Austin Texas Homes and More

Archive for June, 2009

As many of you know central Texas has been in a drought for a few years now. The grass is brown and the trees are stressed and some are even dying. Today I woke up to the sound of thunder. I swear I had almost forgotten what it sounds like! So I came out on the back porch with my coffee to enjoy the wave of cool air that this thunderstorm brought. My back porch was a blissful 74 degrees!! For the last week our temperatures have been ranging from 90-108 everyday.

We have not had any appreciable rain in well over two months. We are so behind in our annual rainfall its getting pretty scary. The Lower Colorado River Authority hasjust released a little bit of water from Lake Travis to go to the farmers downstream so their crops may survive. Presently Lake Travis is dropping about two feet each week from evaporation. Lake Travis is way below normal levels and this little storm won’t be enough to make a dent in the drought. The LCRA also reported that the lakes present level is 25 feet below the historic low level for June. Right now the lake level is only 648 feet, normally it would be at 675, and flood level is 711.

Many of the boat launches are closed because the lake level is so low. Right now I think there is only one boat launch open, Mansfield Dam Park. If we don’t get much rain to help increase the lake level, that will be one very crowded boat launch for the fourth of July weekend.

Things are so bad at Lake Travis Johnny Fin’s Restaurant on Travis is holding a BYOB party this weekend. The BYOB is not typical, it stands for Bring Your Own Bucket (of water to put in Lake Travis). Johnny Fin’s has seen their business drop appreciably due to a large number of boats being unable to access their dock. 

Here ia a photo of Lake Travis from 2008 two years into the drought.

Now for the scary images from this year. Sometimes Islands have grown to the point you could build a new community on them. We better establish some sort of partol to make sure it does not happen!! When things get back to normal these islands should be under about 15-30 feet of water!!

If you are in the market for an Austin area home and are not presently working with a Realtor, call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation and I will make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate

1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746   512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.ZilkerParkHomes.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros.

Have you upgraded you computer or monitor lately? Need to know what to do with the old TV, now that you have the new fancy Hi-Def flat panel? There are more new companies that want to help consumers recycle your old electronics. Dell computer was one of the first to offer electronics recycling. If you buy a new pc or laptop from Dell, they will accept your old pc or laptop (any brand) to recycle at no charge. There are now 206 locations in 45 states where you can drop off your old Zenith and Gold Star brand products that have reached the end of their useful life. Toshiba, Sharp and Panasonic have combined drop off points for your old audio-visual equipment and TVs in 50 states with 280 locations. To obtain actual drop off locations close to you go to www.MyGreenElectronics.com. You can even recycle your collection of old cell phones, simply go to www.recellular.com/recycling.com. Good luck and be green!

If you are in the market for an Austin area home and are not presently working with a Realtor, call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation and I will  make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate

1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746  512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.ZilkerParkHomes.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros.

With major economic data, large Treasury auctions, and a Fed meeting on the schedule, it was a busy week for mortgage markets. In the end, it was the Treasury auctions which had the greatest impact on mortgage rates. Demand was very strong at the auctions, which pushed mortgage rates lower. Wednesday’s Fed announcement and mixed economic data were roughly neutral for mortgage rates.

Much of the rise in interest rates we saw in late May and early June was due to concern about the enormous supply of debt the government needs to issue to pay for all the stimulus programs. The question was whether investors would require significantly higher yields to continue purchasing bonds. Strong demand from both domestic and foreign investors at this week’s Treasury auctions eased those concerns for now and helped mortgage rates to reverse some of their recent increases.

As expected, the Fed made no change in the fed funds rate. However, investor expectations varied widely for the Fed’s statement, but the statement revealed no significant shifts in policy. In particular, there was no change in the timing or the quantity of future MBS and Treasury purchases. In addition, the statement contained no discussion about exit strategies to eventually unwind Fed stimulus programs. Overall, the Fed simply held the course, and mortgage rates were nearly unchanged after the news.

In the housing sector, May Existing Home Sales rose 2.4%. It was the first time since September 2005 that Existing Home Sales increased for two months in a row. The inventory of unsold homes declined to a 9.6-month supply from a 10.1-month supply in April. A NAR survey revealed that 29% of sales were to first-time homebuyers, helped by the $8,000 tax credit, low mortgage rates, and favorable affordability levels.

