The Early Bird

“Housing prices in Austin are generally out of our budget,” Atwood said. “We would have had to move to Pflugerville or way down south … then we found out about Mueller.” Read the full story here.

It was bound to happen.

Millions of baby boomers, the post-World War II generation that other generations are probably tired of hearing about, are getting ready to retire. And home builders across the nation — and especially in Texas — are gearing up to offer plenty of choices for life after work.

In nearly every retirement study during the past decade, boomers have said they want to be active in retirement; to be close to good medical care; to be close to families; and to be near cities with cultural amenities.

The only problem, of course, is being able to afford such things.

That’s where Texas comes in.

It’s cheaper here.   Read the full story here.

Lots To Like In The Lone-Star State
Texas dominated our lineup of mortgage-worthy areas. Thanks to a business-friendly tax environment, many large corporations call the Lone Star State home, which creates jobs and tax revenue.

The University of Texas campus provides young blood and research-related jobs to No. 2 city Austin. This state capitol is a hip area on the rise. The vacancy rate has fallen by 37.5% in the last 24 months to just 1.5%, despite a lot of building in recent years. And buying isn’t much more expensive than renting. An average mortgage payment is $1,022.40, and average rent hits $767.  Read the full story here.