About Austin's Mueller

HEB is coming to Mueller - it's set to headline at the market district at 51st and Berkman sometime in 2013. It's been eagerly awaited by residents since the inception of the development.

The fundamentals of real estate say that buying in the way of development is good for appreciation. So if you bought a small home next to the site of a multi-billion dollar retail park like the Domain, you might expect that more people would like your home over time as the number of jobs and amenities increased. So too you might expect a HEB to be a good amenity for a neighborhood - especially if it was a super energy efficient LEED certified bells and whistles store like that planned for Mueller Austin.

Of course the new store is developing as the Dell Childrens' Hospital is growing another wing, and other medical office buildings are being built. so progress is coming to Mueller in truck-fulls. Which is one reason that there are 221 new homes under construction in 2012, along with the projected ground breaking of the Austin Children's Museum in Spring 2012.

So what does this mean for house prices at Mueller? Read more at my sister blog. You might be surprised to see my opinion. 512 215 4785

The Mueller community is notable amongst Austin TX neighborhoods as it is vocal and active. Nothing unusual in that perhaps - look at Hyde Park - but people have only been living at Mueller for around 4 years. There are several different forums (ok fora for the pedantic) in which Muellerites communicate, and here is a quick run down of how to use each one.

MuellerAustinOnline.com is Mueller Austin's members only website sponsored by the Property Owners' Association - and is reserved exclusively for residents of the neighborhood. It has information on forms to use for property modifications, who to contact in case of emergency, and the events that are sponsored by the master developer are featured in the calendar. The POA is still run by the developer, and isn't planned to be handed over for some years yet - until a majority of homes are occupied.

MuellerCommunity.com is the grass roots website set up by Kevin - a young man who had planned on moving here but hasn't. Yet. He has a free solution for neighborhoods to use to facilitate communication between neighbors and local government. The URL redirects to a CitiCite site, and you can join one or more neighborhoods there, including ours.

MuellerAustin.com is the developer website which has had substantial upgrades in 2011. It has a list of homes for sale, information about commercial and residential real estate and now has a journal which keeps you up to date with events and interesting meetings coming up. Of course, it is a little slower moving than a blog perhaps (the whole site) but it is really a good starting point to get official news releases. Head over to homesAtMueller.com if you want the rumors and opinion!

Garreth Wilcock is a Realtor who specializes in Real Estate in Mueller Austin TX, and loves being part of the community there.

While writing about the Affordability Gap for homes at Mueller Austin Texas, I realized it would be a good idea to recap on how much home a buyer can afford and relate this to the Austin Median Family Income (MFI).

MFI is measured by metropolitan area by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. In Austin in 2011, the median family income for a family of four is $74,875.

To make some assumptions about monthly debt ($500), annual property taxes of $7000 and an interest rates at around 4.125%. This is how much house you could afford -$260,000 - $287,000 (depending on which ratios you use)

This results in a monthly payment of $1700 - $1900 (including principle interest taxes and insurance)

There are lots of different mortgage calculators out there - I used one at CNN money none of them are perfect, as most don't factor in the Austin challenge - property taxes of 2.3%. The interesting thing to me is the difference that an interest rate of 6% makes. With everything else being equal, the same income could support $217,000 to $239,000.

For someone earning double the median family income, say $150,000 with other debts of $1000 a month, a $50,000 down payment and 4.125% interest rate, a home price of $583,000 to $634,000 is possible.

At Mueller market rate homes span the $290k- 900k range, with an affordable program with homes below $175k. There's a distinct gap for the family earning the median family income.

Ok, so all of Mueller is close to Downtown and the University of Texas, but it took me this long to get a good video showing where the new homes are, where current building is underway on condos and where the commercial area is.



Mueller will have so many new homes, with a large proportion being in the income qualified affordable program and around 30 new market rate yard homes. One of the more interesting new home types is the Shop Home - a vertically distributed live-work space which will be around the main tenants in the impending though organically growing Town Center.

Also there will be a 75000sqft HEB opening in 2013, so things are moving and shaking in what used to be an old airport - 711 acres lying dormant in a prominent position close to the heard of Austin. Here's Catellus dude Greg Weaver talking about the plans for the greenest grocery store you can imagine.



Then finally, the progress at the Wildflower Terrace has been incredible this year. It's been less than 12 months since the ground breaking (below)



And now applications are open to allow the senior affordable homes to be moved into this year - 2011!



Garreth Wilcock helps people understand Mueller homes for sale 512 215 4785

4108 Threadgill, Austin TX 78723 is hitting the market tomorrow. It's a David Weekley Antone plan - the same as the current model on Zach Scott St.

What people like about the Antone plan:

It's large for the lot size - of the Meritage and David Weekley plans which sit on this sized lot it is one of the largest - 2214sqft per TCAD. You have to remember that all of Mueller is exempt from the McMansion Ordnance which means we have large homes close together here - they're all controlled by a master plan agreed between the developer, community and City though so don't fret about it being an unwieldy neighborhood.

It has master down - this is a big one for many people who don't like the idea of stairs being a necessity for every day life.

Green - all homes at Mueller Austin are built to a minimum 3 star in the Austin Energy Green Building program, which means that utility bills are low and the home will automatically qualify for the rather attractive solar panel incentives that are available though Austin Energy right now - (they recently upped the rebate to $3 / Watt) . The orientation of the home may affect the viability of panels, though most homes in the neighborhood have a good South or West roof exposure. That was part of the master plan! My solar installer even noted that my roof had a pefect pitch for South facing PV, so I was pretty pleased.

Two living spaces plus a study - the upstairs has two bedrooms and a flex space (this the builder optionally converts into a fourth bedroom in other builds) and the open living - dining kitchen have plenty of light. There's also a study option and a dining room at the front of the home, so there are lots of different configurations possible.

Covered patio and breezeway to the double garage. It's a nice place to enjoy the breeze!

This particular home at 4108 Threadgill is also on a corner lot which means it has a little extra yard, and this is key in our neighborhood.

The home will be listed by Mary Moran of Moreland Properties. Let me know if you want to see this home or any other in Mueller Austin.

Update: The home has been on the market since yesterday now - when I went to take a look. It's got some great upgrades - from the kitchen cabinets to the cool tile in the bathroom. Here's a link to the MLS listing.

Garreth Wilcock is Mueller's #1 Realtor. 512 215 4785