January 2019

Make plans with some friends to attend the 2019 Downtown Bastrop Sip, Shop and Swirl on the evening of Saturday, February 2. Tickets are required for this event and advance purchase is suggested to guarantee tickets are still available.

Sip your way through Downtown Bastrop at your favorite shops, galleries and venues. To accompany your wine, local restaurants will offer small bites for you to enjoy. Live music will take place throughout the night as well. Shuttles will be running during the event to help you get around town and keep you safe. This is one of Bastrop’s favorite events and you are sure to have a good time.

See a list of participating shops, galleries, restaurants and wineries here.

When: Saturday, February 2nd 6:00-9:00 p.m.

As we enter the coldest part of the winter, utility bills are often at their highest point of the season as your heat is runs more often to keep your comfortable in your home. There are many things you can do to save on your utility bills without sacrificing too much comfort. Here are some great tips to keep you warm and your utility bills low.

• Open the shades and curtains in your Bastrop home during the warmest parts of the day to allow sunlight inside to naturally warm your home.
• Use ceiling fans to help circulate the warm air throughout your home and push it into the lower parts of your rooms since heat naturally rises. Fans should turn clockwise in the winter on the lowest setting.
• Modern electronics draw energy even when turned off. Keep

 Welcome to your nearly new home with upgrades galore! Built in 2016, this Hunter’s Crossing home offers three bedrooms, two full baths and 1,506 square feet.

The home offers an in-law floor plan with two bedrooms and a bath at the front of the home. The master suite includes a large closet, dual vanities, walk-in closet and a walk-in shower. Upgrades are found throughout the home and include wood laminate floors, upgraded fixtures, tile in baths, stacked stone back splash granite in the kitchen and tile in the master bath. There is a spacious laundry room with above appliance cabinets. 

The home sits on a 0.132 acre lot with a covered patio with a stained concrete floor, upgraded rear fenced and a storage shed. This home is move-in ready and all of

Spend your Saturday at Bastrop State Park for some fun outdoor activities that you will enjoy. Start with a guided hike from 11:00-12:30. You will hike one mile while learning about the park including the special pine trees that are found in the park and the impact the 2011 fire had on the park.

Take a break for a picnic lunch after your hike then attend an Art in the Park session to learn about Plein Air Painting beginning at 2:00. Materials will be provided and the session is appropriate for all levels.  You will create a watercolor piece to take home with you in this session.

Bastrop State Park offers many activities for you to enjoy while you are in the park including hiking, bike trails and fishing.  

When: Saturday, January 26th

Where:

As we start the new year, there is always an increase in the number of home sellers that want to put their homes on the market for the Spring season. While buyer interest does often pick up at this time of year, the number of homes on the market is so high your home may not receive the attention it deserves due to larger amount of competition. If you too want to sell your Bastrop home in the coming months, it would be a good idea to beat the rush and get your home on the market as soon as possible. Here are 10 things to do NOW so you can get your home listed in the next 30 days.

1. Take down all of your interior and exterior holiday decorations. Nothing will distract buyers more than Christmas decorations in February.

2. Pack up excess belongings in

Three Jewish widows gather monthly for tea and visits to their husbands’ graves at the cemetery together. Come along with these very different ladies as they make trips to the cemetery and encounter Sam the butcher, a widow visiting his wife’s grave.

Cemetery Club proves you can make friends anywhere and enjoy yourself no matter where you are if you are open to it. Spend an evening you are certain to enjoy at the theater with these ladies. Ticket prices start at $8 and can be purchased online or in person. Add dinner at The 602 on Main prior to your show to enjoy a full night out.

When: Various dates and times January 26.

Where: Bastrop Opera House, 711 Spring Street, Bastrop, TX 78602

For more information about Cemetery Club or to purchase

In many parts of the country, 2018 was a good year for real estate. While it could have been better if there were more homes available for sale, homes were appreciating and interest rates remained relatively low making it a very profitable time to sell your home and a nice time to buy if you could find the right house for you. Will 2019 see more of the same or can you expect a change as the new year progresses? Here are a few things to keep watching.

• Interest rates will continue to rise as 2019 progresses stretching buyer’s budgets and limiting the amount buyers can spend on a home.
• Home price appreciation will continue to slow as inventory amounts begin to stabilize. Prices will still climb, just at lower levels than recent years.
• Inventory

If you have been waiting for your chance to call ColoVista home, we have multiple opportunities in 2019 for you to make ColoVista your home. Whether you are looking for an existing home that is move-in ready or a lot to build the home of your dreams, we have something for your.

You will love living in ColoVista. A professionally managed golf course, The Mansion at ColoVista events venue for weddings and other events and the seasonal pool are just some of the things you will enjoy.

For more information about individual properties, please view them below.

Houses

129 Mountain Laurel Way

106 Fairway Court

Lots

101 Sandpiper Drive

103 Sandpiper Drive

103 Egret Drive

107 Egret Drive

113 Loon Drive

121 Riverwalk Lane

127

Make plans to attend Bastrop 1832 Farmers Market this Saturday for the fourth annual Cool Cats Chili CookOff. Enjoy a bowl of yummy chili by one of the CookOff participants. Donations are suggested to enjoy the CookOff. There will also be other fun activities as well. After you enjoy of bowl of chili, make sure to cast your vote for the CookOff winner. You may also win a cake at the stray cat cake walk, purchase homemade desserts from the bake sale and bid for cat themed items in the silent auction.

This proceeds from this fun event benefit Bastrop CATS Trap-Neuter-Return program, which is a non-profit organization assisting feral, free roaming and stray cats in the Bastrop area.

When: Saturday, January 12 11:00 a.m-2:00 p.m.

Where: Bastrop 1832

For most people, your home will be the largest purchase you ever make and depending on the terms of the mortgage you choose to pay for your home, you could spend more than double the actual price of your home by the time you pay for it (if you ever pay it off.)

Selecting a mortgage is almost like picking shoes….it can be really hard to make a decision and there seems to be new choices all the time. There are tons of different mortgage options available and every different choice has both pros and cons. With so many choices, how will you ever decide which mortgage is best for you. Today, let’s just focus on the length of your mortgage term. While 30 years is probably the most common because it makes your home more affordable, there are some distinct