Central Texas tied Washington D.C. in the Forbes.com ranking that compiles job growth and real estate industry improvement, among other indicators. Austin has maintained a relatively low jobless rates, though the number increased to 7.6 percent last month from 7 percent, according to the Texas Workforce Commission. Statewide, the unemployment rate was unchanged at 8.2 percent from December to January, compared to 9.7 percent nationally.

Austin also benefits from high government job generation, according to Forbes. The number of Central Texas jobs increased just shy of 1 percent between 2007 and 2009, more than any other city included in the research.

Dallas came in second on the ranking behind Austin. The number of jobs there are expected to increase more than 7 percent in the next three years. San Antonio and Houston also made the top 10 list.

Job growth projections were based on information from Moody’s.

In regards to the Austin real estate industry, the list also considered median home sale price changes to determine cities where the recession is easing.  Metropolitan Gross Domestic Product was another determining factor.

An interesting fact:  The Texas Department of Transportation buys and sows about 30,000 pounds of wildflower seeds each year along the Texas roadways. While the best corridor to view them is between Austin and San Antonio, a plethora of these beauties are seen from Johnson City to Fredericksburg, Marble Falls, Llano, Brenham and many places in North Texas. If visiting North Texas, just be patient as the bluebonnets do not peak until mid-April.

Thanks to El Nino’s warming of the Pacific Ocean we experienced a cooler, wetter Texas winter that alleviated our drought! The good news is, due to this two-year drought grasses and plants have died off creating more spacious displays for the nearly emerging abundant crop of wildflowers and bluebonnets.

Texans are so proud of their bluebonnets that several Hill Country communities hold annual festivals in honor of the Lupinus texensis! While each Hill Country Community touts the best festival, there is only one “Official” Bluebonnet Festival in Texas. Each April, hosted in Washington County at the small town of Chappell Hill is THE “Bluebonnet Festival of Texas”.

While Texas wildflowers and bluebonnets have nothing to do with luxury custom home building, this Austin Texas custom home builder appreciates the beauty of the wildflowers that can be seen throughout the corridors of our highways and within the many communities we build in. These are just a few of the great golf course and waterfront communities we build our award winning homes: River Place on Lake Austin, Steiner Ranch, Flint Rock Falls, Barton Creek, Costa Bella and Escavera.

Duke McDowell says, “We have been honored with over 100 industry awards throughout the years, including the Texas Custom Builder of the Year - three times! But this award is special and unique as it recognizes us locally for our commitment to advancing the quality and professionalism of the home building industry right here in our own back yard.”

This event was truly a who’s who of the Austin real estate market. Top producing agents and teams were recognized for their production in 2009 and many of them shared their stories of success in this difficult market.

Duke McDowell accepted the award for Sterling Custom Homes and thanked the talented team at Sterling as well as the ongoing support that the local real estate community has given our company over the past 20 years. It is truly a team effort, and one that Sterling does not take lightly. Agents have learned that they can trust our company when they introduce their client to us. We have a passion for building - not only homes but also relationships, and we thank the Austin Real Estate community for their continued confidence and support.

Prune……Prune spring flowering trees after they finish blooming. Prune evergreen shrubs now. Prune deciduous spring flowering shrubs after they bloom. Prune deciduous summer flowering shrubs before they bloom. Prune evergreen flowering shrubs after they bloom.

Fertilize……Fertilize spring flowering trees when the petals fall. Use one pound of 5-10-15 fertilizer per inch of tree trunk measured 3 feet from the ground. Fertilize summer flowering and deciduous spring flowering shrubs with a 15-15-15 fertilizer. Fertilize evergreen shrubs with an acid azalea/camellia fertilizer. Use 1/2 pound per 3 feet of the shrubs height.

Pests……Watch out for worms and caterpillars eating your plants new foliage. Spray with Bacillus thurengiensis or commonly known as BT before the worms appear or right after. The worms eat the BT and die.

Mulch……Mulch existing landscape beds and trees with hardwood mulch.

Turf……Fertilize turf with a high nitrogen fertilizer as soon as the danger of frost has passed. Apply pre-emergence weed and weed grass control by the second week in March. Begin aerating and detaching your grass now before you fertilize and before the grass turns green.
So long for now.

For more information about Structure Landscapes, please email Sam Walton at sam[at] structurelandscapes [dot] com or call me at (512) 905-4267.

Thanks to Sterling Custom Homes for the invitation to be their guest blogger,  Sam Walton

More recently, the lake was down to 636 msl in August of 2009. The recent wet weather over the past few months has fortunately brought the lake back up to the near-full level of 676 msl.

