Austin TX Real Estate - Hill Country Austin Lakeway Homes for Sale

The Bee Cave Public Library at the Hill Country Galleria is holding their awards ceremony and concert with Joe McDermott on Saturday, July 31, 2010 at 1pm.  I'm thinking we're going to have to not do a nap that day in order to make it.

What awards? The Summer reading awards!  All children in the area who read for at least 400 minutes thus far this summer, and actually turned in their reading logs, will all receive an award of a Reach for the Stars t-shirt and other prizes.

After awards are handed out, there is a concert at 2pm with Joe McDermott, a children's singer/song writer. I'm betting there are going to be a couple of hundred kids running around enjoying this time.

I hope to see you at the Bee Cave Hill Country Galleria!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.coma
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Bee Cave Public Library and Joe McDermott * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

RE/MAX Austin Skyline swept most of the Mid-Year Awards for the entire Central Texas area.

First Place in 1st Quarter for:
Listing Units
Sales Units
Sales Volume
Listing Volume
Commissions Paid

First Place in 2nd Quarter for:
Sales Units
Sales Volume
Listing Volume
Commissions Paid

It's great to be associated with such a great volume office with agents who actually work and not just hang their license.

If you're a buyer or a seller, know that working with me means you're also working with a great team of agents.

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.coma
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate - Austin TX Homes for Sale are Selling Strong * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Today was Cowboy/Cowgirl day at Primrose for Alyssa. The last couple of months, when you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up (besdies saying "taller") she says a "Cowgirl".  However, she doesn't have boots or a hat, so we improvised!

She's wearing her winter boots, a sun hat, an old bandana skirt I found in a draw from high school, and a bandana around her neck... I think we pulled it off! Below is also a picture of her with her teacher.

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.coma
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Cowgirl Dress- Up Day at Primrose Bee Cave * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Austin TX Weather is very inconsistent.  Last year, in the summer of 2009, we had 68 days over 100 degrees. It became the hottest summer on record, though the actual record for the number of 100+ degree days was 69 days.

As of today's date last year, we had already had 35 days over 100 degrees. Basically, we would have just made it past the half way point of misery for the summer!

However, what has this year been doing?? The summer of 2010 in Austin TX, thus far, has been fairly tame. We have had ZERO days at or above 100 degrees! Yes, that's a big goose egg of ZERO!!

Instead of it still being 100 degrees in the evenings, it's actually been fairly nice to sit outside on the patio or take a walk. It's very confusing how completely different this year is compared to what last year was. Lake Travis was at record lows last year, and this year it's currently standing about five feet above average. Huge difference!!

Have you noticed big differences between last year and this year in your neck of the woods?

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Austin TX Weather - Hasn't hit 100 degrees yet! * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

The Psychology of Real Estate - Old Dominion University just released some preliminary results of an interesting study they're conducting about the way people view homes for sale, from pictures to descriptions to the attractiveness of their agents.

Something obvious is that people are less likely to think a house looks nice when there is a pink living room, even though it's easily corrected with a can of paint. We've known that for years and preach to our sellers to neutralize as much as possible, but also point out to our buyers that paint is cheap...

The part I disagree about is descriptions.  I think I disagree because they aren't stipulating if the descriptions are for older homes or newer homes, but the study is making a blanket comment across all homes that if you put in the descriptions things like, "new paint, new carpet and/or roof work sold, on average, for slightly
less than those that did not."

I teach a class on the Psychology of Real Estate, and based on other reports I had seen in the past, my class discusses how these updates are very important to mention for homes that are older as buyers like to know they don't have to replace shag carpet or a 30 year old roof or wallpaper with paint.

The study says it effects the sales price because "If a seller says everything is new, a buyer might wonder why everything
needed to be replaced—and whether there are other defects lurking." This might be true in a newer home, but so NOT true in an older home. If these things weren't done in an older home, buyers would wonder what other maintenance items were never done, delayed, and/or overlooked.

