Austin Waterfront Homes

Lake Travis Boating

There is nothing quite like living on the water in Austin TX!

Austin boasts two lakes within the vicinity, Lake Austin, which occupies a narrow canyon running from the tail of Lake Travis to Tom Miller dam that forms Lady Bird Lake (formerly Town Lake). The lakes are very different in terms of geography and attitude (and water temperature!)

A 15 minute drive from central Austin, Lake Travis is formed primarily by the damming of the Colorado River at the Mansfield dam. From head to tail waters, the lake when full is nearly 65 miles long and can be well over 100 feet deep in many spots along the channel formed by the old river bed. The shoreline is rocky and steep in most areas of the lake. You’ll find a number of large cruiser type boats and also a healthy supply of houseboats (both owner occupied and for rent). Lake Travis’ geography is conducive to many deep coves in which to drop anchor and relax, throw some burgers on the grill and go for a swim. It is also the home of the infamous Devil’s Cove which caters to the party crowd. It is not uncommon on busy weekends to have hundreds of boats tied together in the cove with the occupants hopping from boat to boat to make new friends.

Real estate on Lake Travis varies widely depending on where on the lake the property is located. Homes and land on the north shore of the lake tend to be much less expensive than those on the south shore, which is closer to Austin. There is no bridge or ferry to cross the lake and at 65 miles long, it can be a tedious drive to get to and from work in downtown Austin if you live on the north shore. Trust me on this, I’ve done it.

Waterfront Living

Lake Travis is used for water supply and flood control for Austin. It also supplies irrigation water for rice farmers down along the TX coast. Due to this, the levels of the lake can fluctuate dramatically as water rushes in from storms, or as water is sent downstream to the farmers.

Lake Austin on the other hand is much closer to central Austin. In terms of geography, it’s still a continuation of the Colorado river, but the land is starting to flatten out as you head towards downtown and the rocky hill country soil gives way to the black-land prairie. Lake Austin is long and narrow and looks much more like a river than a lake.

The water in Lake Austin comes out of Mansfield Dam as necessary to generate electricity and maintain lake levels. Unlike like it’s big brother, Lake Travis; Lake Austin is considered a constant level lake. Great effort is made to ensure the lake stays approximately the same level year round. Of course, you can’t always control mother nature and floods do happen, but they are fairly rare.

Real Estate on Lake Austin is generally quite expensive. It’s a much smaller lake and closer to central Austin and therefore easier to get too and from. Many executives live along the shores of Lake Austin and enjoy a 10 minute commute to their offices.

Austin Waterfront Homes

7200 Getaway Jonestown, TX

Price	Bedrooms	Bathrooms	Square Ft	MLS #
$500,000	5	3	4208	3067932

Property Description:

PUBLIC AUCTION. Once listed over $1.5M, now starting bid is $500K. The builder of this brand new luxury waterfront home wi...