emulsion: you have to use it very diluted. If you use it too thick, you’ll attract racoons who will dig up your garden looking for fish! Another good source for nitrogen is bloodmeal – racoons are kind of put off by blood meal – and also bat guano. (You can find both at Geo Growers.) Make sure you have adequate biological diversity; pick up some compost tea.
How do I use that? The best way is to pour it on full strength, a little bit on each plant. It can be diluted as long as you don’t use city water with chlorine – because that will kill the biome.
Should I water with purified water? Yes, purified water, rain water, water from a ditch, anything that doesn’t have the chlorine in it. You can get reverse osmosis water from Pure Water Stop.
It’s probably too late for seeds, so buy transplants? Yes, it could take six weeks for seeds to come into development and have leaves big enough to shade the ground, and that’s critical as we get into summer.
Where should I place my garden box? Full or part sun? You need six hours of direct sunlight for tomatoes, squash, cucumbers. For other things like carrots (it’s a little late for carrots but I have a friend growing carrots that he planted in April) but those need cooler temperatures, not full sun.
Can I do a garden box with say peppers, tomatoes, and Mediterranean herbs? Yes, and if you want to grow onions or something similar – grab some shallots from the grocery store. Onions are very anti-clotting; they keep blood platelets from becoming sticky.
You can chop most of the green/white sprout off, leave about an inch of the sprout, and plant just the bulb with the top sticking out of the soil. Make sure you remove green foliage because it has a big need for water. The bulb can’t sustain that much green foliage. After the bulb is established, you can let the green foliage grow as the bulb will have roots absorbing; lots of good things will be happening. You may as well plant some garlic while you’re at it.
How do I know when the shallot or garlic is ready to dig up? Plant garlic in November and you can harvest it all throughout the spring. It’s a little late to plant garlic; it’s not going to like the hot weather but it’s worth a try.
Can peppers, tomatoes, herbs, things like that share a garden bed with garlic? Sure. Look up companion plants. Garlic loves roses.
This time of year, broccoli will almost immediately go to seed, but people don’t plant enough broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage during the winter. You plant those in late September if it’s cool enough. You could even wait until October, November. One reason you want to leave broccoli in ground in January is that it will keep flowering and will provide nectar for the bees while it’s cold out. And you’ll get broccoli seeds.
So - today - I can plant peppers, basil, okra? If you can find starts, beets and turnips are really good. And Swiss chard. That goes through hot weather. Chard is not a crucifer like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage – those like cold weather. And there are no harlequin beetles when it’s cold out.
What about herbs like rosemary? Rosemary should do well. Rosemary does not like rich soil. Put rosemary in the crummiest soil you’ve got. Basil; I’m planting mine now.
George Altgelt is the owner of Geo Growers, located on 290 and Bell Springs Road. Geo Growers has been in business since 1995 and sells bulk material as well as bagged gardening products and plants. George believes we need to be producing more of our own food and each one of us can contribute. His goal is to make that easy and effective.
Waldorf Salad with Lemon Dressing
6 servings 15 minutes
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup+ walnuts or pecans
1 tablespoon shallot, finely mined
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/4 cup+ light avocado or grapeseed oil
2 tablespoons walnut oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt & fresh ground pepper
2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
1 full cup chopped celery, include leaves
1/4 cup golden raisins
2 apples quartered, cored, and cubed
DIRECTIONS
Toast walnuts or pecans on a baking pan at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes, until golden & fragrant. Let cool and break into small pieces.
In a bowl, combine the shallot, lemon zest, lemon juice, & vinegar. Whisk in oils and cumin, season with salt & pepper.
Add shredded romaine to the bowl of dressing and stir. Add nuts, celery, apple, and raisins. Toss well and serve at once.
Enjoy!
