----- Current Listings
Commercial Properties For Development
Development land, redevelopment sites and build-to-suit representation across Austin, Round Rock, Georgetown, Cedar Park, Leander, Liberty Hill, Kyle, Buda and San Marcos.
Raw land is the only commercial purchase where what you’re buying is mostly a set of assumptions — that it can be zoned for your use, that utilities can reach it at a workable cost, that the jurisdiction will approve a site plan this decade. Get those wrong and the price you paid stops mattering.
Brian has worked Central Texas land and development since 1985, through several cycles of this market rewriting its own rules. If you’re evaluating a site, or looking for one, call (512) 750-5587.
PLANNED MIXED-USE MULTIFAMILY DEVELOPMENT
- For Development, For Sale
9318 and 9400 Metric Boulevard
Austin, TX
78758
Sale Price: $12,800,000
REDEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY LAND FOR SALE
- For Development, For Sale
3509 Rogge Lane
Austin, TX
78723
Sale Price: $3,300,000
Land and Development in Central Texas
Three different buyers show up for the same piece of dirt, and they're solving different problems.
Developers
Buying a site to build on and sell or hold. Entitlement status, density, utility capacity and how long approval takes drive the return more than the land price does.
Redevelopment buyers
Buying an aging or underused property for what the site could become. The existing building is often worth less than nothing once demolition is priced in.
Owner-users building
A practice or business building its own facility. Fewer moving parts than speculative development, but the timeline still has to line up with a lease expiration.
Jurisdiction matters more here than almost anywhere
Two sites ten minutes apart can sit under entirely different rules. A parcel inside Austin city limits, one in Austin's extraterritorial jurisdiction, and one inside Round Rock or Georgetown will face different review processes, different requirements and — most consequentially — very different approval timelines. In general, the suburban municipalities in Williamson and Hays counties move faster than the City of Austin.
Site conditions vary just as sharply. Parts of the western metro sit over the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, where water quality and impervious cover rules significantly limit what can be built. Floodplain, tree protection, watershed classification, and whether the property sits in a MUD or PID all change the math on a site before a single drawing is produced.
This is why "how much per acre" is close to a meaningless question on its own. The right question is what the site permits, how long it takes, and what it costs to get there.
What has to be verified before you close
- Zoning and permitted use — what's allowed today, and what a change would realistically require.
- Jurisdiction — city limits, ETJ, or unincorporated county, and which body reviews the site plan.
- Water and wastewater — not just proximity, but available capacity and the cost of connection.
- Access and traffic — driveway permitting, whether a traffic study is triggered, and any required road improvements.
- Impact and development fees — these vary substantially by jurisdiction and can be a material line item.
- Environmental and topography — floodplain, recharge zone, karst features, slope, and a Phase I where warranted.
- Title and easements — utility and access easements can quietly remove the buildable portion of a site.
- Platting status — whether the tract is platted, and what replatting would add to the schedule.
How a land purchase runs
- Define the program What's being built, how big, and by when. Site selection without a program is just looking at maps.
- Site search and screening Listed tracts plus direct owner outreach. Sites get screened against jurisdiction, utilities and zoning before anyone tours anything.
- Contract with a real feasibility period Land contracts need substantially longer feasibility periods than improved property — often with extension options — because the answers take time to get.
- Feasibility and pre-development Survey, title, environmental, geotechnical, utility confirmation, and preliminary conversations with the reviewing jurisdiction. Civil engineers and land use counsel earn their fees here.
- Close, then entitle and permit Depending on the site and jurisdiction, entitlement and site plan approval can run from several months to well over a year. Build the carrying cost of that period into the original underwriting.
Build-to-Suit for Practices and Businesses
Not every development project is speculative. A growing practice that has outgrown leased space — or wants to stop paying someone else's mortgage — can build purpose-designed facilities on a site selected for its patient base rather than whatever happens to be available.
It's slower than leasing and demands more attention, but it produces a building that fits the operation exactly and an asset that belongs to the practice. The critical piece is starting early enough that the lease expiration doesn't force a bad decision — realistically, that means beginning the conversation well over a year before the current lease ends.
Where Development Is Happening
Growth corridors, land availability and jurisdictional friction vary considerably across the metro. Market conditions by submarket:
Common Questions About Land and Development
What does "entitled" land mean, and why does it cost more?
Entitled land has already secured the zoning and development approvals needed for a specific use and intensity. Unentitled land hasn't — so the buyer takes on the risk that approvals come slowly, come with expensive conditions, or don't come at all. The premium on entitled land is the market pricing that risk and the time it takes to remove it. Which is the better buy depends entirely on your appetite for carrying a site while it works through a review process.
Does it matter whether a site is inside city limits or in the ETJ?
Considerably. Property inside a city's limits is subject to that city's full development rules and review. Property in the extraterritorial jurisdiction — the unincorporated area surrounding a city — falls under a different and often narrower set of requirements, and may involve the county as well. The practical differences show up in which body reviews your plans, what standards apply, what fees are owed, and how long approval takes. This is one of the first questions to answer about any Central Texas site.
How long does it take to get a project approved?
It varies enormously by jurisdiction and project complexity. A straightforward site plan in a smaller suburban city can move relatively quickly. A project requiring a zoning change, a replat, variances, or review in a more heavily regulated area can run well over a year before construction begins. The honest answer for any specific site comes from a pre-development conversation with the reviewing jurisdiction and your civil engineer — and it should happen during feasibility, not after closing.
What should I check about utilities before buying land?
Proximity isn't the same as availability. A water or wastewater line running past the property doesn't guarantee there's capacity to serve your project, or that connecting is affordable. Confirm which provider serves the site — it isn't always the adjacent city — then confirm available capacity, connection requirements, and cost. Extending service or upsizing a line is one of the more common ways a land deal stops penciling after closing.
What are impact fees?
Impact fees are charges a jurisdiction assesses on new development to help fund the infrastructure that development will use — typically water, wastewater and roadways. They vary meaningfully between jurisdictions and by project type and size, and on some projects they're a substantial line item. They should be estimated during feasibility rather than discovered at permitting.
My practice is outgrowing its space. Should we build?
It's worth evaluating if you're confident about staying in the area long term and can't find leased space that fits. Building produces a facility designed around how your practice actually operates, and an asset the practice owns. The trade-off is time and attention — site selection, design, permitting and construction together run far longer than a lease transaction. Start the conversation well over a year before your current lease expires, so that the expiration never becomes the thing making the decision for you.
General information for education only — not legal, engineering, tax or land use advice. Regulations, fees and review processes differ by jurisdiction and change over time. Confirm specifics with the reviewing jurisdiction, your civil engineer and your attorney.
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