Even though this study was based in Texas, they don't specifically say where in Texas, so I'm wondering if they just hit newer communities like the last 20 years or so, and ignored the sales from older communities. I don't see how they could make a blanket conclusion that buyers don't want to see information about updates done when all buyers talk about is how they want updates as they can't afford the work themselves...

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Psychology of Real Estate - Interesting Study Results * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Speechless Sunday - Flying through the air... * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Alta Vista - Lakeway Austin TX - Market Report showing some promising activity. Alta Vista is a little pocket of homes in a gate community off 620 in Lakeway TX.

This chart shows the activity through the second quarter, and notice the low days on market as well as the small differences in asking verse selling prices.

These are some home owners who know how to sell their homes! They're not only marketing right, but they're pricing right which in turn moves the inventory quicker.

In real estate, traditionally, you can sell higher in the summer selling months than you can in the colder months. What you'll also notice in the above graph is that the homes that are currently active on the market are sitting on the market longer. My theory? Look at their green bars... the bars are slightly higher than the solds as they're probably all thinking about the "tradition" of higher summer prices, and just that slight difference is making a sizable difference in the amount of selling time.

Looking below, you'll see that they're still mostly selling in under 90 days, and selling in a shorter period of time typically nets a higher price than a stale, overpriced listing...

If you're looking to buy or sell in the Alta Vista or Lakeway Austin TX market, please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions and let's schedule that appointment today!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Alta Vista - Lakeway Austin TX - Market Activity * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Have you ever had one of those phone calls where you're left totally and completely confused? Yesterday, I was heading to an appointment when my voicemail paged me. I checked the message and it was like someone was speaking another language to me.

The message said something to the effect of, "This is so and so with such and such title company, and I wanted to let you know we have your file and the closer will be blah blah and her assistant is yadda yadda..."

The message went on, but I kinda wasn't listening because I was so confused. Who was this person and why were my files passed on to someone else. Did my closer go on vacation and forget to tell me? Why didn't the assistant call or email me to let me know? Why didn't the marketing rep let me know?

I called the number and asked for So and So.  She starts talking gibberish again, to where she finally said, "Apparently I'm assuming you know things you don't..."  Bingo!

This title company recruited me hard a few months ago wanting my business and wanted to help grow my teaching part as well and even scheduled some classes for me. In return, since they were very conveniently located and customer service seemed great, I started turning in contracts for escrow.

THE ENTIRE OFFICE UP AND LEFT WITH NO NOTICE!!

How does an entire office leave one company and go to another? We're not talking one or two people. We're talking about six people all leaving at the same time, and leaving all our files in a lurch!  Plus, when I called the cell phone numbers I had, they were disconnected!! These are some people who don't want to be found!!

I have a closing on two properties in less than two weeks, and I hope the life-savers can get the job done! Good thing I didn't put all my eggs in one basket and have other title company relationships as well, but this is one of the largest title companies in the country!!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Do You Put All Your Eggs in One Basket? * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

New Construction Homes - Austin TX Home Builders - A couple of weeks ago, I posted a picture showing a mistake the builder made when doing the plumbing and pouring the slab. The picture of this new construction home shows the plumbing outside the edge of the concrete slab.

How do you think the builder dealt with this issue??  Take a look below...

You'll notice that they went right on with what they were doing and put the outside, protective water barrier up against this plumbing issue. You'll also notice that from the inside picture, the barrier has been damaged as the plumbing is not flush, and you can see light coming in from below. This is not good.

Now, more than likely, they'll just use some spray foam insulation to prevent bugs and critters as well as heat and cold from coming through, but the better option would be to actually correct the issue instead of dancing around it.

Many people have no idea what is behind their walls, and watching a new construction home being built definitely opens up those eyes!

If you are thinking about going through the New Construction Home Building Process in Austin TX, please don't hesitate to call me with any questions or concerns. Let's schedule your appointment today!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate - Austin TX Home Builders - New Construction Homes * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Lake Pointe - Austin Bee Cave TX - Homes for Sale statistics tell the story.  The below chart shows you the currently active properties on the left and the properties that have sold second quarter on the right. The ones that dip out of order in the middle are currently contract pending.

