Anyone else spending the beginning days of 2011 sorting scraps of stuff that have accumulated on their desks? I'd like to think the New Year fairy will wave her wand and all these odds and ends will be perfectly organized 2 weeks ago, but I suspect it will all still be here tomorrow.

Here's something else that has been floating around in my "to be blogged" pile.

First, there's a new 12-story, 72-unit condo complex in the works at 805 Nueces St. (That's at the corner of Nueces and 9th street.) Good news! The more people who live downtown, the more people who will want to live downtown. Demand drives value. You can read the story by Jacob Dirr for the Austin Business Journal here.

And second, the TechAmerica Foundation, in its recent "Cybercities…

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Well, I regret to say we are on the sixth day of 2011 and the New Year's elves have yet to get my desk cleaned off. This has been floating around since November, but it's something I don't want to let slip by without notice. In a major economic development coup for the city, SunPower Corp. will be building its operation center in Austin. That means 450 jobs over the next four years and a $10 million capital investment in the economy of Central Texas.

In a statement issued about the move the CEO of the company Tom Wener said Texas has "great potential to become a significant solar market." That would seem to be backed up by the additional news that Hays Energy LP is bringing a $74 million solar power farm to a 136-acre tract on Francis Harris Road…

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As we're ticking down toward Christmas, and no doubt all running around like headless chickens, first, Happy Holidays to you all!   Second, I want to give you a gift -- some numbers. Yep. Numbers that suggest where the economy is headed in 2011. A group of economists from various universities delivered these predictions as part of the Chamber's annual Economic Forecast.   The group included Dr. Thomas R. Saving, Texas A&M University; Dr. Stephen Gardner, Baylor University; Dr. Thomas W. Gilligan, The University of Texas at Austin; and Dr. James LeSage, Texas State University. (Dr. Saving wasn't able to attend in person, so his numbers are given separately.)   And here's what they had to say:   - GDP Growth Rate: most forecast a…

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Well, the craziness that is the season! Just now getting around to mentioning that last Wednesday (December 8), the City Council unveiled its plan for downtown Austin. Take a look at the report from News 8, which includes a video.

There is a lot about this plan to like -- diversifying activities on 6th street; getting on top of a real, permanent program to help the homeless; and starting the first phase of an urban rail system.

I'm really excited about it all. But urban rail? Perfect. It would link UT and East Riverside initially and then spread out over ten years. The more ways you give people to move around easily, the more willing they are to branch into new living areas. An excellent development for any real estate investors because it means…

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We're getting down to that time of year when people start taking stock of what they've been doing. Eating too much. Definitely. Not working out enough. Yep. All that stuff is standard stock and trade for resolutions on the New Year. But I have some really good news for real estate investors that will take you through the holidays guilt free, content you're on the right course.

What you're doing? It's worth more than gold. No. Seriously. In the long term, real estate investing has fared better than Gold, that shiny stuff that has long been thought the best of the best when it comes to putting your money somewhere.

Let's look at the charts below. If you sunk some investment dollars into gold in January 1980, setting aside all transactions costs and…

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On October 21, I told you Austin placed second on the 2010 Milken Institute's list of Best Performing Cities. A month earlier Forbes blogger Francesca Levy picked us as a best bet for residential real estate housing markets in the nation. Now here we are in November, and Newsweek says we're one of America's ten best-positioned cities for economic recovery. I know New Year's is better than a month away, but I feel like breaking out the champagne.

In a November 8 article ("Greetings from Recoveryland"), author Joel Kotkin picked Texas as the number one destination for job-seeking Americans. The "Texaplex" -- Austin, Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston -- was singled out for reasons that will make the hearts of real estate investors sing:

- hearty…

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Back on September 30, we posted the breaking news that The Austin Business Journal designated Southeast Austin as the "next big spot" in town based on the $250 million F1 track going in on the SH-130 corridor. (That post also has a number of source links if you want to read up on the background of the project.)

Okay, so, latest news -- and it's good news. Construction on the track, which is near FM 812, will get underway in December with a slated completion in 2012. The numbers attached to the project are looking fantastic for Austin:

- 3,000 seasonal and construction jobs
- $100 million pumping into the economy

They're looking at developing a year-round calendar of events, starting a motorsport driving club, getting a kart track going, and…

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This week my email box was just too full to deal with each message individually. Many of you were asking for me to clear up my thoughts on investing in Austin based on parts or regions of the city. One writer said:

"I know what you like about north Austin -- bedroom communities, the school systems, the infrastructure. It's the place where people go when they leave Central Austin. I get that, but you seem to like South Austin a lot and I'm not clear why. What's up with that choice?"

Okay. Here's the order of my buying preferences by area:

- Central Austin
- South Austin
- North Austin
- East Austin
- West Austin

I don't want to muddy the waters any more, but West Austin comes in last because it's our version of Beverly Hills. If you're an…

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Your first goal -- really your only goal -- is to limit your buying to densely populated areas with strong appreciation. Screw up in your choice of location and purchase price, and your adventure in flipping is sure to head south fast.

It's true that you'll have more opportunities to find housing when you get out of the downtown area, but there's more demand on housing in Central Austin than in outlying areas. Again, you're thinking in terms of the land. Go where land is scarce.

If a home buyer is looking to stay in one school system and ten minutes away there's a resale house, but 20 minutes away there's a brand new house, you, as the seller, will feel the pull of the brand new house over your resale.

As an investor, you're looking at picking…

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If we had been having this conversation 3 or 4 years ago, I'd have said run -- don't walk -- but do whatever you have to do to stay away from all of the new subdivisions exploding in and around the Austin Area. I've changed my mind and I'm sorry to say that change is based on other people's misfortunes.

Subdivision foreclosures and short sales have created a gold mine for real estate investors.

During those "gold rush" years of the Austin real estate boom, new subdivisions were springing up all around the outskirts of the central part of the city and anyone who could fog a mirror was able to purchase them. There was a flood of new construction. Builders were putting up billboards saying "Why Rent, When You Can Own" and of course they were right.…

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