Summer Snakes
Spring is in full swing and summer is officially around the corner. The weather has shifted away from irregular cold fronts and now, that sweltering Texas heat will start to be recognized. Although you may not make an everyday note of it, there are subtle signs of warmer weather that happen around Dripping Springs. Birds returning from their winter getaway and singing in your trees. An increase of flying bugs being swatted away from your patio deck. Those little green caterpillars start falling from your trees. You start to see more little lizards darting on the ground. And, if you’re an avid hiker there’s one thing you’ll start to keep in the back of your mind while walking the trails: Snake season is back.
Now don’t be alarmed! Although Texas is home to over 105 species and subspecies of snake, only 15 are venomous. Most snakes like the black rat snake, coachwhip, and speckled kingsnake are welcomed visitors! These nonvenomous passer-throughers are important in controlling rat and mouse populations and would much rather be on their way than cross paths with you. However, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife, 95% of snake bites occur in the months between April and October. And 90% of snake bite incidents involving pets occur between this time as well. Last year alone, around 150,000 pets were bitten by a venomous snake – with a vast majority being dogs.
by Diana Ozimek
It’s true – our furry best friends and four-legged hiking pals are naturally curious and easily excited! Even so, they’re the most likely to approach something they don’t recognize in your backyard. But when your dog steps over the wrong rock off the trail or that unrecognizable something turns out to be a copperhead, that cute curiosity could turn life threatening. That’s why no matter the situation, getting your dog snake trained is important. Snake aversion training is aimed at teaching your pet to avoid snakes by using positive and consequential reinforcement training. It’s crucial that the end result of this training is to get your dog to recognize the danger of getting close to a snake and to stay away from it and come back to you when they encounter one.
SNAKE AVERSION TRAINING IS AIMED AT TEACHING YOUR PET TO AVOID SNAKES BY USING POSITIVE AND CONSEQUENTIAL REINFORCEMENT TRAINING. IT’S CRUCIAL THAT THE END RESULT OF THIS TRAINING IS TO GET YOUR DOG TO RECOGNIZE THE DANGER OF GETTING CLOSE TO A SNAKE AND TO STAY AWAY FROM IT AND COME BACK TO YOU WHEN THEY ENCOUNTER ONE.
On top of this, it is important that even without snake aversion training your dog knows proper recall as well as proper leash etiquette. Some state parks as well as other natural areas require a dog to be on leash at all times. Without your dog knowing how to walk calmly and safely along narrow trails, you may end up hurting yourself while traversing uneven grounds. In areas that do allow off-leash dogs, the ability to confidently recall your dog can keep them out of sketchy situations can be a life saver. But always remember, the aim in all training is to allow you and your pet to have a good time and stay out of harm's way.
Stay safe this summer Dripping Springs!
Diana is the owner & lead trainer at Good Dog in the Making. She is excited to bring her puppy training expertise to her new community & help families raise confident, wellmannered dogs.
THE CASE FOR RESALE HOMES IN TODAY’S TARIFF-DRIVEN MARKET
By Cody Johnson
With recent tariffs impacting construction materials, the choice between a resale home and a new build has never been more critical. While new builds have their appeal, resale homes offer distinct advantages that align with today’s market realities.
First, resale homes are often more cost-effective. Tariffs on imported materials like lumber, steel, and aluminum have driven up construction costs, with some estimates showing a 20-30% increase in new home prices since 2023. Resale homes, already built, sidestep these inflated costs. Buyers can secure a quality property at a lower price point, often with room in the budget for personalization or upgrades.
Second, resale homes typically offer established neighborhoods with mature amenities. Unlike new developments, which may lack fully developed infrastructure, resale properties are nestled in communities with established schools, parks, and local businesses. This stability is invaluable for families seeking predictability and convenience, especially when new subdivisions face delays due to tariff-related supply chain disruptions.
Another advantage is the immediate availability of resale homes. New builds can take months or even years to complete, with tariff-induced shortages causing further delays. Resale homes, however, are move-in ready, allowing buyers to settle in quickly without the uncertainty of construction timelines.
