Westlake Highlights
#1 school district in Texas and #2 school district in the United States, according to Niche, plus prestigious private schools- Recreation on Lake Austin
- A sense of community within a large metropolitan area
- Some of the Austin area’s finest luxury homes, including Lake Austin waterfront homes
- Many homes within 15 minutes to downtown
- Gorgeous tree canopies and proximity to the Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve
- Austin Country Club, one of Texas’ oldest country clubs
Why Austin’s Westlake?
The Westlake area has developed a reputation as an enclave within the greater metropolitan area of Austin that is home to wealth, status, and upper echelon school programs, both public and private. In fact, Eanes Independent School District, Westlake’s school system, was named the number one school district in the state of Texas and the number two school district in the United States. The vast majority of Eanes graduates go straight into college, and many opt to stay in town to attend college at the University of Texas in Austin.
Westlake also is home to the Austin Country Club, an exclusive members-only club where power brokers and movers and shakers, as well as golf lovers, meet on its over 180 acres and enjoy a beautiful view of Lake Austin and the Pennybacker Bridge. Founded in 1899, Austin Country Club is one of the oldest country clubs in Texas and also has a heated pool, boat slips, a fitness facility, and dining. In short, it is the most prominent social gathering spot for Westlake residents.
Westlake residents also have close access to numerous shopping centers and Westlake-centric stores. Even the HEB grocery store in The Village at Westlake is themed as the Westlake Market and has more upscale items than are typically found in a grocery store. Barton Creek Square Mall, which has a Nordstrom’s, also is just a few minutes from Westlake homes.
Westlake in the Greater Austin Area
While the Westlake area definitely is its own community within greater Austin, it is heavily influenced by Austin’s surrounding heft in all things business, education, and culture.
Austin was named the #1 City in America for Young Families by ValuePenguin in 2016, and Parenting Magazine named Austin the #4 Best Place to Raise a Family in 2013. It even was ranked tops on Texas’ Top Ten Bookish Destinations by Lonestar Literary Life in 2016. Add on institutions like the University of Texas and that the U.S. Census Bureau ranks Austin as one of the most educated cities in the nation, and it’s easy to see the area’s drive for high-level learning.
Austin’s appeal holds strong once the degrees are achieved, of course. It was named the #1 Top City for Tech Businesses in a global ranking by the Wall Street Journal in 2015, the #1 City in the Nation for Startups by the Kauffman Index Report in 2015, #3 for High-Tech Jobs by Tech-Thirty in 2015, #3 Best City for Starting a Career by WalletHub in 2015, and the Next Top Boomtown in America by Forbes in 2016.
It’s certainly not all work and school, though. Austin makes lots of time for play! Conde Nast Traveler readers ranked Barton Creek Resort and Hyatt Regency Lost Pines the Top 2 Southern U.S. Golf Resorts, and CNN and Golf Magazine called Austin the Best Golf City in America in 2010. Conde Nast Traveler named trendy South Congress Avenue as one of America’s 50 Greatest Hits in 2015 for its trendy and vintage boutique shopping. In 2016, U.S. News & World Report named Austin the #2 Best City to Live, and in 2015, EventBrite named Austin the #1 City for Live Music & Concerts.
Need even more reasons to consider Westlake and Austin? Try these:
Economy
- Austin is one of The 13 Hottest US Cities for 2016 (Business Insider)
- #5 on The Top 25 Future-Ready U.S. Cities list (Professional Convention Management Association’s Convene Magazine, February 2016)
- #1 Relocation Destination in the U.S. among metro areas with a million residents or more (U.S. Census, 2016)
- #4 Best Performing City (Milken, 2016)
- #2 Top U.S. Market for Overall Real Estate Prospects (Emerging Trends in Real Estate, 2016)
- #1 Best U.S. City to Buy a Home (SelfStorage.com, 2016)
- Austin-Round Rock #1 Best City in the U.S. for Real Estate Investing (Forbes, 2015)
- #8 City for Millennial Entrepreneurs (Thumbtack, 2015)
- #1 Economy in the U.S. (The Business Journals’ On Numbers, 2013)
- #1 City to Open a Small Business (InvestmentNews, 2013)
- #4 on America’s Thriving Cities list (The Daily Beast, 2013)
- #1 Hot U.S. City that offers both Jobs and Culture (U.S. News, 2013)
- #5 in the Nation for Veterans for Military Skill-related Jobs (USAA, 2013)
- #3 Best City to Start a Business (Nerdwallet.com, 2013)
- #6 Top City for Tech Mergers (Upstart Business Journal, 2013)
- Named one of America’s Top 20 Engineering Hubs: The Cities with the Greatest Capacity for Innovation (NewsGeography.com, 2013)
- Ranked among the 17 Coolest Co-Working Spaces In America (Business Insider, 2013)
- #9 Most Innovative City for American Ingenuity (Business Insider, 2013)
- Austin named America’s Fastest Growing City (Forbes, 2013)
- #7 Best City for Women Entrepreneurs (Forbes, 2013)
- #8 of the Top 20 Metros for Venture Capital Activity (The Atlantic Cities, 2013)
- Forbes ranked Austin #1 on Best Big Cities for Jobs. (2012)
- Payscale.com ranked Austin the #2 Hotspot City for Tech Startups. (2012)
- Rent.com named Austin the 10th Best City for College Grads. (2012)
- Austin has the Healthiest Small Business Climate in the South, according to On Numbers. (2010-2012.)
Lifestyle
- Austin is the Seventh Best City for Coffee Fanatics (Smart Asset, 2016)
- #3 City to Live and Work (Moviemaker Magazine, 2016)
- Ninth on The Best Burgers in America: Top 15 Cities (Conde Nast Traveler, 2016)
- #1 of America’s 12 Greatest Music Cities (Thrillist, 2015)
- One of America’s Best Bike Cities (Bicycling Magazine, 2014)
- Travel+Leisure named Austin among America’s Best Burger Cities. (2012)
- Shermans Travel ranked Austin #1 in Top 10 Cities for BBQ. (2012)
- #11 Fittest City in America and #1 Fittest City in Texas (The American College of Sport Medicine, 2013)
- Named one of the South’s Tastiest Towns (Southern Living, 2013)
- #1 Most Vegan Friendly city (PETA online, 2013)
- #2 Best Beer Town in America (Matador Network, 2013)
- GrubHub Inc. ranked Austin #6 on the 10 Most Vegetarian-Friendly Cities. (2012)
- Austin is #13 on Travel + Leisure Magazine’s list of America’s Best Burger Cities 2012.
- U.S. News named Austin #5 on “America’s Best BBQ Cities.” (2012)
- CBS Moneywatch included Austin on its list of 10 Best Places to Retire. (2012)
- Lucky Magazine named Austin #12 on its list of the 25 Best Cities for Shopping. (2012)
- ABC News ranked Austin as the #1 Retirement Hot Spot in the Nation. (2011)
- Austin ranked #2 Most Energetic Cities (Sperling’s, 2011)
- Five of the Best Elementary Schools in the U.S. are in Austin (Great schools.org, 2011)
- Austin has seven of the Best High Schools in the U.S. (Newsweek Magazine, 2011)
- It is the 4th Safest City in America, according to Travel and Leisure (2010)
- Austin is the Best College Town (Travel Channel, 2010)
- Forbes ranks Austin 12th best city for Shopping. (2010)
- In 2010, The Greenguide ranked Austin #2 Green City in U.S.
- According to The Mother Nature Network, Austin is among the Top 10 Greenest Cities in the U.S. (2010)
- Austin named Best City for the Outdoors (Forbes, 2009)