Bastrop, Texas

Yes, even though the plant itself sits in Del Valle, not Bastrop. Home values in Bastrop zip codes are up more than 40 percent since 2016, as workers priced out of Austin proper look east for a shorter commute than Elgin or Taylor offers. Samsung's chip plant in Taylor adds a second wave of demand from the north. Expect that pressure to keep pushing Bastrop prices up even though neither employer sits inside city limits.

Plan on 35 to 50 minutes outside of rush hour on Highway 71, and 50 minutes to over an hour during the morning push, especially where 71 meets Texas 130. That's longer than Manor or Elgin. In exchange you get the river, the Lost Pines tree cover, and a lot more house for the money. If your job is near the airport or the Tesla plant in Del Valle, the drive is shorter than the trip downtown.

Bastrop ISD covers the city and most of the surrounding county, including Cedar Creek, Red Rock, and Rockne, with roughly 12,000 students across two high schools, two middle schools, and six elementary schools. Bastrop High School currently carries a 'B' rating from the state. SilverLeaf has a future on-site elementary campus planned, which is typical of how the district is expanding to keep up with the new master plans. Always confirm the zoned campus for a specific address, since boundaries shift as new schools open.

Bastrop still runs well below Austin proper, Pflugerville, and Round Rock. Most resale and new construction land between roughly $275,000 and $450,000, with the top sections of The Colony and SilverLeaf reaching into the $600s. That gap has narrowed since 2016, but it hasn't closed. You're trading a longer commute for real savings, and for some buyers that trade is worth it.

The Colony and SilverLeaf are the two active master plans absorbing most of the new-construction demand, with builders including Perry Homes, Lennar, David Weekley, Ashton Woods, Drees Custom Homes, Taylor Morrison, and Saratoga Homes. Riverside and The Hills at Bastrop are adding new homes at a smaller scale. Both of the big two carry MUD assessments on top of the county and school tax rate, so get the total number before you compare a Bastrop new build to something similar in Elgin or Taylor.

Lost Pines is the name for the isolated stand of loblolly pines around Bastrop, separated from East Texas's main pine forest by more than 100 miles. The 2011 Bastrop County Complex Fire burned about 95 percent of Bastrop State Park and destroyed more than 1,600 homes, the most destructive wildfire in Texas history. Recovery has been real. More than 4 million loblolly pines have been replanted through Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Arbor Day Foundation, though officials expect it will take a generation for the forest to fully return. Pine Forest and Tahitian Village, which sit on mature tree cover today, are outside the original burn scar.

Circle D-KC Estates and the unincorporated stretches near SilverLeaf and Cedar Creek offer acreage, well water, and lower base tax rates outside city limits, but you give up city utilities and drive further for groceries. Inside the city and in master plans like The Colony, you get a MUD or PID layered on top of the county and Bastrop ISD rate, with current Colony MUD rates running around $0.85 per $100 of value. Which one fits depends on whether you value space and a lower base rate over walkability and built-in amenities. We'll run the full tax picture for any specific address before you decide.