This information is courtesy of one of my favorite lenders Bernie Bernfeld of Wachovia. He is a VA loan specialist, and he can assist you with any type loan. He is a dedicated professional that will even go to your closing with you! Now that is a high level of service!

Sincerely,

Betina Foreman, Realtor

If you are in the market for a new home and are not presently working with a Realtor, call me.

I would be happy to assist you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation

and I have a network of experts to make the process easy to navigate.

 I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate   1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746   512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.ZilkerParkHomes.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros.

Now skyscrapers are an everyday sight in Austin Texas, but it was not always so. Construction of Austin’s first Austin skyscraper began in early 1910. The building was built by E.M. Scarbourough at the southwest corner of Congress Avenue and 6th Street. The building had eight stories, which seems minuscule by today’s standards. This type of construction was so new, that they felt the need to have the Austin American Statesman write an article to explain how it could be so tall and not cave in.

The new Littlefield building claimed the title of tallest downtown building the very next year in 1911. The Littlefield building was constructed on the northeast corner of Congress and Sixth Street as a business and personal residence for Mr. Littlefield. The construction was truly custom as everything was made to order in the structure. It should be noted there was not a single stick of wood used in the buildings framework or walls, it was all steel. The building even had a sub cellar for storage and a rooftop garden! The building was considered cutting edge at the time it was built.

There were more tall buildings built between the 1930-1980’s but none of them were history making buildings. After the building boom and bust of the 1980’s the next serious round of skyscrapers started in the 1990’s and has not stopped yet.

The most controversial of those newer buildings was the Frost Bank Tower. Frost Bank’s new tower caused a lot of protest and conversation before they even began construction in November 2001. People said it would alter our skyline and be an eyesore. Personally I like the Frost Bank Tower and feel that it adds something special to our night skyline. All the glass and steel crystal points look impressive. It looks like a building from the set of a Superman movie. It was the very first high rise to start construction after the Sept 11th attack.  It was planned to be 352 feet tall, but it ended up being 315′9″ tall with 33 floors. It won the Emporis Award for best skyscraper of the year in 2004 and the Austin Chronicle Award for best Building in 2004. Many claim it appears to resemble an owl (the Rice University mascot and UT rival) from the corners, which may or may not annoy some UT alumni. My dad graduated from Rice, while I went to UofH and UT so I guess you could say I have mixed feelings.

There used to be an ordinance or building restriction to prevent anyone from building anything tall enough to obstruct an existing home owner’s view of the State Capital. Somehow in the drive to bring condos downtown that rule was cast aside in the name of progress. I was sorry to see it go and still mourn its passing. I used to enjoy sitting on the back deck and seeing the orange glow of the UT tower next to the Capital, but those days are long gone unless you live in one of the new high-rise condos.

There are more and more buildings reaching for the Austin skyline these days. Some of the newcomers to forever alter our skyline are: The Monarch, The Spring, The Austonian, The W, and the 360 Condos, just to name a few. The Frost Bank Building is now virtually dwarfed in comparison to the newest additions to downtown. See this rendering of downtown to see the radical changes in our skyline. I am ready for this condo construction to stop, personally I would like to be able to recognize my hometown next year. I am sure next year I can add to this blog with a few more buildings that will be even taller than these. So keep your eyes open!

If you are in the market for a home in Austin and are not presently working with a Realtor, please call me. I would be happy to assist you with the process of buying a house or condo. I specialize in Relocation and I have a network of experts to make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate 1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746   512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.ZilkerParkHomes.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros.

As a self proclaimed “Foodie”I am always on the lookout for interesting wine and food events in the Austin area. I love to cook and shop and I believe in helping others. This upcoming event is the best of both worlds. The Wine & Food Foundation of Texas has consistently produced great events to raise money for various charity’s. This years event is going to benefit the Miracle League, Nolan Ryan Foundation and the Wine & Food Foundation of Texas. This event will have a Silent Auction with auction items to include: jewelery, sports memorabilia and of course wine! There will also be amazing food from local restaurants like: Mirabelle, Cool River Cafe, Z-Tejas and the Salt Lick. Won’t you join me?

