Owning a Historic Home in Old Town - Georgetown, Texas In the heart of Georgetown, Texas the area known as Old Town is a full of a wonderful and unique collection of homes.  There are more than 180 Nationally Registered Historic Homes in this area.   As ahome inspector it is always a treat when called upon to perform a home inspection for one of these delightful properties.  Old Town is runs roughly from South Austin Ave on the west to Hutto road to the east.  Its northern border is 2nd street and it runs all the way south to 18th Street.  In this area a wide variety of homes can be found ranging from the grandeur of massive Victorian mansions to a small shotgun home located at 81 West Street.  Since 1977 the Georgetown Heritage Society has been working "toward its mission to assist in ... 03/29/2010

Woodland Park Georgetown Texas is a custom home development of homes on 1+ Acre estate size lots.  Located West of Georgetown Texas on Williams Drive, Woodland Park is just past the large Sun City Georgetown development and it's 3 championship golf courses.   Woodland Park was developed by Jimmie Jacobs Homes, and features 100% masonry homes, in an enclave of 1 acre or larger wooded lots.  Deed restrictions are in place to protect property values.  The community has very reasonable maintenance fees since there is no expensive community pool or public buildings to maintain, instead there are greenbelts and low water usage landscaping.  There is an unmanned gatehouse at the entrance to give the development an enclave feel.       Homes in Woodland Park Georgetown range insize from 2300 to ... 03/26/2010

One of the newer Georgetown Texas Neighborhoods, Emerald Springs was developed from 1999 to 2007.  This close in west neighborhood is located in the Williams Drive corridor off Northwest Blvd. The lots are wooded with good tree cover and most have both Oaks and Juniper(or as we call em here in Central Texas, Cedars)  The land is fairly flat and the lots are large enough for backyard playscapes and pools.  Like many newer Georgetown Neighborhoods, Emerald Springs is deed restricted to keep property values rising.  Sidewalks, sprinkler systems, fully sodded and landscaped yards are all requirements.  RV, Boats, and nuisance out buildings are prohibited. Emerald Springs is fortunate to have it's own park located in the middle of the neighborhood.  The Emerald Springs Park has a baseball di... 03/26/2010

Spring Brings Lots of New Homes to Pleasant Valley in Georgetown, Texas Pleasant Valley is located on the southern edge of Georgetown, Texas.  It is situated along FM1460 just north of Inner Loop Road and the Rabbit Hollow Subdivision.  For many years this area sat as unused farmland.  But, a few years ago a developer and his partners purchased the property and tied it into the original phase of the Pleasant Valley neighborhood.  Their goal....great new homes on spacious lots! About the time that the developer was placing the utilities and other infrastructure necessary for new home construction my wife and I were in the process of selling our condominium in Austin, Texas.  You see, we own property in Jarrell, Texas and our plan was to rent in Georgetown, Texas for one year while we bui... 03/25/2010

Haven't been counted yet?  No, You're not alone.  Apperently, you are among the 93% of the residents of Central Texas that has not filled out and turned in their 2010 Census Forms.  What are you waiting for?  The Census Worker's to come knock on your door?  Well, that's what they will have to do if you don't return the form in the next week.  What a waste of time and money when you could just take 10 minutes and complete the form and drop it in the mail.  Don't want Federal Dollars to benefit your communitity?  Good, cause by not participating in the Census you're going to insure that your state, county, city and school district is going to loose out.  Sadly, Census Workers are reporting that only 7% of the estimated Central Texans have returned their forms.   That is going to result in... 03/24/2010

Does working with my existing bank make the loan process smoother? I've often had clients ask that same question over and over and my answer is always the same, No. Having worked with just about every single bank, I can tell you that if you think that you are going to get preferential treatment from your bank because you have an existing account or have had 1,2, 3 or more mortgages with them in the past, then you haven't read the news lately. With all of the recent bank mergers, acquisitions and transfers, we are really left with only a handful of large banks. Wells Fargo recently acquired Wachovia, Chase recently acquired Washington Mutual, and BofA recently absorbed Countrywide Home Loans, who at one point was the largest mortgage lender in the country. With all of the issues that com... 03/20/2010

The Austin Area Multi Listing Service and the Georgetown Texas MLS search tools have sure come a long way.  Look what I found searching my desk for a lost file.  A section of the Austin MLS Georgetown Listings dating from November 10, 1994!     I would love to hand this old listing book to an agent today who's used to immediate updates, multiple color pictures and links to tax information, past sales, comparable listings and more.  Think your listing photo's look bad,, check these grainy photo's out!  Heck  you can hardly read the print it's so bad. Updated information? This was the newest issue, you would have to wait 2 weeks to get new information.  Our market was pretty busy back then, probably a third of the listings had already been under contract.....oh for the good old days! Comp... 03/17/2010

