30-year fixed rate at 5.77%; 10-year Treasury yield at 4.73%

Long-term mortgage interest rates moved higher Thursday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield rose to 4.73 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average inched up to 5.77 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.53 percent. The 1-year adjustable held at 5.38 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.83 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states. Points on these mortgages range from zero to 3.5.

In other economic news, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 52.39 points, or 0.41 percent, finishing at 12,686.02. The Nasdaq was up 6.52 points, or 0.26 percent, closing at 2,524.94.
Stock and bond figures are current as of 7:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

New H-E-B Plus store opened this week

LEANDER (Austin American-Statesman) – The new H-E-B Plus store opened this week, offering almost 2,000 types of wine, about 900 types of produce and 300 varieties of cheese.

H-E-B’s 144,000-square-foot store at 651 US 183 North will employ more than 400 workers, becoming the city's second largest private employer behind J.C. Evans Construction.

The store also sells furniture and home improvement products, and it has an auto section, garden center and a Café Spoonz.

Officials say the store will add $383,000 annually to the city's sales and property tax base.

30-year fixed rate at 5.75%; 10-year Treasury yield at 4.68%

Long-term mortgage interest rates were flat Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield fell to 4.68 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average held at 5.75 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate remained at 5.52 percent. The 1-year adjustable dipped to 5.38 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield decreased to 4.78 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states. Points on these mortgages range from zero to 3.5.

In other economic news, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 19.07 points, or 0.15 percent, finishing at 12,786.64. The Nasdaq was up 16.73 points, or 0.67 percent, closing at 2,513.04.

Stock and bond figures are current as of 7:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Austin Homes Sell at Fastest Pace Since 2002!

2006 Austin real estate statistics courtesy of the Austin Board of REALTORS®.

Residential real estate in the Austin area was strong in 2006, with just under 27,000 single-family homes sold - a 10% increase over 2005.

The average price was up 10% to $235,738. The sale of town homes and condominiums also rose 29% to 3,049 units. Moving upward with the trend was the sale of lots at 3,580, an increase of 32%.

The median price of a single-family home sold in the Austin area was up 6% to $174,500. With homes selling so quickly, the number of active listings declined 4% to 7,830, marking the lowest number since 2001.

The Austin condo Outlook

Local real estate developers say they don't foresee the recent spate of condo developments saturating the Austin market anytime soon.

• Annual demand for condo units: 800 : Based on sales in 2006.
• New condo units for sale in '07: 218 : The 54-unit Sycamore, the 32-unit Sage, 104-unit Bridges on the Park and the '04, with 28 units.
• New condo units for sale in '08: 834 : Only 10 units left in the 192-unit Shore. Plus, 240 units at the Spring, 445 units at 360 and 139 at the Magnolia.
  

30-year fixed rate at 5.81%; 10-year Treasury yield at 4.8%

Long-term mortgage interest rates inched up again Monday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield climbed to 4.8 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 5.81 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.59 percent. The 1-year adjustable was down at 5.37 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.89 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states. Points on these mortgages range from zero to 3.5.

In other economic news, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 28.28 points, or 0.22 percent, finishing at 12,552.55. The Nasdaq was down 9.44 points, or 0.38 percent, closing at 2,459.82.
Stock and bond figures are current as of 7:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Another high rise is scheduled for current post office site.

Two more condo's downtown... Austin is definately going verticle. Last week the Austonian was announced - a 700 foot tall condo planned for 2nd and Congress and now a 35-story condo at 6th and Nueces. You can find the complete statesman article below:

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Two more high-rise residential towers with more than 900 condominiums are slated to be built downtown, including a 35-story tower at Sixth and Nueces streets that will provide a new home for the existing downtown post office.

Atlanta-based Novare Group Holdings and its Austin-based partner, Andrews Urban LLC, plan to break ground on the first building this fall. It will have about about 400 condominiums in a tower that will adjoin a new two-story postal facility at the corner of Fifth and San Antonio.

The post office would open in 2008 and the residential tower in fall 2009.

Once the post office moves into its new building, the developers plan to start construction on a second high-rise at the existing postal site. It would be a 40-story tower with more than 500 condos as well as more than 100 hotel rooms and and more than 25,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.

Both projects are expected to cost a total of $300 million.

The hotel operator has not been determined. However, Novare has a hotel subsidiary called Twelve Hotels that operates an existing 101-room hotel in Atlanta. Two more Twelve hotels are under construction, one at Centennial Park in downtown Atlanta and another in Charlotte, N.C.
The development will include a seven-story parking garage; one level will be for shared parking for post office and retail customers.

The U.S. Postal Service selected Novare/Andrews Urban in August through a competitive selection process to redevelop its existing downtown location, at Fifth and Guadalupe streets.

Mayor Will Wynn and many local developers have long said the site is under-used, with a one-and-a-half-story post office occupying 76,000 square feet of a prime downtown block.

The 35-story tower will occupy three-quarters of a city block adjacent to the existing Miller Blueprint Co. that Novare/Andrews Urban purchased in December. The site originally was slated for a second office tower that Intel Corp. planned, along with a chip-design factory that it halted work on amid the tech bust of 2001.

