All Blog Entries by Crystal Olenbush

Found 156 blog entries published by Crystal Olenbush.

With its laid-back personality, rich culture and trendy lifestyle, Austin presents many reasons to call it home. In fact, the city has so much to offer that it has been awarded numerous titles and has made it to the top of many lists ranking quality of life and the many different variables that make a place a good place to live. To that end, here is a look at the top 5 reasons why Austin is a great place to live.

Reason #1: Employment Opportunities

Historically, Austin has enjoyed an unemployment rate that is significantly lower than national rates and even the rest of the state. In 2010, the Capital City was ranked first in terms of job growth and wages have grown faster in Austin than in any other part of the state. In fact, the city boasted the

37,722 Views, 1 Comment

When selling your home, it is important to familiarize yourself with the Energy Conservation Audit and Disclosure (ECAD) ordinance. Put into effect by the City of Austin on June 1, 2009, the ordinance requires home sellers to obtain an ECAD audit and to disclose the results of the audit to potential buyers if certain conditions apply.

In accordance with the ECAD ordinance, you must provide audit results to potential buyers if your home is ten years old or older, if it is within Austin City Limits and if it is serviced by Austin Energy. If your home meets all of these conditions, you are required to provide the information to potential buyers no more than three days before the end of the option period. If there is no option period in the sales contract,

23,254 Views, 0 Comments

While the employment opportunities available within the energy industry in Texas have garnered a great deal of attention, a recent report has found that technology jobs are also growing at a surprisingly fast rate in Texas.

The news about the growth in technology jobs in Texas became apparent after Dice.com, which is a technology job search website, created a list of those states with the fastest-growing percentage of jobs within the technology sector. The final list was compiled after looking at the percentage growth within the technology field over the first half of 2013.

Texas, which has seen its technology jobs increase by 3.2 percent over the first half of 2013, was ranked fourth on the list of states with the fastest-growing number of

19,883 Views, 0 Comments

The Austin Board of Realtors (ABOR) has announced plans to construct a brand new headquarters. The building, which is tentatively planned to measure somewhere between 30,000 and 33,000 square feet, will be located in Northwest Austin in an area overlooking the Great Hills neighborhood.

Cathy Coneway, who is the Chairman of the Austin Board of Realtors, estimates the construction cost of the new building will be between $11 million and $13 million. Coneway has not disclosed the sales price of the 5.2 acres of land upon which the building will be built. Although ABOR has been purchasing several parcels of hillside land over the past several months in preparation for the new building, it did not notify its members about the pending move until after the

27,820 Views, 0 Comments

Starting in March 2014, British Airways will begin offering direct flights from Austin to London. Not only will this provide Austin residents with a convenient way to visit Europe, but the new route will also have a significant economic impact on the Capital City. This partially due to the fact that the new flight route will make it easier for Austin companies to expand to Europe.

The new Austin to London route will become the first transatlantic flight available from Austin. During the first year alone, the change is expected to add $70 million to the city's economy.

The new flight plan is tied into the proposed expansion to the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, which is expected to add six or seven additional gates to the airport. According

16,916 Views, 0 Comments

According to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS®, the Austin housing market experienced its highest-performing month to date in terms of home sales.

July 2013 Statistics
3,135 – Single-family homes sold, 35 percent more than July 2012.
$228,250 – Median price for single-family homes, eight percent more than July 2012.
41 – Average number of days single-family homes spent on the market, 23 days fewer than July 2012.
3,523 – New single-family home listings on the market, 22 percent more than July 2012.
6,104 – Active single-family home listings on the market, 20 percent fewer than July 2012.
2,773 – Pending sales for single-family homes, 20 percent more than July 2012.
2.8 – Months of inventory* of

16,730 Views, 0 Comments


According to a report released by Metrostudy, Austin home sales continue to rise. With mortgage rates remaining low, the study shows a supportive climate for continual improvement in the Austin housing market.

Eldon Rude, who is the director of Metrostudy’s Austin market, indicated that prospective buyers should expect home prices to continue to rise in the Austin area. At the same time, the city is expected to continue to improve in the areas of housing starts, employment and the Housing Price Index, which is a measurement of residential home prices.

From November 2011 to November 2012, Austin saw a significant increase in new jobs, with approximately 35,000 jobs added to the city. In its study of 40 housing markets throughout the United States, the

17,722 Views, 0 Comments

Just 15 years ago, there wasn’t much to be found on Highway 71, which cuts right through the middle of the City of Bee Cave. With a population of just 600 in the year 2000, Bee Cave didn’t have much need for more than the few restaurants and services that the highway had to offer. Today, the population of Bee Cave has increased to nearly 4,000 and Hwy. 71 has become one of the Hill Country’s primary corridors.

With the growing number of businesses and services developing on Hwy. 71, both residents and business owners have benefited. Residents have a number of businesses to choose from, while business owners see high traffic counts as people move through the area. With plans to continue building homes in the Bee Cave area, business owners are likely to

5,085 Views, 0 Comments


Forbes has named Austin the fastest growing city in the country. After analyzing 100 of the largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas for its list of “America’s 20 Fastest Growing Cities,” Forbes placed Austin at the top of the list for the third year in a row.

In creating its list, Forbes used data from the U.S. Census Bureau and other resources to examine six metrics. These included 2012 population growth, 2013 estimated population growth, job growth, unemployment, Gross Metro Product and the median salary of college-educated workers living in the area. According to Forbes, Austin’s low unemployment, healthy job market and business-friendly regulations all contributed to its number one spot on the list.

In general, Texas has enjoyed a significant

4,213 Views, 0 Comments

While West Lake Hills and Rollingwood have been engaged in some major projects, the work has been well organized and developed with the help of mayors and city councils who volunteer their time to the two small cities.

Among the projects that have been underway in 2013 include replacement of the outdated water lines and the addition of a continuous center turn lane on Bee Caves Road. The West Lake Hills City Council is also working on installing a camera system to assist with wildfire prevention. The camera system will likely be located on a radio communications tower at the top of Mount Larsen. Meanwhile, the Rollingwood City Council is also working on a five-year agreement for single-stream recycling and waste disposal.

3,009 Views, 0 Comments