What Is Considering Austin

Do you know people who feel stuck in a high-cost, high-tax city, working hard but not getting ahead, where managing debt and saving for retirement are a constant struggle?

Considering Austin helps people relocate and enjoy a lifestyle they’ve only dreamed about. With our relocation expertise, buying a great house in the right neighborhood for the right reasons is easier and enjoyable. We save people from making mistakes that waste time or money.

How Considering Austin Started

Our Personal Story

In 2017, my wife frequently flew to North Austin for work. My son and I joined her on one trip to explore the area. Despite having friends who raved about Austin, it was my first visit. We were amazed at the low house prices were compared to where we lived. It didn’t take long to realize that we could get a nicer home for less money, freeing up funds for college savings and retirement.

Living in a high-cost, high-tax state felt like being in a hamster wheel. We were working hard but not getting ahead. During good years, we saved; during lean years, we dipped into our savings. This is probably true for 95% of households in New York, Chicago, or much of Coastal California.

Twice, I've moved to other states without knowing anyone. Both times were company-paid relocations. Moving as a family at our expense was different. Despite our real estate backgrounds, we were unprepared — we didn’t know what we didn’t know.

After that initial tag-along discovery trip, we quickly planned another trip back to Austin so my wife could see the homes and areas we liked. In terms of the whole relocation process, we didn’t have a map or a guide. We thought, "How hard could it be? Right?!"

We Made Mistakes

How did we build Considering Austin to be so comprehensive, to make it so much easier for relocating families? We made many mistakes and learned from them.

Long-distance house shopping is tough. Flights get delayed. By the time you get to the airport late in the night, the rental car companies are closed. And finding new home communities is not easy because they are not listed on Redfin, Zillow, or the MLS. Finding them can be as primitive as driving around looking for new home signs. That’s not very efficient when you’ll only be in town for a couple of days. We made this mistake: zig zagging all over town.

In any new home community, there are always one or two floor plans that seem special, and a small number of lots that are desirable (greenbelt, city lights or lake view, etc.) Often times a buyer cannot have the floor plan they want on the lot they like because the lot next door already has that floor plan, and builders won’t put two of the same floor plans next to one another. So, there is always this element of FOMO (fear of missing out) because the house or lot you really like might sell that afternoon or before you can decide. So you make an offer and then have second thoughts. We made this mistake too, and others.

To save time, we played a game called "beat your best," quickly dismissing houses or communities that were not better than our current favorite. This made us seem rude to sales agents because they wanted to build relationships but if they didn’t have a house/lot that was better than our current favorite, we just wanted to drive to the next community. Whatever stereotypes builders’ sales reps have of buyers from high-cost, high-tax cities, we were probably classic examples.

Another casualty of our lack of direction and local knowledge was how we promised our young son that we would do some fun things in Austin, tourist things, but we always ran out of time. We did little more than eat, sleep, house shop, and race back to the airport. If you don't have a well-designed plan for your Austin Discovery Trip, you won't have time to enjoy the city.

In the end, we bought and cancelled houses, made extra trips, and stressed ourselves out. Relocating was certainly an adventure, but six months later I asked myself, “What would I do differently if I knew then what I know now?” That question was the beginning of Considering Austin.

Learned & Improved

Relocating involves dozens of companies. That sounds like an exaggeration, but it is not. Think about all the services you turn off and on when you move (gas, water, electricity, phone). And think about all the addresses you must change (driver license, car insurance, banks, employer). Add to that all the companies involved in building the house, getting a mortgage, movers, airlines, hotels – there are a lot of players.

What we could not find was anyone who manages the whole process for individual families. Many companies specialize in parts of buying a home and relocating:

• Real estate agents
• Mortgage brokers
• Financial planners

But none start at the initial idea of moving to Greater Austin and handle everything including becoming part of a new community. Most individuals and families lack the expertise, time, or desire to manage all these tasks. Check out an article I wrote called the 10 Biggest Mistakes When Relocating. What do you think the odds are of not making any of those mistakes if you DIY relocate?

What Considering Austin Does

Let's explain Considering Austin by way of two analogies. General contractors organize, lead, and manage construction projects, coordinating subcontractors to ensure high-quality, on-time, and under-budget completion. Relocating is a similar process: working with many different people and getting things done in the right order and on schedule.

Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) provide financial planning and advice but don’t hold investment assets. They are not securities firms, or broker dealers, like Schwab, Fidelity, or LPL. They partner with those companies, but they are not licensed to do that back-office work. Success for RIAs is a sound financial plan followed through market fluctuations, with support during life’s challenges. A good relocation plan includes those types of elements.

Considering Austin offers a menu of services, some done in-house¹, some as licensees of other top-tier firms², and some by referral³ to other experts:

• Relocation Consulting¹
• Financial Coaching¹
• Project Management¹
• New home buyer representation²
• Purchase mortgage brokerage²
• Active Mortgage Management²
• Referrals to trusted advisors³

To ensure we know exceptional local professionals, members of our team belong to local chapters of professional associations (ProVisors, Financial Planners Association, and the National Association of Realtors).

What Considering Austin Does Not Do

The company, Considering Austin, is not a:

• Real estate agency
• Mortgage lender
• Financial advisory firm
• Moving, packing, storage company
• Travel agency

We do not list or sell homes, move, pack, store furniture, or make travel arrangements. But we know or partner with professionals who do those things well.

Summary

Considering Austin helps families and small business owners relocate and move to Austin using our unique 6-Step process. We help clients determine if relocating is in their best interest and if moving to Austin is their best choice. When it is, we help them buy the right house, in the right neighborhood, at the right price, and avoid costly mistakes.

What clients like most is having a personal relationship with people who care about their happiness . Often, clients become long-term friends. If you would like to discuss how this might help you, please click here. And we also invite you to subscribe to our newsletter for updates on houses, communities, financial and real estate trends, as well as local events.

Disclosures

*Principals at Considering Austin are licensed through separate companies to provide real estate and/or mortgage brokerage services. Real estate brokered by eXp Realty LLC, and mortgage lending brokered by Nationwide Loans, Inc. To view our licensing and disclosure page, click here.