First on the list, Zilker. Turns out Zilker (Andrew Jackson Zilker) came to Austin from Indiana in 1884 at age 18 with only $0.50 in his pocket. He got a job at an ice plant, which he eventually bought. He then became the first Coca-Cola Bottler in Austin. Shortly after Zilker bought the land that is now Zilker Park and Barton Springs in 1901, he built a small concrete pool and amphitheater for members of his Elks Club organization, at the site of one of the three springs, where people had gathered for centuries.
Between 1917 and 1934, A.J. Zilker donated his land along the south bank of the Colorado in stages, to the Public Free Schools of Austin on the condition that the city of Austin buy the tract from the public schools for inflated prices. School officials placed money from the sale in a trust fund for manual training for what is known today as the school-to-work-program.

Thanks Mr. Zilker for you generous donation. We think you’d be proud of what Zilker Park is today!

Property Tax Notices Out

It’s that time of year again!  As we do every year, you’ve probably already received an appraisal update from your appraisal district on the value of your home.  Appraisal notices have been mailed to 200,000 residential property owners in the county. Another 60,000 will be mailed soon.  Last year, the Travis district was swamped with 94,325 protests – 50 percent more than usual – and mailed settlement offers to 21,605 homeowners, something it had not done before.

A new option for those who want to protest their taxes? You’ll now be able to handle the process online.  This online option will be available for homeowners whose homes are valued at lower than $300,000 and where the neighborhood the home is in is very consistent.  If  you want to learn more about how to protest your taxes – read on!

Protesting Your Property Taxes

Now that you’ve received your appraisal and if you believe that your appraisal does not reflect the actual value of your property, here are some tips for how to go about challenging the appraisal. 

• First, you’ll want to submit your protest by May 31st.
• The appraisal district will schedule an appointment for you sometime in the next several months – please be aware that this is expected to be another record year for protests, so the timeframe will be slightly longer than in prior years.
• Bring any information that you think will be of help to your hearing – pictures of your property/neighborhood, engineering reports, other documentation that you believe supports your protest.
• You’ll need to determine that you’re not paying more than similar houses in your neighborhood. You can research this information on TCADs website.

We have developed a tool (in Excel) to help you protest your appraisal. Feel free to contact your Juice Realtor and he/she will be able to send this along to you. It’s worked well for other clients in last year’s protests.

1.)    There are 2 Apps with good reviews that can help you find your grub of choice. We tried Eat St. & Austin Food Carts. Both are FREE! Download them. They will use your location to find the trucks nearest you. You can click on whatever catches your eye. It lists their hours, menus and mentions on sites like Twitter and Facebook that might give you a clue as to what is their best menu item.

2.)    Check out this website: www.austinfoodcarts.com . This blogger keeps track of what is going on the local food cart scene. You can pull up a map of all the carts, then,on the “sidebar”, sort by whatever cuisine floats your boat. It will pull up all the carts with that tag.

3.)    Twitter and Facebook. Start becoming a fan of your favorite places or ones you hear about and want to try. This way, when they roll on to a new location, have a special event or new menu item you will be the first to know and can tweet it to all your friends.

buon appetito!

We always like to let our friends and clients know of new developments that are interesting, unique and affordable. The latest one we want to highlight is called Brentwood 56 and is the work of Nalle Custom homes. What sets this project apart from others is that it is a small, gated community of 13 homes right in the heart of Central Austin. Instead of large yards for homeowners to maintain, each home has a private patio and there is a common park for homeowners to use. They live like single family homes yet are considered condo units. The homes are of a modern, yet timeless, aesthetic which Nalle calls “New Traditional” with all the features you would expect in a high-end new development (green features, open floor plan, and nice finishes). Each home has 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths and are in the 1800-2000 square foot range.

Another wonderful aspect of this development is the location. The Brentwood neighborhood and the surrounding areas are quickly becoming a destination for dining, entertainment, shopping and living. Along Burnet Road, just a few blocks from Brentwood 56, you will find Torchy’s Tacos, Monkey Nest Coffee, Maru Sushi, La Sambra, UpperCrust Bakery, Amy’s Ice Cream/Phil’s Ice House, Blue Star Cafeteria, Hey Cupcake and several other shops and restaurants. It is an easy area to get to/from downtown as the neighborhood is close to both MoPac and I35.

While we do not represent this builder specifically, we are always happy to represent  a buyer through the process of dealing with the purchase of a new home.  If you would like more information on this development or other homes, please contact us. We’d be happy to help!

