As more people move in, the number of vacancies drops and right now in Austin we are experiencing rental occupancy rates of nearly 97%. That means that rental units are harder and harder to find and rents will continue to increase. In fact, Austin was recently named one of the Top 10 Cities Where Rent Will Rise the Most in 2013 by MSN.com. Dallas and Houston also made the list. Now, on it’s face that doesn’t seem like a good thing, but when you realize that this means our city is still in high demand and that sales will continue to grow, those of us in the real estate industry are smiling.

Home ownership has many advantages over renting and high occupancy and rising rents only add to the value of purchasing. The tax breaks all still exist (at least through the current tax year) and the opportunity to earn equity makes home ownership remain a principal part of the American Dream. Rising rents not only entice renters to become owners, they also draw more real estate investors into the marketplace. We’ve also seen a decrease in the number of short-term rentals available as the demand for long-term rentals continues to snap up available properties.

According to MSN.com, here are the Top 10 Cities Where Rents Will Rise the Most in 2013:

1. San Jose, CA • 5.3% Rent Growth Predicted for 2013
2. San Francisco, CA • 5.2% Rent Growth…
3. Seattle, WA • 5.2%
4. Minneapolis, MN • 5.0%
5. Dallas, TX • 5.0%
6. Denver, CO • 4.9%
7. Portland, OR • 4.7%
8. Houston, TX • 4.6%
9. Fort Lauderdale, FL • 4.6%
10. Austin, TX • 4.6%

To read the original MSN.com article, please click here.

The City of Austin also agreed to provide incentives to National Instruments for their proposed hiring. The city council voted to award $1.7 million in incentives over the next 10 years, contingent upon the same criteria for hiring that was used by the state. Travis County also provided their own set of incentives to help sweeten the deal. They are providing a grant for up to 43% of the company’s property taxes for the next 10 years as long as the incentive criteria are met and maintained. In return, the company pledges to hire 1000 new employees over the next 10 years with the current average starting salary of over $72,000 per year. National Instruments currently has roughly 2400 employees in Austin and more than 6800 worldwide. Once hiring is complete, National Instruments will be the fifth largest tech industry employer in the Austin area, following Dell, Apple, IBM, and Freescale. National Instruments also pledged to pay at least $11 per hour for all construction workers used in the expansion. This helped them to secure the most incentives possible.

While there has been talk about whether these investment incentive deals are worthwhile, no one can doubt that if we don’t offer these incentives some other city will. And while we try to increase our technology influence on the world, more hiring by large employers in the tech industry is key. Start ups and entrepreneurs get a lot of attention in Austin, but don’t forget that there are a handful of very major players that have kept our city near the top for tech for a long time. With this incentive deal, our position grows stronger and there is a good chance we’ll see similar deals for other companies in the near future.

Information for this article came in part from the following:
http://www.statesman.com/news/business/national-instruments-to-add-1000-austin-jobs-inves/nWWTX/
http://impactnews.com/articles/economic-development-agreement-for-national-instruments-approved-by-austin-city-council/
http://impactnews.com/articles/travis-county-inks-incentive-deal-with-national-instruments/

1.  Webeon Fest 2013, Austin’s World Music Festival, takes on Saturday. You can expect an extremely eclectic mix of artists from all over the world playing all different styles.

2.  The annual Zilker Garden Festival has been a one-stop, garden shopping destination when spring arrives in Austin and Central Texas. A family-friendly event, the garden festival offers something for everyone.

3.  Austin Restaurant Week returns for the spring this weekend and next. Get out there and try some of Austin’s best local eats!

4.  Fantastic lineup of music coming up this week:  Grizzly Bear at Stubbs on Monday, Two Door Cinema Club at Stubbs on Tuesday, Sigur Ros at Cedar Park Center on Wednesday, and Slightly Stoopid at Stubbs on Thursday.