Word around the media is that the new census will say we are now 50,000 strong in Georgetown, TX!  Hard to believe, since we were around 28,000 the last time the census was taken in 2000.  Only 30 short years ago, we were at 10,000.  We, of course, love to see the numbers increase for several reasons.  Not only are we in the perfect business for folks looking to move to our great city, but 50,000 can be a magical number when it comes to receiving funding and being able to make some of our own decisions regarding little things like traffic signals.  We can synchronize our own, thanks anyway, TXDOT ! We encourage everyone to be watching for their census survey forms, which we understand will be mailed out next week.  In 2000, our response rate as a city was 73% - not real bad but could b... 03/16/2010

The City of Georgetown's Public Library is an outstanding resource for Central Texas and a centerpiece of Georgetown's commitment to provide a quality lifestyle to it's citizens.  The new library building was dedicated in January 2007 and contains over 49,500 sq ft. It is located 2 blocks off Georgetown's historic downtown square at 408 E 8th Street.  The multi function building has wide open spaces, a two story atrium and serves as a community center as well as a library.     One of the cool features is the Georgetown Library's serving as a showcase for local art and sculpture.  Currently on display in the courtyard is a large piece titled 'The Distortionist'.   In fact, thoughout the courtyard and interior spaces you will find other sculptures and works of art displayed to be enjoyed ... 03/04/2010

National news continues to be filled with doom and gloom regarding the direction of the economy, but what do you expect from the media? Although it hasn't been mentioned on the flat-screen hanging in my living room, a bright spot is the Central Texas real estate market. Comparing the last week of February 2010 to the same period a year ago, the Austin market has seen: Active Listings are DOWN 2.04% New Listings are UP 1.98% Pending Listings are UP 32.65% Residential Sold Units are UP 64.66% Avg Sold Prices DECREASED 7.78% ($232,426 from $252,043) I'm not crazy enough to think that all of the trouble is behind us, but this is a true sign of vitality for the local economy. Reduced inventory, increased sales activity, and the resetting of prices are the fundamentals of economic stabilizat... 03/04/2010

At the conclusion of the Pop Warner Football season last fall, former NFL quarterback and Virginia Tech Hokie, Will Furrer, gave an inspirational speech to our Little Scholars award winners. His story was intertwined with relevant scriptural references and unfolded much like a parable from the New Testament, which could be interpreted to apply to an unlimited audience. Will shared the long string of challenges and successes he faced on his way to becoming an NFL quarterback. He achieve ultimate success and fulfillment when implementing the strategy of: Hard Work Perseverence Courage Will To Win Preparation The role you play in life doesn't matter - NFL quarterback, Realtor, fireman, attorney, or (fill-in-the-blank). When these tenants are applied to what we do and how we do it - SUCCESS... 03/02/2010

The City of Georgetown's Park Trail system has got to be one of the best advantages of living in Georgetown.  Designated a National Recreation Trail, it features almost 9 miles of scenic trails to enjoy. From San Gabriel Park it is possible to walk, hike, bike, stroll, jog, or just amble along the beautiful trails that mostly follow the San Gabriel river connecting untimately with the Corps of Engineer Lake Georgetown Overlook Park, and the Good Water Trail that circles Lake Georgetown.         A large portion of the trails are paved and are handicapped accessible.  They are lighted and patrolled by volunteers.  There is also water, benches and emergency stations along the trail system for your convenience.  The trails cross the San Gabriel River several times and offer good views of th... 03/01/2010

Briarwood Subdivision in Georgetown Texas is a great new home subdivison located close in off Williams Drive and an easy commute to Austin.  Featuring homes starting from $170,000 to 250,000 this restrictricted neighborhood features 70' wide wooded lots, neighborhood park, walking distance to Frost Elementary and Benold Middle School.      Homes are 100% masonry, include landscaping and are all architecturally unique.  No volume builders replicating the same plan over and over.  Buyers appreciate the attention to detail and the high quality construction.  Currently there are 4 new homes for sale     2 are complete and ready to occupy and 2 are under construction.  For information about these homes and other New Homes in Georgetown, or to search for new homes in Georgetown Tx, visit my w... 02/28/2010

