Jude Galligan

Bodies In Urban Spaces

Jude Galligan | April 26, 2009 |

I drove by this group of people dressed in fluorescent colored sweat-gear practicing [something] outside the downtown Austin post office, yesterday. I learn today that this is the Bodies in Urban Spaces dancers. Cool! From the website:

“…Bodies in Urban Spaces, besides being a wonder of organization and stamina, was a model of public art: free, fun, and transformative.” – Lisa Kraus Philadelphia Inquirer, 06.09.2008

Thanks to Austin Texas Daily Photo who also tells us you can catch the dancers today at 11AM in Republic Park.

-Jude

Downtown Austin: Useful Data For Protesting Your Property Taxes

Jude Galligan | April 24, 2009 |

If you plan to protest the latest property tax assessments, you can maximize your effectiveness by arming yourself with the right tools: sales comps. Property tax assessments are based on the previous year’s values. Your most immediate comps will be in your building, then your neighboring buildings, then greater downtown, etc. To get you started, we are going to focus on fourth quarter 2008 transactions. You can download the data set below.

21 = number of downtown Austin sales in Q4-2008
$311 = average sale price per foot
$263 = average sale price per foot of properties built pre-2000
$322 = average sale price per foot of properties East of Congress Ave
**this data does not include developer sales**

Not sure of your property’s value assessment? Visit Traviscad.org and search by your address. Print a copy of the protest form and submit by May 31st. BTW, the County’s value assessment has little to do with the amount you can sell your property for – so fight on!

pdf list of Q4 sales.
xls for the quants 🙂

-Jude

Lustre Pearl on Rainey Street

Jude Galligan | April 23, 2009 |

Two evenings ago, we decided to take stroll down to Lady Bird Lake. We headed south from the Sabine and as we crossed Cesar Chavez we recalled another Sabine resident had clued us in to a cool new venue called Lustre Pearl. Set at the entrance to the old-house-commercially-zoned madness that is Rainey Street, Lustre Pearl is the perfect setting for its downtown Austin location. Sitting a couple of blocks away from thousands of residents currently and soon to be living in the southeast quadrant of downtown Austin.

Inside you’re greeted to a stripped down old house with the original floors and window transoms. Outside you have lounge seating and bistro tables surrounded by a artistic metal fence. The outdoor ping-pong table is the perfect touch for Austin.

What’s really special about Lustre Pearl is that it’s removed from the traditional bar/lounge districts. Reminds me of Spider House, but without the coffee. Which brings me to the only suggestion I have for Lustre Pearl: be a cafe, too!

-Jude

Lustre Pearl

Thanks to Theresa at the Sabine for the tip!

Old Austin: A Virtual Tour

Jude Galligan | April 21, 2009 |

Old Austin Neighborhood Association has a block-by-block virtual tour of historic ‘Old Austin’. Old Austin is that part of downtown which is north of 7th, south of 15th St., east of Lamar, west of San Antonio St. At Oldaustin.org, you can learn more about the properties on each block. You can even see historical maps dated from 1839-2008 for most blocks. Check it out!

-Jude

Brazos Place Condo Auction

Jude Galligan | April 20, 2009 |

19 Brazos Place condos in downtown Austin are being offered via an auction hosted by Kennedy Wilson. The auction is scheduled for May 17th. While the opening bids are enticing, a hidden reserve price has been set for each unit.

I’ll definitely be watching this closely. Most auctions, including this one, have the right to cancel or reschedule if there isn’t a good response. Judging by the amount of coverage the Brazos Place auction is getting I expect there to be lots of interest.

If you are considering a residence in downtown Austin, then it’s worth giving this auction your attention. After checking out the auction website, you can contact me to learn more about the building, discuss the dynamics of the auction, and to preview the units.

For further information, including registration, contact:

Jude Galligan
Downtown Austin Realtor
judegalligan [@] gmail.com
512-226-3414