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Burnet County average home price doubled since 2018, up to $500K

Burnet County Development Services Director Herb Darling gives a presentation on growth and development in the county at a Burnet Chamber of Commerce Coffee and Conversation event on July 16. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey

Burnet County’s average home price has more than doubled since 2018, shooting up from $245,000 to over $500,000 as of 2024, according to the Burnet Central Appraisal District. The county’s growth is still trending upward but not quite at the pace of COVID-19 pandemic levels, said Herb Darling, the county’s Development Services director. 

Darling gave a presentation on growth in Burnet County during a Burnet Chamber of Commerce Coffee and Conversation event on Tuesday, July 16. 

“Right now, on the whiteboard in my office, I’m sitting on 863 lots with preliminary plat approval working toward final approval,” he told those in attendance.

The majority of growth is in the Spicewood area and the rural unincorporated areas of northeast Burnet County near U.S. 183, Darling said. His office issued 2,700 building permits in unincorporated areas alone between 2019 and 2023. Another 223 building permits have been issued since January 2024. These numbers don’t include permits in Burnet County municipalities. 

Darling ascribed the growth in Spicewood to water access and proximity to Texas 71 and the growth in northeast Burnet County to western migration from Williamson and Travis counties and southern migration from the Killeen metropolitan area. 

“It’s easy for us in Burnet County to forget that we’ve got one of the biggest military installations in the United States sitting in Killeen,” he said. “We’re seeing a push from up north.”

He also pointed to the Firefly Aerospace manufacturing and testing facility in Briggs as a potential draw for new homes and economic development. That facility has over 300 employees.

“It is totally amazing that an enterprise like that is occurring in Burnet County,” Darling said.

A graphic shows Burnet County immigration patterns and how they correlate to household income for 2021-22, according to data from the Internal Revenue Service. Image courtesy of Marble Falls Economic Development Corp.

The primary concern with all that growth is water availability. Darling said the county’s hands are tied when it comes to regulating development due to restrictions in the Texas Local Government Code, which can only be altered by a vote of the Texas Legislature.

“We cannot make up rules,” he said. “We have seen our statute, not gutted, but altered in favor of developers. In each (legislative session), we are losing regulatory authority.”

He was referring to Chapter 232 of the Texas Local Government Code, which dictates what counties can and can’t do regarding regulating developers in unincorporated areas. These restrictions were made evident when the Burnet County Commissioners Court was forced to approve the high-density Spicewood Gardens subdivision in June because it met all statutory requirements, even though officials had concerns over water availability.

“It’s pretty hard to overhaul an engine with a crescent wrench and a pair of pliers, but that’s what the county government does,” Darling explained. “What we look to do, what I feel like my chief goal is for Burnet County, is that we’ve got to have sustainable development.”

While Darling advocates for moderate development, he also said it is important to create an affordable environment for young people who are struggling to purchase a home in the current market.

“Burnet County has become a very expensive place to live,” he said. “It’s pretty tough for a kid to go buy a starter home in Burnet County.”

According to Burnet Central Appraisal District Chief Appraiser Stan Hemphill, the average price of a homestead in Burnet County is about $500,000 as of July 2024. This is more than double the 2018 average price of $245,000. These numbers refer to the average market value of “homesteads,” meaning actual homes, not rental properties or vacation homes.

Marble Falls Economic Development Corp. Executive Director Christian Fletcher shared data with DailyTrib.com from the Internal Revenue Service that shows how average household income hasn’t kept pace with development.

The average household income for a Burnet County resident was $85,641 in 2018-19. It jumped to $119,062 in 2021-22, the most current data available from the IRS, according to Fletcher.

He explained that the rise in average income wasn’t necessarily due to Burnet County natives earning more but to a massive influx of higher-income individuals and families moving into the area. The county saw the single-largest increase in Texas household income change due to migration in 2021, rising 26 percent from 2020. 

Fletcher attributed that migration to the pandemic.

“People got out of Dodge (referring to major cities),” he said. “They wanted a higher quality of life, so they came to the Highland Lakes.”

Unincorporated Burnet County isn’t alone in its development spike.

The Thunder Rock subdivision in Marble Falls has plans for around 1,966 single-family homes, 924 multifamily units, and 150 active adult units. The Gregg Ranch subdivision, also in Marble Falls, is expecting 700 single-family homes and 250 multifamily homes.

“We can only put so much cattle on a pasture before you’ve got to start hauling their feed,” said Darling in his presentation, referring to the population growth. “That’s the sort of attitude I’ve tried to take with Burnet County.”

dakota@thepicayune.com