Wine Sponsor ~ Francis Ford Coppola Winery
Restaurant Participants ~ Cool River Café, Mirabelle Restaurant, Freda’s Seafood Grille, The Salt Lick, and Z Tejas, Quality Seafood, Fleming’s Steakhouse, McCormick & Schmick’s, Café Spoonz (HEB), Fantasy Cakes, Food Innovations, Tiff’s Treats, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and Nolan Ryan Beef.
When ~ Thursday, June 25th, 2009 – Doors open at 6:30pm
Where ~ United Heritage Center overlooking the Dell Diamond.
Format ~ Tickets are $35 per person for Foundation members and $45 per person for the general public.

To purchase Field of Dreams tickets, or to become a member, visit www.winefoodfoundation.org

If you are in the market for a home and are not presently working with a Realtor, call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation and I have a network of experts to make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate  1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746  512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.ZilkerParkHomes.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros

Growing up in Texas I have long been a fan of HEB Grocery stores. They provide quality products and a clean and well lite environment. Their produce is fresh and perfect, the meat is of a high quality. The associates are friendly and don’t place the gallon of milk on top of your bananas when they bag your purchases. Now I have another new reason to love my local HEB. They have made a commitment to solar energy by installing solar panels on the HEB store on Brodie Lane.

In the spirit of keeping it local they hired Meridian Solar, which is a local Austin company to help them step up their environmental commitment to energy savings and green living. Meridian Solar is installing the panels on this store as part of a test program, which will hopefully be carried out to all HEB Stores in the future. The installation process will take about a month due to the size of the project. With any luck they will make this a standard part of all  the new HEB’s construction. The cost for this installation will be about $195K. While it will not provide 100% of their energy needs, it will provide about 31,000 kilowatt hours of energy which should be a serious cost savings to HEB.

If you are in the market for a new home and are not presently working with a Realtor, call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation and I have a network of experts to make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate  1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746  512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.BetinaForeman.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros.

As a longtime Shady Hollow resident I have always been concerned about our water quality. According to the report our water quality meets or exceeds all Federal (EPA) drinking Water Requirements. There are public participation Opportunities the first Tuesday of each month. The meetings are held at 6:30 pm at 3910 Capistrano Trail. If you need directions give them a call at 512-280-6622. See details below.

                                 Avg.  Low   Max  Limits    Unit of Measure         Source

Total Dissolved Solids   157  152   162   1000     Parts Per Million  Dissolved mineral constituents in H2O

Alkalinity                     63     61    65   N/A         PPM                  Natural soluble mineral salts

PH                             9.4    9.4   9.4   >7.00     units                 Measure of the corrosivity of water 

Sulfate                       26     25    27    300        PPM                  Naturally occurring & common byproduct

Water Hardness          101   99   102   N/A         PPM                  Naturally occurring Magnesium& Calcium

Chloride                     29     29    29    300        PPM                  Naturally occurring elements used in                                                                             water purification & byproducts of oil field activity

If you are in the market for a new home and are not presently working with a Realtor, call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation and I have a network of experts to make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate  1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100  Austin, Texas 78746

512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.BetinaForeman.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros.

Things to know before you buy a property with a Septic System

Some people find it odd in this day and age to have homes that rely on septic systemsfor wastewater removal. However a septic system is really the only way to be fully responsible for your own waste-water and water usage. Instead of paying someone else (the water utility) to remove the waste-water and process and store it, you are doing it all yourself. It sounds like a big job, but its really not. If you can remember a few key points it is very easy.

1. The average life of a septic system is 25-35 years. However I have seen a 40 year old system that was still in great working order. The key is proper management & maintenance!

2. Instead of putting food waste in the garbage disposal put the meat scraps in the trash and the vegetables in the composter.

3. Always use biodegradable soaps and shampoo.

4. Use toilet paper that easily bio-degrades. Avoid Charmin, it has too many oils and won’t break down.

5. Don’t flush feminine products down the toilet as these items won’t break down, but they will kill your septic.

6. Get your tank pumped out every 3-5 years. It costs about $200 for your average tank.

7. If possible divert your washing machine and dishwasher waste water (gray-water) into a sunny spot in your yard. Your gray-water should never leave your property. This will also save money on watering your lawn!

8. Maintain the grass on your disposal field. Keep it healthy and mow it regularly. Do not plant any trees within the drain field, as the roots will grow into the drain lines and cause problems. This may force you to replace the drain field if it becomes damaged by tree roots.