We have built many custom homes on Lake Travis over the years. We currently have one project underway at Waterfront in Rough Hollow and another beginning soon in The Reserve at Lake Travis. Both of these Austin, Texas custom homes are designed to take advantage of the incredible views and relaxing lifestyle provided by their lakefront settings.

This custom home in Lakeway, Texas features four bedrooms with four and one-half baths. The master suite is conveniently located on the main level and offers beautiful views of the golf course. The main level also boasts another bedroom, formal dining room and a gourmet kitchen that opens to the expansive family room and breakfast room.

It is certainly perfect for the Hill Country golf enthusiast who loves driving on a Jack Nicklaus designed golf course. With the activity that has occurred during construction, we feel certain this house will soon be sold!

Of course, words cannot do this beautiful home justice, so be sure to stop by Flintrock Falls for more information about our spec home. The home is being marketed by The Winnett Group, located in Lakeway, Texas.

Sterling Custom Homes has built luxury, award-winning homes for over 20 years in many of the Austin areas private gated and resort golf communities. Enjoy viewing our unique custom designs that accommodate the Austin temperate weather by providing outdoor living areas as comfortable and upscale as their indoor rivals.

In the beginning of their selection process, our clients must make decisions for a custom roof and custom entry door. While it may seem premature in the selection process, these items have lead times of 2-3 months and in order to avoid delays at these stages, we must be proactive. It is our responsibility to educate our clients on the entire custom home building process and specifically the priority items in their selection schedule. We educate our clients on the benefits of making their custom selections in a timely manner and then we equip them to make those decisions. We have great trade partners who work with us, assuring that our homeowners get all the information they need to finalize their selection decisions. Our trade partners and Interior Designers in Austin, Texas help our clients in choosing their granite countertops, top of the line appliances, custom wood flooring, faux paint and texture patterns, custom cabinets and other luxury interior selections.

Being the only 3 time winner of Texas Custom Builder of the Year”, we know that our clients have high expectations and we work diligently to exceed those expectations. We understand the Austin housing market; we are expert in new home construction in the Austin and surrounding areas and provide the best custom home building experience for the distinguished buyer.

Spring is one of the most pleasant times in Central Texas, and people are always looking for new ways to enjoy the outdoors more. If you’re thinking about building a new home in Austin, one way to enjoy the outdoors more is to include an Outdoor Living Area in the design. These Outdoor Living Areas are one of the most important features of a new home, for most of our clients these are fully equipped living spaces that just happen to be outside. Outdoor fireplaces surrounded by sofas (often times with televisions above them!), a large Outdoor Dining Area, fully equipped Summer Kitchens with sinks, refrigerators, grills and space for bar stools so your friends and family can watch as you channel your inner Emeril, are all commonplace in most of our custom designs.

These outdoor spaces are warm and inviting, with wood ceilings and stone floors overlooking the pool. In some homes, the Summer Kitchen is sunken a few steps and is incorporated into the custom pool design with a swim-up bar so you don’t even have to leave the pool to sample the food straight off the grill or get your favorite beverage handed to you. As these spaces evolve, we’ve been incorporating new ideas to try and make the Outdoor Living Areas more enjoyable and comfortable for longer periods throughout the year. Some of these features are retractable screens placed at the perimeter of the space and built-in outdoor heating and air conditioning units to make the temperatures more comfortable. For one home we were working on that was built next to a constant-level lake, we even looked into building the boat dock underneath the Outdoor Living Area, with an elevator that would transport you and your guest down to your boat waiting below.

It will be interesting to see what the future holds for these spaces, but I only see their desirability increasing as more and more people want a resort-like feel in the comfort of their own home.

Sterling Custom Homes would like to thank Austin Design Group for their blog post contribution.

More importantly, we provide the client a cost analysis comparing the tangible and intangible lot costs. Tangible costs include purchase price, utilities including well, septic, wastewater and permit fees, area property taxes, topography, site work and clearing based on lot grade. Other direct costs include architectural requirements such as type of windows (wood vs. vinyl), roofing (tile vs. traditional) and exterior finish. We also look at intangible lot costs such as the view, location, schools, community, amenities and lifestyle. By analyzing all costs associated with a lot we are able to create a more realistic idea of the building expenses for the specific lot.

Quite often a lot that appears less expensive can be significantly more due to septic requirements or additional slab costs caused by topography or view considerations. By performing our lot analysis we are often able to save our clients several thousand dollars and help them find the perfect site suited to their custom home design and lifestyle needs.