Austin Texas Realtor-Betina Foreman-licensed Realtor in Texas

12/25/2024

Public Service advisory. If you are traveling from Buda to Austin on Old San Antonio Road, be advised there are two black cows about a quarter mile south of Puryear road. They are standing IN the road on the southbound lane. It was pretty clear they broke through the fence about 30 ft from where they were I guess trying to go visit Santa. Emergency services have been dispatched to take care of it, but proceed with caution. Sorry I didn't stop to take a photo I'm on my way to Christmas.

12/22/2024

08/20/2024

Take a peek at this lovely serene property in South Austin. It has multiple houses on the 10 acres. This property would be ideal for a multigenerational compound or shared living situation.

9000 Bear Creek Dr, Austin, TX 78737 is for sale. View 40 photos of this 5 bed, 3 bath, 3457 sqft. single family home with a list price of $2390000.

12/09/2023

On December 7, the Austin City Council voted 9-2 to pass Phase 1 of “H.O.M.E.”, a controversial rezoning plan that ends single-family zoning throughout Austin. This plan will allow 3 homes on a 2500 square foot (.057 of an acre) lot. This is about the size of a one story home in SH. Which means all of these homes will be 3 stories tall. The half acre lots in SH could see many more homes than the initial 3 proposed.

They did so despite overwhelming opposition from the public:

86% of the emails sent to City Hall opposed the plan 60% of the speakers at the December 7th meeting opposed it. At least 15,000 Austinites filed formal protests against it.

The plan is supported by the Real Estate Council of Austin (RECA), the Austin Board of Realtors (ABOR), and wealthy interests who support deregulation. However virtually all of the Realtors that I know, as well as myself, oppose it.

Here's the good news: The fight is not over.

To complete their plan, the city council must still pass Phase 2, a vote scheduled for early 2024. If approved, Phase 2 will allow land developers and speculators to further densify existing neighborhoods, strain local infrastructure, and strip our community of trees and other natural resources.



To all of those who filed protests and spoke out against Phase 1, thank you—and please stay engaged!

Community Not Commodity is gearing up for the Phase 2 battle, and we will need your continued help to prevail. Please write your City of Austin representative. We will provide more details as soon as they become available.

Together we can build an Austin for everyone!

11/23/2023

A new documentary about the City of Austin's controversial "H.O.M.E." rezoning plan is almost here. Watch the trailer on YouTube today!



Sponsored by BATPAC and directed by acclaimed Austin filmmaker Steve Mims, Subdivide and Conquer exposes City Hall's fast-moving effort to end single-family zoning throughout Austin.



The city's plan is split into two phases:

The first will allow three housing units on every Austin lot and the removal of local occupancy limits. The second will allow the subdivision of every lot into 2,500-square-foot parcels—each eligible for three housing units. For an average 7,500 square-foot residential lot (1/6 of an acre), up to nine units could be built. More units would be allowed on bigger lots.

Neighborhoods with deed restrictions and HOA rules are NOT protected from the plan.

Stand up for your rights and file your protest. We will deliver your protest to the city electronically and a hard copy in person. The protest deadline has been extended to December 5—only three weeks away! You can also file your protest by mail here.
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FILE YOUR PROTEST

Three Steps You Can Take to Protect Your Home and Neighborhood from the City of Austin’s “H.O.M.E.” Rezoning Plan

File your protest by December 5. A protest helps protect your property from the City of Austin’s “H.O.M.E.” rezoning plan.

11/13/2023

Court Rules Against City Hall for Third Time, Finding It Failed to Notify Austinites of Zoning Protest Rights

With your help, we won another major court battle against the City of Austin!



On November 8, Travis County District Judge Jessica Mangrum ruled the City of Austin violated both state law and a prior injunction when it failed to properly notify property owners of three major zoning changes passed in 2022.



Unfortunately, city officials are trying to do it again. Their misleadingly named “HOME” initiative is yet another citywide rezoning plan that threatens to eliminate single-family zoning across our community. To suppress your voice, City Hall is once again trying to interfere with your protest rights. They have also scheduled the hearing for December 7, during in the busy holiday season.