As you can see, there was a lot of activity in Lake Pointe Austin TX this second quarter of 2010. I'm sure the tax credit had some to do with that. But overall, I feel the pricing had a lot to do with it. Last year, Lake Pointe pricing was all over the board. As you can see from the above chart, there is still a wide range of prices, but they're in line with the community and the solds.

There are a few blue dots on the left of the current activity that shows you're always going to have seller who feel they need to overprice their homes so they'll sit there longer, but overall, according to the solds, the blue dots are averaging below 60 days on the market, which is awesome news for the neighborhood!

And according to the above chart, the home owners are getting on board with the activity as there are several new listings on the market.

If you're looking to buy or sell in Lake Pointe Austin TX, please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions and let's schedule an appointment today!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Lake Pointe - Bee Cave Austin TX - Market Report * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Today as been a roller coaster of emotions, and I'm sure the ride isn't over yet as the news sinks in... BabyHarris2 had its anatomy scan this morning weighing in at a whopping 10 oz.

The baby is healthy. The placenta is anterior meaning it's in front of the uterus and on top of the cervix... too much info? Basically, this means I have to go back in 10 weeks for another scan to see if the issue corrected itself or I'm in for a world of pain and complications as the baby gets bigger.

Here's BabyHarris2 waving at us... or scratching shoulder or head.

Here's BabyHarris2 yawning and being bored with it all...

It's a...... *deep breath*......

BOY

Here's BabyHarris2 with his legs spread wide for all the world to see...

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* BabyHarris2 Update - Week 19 - Is it a Boy or a Girl? * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Senna Hills Austin TX had a great second quarter. In the first quarter, there were only seven sales, whereas in the second quarter, there were 10 sales. The below chart will show you what's currently active on the left, as well as what sold the second quarter on the right.

You will notice that the properties that are selling are still properties priced lower than what most home owners are willing to price theirs at.  I'm not sure what's going to wake the Senna Hills homeowners up, but I'm sure the days on the market will continue to tell their story.

Besides the spike in the one sold property, it looks like the Senna Hills homes for sale are definitely sitting on the market longer on average than their sold counterparts.

Second verse, same as the first...

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Senna Hills - Austin TX - Homes for Sale Market Report * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Austin TX - Low Flow Toilet Rebate Program Ends Today!  Today is the last day you can submit for a rebate in Austin TX when purchasing a low-flow toilet at a retail store.

This program has been in place since the 90's and has run its course. There are too many other things that are working better and more effectively for water conservation as technology has changed over so many years.

However, if you pick up a low-flow toilet at a city-contracted vendor, you can still receive one for free and not worry about sending in paperwork for a rebate.  My opinion of the problem there is, even if they're free, it's going to be inconvenient for enough people to where the amount of money spent is still minimized.

But also, since most newer homes are being built with low-flow toilets, home owners of older homes have had almost twenty years to cash in on this program. If they haven't done it yet, that's procrastination at it's best!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Austin TX - Low Flow Toilet Rebate Program Ends Today * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

New Construction Homes - Austin TX Home Builders - Do you ever wonder why some houses are built with a wall that's not square or a wall that seems warped or curved?  Take a look at this picture and you'll see part of the reason for this...

This wood is sitting across the street from me waiting to be put on a house. When it was dropped off last week, the wood all seemed to be perfectly straight. Look at where the numbers 589 are. Does the wood look straight to you? To me, it looks like the weight of the wood is giving in, and thus creating a huge sag in the middle of the pieces of wood.

Do you think the builder is going to do anything about it? No, why would they? Their stock answer is that no house is perfect and no two pieces of wood are exactly the same, so you can't expect walls to be perfecting squared.  I understand their point, but does it not make sense that the builders can also help prevent much of the issue?

If this wood was put flat on the ground, there would be no room for it to bend and warp, hence there would be many less issues during the construction process of the new house. With the heat we've had, we're in TEXAS, the wood is bending more and more each day.  I'm so glad the home builders treat our houses like they were their own (yes, that was said tongue in cheek)!

