Who We’d Like to Meet:

You have experience in the real estate business and have a real estate license or a getting a real estate license

You are highly proficient in all Microsoft Office products

You have enviable Photoshop/Creative Suite skills

You love to blog and are very familiar with blogware such as Wordpress – you want to show us your very successful blog

Familiarity with tracking and compiling web site data

When you’re not working (or sometimes when you are), you’re networking on Facebook, Twitter and that newest site that no one’s discovered – yet

You listen well and don’t want to be told what to do over and over again

Your friends and family envy your organizational skills

You like to take the ball and run but don’t mind a little direction along the way

You have a reliable form of transportation

Please submit resume and cover letter by clicking on this link!

Thanks,

The Dave Murray Team

www.DMTX.com

Lake Travis Acreage

Just a few miles north of Lago Vista, this approx. 24.5 acre Lake Travis waterfront property features gorgeous views of the limestone cliffs along the Cow Creek arm of Lake Travis. A gentle slope leads to the very accessible 650+ ft. of waterfront which features a nice flat area perfect for a lakeside cabana or patio. Terraced land also features a wet weather creek with limestone grotto and rough roads cut to the 1,000 SF home with all utilities. Could be renovated or torn down to build your dream home. No restrictions, ability to subdivide and commercial possibilities with highway frontage.

See the listing or virtual tour for more.

Big waterfront on Cow Creek Arm of Lake Travis - over 330 feet

Often met with resistance, the LCRA says their objective is not to make money, or to bar homeowners from using lake water to water their lawns or use inside the home. Rather, the LCRA uses these records to monitor water use and plan in times of drought and to keep open the lines of communication between residents and the LCRA. Says Mark Jordan of River Management: “It is a common misconception that lakeside residents have a right to take and use water from the lake. This is not true. Residents are required to have contracts with LCRA to take water that LCRA has stored in the Highland Lakes. These contracts help us manage and account for water use to meet existing and future water demands.”

Lake Buchanan

The LCRA is attempting to make this easier and understandable with public awareness campaigns and an option to apply online. More information and a copy of the application are available here. The lakes involved in this contract are Lake Buchanan, Lake Inks, Lake LBJ, Lake Marble Falls, Lake Travis and Lake Austin.  Town Lake/Lady Bird Lake is not included (it is monitored separately by the City of Austin, not the LCRA, and not technically one of the Highland Lakes). A contract lasts for three years, and is a firm contract (meaning water will be reserved even in severe drought). According to the LCRA, those who don’t sign a contract and take water may be subject to civil or criminal charges.

Pictured: Lake Buchanan from the Lake Buchanan Estate

Miller Creek

Just listed: beautiful 4,950 Sq. Ft. custom home on 68 acres in Texas Hill Country. Sits on 800 ft on both sides of Miller Creek.

Home Features:

• Stone entry with custom wrought iron door & wood beam ceiling
• Full Commercial Thermador kitchen – 6 burner oven with griddle, 3 ovens, built-in microwave, ice maker, dishwasher, trash compactor, built-in refrigerator and freezer – All appliances have wood fronts to match cabinets. Kitchen also features Custom Beveled granite countertops, extra large island with breakfast bar, attached breakfast room, large walk-in pantry.
• Breakfast Room with buffet, shelves, built in TV, wall of mirrors and large stone fireplace. Formal Dining Room with Wall of windows overlooking creek, Solid wood beam and stained wood ceiling, Stone walls with arched passages. Wet Bar with Stainless steel sink, Wine fridge, built in cabinets and stone walls.
• Great Room with Huge masonry fireplace, Large stained wooden trusses with custom ironwork – 100% wood ceiling, Full glass wall overlooking pool and creek
• Master Bedroom with stone fireplace, wall of windows overlooking pool & creek, Built-in computer desk, bookcases, TV, His and Hers entrance into Bath/Dressing areas. Master bath with his & hers walk-in closets, Walk-in natural stone shower, rock walls with arches, Large Jacuzzi tub, Stone entrance to Exercise area, Vaulted ceiling with wood beams, Separate water closet.
• Exercise Room with Large windows overlooking creek, Wood wainscot, Mirrored wall, Music/TV. Utility Room with Sink, Built-in cabinets, Freezer area. Game/Media Room with 100% stain wood stairway, Wrought iron handrails, Walk-in closet, Built-in Desks, Built-in Entertainment Center, View of creek.
• Detached 4 Car Garage with Attached Breezeway to House

Miller Creek

Exterior Features:

• Stone entry gate with communal gate operations, Intercom to house, 8 foot custom iron gates.
• Stone lined custom heated pool with pebble tech plaster, 6 person Hot Tub overlooking creek. Lighted stone walkway to creek. Flagstone deck around pool.
• Large flagstone terrace the entire length of house with Built-in TV and stainless steel gas BBQ Pit on terrace overlooking creek.
• Large (20 ft x 18 ft) BBQ Cabana with Full kitchen, TV & custom Commercial wood Burning BBQ pit
• Bath with outdoor shower, Large fire pit with built-in rock seats, Wrought iron fencing around fully landscaped yard.
• Approx. 3 acres of house, pasture is irrigated. Fenced horse pasture and antique windmill. 2×2, “no climb” fenced horse pasture. All fencing is new or excellent condition.
• 3 stall stable with 2nd floor office/gameroom. Tack and feed Barn, Hay barn, fenced paddock. Round pen/roping arena with square feed lot. Wood and storage shed.
• Well house with game cleaning area. 4 wells with 25 gal per minute capacity and rainwater collection system with 10000 gal collection tank.
• 3 RV hook-ups for guests
• 1 acre stock pond. Miller Creek is stocked with bass, catfish and perch. Other spring locations on property with the availability to add multiple other water features.
• Cedar has been cleared on all but 10 acres. Ag Exempt – cattle. Wildlife abounds: Whitetail deer, turkey, Axis, Seika.
• Fenced and gated garden with limestone planters

If you are interested in this property, or one similar, contact us today.

