Austin Real Estate - A Buyer's Guide

How to Buy a Home in the City of Austin, Texas

I've written a lot of these real estate guides, for cities all across the United States. But this one will be a special treat because I've lived in the Austin area for several years now. Technically, I live just up the road in Round Rock, Texas, but I am very familiar with Austin as well.

There are a lot of reasons to buy real estate in Austin and the surrounding areas. So many reasons, in fact, that I wouldn't know where to begin. The weather, the lifestyle, the housing costs, the entertainment — the list goes on.

But this tutorial is not about why you should buy real estate in Austin, Texas, but rather how to go about it. In other words, this is a step-by-step guide to buying a home in Austin, with helpful resources offered along the way. So let's look at the steps buying real estate in the capital city of Texas:

1. Order Your Credit Report & Score

When buying a home, it's a good idea to start the process by reviewing your credit reports and scores. The important thing is to request this info through a trustworthy website, such as the Credit.com service provided below:

Click here for a free credit report

2. Find an Austin Real Estate Agent

If this is your first time buying a home, or if you are new to the Austin area, you really should have professional help from an agent. Use the link below to find and compare Realtors in the Austin area:

Planning to Buy a Home? Compare REALTORS® First

3. Find an Austin Home

This city offers a wonderful variety of homes, ranging from lake-front estates to Crafstman-style bungalows in the heart of the city. Click the link below to view homes in the Austin area, provided by ZipRealty:

Shop Austin Homes

4. Get Mortgage Quotes

For most people, buying a home in Austin means taking out a mortgage loan. The Internet makes this process a lot easier. For example, you can use the link below to get quotes from multiple lenders at once through LoanWeb:

Link will go here

5. Consider Buying a Foreclosed Home

There are a lot of Austin foreclosure homes on the market right now. And these homes represent a good investment opportunity for the savvy home buyers. Click the link below to view foreclosures in Texas, provided by RealtyTrac.

View Texas Foreclosure Listings

Conclusion and Summary

I'm not the only one who things Austin is a great real estate investment. In 2006, Austin ranked #2 on CNN Money's list of best big cities to live in within the U.S. That same year, Kiplinger.com listed Austin, Texas at #5 in a list of "50 Smart Places to Live." More recently, an Entrepreneur.com article listed Austin and Round Rock as two of the best places to buy a home in the U.S.

These are only a few examples. Austin comes up on more of these lists than I care to count. On top of that, you often see Austin, Texas on TV real estate shows like "What You Get for the Money," and it's usually portrayed as a place where the housing dollar goes a long way.

Hopefully, this guide to Austin real estate will help you have a more successful home buying experience in this great city of Central Texas. Good luck with your real estate endeavors!