All jacked-up and ready to move!

Not too fast!

Bye Bye!

Finally, the house was ready to move off the lot, across town, and to its new home where it will happily spend the next 60 years!

All gone! Fresh start for the old house and a flat lot to build on!

What got you started in this type of business? Was there a clear need in the market for a product like this?

ma modular is the ambitious offspring of KRDB Architects. Chris Krager, Principal of KRDB and ma modular, has been designing/building modern homes in Austin for the past 10 years. Six years ago, he started researching ways to make his designs more affordable and available to a larger audience. Chris’ father worked for a modular company and exposed his son to the modular method of construction at an early age. In late 2008, Chris built the Luna house, a prototype modular home that helped launch ma modular. I joined Chris in early 2010 to officially “launch” ma modular and manage marketing and sales. 

Who is your typical client, if you have one?

 Our clients are Dwell Magazine subscribers. They are environmentally conscious, style savvy and have a range of backgrounds and interests. They have a “less is more” mentality.

 Do you sense a shift in how people live and how has this influenced your business?

People’s priorities are changing and ma modular fits the new demands for higher design, lower environmental impact, smaller footprint homes suitable for sites ranging from city infill lots to new urban communities to rural landscapes. 

 Speaking about the project on Ruth, what was unique about this project? What were the challenges? 

The Ruth house is a 2 bedroom, 2 bath 850 sq ft guest house. Two modules will be joined by a large screen porch which will increase the living space by 1/3. The guest house will be set in the backyard of an existing ranch home in NW Austin. The biggest challenge to this project was designing a very livable, open floor plan within the boundaries of 850 sq ft, which is the max size of “Mother-in-law” houses in Austin. The addition of the screen porch increases living space and the separation of the  two mods by the screen porch and the two bedrooms by the bathrooms increases privacy. These two mods have also been designed so that they can be pushed together, without a screened porch in the middle, for installation on narrower lots. This is a very flexible, streamlined design. 

 I think many people in Central Austin would like more space in their small, Mid-century homes. Why should they consider a MA Modular house vs. adding on or remodeling?

The best thing about the KRDB/ma modular partnership is that we have the ability and experience to help clients in a variety of ways. We can:

 - Design/build a new custom home from scratch

 - Design/build a ma modular home for less since we’re starting with basic building blocks (pre-designed modules) versus starting from scratch

 - Design/build additions to existing homes

 - Design/ build “mother in law” units or garage apartments

 - Remodel existing homes

So we can assess each person’s needs and determine which route is best to add additional space to or spruce up existing homes. Going the ma modular route is appealing to a lot of people because of the cost savings in design fees and because of the streamlined process and shorter turn-time from design through completion. 

 Anything else you would like to add?

 Chris Krager is doing three unique things in the modular industry—: his homes are simple, modern, and affordable. “There are other modular options out there, but they are often large, elaborate, and expensive. ma modular is making modular homes a better avenue for more people. Using modular technology, and simple, streamlined designs and building products, ma modular is able to build and deliver high quality modern homes between $125-$150 per sq foot.

The standard ma homes include green features like tight insulation, high quality energy efficient windows, metal roofs, bamboo floors, tankless hot water heaters, etc. Other sustainable features like no VOC finishes, solar panels, stormwater management systems, and rainwater collection systems, are optional. KRDB is no stranger to green building: —the company is halfway through completion of an Austin neighborhood of zero net energy homes (www.solaustin.com).

Click here to view ma’s current projects:

http://www.mamodular.com/map.html

If you are thinking about selling your house this time of year, going into the early spring, you might be less-than-impressed with your own garden and curb appeal. The festive holiday décor is down (hopefully), the trees are bare, the grass yellow, and the planter beds empty and muddy. Do not stress! There are things you can do to spruce things up now and in early spring before the major planting season starts in April/May.

We spoke with Linda Wall at The Natural Gardener and she gave us some very specific things you can do to make your garden look alive this time of year. And, if you have not yet been to The Natural Gardener, you should go. It is more than just a garden store; it’s a wonderland of outdoor living. Bring the kids, spend some time in the butterfly garden or admiring the goats, gather inspiration from their herb gardens…you will not be disappointed.

Here are Linda’s Tips:

1.)    Right now your best bet is to plant annuals. Pansies, Sweet Alyssum, Snapdragons, Ornamental Kale and Cabbage are good choices. They will all look nice now.