Compiled by Diego Menchaca for Mission Mortgage, April 5, 2013

For those seeking more options for things to do in Austin, we recommend the following websites: www.do512.com - By far the easiest to navigate and search and they give away plenty of tickets to shows every week. www.c3concerts.com/ - Another easy-to-use site provided by the same folks that produce the ACL Music Festival every year. www.austinchronicle.com – Less user-friendly, but a wide variety of events, activities, and stories about the Austin music scene.www.austin360.com – Provided by the Austin American-Statesman newspaper. Again, not the most user-friendly, but filled with great ideas every week.

Dr. Mike Cline from Rice University recently presented his findings from a study on population growth and he predicts that Texas will eventually have more residents than any other state. Over the past 10 years, the population has grown steadily and quickly, far outpacing the growth of the rest of the states. Currently, Texas is the second most populous state with roughly 26 million residents. California holds the top spot today with about 38 million residents. Can we really expect to bridge that gap? If so, how long will it take? Those are answers that no one can say for sure, but the trend lines are obvious.

While Texas’ population from 2000 – 2010 experienced positive net migration of about 1.7 million people, California has seen negative net migration over the past few years. California’s population is still growing due to natural growth, but because their net migration is negative the overall pace of their growth is substantially lower than what is happening in Texas. So, how long would it take to make up the 12 million person difference? According to Dr. Cline, it could happen as quickly as the year 2030. Think that sounds like a long time away? Do you remember 1996? That’s the same amount of time. In other words, it will happen faster than you think.

Another dynamic impacting Texas’ population is density. While the four major urban areas of Austin, Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio are seeing fairly substantial growth in population, the rural areas stay fairly consistent. In other words, as Texas grows we will become more concentrated in the cities, leaving the vast openness of West Texas and the rural panhandle to remain mostly unchanged. Challenges in state funding priorities, transportation, and pollution are among the biggest impacts of our recent growth. Going forward, these challenges will become even more pronounced, especially as work our way to the top of the list.

Keep in mind that population determines Federal funding formulas, US House of Representative congressional seats, and Electoral College votes. Overtaking California could have a profound impact on future elections. I think we can all agree that we feel the growth that’s happening here in Austin and can easily picture the same growth in the other Texas cities. Given these new projections, I hope those in power have the foresight to make sure this growing population has the resources and services we need. Clean water is probably the biggest concern, but arable land, pollution, public education and traffic gridlock are also major issues to be tackled.

Information for this article came in part from these sources:
http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/texas/researcher-tx-population-could-pass-ca
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/California-population-growth-slows-2453821.php

1.  Comedian and actor Demetri Martin will be performing at the Scottish Rite Theater on Thursday, April 4th.

2.  Missing the football season already? Get a glimpse of the Longhorns team at the Fan Fest and Orange-White Scrimmage taking place on Saturday.

3.  Kick off the crawfish season at Lustre Pearl’s Second Crawfish Boil of the year. Enjoy plates of crawfish, beer, live music, and a petting zoo!

4.  Here is some post-SXSW music for this week:  Deftones at ACL Live on Friday, Soul Asylum at Antone’s on Friday, Caveman at The Parish on Monday, and The Black Angels at Waterloo Records on Tuesday.

Compiled by Diego Menchaca for Mission Mortgage, March 29, 2013

For those seeking more options for things to do in Austin, we recommend the following websites: www.do512.com - By far the easiest to navigate and search and they give away plenty of tickets to shows every week. www.c3concerts.com/ - Another easy-to-use site provided by the same folks that produce the ACL Music Festival every year. www.austinchronicle.com – Less user-friendly, but a wide variety of events, activities, and stories about the Austin music scene.www.austin360.com – Provided by the Austin American-Statesman newspaper. Again, not the most user-friendly, but filled with great ideas every week.

1.  Second and Third round action of the 2013 NCAA Basketball will be taking place at the Frank Erwin Center on Friday and Sunday. You can expect to see the likes of UCLA, Illinois, Florida, and Colorado.

2.  The HONK! TX! Street Band Festival will be taking place this weekend. This event is a nonprofit, community-driven festival that brings brass bands from around the country to perform free in various parts of Austin.

