Make sure you study your community before you buy a home, the neighborhood may not be for you

AUSTIN, Texas - Aug. 31, 2016 - PRLog -- I chose to buy a home in Point Venture after a long search for a community that best suited our needs, personality and lifestyle. Having grown up in South Padre Island and Gulf Coast area, I wanted to live somewhere near the water, like Lake Travis, but not too far from Austin. At the same time I didn't want to live in "Keeping Austin Weird" and didn't consider communities like Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Round Rock etc for no other reason than I wanted to live close to Lake Travis at an affordable price.

One of the things I always liked about Point Venture is it feels a little like a 24/7/365 vacation, with a sort of split season of Spring and Summer, then an "off season" feel during Fall and Winter much like it was in South Padre. This means PV gets a little more crowded between March and Labor day and slows down considerably between Labor day and March….. and I like it.

I welcome the occasional visitors that come to Point Venture to stay a weekend or a week. I like when it's busy 6 months followed by a quieter 6 months, Ive been through 15 season of such change and I really like it. Over the years I feel privileged to live in Point Venture "Where every days is a holiday" and would not consider living in the "city" or the suburbs again as my primary home.

Having said this Point Venture isn't for everybody. I've been in real estate on and off 20 years and I tell everyone considering buying a home here or anywhere, to do their research about the community they're considering buying into, because it needs to fit your family's personality and needs. Point Venture is not Cedar Park, it's not Round Rock and it's not Austin. It's a lake village that often brings together "fun loving" personalities that enjoy boating, outdoors, going out for fun, socializing and yes, sometimes even late night fun. For the most part I've noticed that those that feel attracted to the lifestyle find Point Venture a pretty great place to live.

On the other hand I've cautioned prospective home buyers whether it's Austin, Dallas or Point Venture, that all communities and neighborhoods have their own personality. I remember years ago a couple looking for a home near the M streets in Lower Greenville avenue came to find out years later than the "nightlife" they first sought, was suddenly too close to their home. They and a few other like minded neighbors started trying to change the personality of the neighborhood even though the bars and lifestyle had been there many years before the new residents bought their home. One way of putting it is that what attracted them to the area is what they came to recent about the area as they grew older. The owners in lower Greenville, to this day, live endlessly trying to fight the neighborhood, the city, the commission, trying to change their neighborhood into something that it never was.

In Austin a few years ago, a few condo owners downtown started complaining that the music coming from the bars was becoming "too loud"echoing around the buildings, often sounding off several blocks away. They knew the bars were there before they bought and liked being near them. But years later realized that living near the nightclub district wasn't such a great idea after all.

I understand the frustration of not having everything you want in your community, but like a marriage, for better or worse, everyone knows what they're getting into and everyone is responsible for researching a community and neighborhood before they buy.

Point Venture isn't for everyone. But neither is Austin, Cedar Park, Round Rock or any other city you choose to live. If you do your research and still choose to live in Point Venture, make sure the lifestyle that has existed in PV since 1970 when the "yacht club" was founded meets your personality and needs, for better or for worse. Otherwise you'll spend your days wondering why you bought a home here. Like I've always said, in Real Estate, "You're not just buying a home, you're buying a neighborhood"

www.pointventure.co