For the consumers, when you're building a new construction home with an Austin TX home builder, do not settle for warped walls. Have them fixed. This will save you issues in the future for things as simple as hanging a picture on the wall straight.  Make sure you have a REALTOR® working for you and with you during your new construction home building process!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Why Can't a Home Builder Build a Straight Wall? - New Construction Homes - Austin TX Home Builders * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Aquapalooza 2010 Lake Travis is in just 2 weeks. It's typically at the end of July, but they have decided to have the main event mid-July this year on Saturday July 10, 12-8pm.  You can get further information at the official website, as well as register your boat.

Your boat is your ticket for this free event, so register here, and they say there will be no land entrance.

Brad Paisley is the headliner and expected to bring in upwards of 30,000+ people! Here are some of the other activities going on.

Where, specifically, is Aquapalooza Lake Travis? It's on Lake Travis, mile marker 22, The Reserve.

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* AquaPalooza 2010 Coming to Lake Travis Austin TX July 10 - Brad Paisley Headlines * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

New Construction Homes - Austin TX Home builders - Why working with a Realtor can save you thou$and$ in the long run.  Take a look at the picture below... What do you see?

I see a HUGE plumbing issue!!

Can you believe this was not caught prior to the concrete being poured? What are they going to do now? The exterior wall of this house is going to have exposed plumbing pipes for the entire existence of the structure! Even if they put some concrete over the pipes for a cosmetic change, do you think that's going to solve any problems?

This house is being built across the street and over a couple of lots from me, so I've been watching them build it. A "good" Realtor, like me, would demand something be done so my clients don't have bursting pipes in the Winter or constant hot water running through in the Summer. If left like it is, the exterior pipes are going to be very vulnerable. Even some teenagers wanting to cause problems could easily saw through that pipe any time they want over the years, it's only PVC, plastic! I can't imagine all the potential problems in the future, I just think each problem is going to cost more and more money.

I haven't met the lady building the house, but I know she's single as a neighbor spoke with her. More than likely, she's not working with a Realtor to help represent her best interests. As a consumer, no matter how good of a deal you think you're going to get by approaching a home builder on your own, it's going to cost you even thou$and$ more when you don't have someone looking out for you and your family's interests!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Why Working with a REALTOR can Save you Thou$and$ - New Construction Homes - Austin TX Home Builders * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

The City of Lakeway TX had a great exhibit this weekend, the Lakeway Emergency Services and Bike Rodeo.  There were people from every branch of the different emergency services ready to give tours of their vehicles and explain everything about what they do.

By far, Alyssa's favorite was the Bomb Squad Robot. They had it moving in all sorts of directions to show how versatile it was. The hands of the robot are so steady that they can grip a zipper!  The suit the Bomb Squad people wear is 85 pounds. That is heavy!  One of the people explained that the suit isn't completely explosion proof, which can be scary!

The helicopter was also a hit!  She liked all the buttons. She was concerned it would be loud if it was turned on.  Everything is "loud" to her these days...

She sat up high in the firetruck, but didn't seem too impressed with that. The fireman even showed her his big boots and mask and explained how they get dressed really fast, and all she could think about was how scary the mask looked. He reassured her that it might look scary, but if she ever sees someone come towards her in a mask like that, she needs to know they're just helping her. I wish I got a picture of the mask, as it is a little scary looking.

Others things around were motorcycles, the rescue boat, and an ambulance.  We took home a DNA kit. Basically, it's recommended for all parents to swab their child and put it in a sealed bag in the freezer for the "just in case". The finger printing booth wasn't set up yet, so we didn't do that. There was also a Bike Rodeo thing going on where they were checking helmets and going over safety stuff with bikes, but Alyssa is too young for all that right now, so I have no information about that part of the exhibit.