3.  The 15th Annual Mighty Texas Dog Walk takes place on Saturday, March 23 Auditorium Shores. The dog walk raises funds for Texas Hearing and Service Dogs to help give strays and rescue dogs a new leash on life.

4.  Here is some post-SXSW music for this week:  Alpha Rev at The Belmont on Friday, The Band of Heathens at The Long Center on Sunday, Citizen Cope at The Long Center on Sunday on Sunday, and Matchbox Twenty at ACL Live on Monday.

Compiled by Diego Menchaca for Mission Mortgage, March 22, 2013

For those seeking more options for things to do in Austin, we recommend the following websites: www.do512.com - By far the easiest to navigate and search and they give away plenty of tickets to shows every week. www.c3concerts.com/ - Another easy-to-use site provided by the same folks that produce the ACL Music Festival every year. www.austinchronicle.com – Less user-friendly, but a wide variety of events, activities, and stories about the Austin music scene.www.austin360.com – Provided by the Austin American-Statesman newspaper. Again, not the most user-friendly, but filled with great ideas every week.

Our original blog post, Oakwood Cemetery – An Austin Gem, can be seen by clicking here.

Recently, we received an email from Bob W., who saw our post and thought it was quite informative. Of course, he probably knew most of what was in the article already because he is a volunteer with the Save Austin’s Cemetery group. We were, of course, flattered that he would even take the time to email us, let alone provide such glowing compliments about our efforts. He emailed to let us know about an upcoming event called Texas Heritage Day to be held on Saturday, March 23, 2013 at Oakwood Cemetery.

The full day’s events will include living history demonstrations, activities for the kids, storytelling, and special academic presentations and speakers. Texas Heritage Day kicks off at 10 am and lasts until 4 pm. The speaker presentations require a $5 admission fee, but the rest of the activities and festivities are free.

For more information about Texas Heritage Day, please click here!

There are so many reasons to learn the history of where you live. The lessons connect us to our shared past and show us how people were able to live and thrive in our area. We take for granted so much of what we use and consume in our hurry-up lifestyles. Sometimes it is good to step back, slow down, and appreciate where we’ve been. Sure, you can buy a forged steel hammer at any hardware store, but what did people do before Lowe’s? If you need a blanket, you can always buy one at the mall. But what about a quilt, once thought of as a community activity? Would you know how to make one if you needed to? Often what we can learn by studying our past is simply an appreciation for the struggles overcome by the people who founded this city.

So, please mark your calendars for this Saturday, March 23, 2013 for the Texas Heritage Day event at Oakwood Cemetery.

HOTEL #1:  Hyatt Place Downtown

This new Hyatt hotel opened for business just in time for SXSW to come to town.  The hotel is located close to the Austin Convention Center and provides 296 new hotel rooms to the downtown area.  Hoping to tap into the demand for hotel rooms in the central business district, this Hyatt was developed by White Lodgings, a prominent hotel developer in Central Texas.  In fact, this is White Lodgings 22^nd hotel in the Austin area.  Located at the corner of 3^rd and San Jacinto, the hotel includes an indoor pool.

HOTEL #2:  JW Marriot

At the intersection of 2^nd and Congress, the new JW Marriot hotel is starting to take shape with three large cranes now working the site.  The hotel broke ground last October and is scheduled to open in early 2015 bringing more than 1,000 hotel rooms to downtown Austin.  The hotel, located near the Austin Convention Center, is also planned to include over 100,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space.  When it opens it will be the largest hotel in Austin.

HOTEL #3:  Hotel Van Zandt

The boutique luxury hotel chain, Kimpton Hotels, is about to break ground on a new hotel in downtown Austin.  Located at Red River and Davis, the hotel has been planned for many years and the land was acquired by the developer back in 2006 but was stalled due to the economy.  Recent strength in the US marketplace and particularly in Austin has allowed this project to breathe new life with groundbreaking now scheduled for June 2013.  Once built, the hotel will 327 hotel rooms on 16 floors.

