Much like the successful Cash for Clunkers campaign that spurred automotive sales, the $8000 federal tax credit has pulled buyers off the fence and given them an incentive to purchase a home. This is good news not only for buyers, but for sellers. Typically after the summer months, you see a sharp decline in home sales and listings, but this year may be a bit different. I've spoken to many buyers who still have several months left on their apartment leases that are willing to pay to get out of their lease and into a home. An example of this would be that if somebody pays $1000 per month in rent and still has 2  or 3 months left on their lease and they qualify for the full $8000 tax incentive, it would make fiscal sense to take the plunge and buy a home. I predict that as November 30th s... 08/31/2009

As a Senior Real Estate Specialist, I try very hard to keep up with who and what is going on in Sun City, Georgetown, Tx.  That statement in itself is exhausting because to keep up with this Fun Filled Action packed community is next to impossible. The residents out there are swamped with things to do. Anyway, getting to the point...I saw that they are having Dive-In Night on Thursday, Aug. 27th.  Why do I care?  Here is the great part.  You bring your bathing suit, beverage, picnic and accessories, you walk the red-carpet to the outdoor pool (which is huge by the way) and you watch a movie on a big screen.  Isn't that awesome?  You keep cool, you enjoy other people and you watch a movie as if you were at a Drive-In. NOW, heres the funny part (drum roll please), the movie is JAWS. I don... 08/25/2009

Entrepreneur magazine's August issue ranks Austin the tenth-best start-up city in America. The magazine's look at new business-friendly cities addresses issues such as government incentives, population growth, affordability of commercial rents, and openness to new ideas. Entrepreneur calls Austin the "cross-pollinator" among the top 10 cities. The magazine cites the multiple "scenes" that shape Austin, from music to tech, and how they feed off of one another. "Theoretically, people here are competing, but the opposite is happening," Bijoy Goswami, founder of Bootstrap Austin told Entrepreneur. "Part of that Texas ethos has percolated into the entrepreneur scene: People in Austin just treat each other well." The magazine also highlighted Sweet Leaf Tea Co-founder Clayton Christopher as a... 08/23/2009

Over the past year or so, I have been helping to start a new church in Georgetown, Christ Presbyterian Church (PCA).  I am pleased to announce that we will be having our first Sunday morning service on September 6th (Labor Day weekend).  Our first "official" service will be held on October 11th, 2009, so that is our grand opening, as it were. Our group continues to grow steadily - we are currently averaging 52 people attending our weekly services over the past 12 weeks.  This figure does include kids, so I think we might be closer to 35 adults (just guessing).  We are a laid-back and friendly crowd, and we would love to have you join us sometime. Our pastor Whit Anderson recently signed an agreement with the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce to use their new building each Sunday morning.  ... 08/22/2009

More good news for the Austin area. Residential foreclosures for the Aug. 4 auction are at a five-month low in Central Texas, reflecting a trend in other parts of Texas, according to data from Foreclosure Listing Service Inc. "The tide may have changed," said George Roddy Sr., president of Foreclosure Listing Service, who said the figures offer hope that foreclosures postings may have reached a peak. In Travis, Williamson, Hays and Bastrop counties, 1,072 properties were posted for the August auction, down 27 percent from 1,464 in July. My real estate website, http://www.RomeoM.com will help you start your research of the Austin Real Estate market and to better understand the home buying process by providing you free buyers and sellers reports. With my site, you can locate answers to po... 08/11/2009

     After moving past Columbus, Ohio, to become the 15th-largest city in the nation, Austin continues to grow despite the economic downturn. Austin city demographer Ryan Robinson expects Travis County to add more than 30,000 people this year, including births. New residents keep the local economy going by renting apartments, buying homes and cars and starting new businesses. Of the country's largest metropolitan regions, Austin-Round Rock boasts the fourth-largest rate of self-employment, according to Brian Kelsey, director of community and economic development for the Capital Area Council of Governments. Twenty-two percent of the area's workforce meets that qualification, serving as either an asset or a liability, depending on the state of the economy.        Just over 2,100 single-fa... 08/04/2009

Early last year, I worked with some clients who needed to sell their home and purchase a new one closer to their business.  I am thankful that I met them, since they are the owners of Laurie's Too Tearoom, which is arguably the best dessert destination in the county. Laurie was apparently the previous owner, and when the current owners, Rodger and Cherry, bought the restaurant, they decided to leave the name alone.  Why mess with a good thing, right?  They closed the original Laurie's, and focused on this location, which is about 1/2 a block north of the town square in Georgetown, on Main Street.  The physical address is 612 Main Street. Whenever I eat at Laurie's, it reminds me of my grandfather's cooking.  I'm sure that you have heard this before in other restaurant reviews.  In this ... 08/01/2009

