All Forum Posts by: Will R.

For anyone in this situation I would suggest getting a low cost flat fee listing in the MLS. You can then take control of the situation. You can set the exact dollar amount you are willing to pay another agent for bringing you a buyer. It will cut out a lot of the fuss and get you a lot more eyeballs via the MLS.

P.S. I imagine that you get a lot of traction on your posts from the Austin TX crowd than you might imagine due to the email alerts on your name :). 

First off... I think this has been the first thread I have agreed with on Austin in a while. People use a lot of scare tactics regarding a bubble. I think Austin has enough population growth to sustain units. 

As for hous hacking, I think there is always a way. I have done a few of them. To me, the reason you should buy now is the interest rates. I cannot imagine when we will see these interest rates again. 

@Li Yin  I cannot speak for @Bryan Hancock but you cannot cash flow here anymore and that is bad for investing on any level other than for builders. Assets that cost you money every month are bad assets. 

That said, I still do not think we are going to take a big dip. The population growth is huge. We could support a lot more units. If we do dip, I bet the bottom of the trough is still higher than today's price. 

I am not advocating for stupid purchases. I am just saying I do not think it is any riskier than any other non cash flow market. 

@Bryan Hancock might be right with the frothy but I do not think it is a bubble. There are real jobs and people with jobs moving here and buying inventory. Austin is becoming like most other hot cities where it is impossible to cash flow without being creative. Think California. I guess there is some chance we will over build but it does not seem like we could build enough to take a big dip anytime soon.

You cannot cash flow here but it is still a safe place to invest if you are just wanting to put low interest rates to work over the long term. 

If you are looking for a genie to tell you where to invest, I would say look at the I35 corridor heading south. 

Only SF3 at this point. 

@Jon Klaus My understanding from listening to the meeting was that there is an additional 1100 sf cap on the units. Awesome either way. I am going to repermit one I had underway to get the additional sf. I think it is a great idea because it will create larger units which are more family friendly. 

@Jeremy Gonzales

It is possible to pick up prime lots under $500k (though maybe not always MLS). You build for $400k and sell for $1.2M. I am not in the new construction space (yet) but those are my understandings of the rough numbers. That $300k+ margin seems like enough to share.

http://lynncurriebuilds.com/evaluating-a-lot-for-an-urban-infill-tear-down-with-lynn-currie/

I am also finishing a subdivision now. Took a year. That seems like the right amount of time. Maybe less if your client drives the whole process himself and pushes subs hard

Good question. I would guess that there are some loopholes here. If the birddog were to assign you a contract, that is not really a referral. They have an interest and they are selling you the interest. I am sure there are lots of "fuzzy" ways to compensate them but this seems like a clean one.