HOTEL #4:  Fairmont Austin

Another large-scale hotel is hoping to break ground in October 2013 at the corner of Cesar Chavez and Red River.  The plans for this site include a 50-story building, making it the second tallest building in downtown Austin behind only The Astonian condominium tower.  The hotel will add another 1,000 hotel rooms to the city and is currently scheduled to open in June 2016.

Total Number of Rooms Growing Quickly

All told, including the newly opened Hyatt Place Hotel, Austin now boasts roughly 6,500 hotel rooms.  By 2016, the currently planned projects are projected to take that number to 9,500 allowing Austin to attract even bigger conventions and events, schedule some concurrent events, and provide valuable construction and contractor jobs now and hundreds of hotel jobs later.   With our growing popularity and population, it appears as though this growth in hotels is coming at just the right time.

Information for this post came from the following sources:

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130305006152/en/Hyatt-Place-Austin-Downtown-Celebrates-Official-Opening

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/real-estate/2013/02/two-more-hotel-projects-to-break.html?ana=e_du_pub&s=article_du&ed=2013-02-28&u=16324985304ee62968a687067df648

http://www.myfoxaustin.com/story/21526951/new-downtown-hotel-complete-before-sxsw

1.  Join a great Austin tradition at the 85^th Annual Zilker Kite Festival taking place at this Sunday. The event is welcome to everyone and no admission is required. \

2.  Come on out to the TXRD Lonestar Rollergirls matchup between the Cherry Bombs and the Holy Rollers, taking place Sunday night at the Palmer Events Center.

3.  Celebrate the Texas’ 177^th year of Independence this Sunday at the 5k Run up Congress starting at 9:00 am, followed by a parade up Congress Avenue.

4.  This week has a great pre-SXSW lineup of music:  Coheed & Cambria at Stubbs on Friday, The Ballamy Brothers at Antone’s on Friday, Wheeler Brothers at Emo’s on Sunday, and Hooka Hey at Mohawk on Sunday.

Compiled by Diego Menchaca for Mission Mortgage, March 1, 2013

For those seeking more options for things to do in Austin, we recommend the following websites: www.do512.com - By far the easiest to navigate and search and they give away plenty of tickets to shows every week. www.c3concerts.com/ - Another easy-to-use site provided by the same folks that produce the ACL Music Festival every year. www.austinchronicle.com – Less user-friendly, but a wide variety of events, activities, and stories about the Austin music scene.www.austin360.com – Provided by the Austin American-Statesman newspaper. Again, not the most user-friendly, but filled with great ideas every week.

ECONOMIC AND JOB GROWTH

According to Forbes, Austin is experiencing 3% population growth with many transplants arriving from destinations throughout the US and the world contributing to Texas’ increase in population by 427,000 in the most recent year that data exists (2011 – 2012).  In fact, the strong economy in Texas has put numerous cities in the top 10 for this list, including Houston at #2, Dallas at #3, and San Antonio at #9.  Other statistics that helped Austin to the top include a 3% rate of job growth and an economy that expanded by 6.3% last year far surpassing the US rate.

But our strongest asset comes from our employment base.  Austin is currently at 4.9% unemployment and dropping.  Announcements for new companies arriving continue to pour in as more and more executives are looking to Austin for their labor needs.  Having a business-friendly climate and no state income tax certainly helps as well.

Here’s a listing of the Top 10 Fastest Growing Cities:

1.  Austin, Texas
2.  Houston, Texas
3.  Dallas, Texas
4.  Raleigh, North Carolina
5.  Salt Lake City, Utah
6.  Seattle, Washington
7.  Provo, Utah
8.  Phoeniz, Arizona
9.  San Antonio, Texas
10.Portland, Oregon

Note that all of these cities except for Raleigh, North Carolina lie west of the Mississippi River, clearly showing how the west is faring better than the east currently.  More importantly, the dominance of Texas cities on the list is a sign that our current market conditions will continue to improve.

To read the original Forbes article, please click here.