Learn more about Georgetown Texas real estate here is the video link for this home in Georgetown Texas 08/01/2009

Today, I met my good friend and fellow agent Alan Kirkpatrick for lunch.  It wasn't hard for me to decide where to get together.  My first choice was Down the Alley Bistro on the square in Georgetown. Located at the corner of 8th Street and Austin Avenue (on the SE corner - facing the courthouse), the Bistro has become one of my new favorite places for a casual lunch in that area. The physical address is 118 W. 8th Street, #101. Alan had the tomato bisque soup, which he described as "terrific", and I had the Tuscan turkey panini, which has provolone cheese, fresh spinach, and a pesto which is delicious.  Let me preface my next statement by explaining that I have never considered myself to be a "foodie", nor do I usually rave about good meals.  Today's sandwich was likely the best one I ... 07/31/2009

Met Jason Crouch for lunch today in Georgetown Texas. Just about 10 minutes from our houses this historical town in Central Texas has a great old downtown with pleanty of good places to eat, shop and hang out. Today it was "Down the Alley Bistro" I had a great bowl of homade Tomato Bisque soup. Jason had a turkey club. I know he would tell you the very best part of it was that he got to see me again. Ha           Just accross the street from us is this great site the court house. 07/31/2009

The Georgetown Real Estate Market:   The average sold price in the Georgetown market is steady from a year ago to $229,193.  Sales of single-family homes for the first 6 months of 2009 are down 24% compared to this time last year.  There is 8.9 months of inventory, which is an oversupply and reflects a market favoring buyers.  The number of active listings is steady from last month at 620 listings. Mary Battaglia CRS     Austin, Texas area real estate 07/29/2009

There is still no shortage of press coverage on Austin these days. Recently, an article that caught my attention forecasted Austin as the 5th fastest growing metro area among 250 US cities. They are expecting the greater Austin area to grow 87% from 1.5 million residents to 2.7 million by the year 2025! Depending on your perspective, this kind of story could be interpreted as very good or very bad. There was also an interesting article written about Las Vegas home prices stabilizing that made reference to Trulia's top 10 cities where sellers were reducing their home prices in response to the market. Unfortunately, Austin was #9 on their list where Trulia claims 31% of homeowners reduced their prices an average of 8% in June. Fortunately, this trend has not yet shown up in the prices hom... 07/21/2009

Video for Home in Georgetown Texas Visit our website to learn more about Georgetown TX real estate 07/14/2009

Video for Home in Georgetown Texas Visit our website to learn more about Georgetown Texas real estate 07/14/2009

Video for Home in Georgetown Texas To search for homes in Gerogetown Texas, visit our website.  07/14/2009

Search for homes in Georgetown Texas Video link for home in Georgetown 07/01/2009

  video link for Sun City Georgetown 06/30/2009

Sun City Home in Georgetown Texas   Search for homes in Georgetown Texas 06/30/2009

I just came from Sun City, Georgetown, Tx and while I was only going to check on my listing. I ended up staying all afternoon.  I drove up in the driveway at 241 Crockett Loop (my listing) and out came the next door neighbors, who bought the home from me when they moved in from California.  Once the across the street neighbors saw us jibber jabbering, well out they came to visit as well.  This went on for several hours, people walking, jogging, biking all stopped to say HEY and what a great time I had meeting all you guys!! Next time I will bring the wine because we had so much FUN!  Now, I don't know if any of you do this, but I am going to start doing it more often.  It was better than an Open House for people just driving around. Invite the neighbors and let them do the selling for y... 06/19/2009

This month's newsletter was the easiest to write in quite some time. It seems as though the press just can't stop saying enough good things about Austin. Take a look at some of these amazing headlines from some very reputable news sources: Forbes: Austin is nation's best bargain city Austin only major city to gain jobs in last 12 months Austin forecasted as 5th fastest growing US city Austin best city for a 'fresh start' Austin home prices rise, continue to drop elsewhere Texas in top 5 states to lead nation out of recession Texas foreclosures decline 9% in April 2009 Austin unemployment rate drops in April 2009  First time home buyers also got another dose of good news as the Federal Government rolled out a new plan that allows the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit to be used at ... 06/11/2009