Additionally, resale homes often come with character and upgrades that new builds lack. Mature landscaping, finished basements, or renovated kitchens add value without the premium of custom-built features. Buyers can also negotiate with sellers, a flexibility rarely available with developers tied to fixed pricing.
In today’s tariff-driven market, resale homes offer affordability, immediacy, and community stability that new builds struggle to match. At NestHaven Properties we’re committed to helping buyers and sellers navigate these dynamics to find a home that fits their budget and lifestyle. While new builds have their place, the smart money is on resale properties for value and reliability in 2025.
The article is written by Cody Johnson, who is an owner and co-founder of NestHaven Properties, a full service real estate company established in Dripping Springs in 2023. He has spent the last decade entrenched in all facets of the Real Estate industry; Capital Markets, Mortgage, Title Insurance, Brokerage and Technology. Call 512.327.7800 or 512.781.4499.
Crazy Markets Make for Uneasy Times
by Steve Mallet
Tariffs, deportations, war in Ukraine, lawsuits, scratched Teslas, wild swings in the stock market, and stubbornly high interest rates — it’s enough to make a grown man fantasize about being stranded on a desert island in the middle of nowhere. Give me a grass hut and no internet for a month. Please!
There’s no doubt that the current state of our economy, and the turmoil surrounding it, has people scratching their heads and wondering which way is up. Few segments of the economy are feeling the mental stress and anguish more than the real estate market.
In the same neighborhood, one home can sit on the market for a year unsold, while another down the street sells in 48 hours with multiple offers. What? There seems to be no rhyme or reason as to why some homes are selling while others sit. A home can be perfectly staged, professionally photographed, widely promoted — and still not move.
Amid all this chaos, though, some real estate agents are still getting homes sold. But these times are not for the faint of heart or the weak. Sellers are constantly uneasy, and buyers are like sharks — sensing blood in the water. Yes, Mr. Seller, I’ll take a leg. And when you think we’re done, I’ll take an arm too. Thank you very much!
Agents across the country are posting about the newest hats they must wear: counselor and therapist. The truth is, there is a method that works —it involves hard conversations and hard data. Meek agents are suffering the most in this difficult time; lacking the skill to manage frustrated clients or offer strategies that actually work. Many agents will tell you this is one of the most challenging markets in the past 50 years. In previous downturns, there were foreclosures, short sales, distressed properties — homes available for pennies on the dollar. But where some people see only obstacles, others see opportunity. The old adage buy low, sell high has never been more true than it is now. Investors who’ve kept liquidity are finding great property buys that will most certainly return strong profits in the future.
Fortune always favors the bold. And when people are scared — sometimes irrationally so — the bold make big moves. Fear is not a strategy for success. Anyone who has lived through a few downturns will tell you: opportunity is everywhere right now. Turn off the news. Take a real look at the lay of the land. Figure out how to make your fortune in real estate. Now is the time.
Steve has been selling real estate since 2003. His team can help with all of your real estate needs. Residential, commercial, farm and ranch. Co-Host of the Mallett and Michelle on Dripping Springs Podcast.
by Randy Lawrence
Pre-Plumbing Requires Pre-Planning
When building or remodeling a home, there are plenty of details to keep track of. One item that is often overlooked is preparing your home for the installation of water treatment equipment. This preplumbing is referred to as a softener
loop. As a side note to our wonderful local builders, if you don’t already include a softener loop in every home you build, you should consider doing this. Even if you don’t install a softener, the individual purchasing the home may want one and completing it during construction will make a huge difference in the ease of system installation and overall cost.
