Austin Hotels
Many of the historic buildings in Austin are either privately owned, have been turned into modern-day businesses, or are open to the public in the form of museums. Luckily for those looking to actually live in such a building, even if for just one night, both the Driskill hotel and the Stephen F. Austin hotel are waiting downtown.
In 1886, cattle baron Jesse Driskill purchased the land, and built the Romanesque Driskill hotel in the heart of downtown Austin. Driskill, who had provided...
Austin Neighborhood Profiles : Travis Heights
Lying just west of IH-35 and south of Riverside Drive is one of Austins most appealing neighborhoods, Travis Heights. Its rolling hills and winding roads have long been a haven for a diverse culture, with a mixture of housing to match: perfectly kept bungalows, a few large estates and smattering of shabby cottages.
Housing in South Austin began later than other centrally located neighborhoods due to difficulty getting supplies across the Colorado river. Once a stone pier bridge was...
Bear Stearns and the Free Market
The recent government-sponsored bailout of Bear Stearns, one of the top five lenders in the United States, has shocked traders and left investors cold. Despite the chilly reaction on Wall Street, secretly many are breathing a sigh of relief. While Bear Stearns was mismanaged from its upper echelons, its subprime exposure grew until their recent $30 billion-plus losses had to be reported. Once that happened, their course took a turn for the worse. As their ability to shore up capital faltered,...
Crestview
Just north of Austins urban center lies the Crestview neighborhood, bordered by Anderson Lane to the north, Justin Lane to the south, North Lamar Boulevard to the east and Burnet Road to the west. In 1948, developer A.B. Beddow began building the Crestview homes on what was originally an old cotton field.
The majority of the homes in Crestview were built in the 1950s with a very utilitarian style, mostly 2 and 3 bedroom cottages ranging around 1100 to 1200 square feet, suitable for the...
How to Refinish Hardwood Floors
Several homes, especially centrally located homes, have hardwood flooring. A pristine hardwood floor is beautiful, but to restore one back to its original 60 year old elegance, the floor will need to be refinished.
Refinishing hardwood floors can be a challenging job for the do-it-yourselfer, but with some preparation and research, it can be done without the help of a professional.
Many older homes have gone through fads, and one that became a norm was wall to wall carpeting. If...
Remodeling A Kitchen : A How To Guide
One of the most timely and costly home improvement projects any homeowner can take on is a kitchen makeover. Whether a homeowner desperately needs a kitchen revamp, or is tired of the dated look of the kitchen, there are several options to freshen up the area.
The easiest fix for a sparkling new(ish) kitchen is a good thorough cleaning. Over years of use, kitchen cabinets take on food, heat, and grease that tends to build up. Though it might seem simpler to leave cabinet doors attached to...
Subprime Woes Reach New Heights
As the sub-prime mortgage crisis continues to unfold, new figures emerge from the Mortgage Banker's Association: A record .83% of loans entered foreclosure status over the last quarter of 2007. In addition, the delinquency rate was 5.82%. That means that, in three months, one out of one hundred homeowners have been foreclosed on. Because of America's size and diverse population, the statistics are somewhat skewed: In many places like Austin, Texas and New England, growth remains steady and...
The University of Texas Campus Area of Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is one of the five largest universities in the country, and currently nearly fifty thousand students attend the university, which is home to the U.T. Longhorns. Most of the students live in the U. T. campus area, which encompasses an area from Interstate 35, which runs along the eastern perimeter, to Lamar Boulevard, which circles the western edge of the campus, including numerous fraternity and sorority houses. The campus also extends to Martin Luther King to...
Why the Fed is Having Less Influence over Mortgage Interest Rates
In the past when the Federal Reserve cut the discount rate it translated into lower mortgage interest rates for home buyers. This was a convenient way for the Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy during economic slowdowns. By making it easier for people to get loans more cash was pushed into the economy.
But the recent discount rate cuts have failed to have a similar effect. In fact the spread between mortgage interest rates and the discount rate is the greatest in 20 years. Although...
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