Like everything in Real Estate, it all depends on YOUR preference. I personally live East of 35 just off of Riverside Dr. and I absolutely love it! This area is BOOMING! I'm just minutes from downtown, and for $10's of thousands (if not $100's) less than the homes west of 35. Your options are endless.....there are plenty of new construction communities that have a lot to offer, there are some great deals on resale homes, and there is STILL land available to build your own home. Call me if you would like to learn more.

Not all of East Austin is good. You need to know where to buy and what is a good buy. I can think of 20 realtors that say "near hot area" and I wouldn't even begin to suggest that the property is going to be dramatically affected due to the distance from the actual impact area. In short, know the area or find a realtor that knows it better than most. Otherwise, buy east austin as it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that you buy an area that is $300 a ft when two blocks over its $600 a ft. BTW - Its a great time to buy in East Austin becuase you can get some super deals...

East Austin ... it depends. East of IH35 is an emerging market and that is exactly what some people want as far as appreciation and staying a step ahead of the market. How many times have we each asked ourselves "oh I wish I would have bought in that neighborhood in '95" after we see how a particular neighborhood has appreciated in value and appeal and becomes the new cool place to be. Some, if not many, sections of east Austin have high crime and poor performing schools, but not all. On the other hand, east Austin had the highest appreciation of any area in Austin '06 and I bet we see the same for '07. So the "it depends" may work for you or may not work for you. I always recommend for my clients considering east Austin to drive around the neighborhoods at various times of day and see if they are comfortable. I have sold a couple east Austin properties to UT asst professors and it was exactly what they were looking for ... urban, bike to UT, diverse, emerging market for a good appreciation outlook.

There are mixed feelings on east Austin. It increased in value pretty rapidly over the last few years. If you go south of the river in east Austin you can get really strong cashflow