The purpose for a loop is to separate the inside water from that used outside for irrigation, so that only the water entering the house is treated. In most cases, a loop will be located in a garage, closet, or mechanical room. There will be a water line exiting the wall, then turning 180 degrees before re-entering the wall. This will provide the inlet and outlet lines for the softener or filter. There should also be a drain which will handle the water discharged during a regeneration cycle. If there is a concern about this water entering the septic tank, a French drain, or gravel pit, could be an alternative. If your water treatment equipment is to be installed in a well enclosure, the house should be fed by two lines. One for treated water and the other for untreated irrigation water.
A 110 volt electrical outlet should be placed near the loop in order to power the water treatment equipment. A standard GFCI outlet will suffice, but a four-way outlet will ensure that you have additional plug space for heat lamps or for additional equipment. It is also a good idea to have this outlet on a dedicated circuit. Planning ahead for a water treatment system can save you a great deal of money and frustration when you do decide to treat your incoming water. A licensed water treatment specialist can work with your builder to make certain that all of these components come together smoothly.
Randy Lawrence is the owner of ProQuality Water Systems, a full service water treatment company. He is one of only six Class III Certified Water Treatment Specialists in Hays County (LIC# WT0002693). With over 25 years of experience he has serviced Wimberley and surrounding areas for over a decade.
Litigation: Let’s Make a Deal
Imagine that you have suffered a disappointing loss at trial, but the judge has chosen to grant you a new trial “in the interest of justice.” The trial judge has the option do that, provided that the judge articulates a good reason for doing so. The good news – you get another bite at the apple; the bad news – you have to go through another trial and might lose again. Nevertheless, your opponent is now faced with trying the case again and the possibility of losing the second trial after having won the first one. In addition, no matter which side wins the retrial, one or the other might appeal the results of that retrial. Even when a new trial is not granted, you, as the losing party, may threaten to file an appeal. Either way, this is a prime opportunity for the parties to see if the dispute can be settled thereby avoiding a second trial or an appeal or both.
The possibility of settling a lawsuit exists from beginning to end, but the point in the proceedings described above is a particularly good opportunity for the parties to reconsider their respective settlement positions and strike a deal. At this point, each party has most likely seen the other party testify in front of a jury; they have seen their respective lawyers make their presentations to the jury; they have heard the comments of probably sixty to eighty jury panel members express their feelings about the positions of the parties during the jury selection process; they know what one jury thought of the case. All of this information should allow the parties to reassess their previous settlement negotiation postures with a view to increasing or decreasing their demands or offers.
Trials can be grueling and often daunting events and the parties may be weary of the fight. In almost every case, at least one, and often all, of the parties are paying their legal counsel and experts by the hour, so costs will continue to rise if the case goes on. If the losing party is uninsured and lacks assets, the collectability of the judgment may be in doubt. For many reasons, it is not surprising that lawsuits which make it as far as a jury verdict often settle at this juncture.
by Roland Brown
Attorney Roland Brown handles exclusively personal injury claims. Roland, who offices in Wimberley, has been voted HAYS COUNTY’S BEST PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY for 2020, 2021, and 2023 in annual polls of Hays County attorneys. For more information call 512 847 2500.
SABRINA SIEBERT: WITH TEETH & FANGS
Were you artistic as a child?
Yes. I came to creativity through heredity and environment. My mother Bonnie is an incredible painter who had quite a heyday in the 80s and 90s when I was growing up. We did not have a white wall in our house or a flat surface that didn’t have some colorful useless doodad sitting on it. I remember a lot of Mary Engelbreit stuff. Mom even had her wallpaper in our kitchen. Bubbly cartoon flowers everywhere.
My father was a retired German pilot turned hobbyist carpenter, so mom would cook up wild yard and house ideas and dad would execute them with Teutonic efficiency, without putting up too much fight about the
weird ones. We had what I affectionately now refer to as the Impaler’s Torture Garden which was just an explosion of 1” rebar pieces sticking out of the ground in all directions, originally with colorful glass bottles on the ends. What was once a quirky garden sculpture quickly became a wind and hail battered death trap and I wasn’t able to talk mom into letting me remove it until last year when I was 38 years old. Yep, heredity and environment.