 Take a virtual tour:

The Falls: 315 Acres on Lake Travis

This stunning piece of property features Lake Travis waterfront and views, with cleared fields and mature trees.

This property includes frontage on two paved, maintained county roads with a hard corner. The land gently slopes to the approx. 3700 feet of waterfront on deep Bee Hollow Cove on the Lake. Many waterfront and lake view build sites sit on the property, that is surrounded by high-end waterfront homes and ranches.

Lake View

Located in the Lago Vista, water and sewer will be provided by the city. Lago Vista ISD is an exceptional school district, with Lago Vista High School rated as one of the top ten high schools in Central Texas (Austin Monthly). With the completion of the 183A Tollway, this area will not just be attractive to second home buyers from around Texas, but for primary residences as well.

This location would make an excellent personal ranch or land investment. Take your chance to see the listing today.

With the Fed no longer spending the tens of billions of dollars monthly on mortgage securities, we will only have the private sector to fill in the gap. When that happens, we can naturally expect mortgage rates to rise. “The difference in monthly mortgage payments of 5% or 6% can be measured in tens of thousands of dollars over the life of a loan,” one writer explains.

The Atlantic Monthly writes that the credit markets need securitization, and warns that it will only become more difficult to borrow money (and those loans will come at higher interest rates) as the Fed program ends. “If you think banks aren’t lending enough now, then you’d find a world with no securitization much worse. Yet, that might be what you get if the Fed ends its program.”

Why would the Fed remove such a successful program? The analogy of a bike with training wheels is often given – if you want an economy to strengthen, recover and stand on its own, at some point you need to take the wheels off. If the Fed keeps rates too low for too long, inflation will rise higher and you will expect to see rates rise anyway. Home loan rates will increase as demand is met, naturally, with or without the Fed.

We can expect the end of the first quarter of 2010 to be a telling time for the economy’s recovery, but the heavy favor of the buyer and borrower is going to change. These will be some of the last months we’ll see that are such great markets for buying a home or land. If you are considering buying, you should begin your search now.

Hickory Creek Ranch

According to the Wall Street Journal’s article (Green Acres is the Place to Be, 12/2), many new buyers are looking at rural land who weren’t before.

The reasons vary, but the result is definite: rural areas are growing in popularity. One of the most common motivations for buying rural land deals with the pocketbook: in the uncertain economy, land is standing out as a great investment. Many, expecially young singles, have been squirreling away savings, and are starting to look at something that they feel is going to be a more solid investment and a safer, surer bet than the stock market or even a 401(k).  Land is a great asset, and even small plots have appeal to these “starter” groups. It’s “a hedge against an unpredictable future,” the Journal says. Also, the rural market is often stronger than the residential market, and so more rural land can be a great deal over real estate closer to, or in, a city. It’s proving to be a good option whether or not you plan to live on the land.

Hill Country Hideaway

Another group of people looking at farms and ranches are people with more of a “back to their roots” mentality - interested in getting away from the rat race and pace of the city, and to a daily routine involving farming and ranching. This is a wide range of people with everyone from young families looking to get their kids involved, to empty-nesters and retirees who have spent entire careers in an urban environment. They enjoy making money, self sustaining, living green, or just having the fun of this lifestyle as a complete change of pace from what they were used to. “It’s a little like the pioneer spirit,” says one editor, “they still want high-speed Internet but want to feel like they are doing something else for their families.”

Cow Creek Ranch

Some are looking for a way to get away from the city while still being close enough to work, and others may have been forced away from work and are looking to the next opportunity. For many, living on a Texas ranch is something they’ve “always wanted to do.” But for whatever reason, now seems to be the time that so many are feeling the motivation to give ranch life a try.

Dave Murray is your expert in central Texas ranch properties, as well as waterfront, luxury and development. Serving all your real estate needs from first time buyers to relocation, his team is the #1 Team in the #1 Colwell Banker Texas office, and top 10 of all Realtors in the greater Austin area.

What are LED lights? LED is an acronym for “light emitting diode.” Lights are traditionally miniature incandescent bulbs, with a filament inside them. Basically, LED lights do not have this filament, but rather, are lit by moving electrons in semiconductor material.

These have many advantages. For one, they don’t burn as hot, making them safer, and cool to the touch. They can be encased in a plastic material, instead of the thin glass that older lights are made of, making them harder to break. The wires are thicker, making them harder to tangle. They last longer, sometimes 20 years. And of course, they save energy – using around 80% less energy than traditional lights.

LED technology has been around for a while, but has only caught on for holiday lighting in recent years. Now they come in all colors, and can blink. The past three years have seen LED lights grow more and more popular – they have been used on the Rockefeller Center tree since 2007.

Miller Creek Ranch

What are the disadvantages to LED lights? They cost more upfront, for one. You can expect to pay two or three dollars more, per strand. The main complaint with the lights is the appearance – the glow is just different, and some don’t like it. But as we get more used to seeing these lights, the safety and efficiency is something we can all feel good about seeing this holiday season.

Photo: Miller Creek Ranch

Read more:

Wise Geek’s LED article

“What We Are Decking the Halls With: LED Christmas Lights” from the Omaha World Herald