SellAustinTexas

Portfolio recently named Austin, Texas the #1 city for young adults. Through their 10 part analysis, Austin took top honors with factors including employment growth, per capita income and income growth, education and cost of living.

According to Portfolio, ”two qualities help Austin to stand out among the nation’s largest metros:

— Two thirds of the nation’s major markets have fewer jobs now than five years ago, but Austin added 99,200 jobs during that span. Its annual employment-growth rate of 2.8 percent is the fastest in America.

— Austin has the strongest concentration of young people among the 67 metros. Twenty-eight percent of its residents are between the ages of 18 and 34.”

The southwest region as a whole is a thriving one for young adults, home to five of their top 10 cities. Portfolio also published an interactive map of their results, so you can see how your city stacks up. 

Austin continues to stand out for employment and income numbers, but also quality of life. If you would like an emailed or mailed information packet on the work and activities Austin has to offer, contact us today.

When it comes to investing, particularly in real estate, there are two big schools of thought: investing for capital gains, and investing for cash flow. Purchasing a home and watching it appreciate in value is an example of investing for capital gains. Purchasing a home then renting it to tenants is an avenue for cash flow.

Robert Kiyosaki, best-selling author of “Rich Dad Poor Dad,” and writer of Yahoo! Finance’s “Why the Rich Get Richer” column, recently wrote about these two investment styles. He always advises readers first and foremost to educate themselves on investing, and to always prepare for the worst when it comes to managing your money. Then, in this article, he prefaces: “the following are the steps I did to prepare for the worst. I do not recommend my path; I will simply state why I did what I did and what benefits were gained.”

He then explains that for himself, he invests for cash flow. When the real estate market hit trouble, he explains, most people had invested for capital gain and either “lost a lot of money or are afraid of losing more money.” Investing for cash flow has kept money coming in for him, even through hard times.  “Even though the real estate market crashed in 2007, my rental properties continue to produce cash flow.”

1915 Cullen

Further, when the market turns down, these options become cheaper. “The good news is, when prices crash, cash flow investments become more affordable.” Now is a great time for investors, even new ones, to add these real estate investments.

1915 Cullen, for instance, is an Austin duplex with two units that rent for $1,790 a month together. Currently for sale at $269,000, this charming Crestview home, pictured, is a great investment.