All in all, the City of Lakeway, the City of Bee Cave, The Travis County Sheriff, as well as the City of Austin all participated in the events and they're already planning another event for the fall when it's much cooler! Thanks for a great event!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* City of Lakeway TX - Emergency Services and Bike Rodeo - Bomb Squad Robot was a hit! * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Real Estate - Austin TX Homes for Sale - Closings for residential real estate in Austin TX were up in May, by 24% compared to May 2009, with a total of $508M in inventory, being 2074 single family homes. That sounds like a great number, right?

Well, let's look at some other things going on.  The median price of Austin TX actually decreased 2% in May over last year, to $192k, however, this number is up from last month April 2010 at only $190,700.  Two percent is nothing to lose sleep over, as Austin is still a bargain being under $200k, on average.

A startling number to look at is that pending sales decreased 34% compared to May 2009. Why? My theory, and many other people's theories is that the tax credit expired on April 30, so people rushed and rushed to get under contract by the deadline, and then this huge sigh of relief or frustration was let out by all the buyers. Buyers who contracted in time are loving life. The buyers who didn't find a home in time are very frustrated, and many have decided to wait and calm down before moving forward again.

Even though pending sales decreased such a large number, the average days on the market for the listings in the area have gone down a whopping 20%!! That's huge! So, even though there were less sales, the homes that are on the market for buyers to chose from are selling quicker, in a mere 63 days.

So, where does that leave us here in Austin TX and the surrounding Hill Country area? It's summer, it's hot, people are on vacation, but the serious buyers are still out there. If your house is on the market, make sure it's priced and presented properly. The more obstacles a buyer has to go through to view your home, the less chance your home will be on the pending list for next month!

Call or email me today, and let's discuss your particular situation to get the best results for you. When you get serious about selling, you get top dollar!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Real Estate - Austin TX Homes for Sale - Closings up, Pendings down * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

BabyHarris2 update. This is week 17. My fingers have been crossed that all the previous complications I went through are now long behind me and the rest of the 23 weeks will be drama-free.

At week 17, I now have some energy back. I'm not running marathons or anything, but I'm not sleeping on the couch at 2 in the afternoon either. The baby should be about 5 inches long. That's a little smaller than my open hand.

Thus far, it looks like I'm off the track of gaining 60+ pounds like with Alyssa. At this point with Alyssa, I had already gained 11 pounds. This time, I've only gained 2 pounds thus far.  My knees are happy about that!

I'm now two weeks away from finding out if it's a boy or girl. Healthy is really the only main concern, but it's always nice to stock up on clearance clothes at the end of the season if I get the chance.  With that, there is still time to guess in the guessing game, so click here. With Alyssa, I had over 50 guesses, but this time, no one wants to guess and I have only about 10. Come on people, it takes 10 seconds to click the link and enter your guess.

Week 18, here I come!

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* BabyHarris2 Update - Week 17 * was first published on donnahomesblog.com

Falconhead West - Bee Cave Austin TX - The new park is expanding!! This is awesome news! I was hoping they would announce a pool was going to be built for the community, but they didn't.

Instead, the City Council approved a parking lot, a restroom, and 3+ miles of hike and bike trails. And get this, it is supposed to be taken over by the City of Bee Cave, so it's not my HOA dues paying for the upkeep!

It's very exciting to have a restroom going in because there are plenty of times when we have to hurry home so there isn't an "accident".

I wonder when they'll start construction on this...

**Are You Packed Yet?** 

Donna Harris, REALTOR®
RE/MAX Austin Skyline
www.DonnaHomes.com
Donna@DonnaHomes.com

Austin TX Real Estate and the surrounding areas of Lakeway, Bee Cave, West Lake Hills, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Spicewood, Circle-C, Steiner Ranch, and everywhere in between... Hill Country Austin TX Real Estate and beyond. Whether you're buying or selling an Austin home, I'll be with you every step of the way. 

For real time Austin TX listings, click here.

** #1 Agent in my Office for all of 2008 **

Copyright© 2010 By Donna Harris, All Rights Reserved. You may re-blog with links back to this post.
* Falconhead West - Bee Cave - Austin TX - Community Park and Playground * was first published on donnahomesblog.com