2.)    The above plants come in 4-inch pots for around $1.29 at Natural Gardener. You can also buy them in flats that contain 18-20 plants.

3.)    Plant these close together (only 6-8 inches apart) for maximum impact. It will make your garden appear full and lush.

4.)    Much Mulch! Mulching makes everything better. After planting your recommended plants, re-mulch all your beds. Cedar mulch looks nice but there are lots of choices. It makes the mud disappear and is the easiest and fastest way make a good first impression.

5.)    If you have any questions, head to The Natural Gardener or their website www.naturalgardeneraustin.com .

Also, if you have any existing shrubs such as Texas Redbud, Mexican Plum or Texas Mountain Laurel you can expect these to start blooming early too. Highlight them with fresh mulch around the base and maybe some of the annuals mentioned above. For more info check out this website: http://www.wildflower.org/expert/show.php?id=6410

Of course, to learn more about the value of your home and what is happening specifically in your neighborhood, call your Juice agent. Who knows, maybe he or she will have a green thumb also!

How did you get chosen for the show?

The producers seem to be on a constant hunt for new people as it requires a culmination of proper timing, flexibility of buyers/agents and the right personalities.  Both Buyer(s) and Realtor are required to record a ‘audition’ videos.  The producers like to hear about unique circumstances for the buyers, how long they have been looking, why are they buying/moving up, etc.  For the real estate professional, it was about their tenure in the business, who they work for, and a quick overview of the local market.  

Both my clients and I have vowed never to share our recorded interviews / auditions and believe any remaining copies are locked away in a safety deposit box somewhere!

What was the filming process like? How long did it take?

The filming process only starts once the Buyers have officially closed on their new home to ensure no last-minute fumbles like troubled financing, etc.  In my client’s situation, we closed on the sale Thursday afternoon, and they had to wait through filming on Monday before moving in any furniture!  The first day we filmed the purchased home and was the longest day going through a quick orientation and getting acclimated to having a camera follow you around.  The buyers had to tone down their excitement for this prospect, which they actually already bought, and dwell on some of the negatives in the property.  I realized early into filming this was an attempt at giving clients buyer’s remorse about their purchase!

Each house required a full day starting in the morning and lasting till late afternoon.  The Buyers had a bonus day of filming with just their family doing some local activities, searching for property online together and general daily activity at their home (they have twin boys and never a dull moment).  We also learned with microphones attached, someone was always listening to our conversations…………always!  So there was a lot of fun with the crew.

Did the clients actually only see 3 houses? How did the 3 houses featured on the show get chosen?

Absolutely not.  The application process and true house hunt occur almost simultaneously together.  Once Jeff and Abbi were open the idea of doing the show, we both submitted our videos and opened the lines of communication with the production company while going about our normal search.  After the producers decided they liked the story and us, we kept them in the loop as things progressed.    Their search lasted a bit longer after a disappointing short sale experience and 2 months of waiting for a response from the bank.  

After quickly identifying another home and we notified the production company.  Once all contingency periods in the contract had past, real plans for filming started to come together.  I was required to obtain signed releases from the two additional featured homes (disclosing the buyer had already chosen another home), along with releases from communities with home owner’s associations.  One of the homes filmed for our episode was in fact a true contender, and luckily was still on the market and vacant, making filming easy.  The second was a foreclosure we added to the mix, but never really considered during the true house hunt.  

What was it like having a film crew follow you around on the job?

There was a 3 person crew, the producer, sound and camera man.  Everyone quickly got along and was able to speak freely with one another, helping us relax a bit and ignore what was really happening.  Being able to joke around with the crew in between filming helped a lot.  Of course there was always a friendly reminder in my head trying to keep up a little guard since everything we said/did was recorded.    

What was the most fun/interesting part of the experience?

For me it was getting to spend time with some old friends I’ve known since high school and who happened to be clients.  Today I know every time the show replays b/c it always sparks emails, text messages or posting to my Facebook page.  It’s allowed me to reconnect with some old friends all over the country.  

Do people recognize you from the show?

No.  No autograph requests on the street yet!  

Would you do it again and why/why not?

Most definitely.  It was a lot of fun.  The producers said if I ever have another interested client with great energy and doesn’t mind sharing their story to give them a call.  Anyone??

 Interested in seeing the actual episodes? Here are the links!

John Dunham:

http://www.hgtv.com/house-hunters/an-austin-couple-searches-for-a-family-home/index.html

Sam Archer:

http://www.hgtv.com/video/settling-down-in-austin-texas2-video/index.html?soc=share