There are a few more shades of grey to our situation that I didn’t mention in that comment. Perhaps most important is that I can never make up my mind about whether our street is really “neighborhoody” enough for my tastes, and no amount of redevelopment of the existing housing stock on our block is going to change that. Somedays I think it’s fine, and I’m willing to invest in enlarging our house, and other days I really think that I’d prefer something on a street with more residential character.
We live about 1/2 block from Burnet Rd. I can see (and usually hear) Billy’s from our front door. Our side of the street is almost all residential all the way down to Burnet, but the other side of the street is commercial (Light Office, transitioning into CS) once you get one lot further west than the one directly across from our house.
What I really covet in my greedy heart is a house in Rosedale, because the streets over in there tend to have a more “bucolic”, residential feeling but still have the proximity to all of the “NoBu” amenities that I enjoy. Unfortunately, that “bucolic” feeling in a house the size that we feel we need comes with a $500k price tag.
I’m with you on the MetroHomes — I think they’re a breath of fresh air, and most of the time they’re replacing homes that had degraded to a point that they were going to be torn down no matter what kind of construction replaced them. And the alternative seems to be the DavidWeekly/NuHome/KB style of construction that the “flippers” seem to like (I presume because it’s cheap and easy).
However, I will not let the MetroHomes get off so easy on one point — I think that without exception, they are all duplex/condo situations, and I hate that. I understand the land cost issues that drive them to do that, but they seem to be trying to simultaneously redefine both the size of a “single family” lot and the perception of what’s an “affordable” house. We paid quite a bit less than $200k for our 1000 sq. ft. house on a 7500 sq. ft. lot, whereas MetroHome buyers pay approximately twice that for a 1500-2000 sq. ft. house on half as much land, and that’s connected to somebody else’s house. It’s that last part that really bothers me–I really don’t want to share common space/maintenance responsibilities with a neighbor like that. Too much opportunity for dispute. I think that the MetroHome developers would argue that the alternative is single family homes that cost $400k and up, and I guess that’s true in today’s market, but I think that if anything is going to really alter the neighborhood fabric of Brentwood and Crestview, it’s not modern architecture, but essentially a halving of the typical lot size.
The “two story” issue is one that I can’t get as worked up about–I didn’t purchase the air rights to my neighbors’ lots along with my house, so I can hardly expect that they will stay as single story homes forever. As I know you know, with the impervious cover restrictions, you really have no choice but to go two stories if you want to add any meaningful square footage to your house. And as you point out, the alternative is that these central-city houses stay so small that young families won’t live in them, and that would eventually destroy the neighborhoods, too.
Lots more to say on these topics, but I’ll leave it there for now..

Call me nuts, but I love the sprawling, ranch-style homes in Allandale. I grew up in a 60′s split-ranch in Illinois and I will always have a fondness for their brick masonry, low-pitched roofs, and funky windows. They are way more spacious than the houses in Crestview, and the shade of the live oaks makes the whole neighborhood seem very cozy and private.
Obviously, that is not at all the direction we went in with our remodel, and it wouldn’t have fit in among the half-gingerbread, half-modernist houses in Brentwood/Crestview, but I sure do appreciate the style.
As for the yard issue on the Metrohomes… part of me thinks that the advantage of losing a yard is gaining a sense of community. Forces those people to come hang out with us at the park and pool And if you’re like me, the idea of having a yard to take care of isn’t necessarily a plus. I talk a lot about having a garden, but the truth is I am a closet brown thumb. Shhhh, don’t tell anyone.

Not that this whole thing necessarily needs to be posted, but thought it applicable to this topic. This is why people sometimes move out to the suburbs!
STICKER SHOCK: TRAVIS COUNTY PROPERTY VALUES LEAP
AUSTIN (statesman.com) – Travis County property owners may be in for an unpleasant surprise, as property values are up 16 percent on average. The average market value of a single-family home in Travis County is now more than $236,000.
The large number of real estate transactions in the past year helped appraisers do a better job determining the true market value of properties than in previous years, Travis County Chief Appraiser Art Cory said.
In Texas, homebuyers are not required to report the price paid for their homes. The appraisal office uses various methods to determine market value including voluntary disclosures and listing prices from real estate agents’ marketing materials. Property taxes rise with property values, but in Texas, there is a 10 percent annual cap on increases for primary residences.
Owners of higher-end homes will see the largest jump in property values this year, as these have been conservatively valued in the past, Cory said.
“Million dollar properties, in some cases, have doubled in value,” he said.
Commercial property owners are also in for a shock, as these values are up even more than home values.
AUSTIN HOUSING MARKET SIZZLES
AUSTIN (abor.com) – The Austin area housing market was hot in March, with single-family home sales up 18 percent from the previous year. Records from the Austin Board of Realtors’ latest Multiple Listing Service report show home sales and aggregate revenue records were broken in March.
A total of 2,373 homes sold in March, and the median price was $166,500 — a 7 percent jump from last March.
Townhouse and condominium sales jumped 80 percent to 292. Farm and ranch sales increased 41 percent to 82. The median price of both classifications rose 6 percent — townhouses and condominiums to $147,580 and farms and ranches to $189,450

$236,000?! OWWWW. That’s huge for an average.
When this whole thing started, we planned on renting our little house and buying a new one. But we figured on having 3-4 kids (plus I work at home) and wanted 4 bedrooms. It is difficult to find a 4br home in central Austin, and most of the ones we found we couldn’t afford.
Anywhat, we started collecting flyers from homes for sale in our neighborhood as a means of figuring out how much our property was worth. Last summer, we saw the price per square foot jump. Homes here went from $150/sf to $200/sf overnight, it was a little disconcerting.
For us, building was much, much cheaper than buying, mainly because David got a good deal on the house years ago. I do have to wonder if this housing bubble won’t burst at some point, tho. With prices like that, I kind of hope it does.