Both new towers will need city zoning variances to build higher-density projects. The developers plan to incorporate city guidelines for wider streets, with tree-lined sidewalks and benches and bicycle racks.

The condo units in both towers are expected to be priced comparably to 360, a 44-story condo project Novare/Andrews Urban is building at Third and Nueces streets.

Prices there start at under $200,000 for a one-bedroom home and under $300,000 for a two-bedroom unit. The most expensive units are in the mid-$500,000s.

With more than a dozen residential projects being built or planned downtown, developers say demand is especially keen for units with more moderately priced units, which Novare/Andrews Urban says its projects will provide.

Taylor Andrews, president of Andrews Urban, declined to say how many people are on 360's list of prospective buyers, but said demand has "far exceeded expectations."

"We have enough interest that we eagerly would like to get more than 900 units in downtown Austin," Andrews said. "We believe that the demand for attainably priced housing in downtown Austin far exceeds the planned condominium pipeline," Andrews said.

The 360 sales center will open in late February. The tower is expected to open in spring 2008. It will have 430 condominiums and about 14,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, including restaurant space.

The 360 sales center will open in late February. The tower is expected to open in spring 2008. It will have 430 condominiums and about 14,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, including restaurant space.

From Austin-American Statesman - click here -

Open House Today

I will be at an open house from 10:00am to 4:30pm at the following location:

808 W Annie St

Austin, TX 78704

This is a remodeled charming residence near downtown, Zilker Park, SoCo, Hike/Bike Trails. It has very nice and unique copper kitchen counters, custom cabinets, custom windows, hardwood floors, energy efficient features, front porch, recent roof/landscaping and 2 reserved parking spaces in the garage.

This is truly a great house!!!

List Price: $325,000

Bed: 3

Bath: 2

Yr Blt: 1934

Seaholm Power Plant - $100M Redevelopment Plan

More downtown development... Take a look at the proposed development for the decomissioned Seaholm Power Plant. This story is from the Statesman and you can read the enteir article below... or follow this link (click here).

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Developers are expected to roll out today their vision for a mixed-use project that would transform the former Seaholm Power Plant into shops, offices, a hotel and condominiums by 2009.

The Austin City Council will get its first look at a new rendering of the project, which features a modern design while retaining the distinctive Art Deco building and its five signature smokestacks.

The decommissioned 1940s plant sits on about 8 acres along West Cesar Chavez Street overlooking Town Lake.

An adjacent 22-story residential/hotel tower and two-story office building also would have a modern design but with an Art Deco flavor.

The project is a joint venture between the City of Austin and Seaholm Power LLC, which the city in 2005 tapped as its partner to oversee redevelopment of the landmark site.

Construction, which would cost more than $100 million, is expected to begin this fall. The first parts of the project are expected to open in mid-2009.

The rendering illustrates just how dramatic the transformation of the iconic plant and surrounding land would be.

The 136,000-square-foot building that housed the power plant would have 99,000 square feet of rentable retail space, with a mix of local, regional and national tenants plus restaurants and cafes.

The residential/hotel tower would loom over the original Seaholm structure, featuring 60 condo units on the top seven floors of a 160-room boutique hotel. The condo owners would have concierge and valet services and other amenities of the hotel.

The project also would include a two-story office building with 62,000 square feet. Two terraces will be used by residents of the hotel and condos, as well as the public.

More than 3 acres of the site would be preserved as as green space. Seaholm also would be a transportation hub, with future commercial rail connections, including a line between Austin and San Antonio.

Southwest Strategies Group, an Austin-based commercial real estate company, is leading the redevelopment team. Seaholm Power LLC is in the final stages of negotiating a development agreement with the City of Austin for the project.

"This is an historic event and an opportunity for saving a slice of Austin's history," said John Rosato, managing partner of Seaholm Power LLC. "It's the first time that the city has entered into a public-private venture for the sole purpose of saving an iconic building in Austin."

Assistant City Manager Laura Huffman said, "We view this as a pivotal opportunity for revitalizing downtown" and realizing a longtime goal for a transit hub at Seaholm.
Huffman said the city will make "significant investments in the project," although details are still being worked out.

Huffman said increased property and sales taxes generated from the development would be used to fund the city's portion of the project, which will be spelled out in the development agreement.

Once those investments are paid off, the city would devote 40 percent of the incremental property taxes to affordable housing, Huffman said.

Rosato said other community benefits of the redevelopment include the planned extension of West Second Street to Seaholm.

Two other Austin-based companies, Centro Partners and La Corsha Hospitality Group, round out the redevelopment team.

Centro would develop the condos. Units could cost from about $450,000 for about 1,200 square feet to more than $1 million for the largest 3,000-square-foot units, Rosato said.

Jeff Trigger, former managing director of the historic Driskill Hotel in downtown Austin, would oversee the construction, management and operations of the Seaholm Plaza Hotel, to be built just north of the former power plant, through La Corsha, his newly formed hotel management and consulting company.