Stand up for your rights and file your protest. We will deliver your protest to the city electronically and a hard copy in person. The protest deadline has been extended to December 5—only three weeks away!
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FILE YOUR PROTEST

This is the third time since 2020 that a court has ruled the city broke the law when it failed to provide notice to property owners affected by rezoning efforts and honor their protest rights.
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Three Steps You Can Take to Protect Your Home and Neighborhood from the City of Austin’s “HOME” Rezoning Plan

File your protest by December 5. A protest helps protect your property from the City of Austin’s “HOME” rezoning plan. If the plan is approved, any single-family lot 5,000 square feet or larger could be subdivided to allow a total of six units, and a lot of 7,500 square feet could be subdivided to allow a total of nine units. Larger lots could be subdivided even further and hold dozens of units. Donate to our effort. Help us fund our costly litigation against the City of Austin, and help us reach Austinites who aren’t aware of the city’s assault on single-family neighborhoods. Contact the members of the city council. Tell them not to approve the “HOME” rezoning plan because it will hurt Austin!

Together we can build an Austin for everyone!

Stand up for Austin neighborhoods. Thank you!

10/12/2023

Some good real estate news!

Conventional loan limits for 2024 have been increased from $726,200 to $750,000!

This means that you can buy a $750,000 home and only need 3% down!!

Previously, a loan that size would be considered a jumbo loan and required 10 to 20% down payment.

If you are ready to take advantage of this and move up, please call me to assist you.

10/07/2023

Good morning Austin!
Please be aware Austin City Council is planning to radically increase homes density and end Single Family Home Zoning! Please file a protest to stop this madness. The affected areas are in red. You can go to their website to see if your neighborhood is affected.

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Single Family Neighborhood Elimination Map
City Hall's Plan to Eliminate Single-Family Neighborhoods
Enter Your Address to See the Changes Proposed for Your Area

Guide to Map
If you or your neighbors’ homes are in the red areas shown in the above map, they are subject to the City of Austin’s latest rezoning attempt, which targets almost every single-family lot in our community.

The Austin City Council plans to allow the subdivision of single-family residential lots into new, 2,500-square-foot lots and permit three or more units on each new lot in a two-step process.

First, the city council wants to pass an ordinance allowing three units on every lot (Recreational Vehicles (RVs) will be considered acceptable long-term residential housing).

In step two, the city council will change the minimum lot size to 2,500 square feet. This plan will raise property taxes, force longtime residents to sell, and destroy Austin’s single-family neighborhoods.

How to Take Action
Concerned residents should file neighborhood conservation protests to protect their homes and neighborhoods.

When a property owner files a neighborhood conservation protest, the city council cannot rezone his or her property without supermajority support (nine of 11 votes).

Neighbors can also band together and file neighborhood conservation protests to protect properties none of them own: When the owners of at least 20 percent of the area within 200 feet of a property slated for rezoning band together and file protests, the city council cannot rezone that property without supermajority support (nine of 11 votes).

IMPORTANT: Austinites who filed protests in response to one of the city’s previous rezoning plans must file new protests in order to protect their homes and neighborhoods from the city’s latest plan.

FILE YOUR PROTEST
MAP SOURCE: City of Austin
UPDATED: October 6, 2023

09/29/2023

It is time to write City Council to let them know what you think about them removing Single Family Zoning in Austin. If you want to retain your quality of life and not have three to six 3+ story homes with zero setbacks/lot lines next door to your house, please write them now.

City Hall Wants Three Units on Every Austin Lot—and Soon That Number Will Jump to Six (or More)

Austin City Council Member Leslie Pool’s plan to kill single-family zoning is moving quickly. We don’t know when we will see the actual ordinance, but it will be split into two phases:

The first will allow three housing units on every Austin lot (including recreational vehicles as housing units) The second will allow the subdivision of every lot into 2,500-square-foot parcels

That means a 5,000-square-foot lot could be subdivided into two lots to hold a total of six units, and a 7,500-square-foot lot could be turned into three lots, with a total of nine units. Bigger lots could be subdivided even further, potentially holding dozens of units.
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To accommodate the new units, the council plans on allowing more impervious cover, allowing taller neighborhood buildings, and decreasing the setbacks around structures.



The first hearing on the plan is set for October 26—but contact council members before their October 5 meeting and tell them we need at least two weeks to study the ordinance, and that they need to be transparent with the community about their “Phase 2” plans.

09/26/2023

Something to remember when considering paint colors for your house.

07/21/2023

Please be advised that the city of Austin has put forth some drastic proposed changes. They want to do away with Single Family Zoning, so the developers can build 3-6 dwellings on a 2500 square foot lot. This would be extreme density everywhere except the most affluent neighborhoods. The proposed map excludes Westlake and parts of neighborhoods around 360.

On July 20, the city council will consider a resolution to eliminate single-family zoning, which is the standard for most Austin neighborhoods.