What did you like to paint as a child?
Well, back then I didn’t stop at painting, I had free access to every kind of clay, fabric, feather, and rhinestone in my mom’s studio as well as all the stuff in my dad’s garage. We live in rural Texas with land that
Artist Sabrina Siebert gives us a glimpse into the creative life and mind behind some of the most wild and colorful works of art in Texas.
IT WAS ALWAYS ANIMALS THAT COMPELLED ME. I LIKE THEM BETTER THAN HUMAN SUBJECTS BECAUSE THEIR SOULS ARE PURE AND THERE’S NOT ONE ON EARTH THAT, EVEN IF YOU HAVE TO SQUINT REALLY HARD, ISN’T BEAUTIFUL.
backs up to the woods so I had lots of room to roam in nature. Dad taught me how to use tools, building pens and shelters for the wildlife I picked up along the way.
... It was always animals that compelled me. I like them better than human subjects because their souls are pure and there’s not one on earth that, even if you have to squint really hard, isn’t beautiful. Humans can be truly ugly, animals just can’t. Look real close at a bullfrogs skin in sunlight sometime or macro photography of a fly’s eyes or the marbling on an armadillo scale. They’re just awesome.
When did you decide you wanted to become an artist?
I moved away to California after high school hoping to become a screenwriter, actually. I was a very
unsettled young person, very restless. I was good at a lot of things, but great at nothing and enthusiastically picked a career I wasn’t suited for. Plus at the time I was desperate to get out of Texas and being basically an only child, out from under my parents’ wing. They were great parents and didn’t deserve that rejection, but as a teenager I didn’t get that of course.
So off I went, and sucked up a ton of my grandparents’ and parents’ money attending USC, eventually realizing that I am not a Hollywood personality or capable of moving confidently in that world. I told myself it was because everyone else there was vapid and horrible but really I just didn’t have what it took to navigate it. I started returning to the creative world by taking a job as an intern at a specialty makeup and costume company called Quantum Creation FX, where they immediately promoted me (out of a desperate need for more manpower) to shop worker on the Tron Reboot, which lasted nearly a year.
I didn’t have any creative freedom in those jobs, at any point really; most of what we were doing was grunt work on various movies, with many supervisors directing us as to exactly what went where. But the shop was huge and there was spray paint and fiberglass in the air, body forms of actors standing around with sewers sticking patterns on them, aliens getting their tentacles varnished, someone punching hair in a delicate werewolf ear, silicone heads being pulled out of giant molds, and a general air of artistic madness that made me feel at home. It was so much fun and I was surrounded by other transplants like me, from Kentucky and Seattle and Italy, all over.
When did you travel to India?
It was through that same company, Quantum, that we got an offer to go to Chennai around Christmas of 2015. How they got hooked up with us, Lord only knows, but an Indian production company commissioned us to make light-up robot suits (shades of Tron) for a high profile, massive budget sequel called Robot 2.0. At that point I had been in the industry maybe four or five years so I was still quite junior, but I was single and childless as was my colleague Ror, so we were sent because nobody else wanted to miss Christmas I guess.
What started as one six week trip turned into a threeyear, back and forth ordeal that was fraught with problems, mainly budgetary, for the management and filmmakers but can only be described as the adventure of a lifetime for me and Ror.
Before I got used to it, I likened our life in India to being thrown in to a washing machine with a barking dog and loose change. 150 workers shouted constantly on set, interrupted by the director roaring “SILENCE!” Every time they rolled camera.
There were no apparent safety regulations for anyone but the actors, and we saw one poor guy fall from 20’ scaffolding while building a giant metal robot tree. He turned out fine. They said. And there was a Dengue Fever scare, and threats of malaria, although none of those ever panned out. No threat was ever as bad as the threat of the threat. But we certainly stuck out there and the locals all had camera phones and took pictures of us like we were the celebrities.
