LBJ Real Estate After the Flood

2900 Bridge at Boat Town Burger Bar in Kingsland, Texas

Many people have been asking what I foresee in the Lake LBJ real estate market, after the historic flood.  While the flood significantly damaged many properties on the lake I don’t believe you will see a big dip in the value of Lake LBJ Real Estate and here is why:

1. Most, if not all, recently built properties on Lake LBJ did not flood.  These homes were built based on the most recent flood map update and were built to current flood specifications so these homes were not effected

2. Properties that did flood were properties that were known to have a real flood risk.  I have spoken to many owners that did not carry flood insurance on these properties and gave the reason of the high cost to not carry.  This high cost is high because of the fact that there was and is a significant flood risk.  There may be a few opportunities in this category for flooded properties but if the properties are not taken into current flood standards its hard to believe they will be good investments.  If a particular property has the main living areas elevated and only had a flooded basement that was built to withstand the flood then there is not much to worry about and these are still great properties although flood coverage wont be cheap.

3. For older homes that have the top of the finished flood below the base flood elevation these homes likely need to be torn down.  In most cases the county is going to require them to be rebuilt/relocated on higher ground and any properties not brought up to current flood standards will be hard to insure.  These are the properties that incurred the most damage but most of these homes lie on prime waterfront properties and they won’t sell below land value.  There are many investors in the market place for good pieces of develop-able land so these properties will be in high demand

So where then does the opportunity lie?  I believe the best option for buying a good deal on Lake LBJ will be to focus on non-flooded properties that have been on the market for a long time.  In some cases (not all) owners will be ready to “Move on” and negotiate aggressively to get a deal done. The sellers are happy to have escaped the flood but felt the pressure and wont to remove the potential risk from their portfolio.  In a second home market its rare that anyone is broke given the strength of the economy so I don’t expect all sellers to be motivated but I encourage buyers to hire the LBJ Expert (ME!) so I can help you capitalize on this opportunity.  In fact I have a few potential targets as we speak.

As for prime, non-flooded properties – In my opinion these homes just had their value proved.  Homes built on high ground will be more valuable then flooded homes and for anyone that had a worry about flooding we now have real, relevant information hat shows which properties are safe and which are not.

If you have questions about the market or would like to discuss the current opportunities for Lake LBJ real estate give me a call at (512) 786-1515.  Hope to hear from you soon!