New Braunfels: Working on a Master Plan | Articles

Friday, August 24th, 2007

It's a town known for attracting hordes of tubers, loyal Germans and water park enthusiasts. But in recent years, New Braunfels also has been attracting hordes of new residents.

New Braunfels — conveniently placed between two thriving metros, Austin and San Antonio — has surged from 36,000 residents in 2000 to more than 50,000 today.

The surge in residents has led to a surge in new construction, too.

"We've been on a roll," said Michael Meek, president of the New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce. "Up until last year, we've had double-digit growth, and we were doing more than 1,000 homes a year in both the city and in the county."

In New Braunfels' host county, Comal County, the population was 78,000 in 2000. In 2006, it was estimated to be more than 101,000, a 30 percent growth.

In 2005, there were 40,240 housing units in Comal County, up from 32,718 in 2000.

The median sale price of new and existing houses also has gone up, from $135,000 in 2004 to $168,500 in June of this year.

This year, there have been 386 home sales in the county. Their average amount of time on the market was 111 days, down from the 137-day average in 2004.

As of June this year, Meek said, the county is down about 14 percent on new-home permits, but that's generally the theme everywhere in the region. Comal County still has seen 548 new-home permits through June.

With so many new homes being built, real estate agents are finding that existing homes must stand out, with pristine lawns and new paint jobs, to compete.

"Pre-owned homes really have to stand out, and have to just shine," said Laurie Hawkins, an agent with Bradfield Properties. "We just have a lot of homes for sale."

Meek said the growth has been on both sides of Interstate 35, on the east where there's more soil and cheaper homes, and on the west where the Balcones Escarpment is the edge of the Hill Country and is home to the more expensive houses.

There are new areas of growth in virtually all parts of town. To the west, many new subdivisions are popping up closer and closer to Canyon Lake. Some, such as Vintage Oaks and River Chase, have thousands of new houses. River Chase was started in 2000 with plans for 1,697 lots. Vintage Oaks, which began this year, has plans for 2,103.

With the hundreds of new homes comes a wide range of prices.

On the east side of town, which begins to creep into Guadalupe County, D.R. Horton has the Dove Crossing neighborhood and Avery Park where homes are selling as low as the mid-$90,000s.

"We have homes from the $100,000s up to you-name-it," Hawkins said. "We have a little bit of everything for everyone's taste."

Many people choosing the New Braunfels area also are commuting, making it ideal for families who may work in Austin, San Antonio or both. As of 2005, according to the Census Bureau, more than 50 percent of workers in the area commuted to work.

"It's a straight shot either way on (Interstate) 35," Hawkins said. "People want to move into a smaller community with a smaller-town feel. There's new-home building on the north, south, east and west parts of town."

One of the biggest reasons for moving, Hawkins said, is the lack of traffic in New Braunfels.

"We complain about the traffic here, but it's nothing compared to San Antonio. We just have to get our infrastructure figured out," said Hawkins, a New Braunfels resident. "We're working on our master plan right now."

Families trying to get away from the nearby big cities are filling the new homes, but they're also coming from throughout the country.

"We continue to find that people are relocating to our area from all parts of the country, in particular California and Florida," said Diane Mehrer, an executive with the New Braunfels/Canyon Lake Association of Realtors. "We continue to have new construction in both the custom builders and production builders markets."

While they are commuting to work, many are able to spend their leisure time right at home, often in their own backyards.

"We feature two rivers — the Guadalupe and the Comal — along with Schlitterbahn. Our quaint and historical downtown with shops, restaurants and museums. Our beautiful city park (Landa Park) with summer concerts and two live theaters with fabulous plays and entertainment," Hawkins said.

With the Interstate 35 corridor continuing to expand, real estate agents have reason to be optimistic that the houses will continue to sprout in Comal County.

"We're going to keep booming," Hawkins said. "We have so many developments on the books right now. The real estate market is great. Life is good in New Braunfels."

By: Creighton A. Welch  |  Source: San Antonio Express  |  Original Article  |  Download PDF