Want to live in a countryside setting but want to remain close in?  Then take a look at Oakcrest Estates in Georgetown Texas.   This close in neighborhood is bordered by the San Gabriel River, DB Wood Rd, and the Georgetown Country Club.  As you follow Country Club drive     you notice the split rail fences, and the scenery gets rural, yet you are only a couple of minutes from Wolf Ranch and the Rivery shopping centers.  Cross the bridge and enjoy the serenity of this quiet enclave.   Most of the homes were built in the late 1970's through 1990, and are ranch style ranging in size from 1500 to 3500 sq ft.   The lots are large most from 1/2 acre to 1 acre.  Some areas are heavily  treed with Oaks being predominate.     And where you have a country setting, lots of tree cover you are goin... 02/27/2010

Golf in Georgetown Texas has always been a feature since 1927 when the Georgetown Country Club was established as a 9 hole course along the San Gabriel River.         Meandering back and forth through the river valley the course has always featured challenging water hazards and beautiful bluff scenery.      Golfing in Central Texas often provides views of he limestone rock outcroppings that  are a great backdrop to the 18 hole  course along the San Gabriel River in Georgetown.       The clubhouse at the Georgetown Country Club has recently undergone remodeling and features dining, a pro shop, banquet facilities and both swimming and tennis.    Currently, the initiation fee $500 is being waived if you apply online! Do youself a favor and check out the course and the facilities.  If you w... 02/27/2010

Earlier today I was reading the Community Impact newspaper and came across an interesting poll. The question was - "Do you feel safe in your city?" A whopping 96% of Georgetown, Texas respondents answered "Yes" in the poll.  Only 6% said "No" and no one chose the "No Opinion" option. We moved from Austin to Georgetown 3 years ago.  We couldn't be happier with the choice we made!  I would think that a community that feels 96% safe ranks very high comparatively.  That's also got to be a great selling point for realtors and their clients looking to move to Georgetown and the surrounding area. How safe do you feel in your community? Thanks for reading and have a great day, Andy Chaudoir - Professional Inspection Services - 512-632-3232 "Your Home Inspection Connection in Central Texas" - ww... 02/26/2010

I had the pleasure of grabbing lunch this week at the Georgetown VFW hall.  Every Wednesday they serve a burger with fixins, fries and tea for only $5.50.  It was, to say the least, good grub. I've driven past the Georgetown VFW hall at least a hundred times.  Everytime I drove by I would see their sign reminding me of their Wednesady ritual and say to myself, "I need to drop by".  Well I finally did drop by and I plan to add this to my weekly ritual when my schedule will allow it.  The VFW's motto is "honoring the dead by helping the living".  Each year members of the VFW donate more than 13 million volunteer hours as they mentor youth groups, help in community food kitchens, volunteer in blood drives and visit hospitalized veterans. Others members also help veterans file compensation ... 02/26/2010

It is said that one man's junk is another's treasure and no where is that statement more true than   Louis Miller's Mechanical Mart in Georgetown Texas. I've always been fascinated by tractors and farm implements and well anything mechanical and this spot in the middle of a the historic area of Georgetown has always fascinated me.  Mr Miller has been pulling these relics of our agricultural past out of fields and barns for years and assembled one of the finest collections in the country.... All in the shadow of Southwestern University and the historic Georgetown Tx historic square.     Everything from huge steam driven tractors and combines to 1950's Farmall tractors are scattered around the yard.  I like the flared fenders on this one.... racy don't you thing?  Notice the huge steam dr... 02/25/2010

During my junior year at Stetson University (89-90) I took a political science course where the professor, Dr. Anne Motley Hallum (how could I ever forget her), and I had a huge disagreement. She contended that it was unfair that some of us were able to go to school while others were not. My position was that we all had the opportunity to go to school; some, for whatever reason, chose not to. She declared that I was an elitist and I declared that she was a socialist. After a heated meeting with the Dean, we agreed to disagree. Unfortunately for me, she was the one with the red pen and our disagreement was reflected in my final grade. She is still confused and misled... The same holds true for real estate agents who choose to use traditional (antiquated) methods. Those who refuse to emb... 02/24/2010

I had a home inspection to do this morning in Georgetown, Texas.  Today was just like every other day this week, and last week and the week before.....you get the picture.  But today I was in Uncharted Waters and I was forced to do something that I've never done before.  As a home inspector I'm asked to assess the condition of many properties and their components on a daily basis.  I take pride in making sure that nothing gets missed during these home inspections.  After all, I normally only get one chance and seldom do I ever get to go back if I miss or forget something. Often I have to work my way into very tight spaces.  Most often those tight spaces are under a home or deep in an attic.  And, no matter how small the openings or how difficult maneuvering becomes I always do my best t... 02/23/2010