SABRINA SIEBERT
It’s hard to sum up the whole experience, and I find myself getting very clumsy trying to unpack the feeling of being wined and dined like a queen while knowing just outside the fancy hotel is the other world, the one we all sort of know about from vague news and documentaries. The one I dare not describe because people like me really don’t have the right to.
My eyes were opened as to some harsher realities of the world, but as I said, commentary on that is best kept in my head. Anger, heartbreak…those are some words that escape. It did change me. I wish more people could know it and understand how lucky we are.
What made you decide to move back to Texas?
After India, I found life in Los Angeles to be really empty; everything I had disliked about it before was magnified somehow. The India trip changed something in me fundamentally, and I felt a strong urge to go see my parents... There were a thousand other little nudges that seemed to be pushing me back this way. It was the best move I ever made.
Within a few years, I met my partner James Tollison, a gifted country music singer and mechanic who used to make everybody cry doing old Hank Williams songs at the bar. So real you’d think you were hearing Hank’s ghost. At the height of Covid, as the rest of the world reeled, my dad died and the country singer came to my house for Christmas and never left us. Now we all live in my childhood home: Mom, Jamie, me, and our little daughter Bonnie II. We support each other in music and art, and fix old cars for sale, and carry on real well.
Where do you draw inspiration from?
My interests have expanded since being home and having time to read and research again. Aside from wildlife, I have developed a strong interest in archaeology and ancient art, incidentally all very animal-based. I have thick binders full of reference material from all over the world of ancient cave paintings, pictographs, and glyphs. It’s a real rabbit hole and I see myself going deeper and deeper down the more I discover about that history.
What is it like being on the road so often?
It’s exciting, it suits my personality just fine. I like being my own boss and assuming the risk of my own business decisions. Every time we leave home for a show there are a lot of factors at play; will you make it safely, will the truck and trailer hold up, will the weather hold, will folks come out…You have to be really alert, plan thoroughly, and get lucky. Plus I have my roadie Ol’ Jamie with me, who makes it all possible because he’s the only one who can back up the trailer.
Did it come naturally?
Where did you learn to paint?
I taught myself doing portraits of wildlife after I moved home, although of course I had a lot of background in it from my childhood. Mom was always encouraging me, but never tried to teach anything formally. That wasn’t like her, plus she had her hands full doing her work. She thought it was best to just let me figure it out and I appreciate that.
Yes and no. The desire comes naturally, but the technical stuff does not. I cannot draw very well, and I agonize over details to the point I get really hung up. There are few paintings I’ve done where I haven’t cussed and kicked and cried over it at some point.
Does your child paint with you?
To my great delight, yes. Almost every day, multiple times. She’s three and I’m telling you she’s awesome.
She only does horse and riders but they are pretty incredible. She loves to take my old Breyer horses and paint them too. We have some that have so many coats they have ceased to resemble horses at all.
What do you like to listen to when you paint?
Audiobooks! I love audiobooks. Like I said, I’m on an ancient archaeology kick right now so everything is about Tut’s tomb or the Olmecs or the case for ancient advanced civilizations before the flood. Which is quite compelling by the way. But I also love
biographies. And James Herriot. And Harry Potter when I need comforting.
Are there any rituals you have when you sit down to create a new piece?
Boy, how that’s changed. It used to be booze and a pack of cigarettes and the Heartless Bastards upstairs in the attic loft (my old studio), now it’s squeezing an hour in here and there downstairs in our dining room (my studio now) drinking immune boosting coffee substitute while my daughter makes Appaloosa spots on my leg and Jamie tries to learn the piano. Eventually, I just started setting my alarm for 2am and working from then until the kid wakes up, then napping with her later. I live like a house cat most of the time.
Do you have a favorite artist or painting?
My mom, Bonnie Siebert.
Favorite art movement?
Cave painting. It’s sort of the greatest of all time isn’t it?