9.Do not place any impervious cover (driveways, portable buildings, sidewalks, or decks) over your drain field.

10. Keep any heavy livestock or vehicles off the drain field area. They may cause the pipes to be crushed and fail. This may not be an issue for some people, but in Texas some people do have livestock.

11. Never dispose of cooking grease or oil into your sink, this will harm your septic. Always collect this in a can or jar and dispose of with your garbage.

12. Do not install a lawn sprinkler system over a drain field. This will cause the field to become saturated and reduce the capacity of the field.

13. Before building any home additions, you must contact the county to ensure your systems capacity is sufficient to handle the increased load.

14. Install low flow toilets and shower-heads in all bathrooms. Conserve water whenever possible. Don’t leave the faucet running while you brush your teeth. Don’t run the faucet to get the water good and cold for a drink. When you turn on hot water use a bucket or pot to collect the warming water and use it for watering house plants or pets. Bathe the dog in the yard instead of the bathtub.

15. Keep clear detailed records of the system maintenance and a map of the location of the tank and drain fields, and any service contracts for the system. This information is critical to have when listing your house for sale.

16. BEFORE you buy a home with a septic system, ALWAYS have it inspectedby a reputable inspector. They will need to pump it to perform the inspection. The seller usually will pay to pump it and the buyer usually pays for the inspection. The cost for this is usually about $200-300 but it can save you from a costly repair if the home is purchased and needs a new septic. A new septic system can cost $15-30K.

If you are in the market for a new or resale home & are not working with a Realtor, please call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize in Relocation and I have a network of experts to make the process easy to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Real Estate 1801 S. Mopac, Suite 100   Austin, Texas 78746    512-771-6318  BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com   www.BetinaForeman.com

Member: Austin Board of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors, ActiveRain, Trulia-Top Voices, and Zillow-Neighborhood Pros

Lakeway is getting a new hospital!!

They just announced that the “Lakeway Regional Medical Center” will be built by a private development company called… what else  the “Lakeway Regional Medical Center Development, LLC”. This will be a 54 acre project that is estimated to cost $250 million, and it will be 70-80% physician owned. The official ground-breaking was last month. The estimated completion of the project is 2011.

The development will also have retail stores, restaurants, day care facility, hotel, rehabilitation hospital and various medical offices. They plan to have 25 emergency beds, and 70-80 licensed beds. Their goal is to be a full service hospital, not just an out-patient facility. Lakeway Regional Medical Center will offer cardiac care, cancer treatment, well woman and infant care, critical care, as well as variety of out-patient services. The Lakeway city officials have been encouraging a development of this type for years. Presently this part of central Texas including: Lakeway, Bee Cave, Lake Pointe, The Uplands, Spanish Oaks and Hudson Bend is under-served in the medical department. This new medical facility will be a giant step forward for these communities. No longer will Lake Travis area residents be forced to drive 30-45 minutes into Austin for medical care.

If you are in the market for a new or resale home and are not presently working with a Realtor, please call me. I would be happy to help you through the process of buying a home. I specialize as a Buyers Agent and I have a network of experts to make the process simple to navigate. I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor  -  Keller Williams  -  512-771-6318  

 BetinaForemanRealtor@yahoo.com   Betina@KW.com    www.BetinaForeman.com

Recently I wrote a blog about the new Austin Energy Audits. This audit must be performed on all “re-sale” homes in Austin. The only exempt homes are those built in the last ten years, or homes that have participated in the Austin Energy Rebate Program for energy efficiency, and homes that are changing ownership due to death or divorce. See link for first blog:http://activerain.com/blogsview/1073781/looking-for-an-auditor-qualified-to-perform-you-city-of-austin-energy-audit-

Now that it has been two weeks since this new ordinance has gone into effect, you may ask what are the results? Austin Energy just released the first round of statistics for the Energy Audit. See below for details.

400 audits completed in Austin to date

 If you have real estate questions or want to buy or sell a home, please give me a call.

I look forward to the opportunity to earn your business.

Betina Foreman, Realtor

Keller Williams Realty

1801 S. MOPAC, Suite 100, Austin, TX 78746   512-771-6318   www.BetinaForeman.com