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Putting a Face on Real Estate since 1995™
• Champions School of Real Estate Career Day • WCREALTORS Golf Tournament • Coldwell Banker Grand Opening • TREPAC Movie Night • and much, much more!
Associates in Progress
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JUNE 2016 • VOLUME 21 • ISSUE 1
PICTURES CTUR CT TUR
20 years of growth in Greater Austin; then vs. now By Riki Markowitz
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he refrain is so common, it’s cliché, never talk about religion or politics in polite society. For anyone living in Austin, there’s a third box to tick off: the city’s population boom. Just mentioning growth over the past generation can draw immediate criticism about transplants, traffic, housing shortages, and more. It’s probably not surprising to find out that for the real estate industry, the city’s growth has been a boon, even if some professionals are still reminiscent of “the olden days.” For the most part, the changes in Austin and Travis County have been a combination of drastic, yet positive. And though it has
been a bit of an overwhelming two decades, compared to most other cities in the U.S., Austin has dealt with its growing pains fantastically well.
THEN
Landscape Between 2002 and 2015, Austin has grown almost 49 square miles, which translates to a nearly 18 percent expansion. The most visually apparent evidence of this meteoric explosion is the fully transformed, barely recognizable downtown district. In the mid 1990s, the tallest building in the city was One Congress Plaza (398 feet, 30 floors). Today, there are at least a dozen residential buildings with more than 30 floors and early this year, developers broke ground on the 685-foot tall, 58-story Independent tower. If anyone is wondering whether Austin needs 370 downtown condos, in addition to the scores of condos, rentals, and new home construction across the entire county, the answer is a resounding “Yes.” Last summer, at least five months before construction began, 90 percent of the residences were reserved, according to building management. It goes without saying that what irks folks most is Austin’s population growth, from just over half a million in 1995 to almost 901,000 in 2015 – or more than 2 million when you
factor in Round Rock. This is precisely why Loop 1, from Parmer Lane to US 290, was ranked 2.7 on the Commuter Stress Index (CSI), meaning that during the busiest time of day, what should be a 20-minute commute takes 54-minutes to complete. Jennifer Archambeault, an owner and broker at Urban Provision REALTORS, can recall how easy it was to fly from 183 to Slaughter Lane in the 1990s.
Kevin Bown, broker and owner at 12 Rivers Realty, says that when he started his career in the late 1990s, an agent could sell a home from nearly any corner of the city. One of the biggest differences between then and now, he says, is that people weren’t coming to Austin to make home in outlying areas like Kyle, Buda, or Round Rock.
Wednesday, June15th Belterra Monthly Home Tour Belterra Welcome Center - 9 a.m.
Wednesday, June16th Schmooze Fest Wagner's Backyard- 5 to 9 p.m.
Bryson Monthly Home Tour Bryson Welcome Center - 9 a.m.
Wednesday, June 22nd Reliant Title: Round Rock Open House Round Rock Office- 4 to 7 p.m.
Tuesday, July 19th HBA: Million Dollar Club Networking Happy Hour - Dogwood Rock Rose - 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, July 21st AMBA: TopGolf Networking Event TopGolf - 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 27th ABoR: TREPAC's Got Talent! ABoR Headquarters - More Info Soon!
Front Page: Continued on page 28
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Upcoming Events
CRS Austin: Bi-Monthly Meeting Westwood Country Club- 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. AYREP: June Networking Happy Hour Doc's Backyard Bar & Grill - 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, June 23rd WCREALTORS: Battle of the Burgers Brushy Creek Lake Park - 3:30 to 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, June16th WCR: Business Resource Meeting Estancia Churrascaria - 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Wednesday, July 13th HBA: Mid-Year Housing Update Phillips Event Center - 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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