As a resident of Travis Country in Southwest Austin I have a biased opinion of this fabulous neighborhood. When I meet with sellers to list their home, I always ask them, "What made you decide to buy this home in this neighborhood?" It's a great question to get people thinking of all the benefits and amenities that appealed to them so much when they bought. As the years go on a lot of people take the little things for granted. There are so many reasons that Travis Country appealed to me including the Barton Creek Greenbelt, nearby shopping, and the proximity to downtown Austin and Lake Travis.

As a Realtor I drive all over Austin. Travis Country sits just off the intersection of Mopac (the main N/S freeway through West Austin) and Southwest Parkway. The neighborhood is tucked away behind large oak trees and greenbelts. I've meet a lot of people from Austin and they never knew Travis Country existed. With only a couple lights to Mopac, I can leave my house and be downtown in under 10 minutes. I do a lot of business in the Lake Travis and Lakeway areas. It's only a 15 minute beautiful drive down Southwest Parkway to Hwy 71. Most of the land along SW Parkway is a natural preserve and will never be developed. AMD just built a new $50+ million plant on SW Parkway and William Cannon (opening January 2008) and fought nails and teeth with the environmentalists to get the deal approved. Getting to Dripping Springs (further Southwest) is quick as well! During rush hour Hwy 290 in Oak Hill is probably the biggest joke in the world ( a beautiful 3 lane highway that bottlenecks into 1 lane). From Travis Country, you drive down SW Pkwy to William Cannon to Hwy 290, avoiding the traffic jams. With the new toll roads up north, Round Rock, Hutto, and Pflugerville are just 25 minutes away. There's not any area of Austin that is not within half an hour drive from this wonderful location!

To the north, Travis Country is bordered by the Barton Creek Greenbelt, a local treasure with over 800 acres (see Barton Creek Map). Within a short walk you can enjoy miles and miles of hiking and biking trails. With dozens of entry points to the greenbelt, you will find many Travis Country residents walking their dogs through the greenbelt and biking through the neighborhood. You can walk north about a mile and you will find Twin Falls, a popular watering hole. If you are biking through Barton Creek, be careful! Many of the trails are very rugged and not recommended for beginners. Sc

Barton Creek is not the only greenbelt within Travis Country. The neighborhood is sprinkled with green areas throughout including Gaines Park, a hike and bike trail that encompasses a large tract of land bordered by Travis Country Circle, Republic of Texas Blvd, and Mission Oaks. Every April, Travis Country residents volenteer tehir time to beatify Gaines Park with landscaping and general cleanup. Driving through the streets you will see what looks to be multiple undeveloped lots that are actually dedicated greenbelts. Most of the homes in Travis Country sit on about a quarter of an acre giving you even more of a open, green feeling. First developed in the mid 1970's, huge Oak Trees fill the streets. Eat your heart out KB homes! The newer section (homes built after 1990) seem to have large trees as well. I didn't live in Travis Country at the time, but it looks as if the trees were saved from the developers.

Travis Country is located within a strong homeowners association. For a mere $35 per month residents enjoy 8 lighted tennis courts, 3 lighted basketball courts, 4 pools (2 wading), and endless well maintained common areas. Best of all, the Barton Creek Greenbelt is free of charge! Travis Country HOA does a great job maintaining the common areas with fresh landscaping and everyday I see the maintenance crews cleaning up around the subdivision.

If you are not from the area, you may need to visit the Travis Country HOA and Recreation Area (aka Blue Valley) to get maps of the many trails to get a sense of directions. After you leave the trails, it's hard to tell which way is which.

Travis Country Real Estate

Homes in Travis Country range from mid $250's for a 1,400 square foot home built in the 1970's to over $400k for a home in the newer section (built after 1990). Currently there are only 10 available homes in Travis Country from $290k - $427k. Not many people are looking to move out of Travis Country at this time and inventory is very low. High demand and low supply puts upward pressure on home prices. Since I moved to Travis Country in 2005, home prices have jumped 22%, or 11% annual appreciation. Not bad for the recession everyone is crying about! This has not been uncommon for properties located in close proximity to the Austin city center. Homes in Travis Country are seeing an average of 45 days on the market, about 10 days less than the Austin average. Travis Country homes that are priced well fly off the market with multiple offers. Homes that back to the greenbelt always fetch a premium price as do older homes that are nicely remodeled.

You can still find a deal of a older home built in the 70's in need of some updating. That's the route I took. Partly because I enjoy working around the house and partly because I didn't have $400k to throw down on a home at the time (probably more of the later).

If you have any questions about Travis Country and would like more information please give me a call. I'll be happy to show you around the neighborhood and homes for sale in the area.

More pictures of Travis Country on Localism