Nine candidate parcels from the OneHome saved search, scored against a twelve-criterion rubric tuned for a small-home village — not for a single ranch home. Acreage, water source, septic feasibility, county posture, and price-per-acre all weighted by what would actually let you put 10–20 dwelling units on a parcel and not get sued by a deed-restriction subdivision two years in.
We're not buying a ranch. We're buying a parcel that can hold a dozen small homes, a community building, a shared shop, a garden, and septic / water capacity for a multi-family use that has to last decades.
The rubric is tuned for things most listings don't tell you: zoning posture, county-level deed restrictions, soil percolation potential, distance to grid power, slope and floodplain exposure, road frontage, and the friendliness of the immediate neighborhood to a 10–20 unit cluster.
A parcel that scores 5/5 on view-from-the-porch can still score 1/5 on "can you legally put thirteen homes on it." We weight the legal and infrastructure criteria the hardest — those are the killshots.
The killshot. If the parcel sits inside a deed-restricted subdivision that caps homes-per-acre or bans rentals, the village is illegal before it starts. Bastrop County unincorporated is generally permissive; Travis County varies.
5 · unrestricted/ag · 3 · light HOA · 1 · strict subdivision deed
Enough land for 10–20 small units + 30% buffer for septic, drives, common areas, setbacks. 5–25 ac, roughly rectangular is ideal. Below 4 ac you can't fit a real village.
5 · 8–20 ac, square-ish · 3 · 4–7 ac or odd shape · 1 · <3 ac or strip
Each home needs septic (or a shared aerobic system). Sandy-loam percolates; heavy clay or rock fails. Bastrop soils trend favorable. Look for prior perc results or existing OSSF.
5 · perc'd & approved · 3 · likely OK · 1 · failed perc
Municipal water (Aqua TX, Aqua Water Supply) = best. Well = drilling + maintenance + multi-home capacity. Each parcel here has a "Water" flag in the listing — verify what that means (meter? line? well?) before offer.
5 · municipal tap · 3 · proven well · 1 · no water
Bluebonnet Electric covers most of Bastrop. Pole within 100 ft of build site = cheap; a half-mile run = $20K+.
5 · pole on parcel · 3 · within 200 ft · 1 · long run
Paved county frontage = drivable in any weather + emergency access + USPS pickup. Highway 304 frontage (parcels 3, 4, 5) = great access but road-noise tradeoff. FM 535 = paved.
5 · paved frontage · 3 · caliche easement · 1 · undefined
FEMA Zone X = good. Zone A/AE = elevated builds + flood insurance. Walter Hoffman Rd and the Hwy 304 cluster need FEMA checks — they're near drainages.
5 · Zone X · 3 · partial · 1 · majority A
Cedar Creek & Bastrop are 25–40 min SE of central Austin. Hwy 304 parcels are deeper into Bastrop County (40–50 min). FM 535 corridor is closest to ABIA.
5 · <30 min · 3 · 30–50 · 1 · >60
Ranchland or low-density residential = good. Industrial, feedlot, quarry, planned highway widening = noise and falling resale. Check satellite view + Bastrop CAD.
5 · rural/residential · 3 · mixed · 1 · industrial
Heritage oaks add character but limit footprint. Steep slopes drive grading costs. Rolling parcels with mixed cover ideal.
5 · rolling, mixed · 3 · heavily wooded · 1 · steep / bare
Bastrop unimproved comp band ~$15–35K/ac unimproved, $40–70K improved. Several listings here are 4–8× comp because they're <2 ac (small-lot premium); those aren't village-scale anyway.
5 · <comp · 3 · at comp · 1 · 30%+ over
Bastrop unincorporated is permissive — septic permits via county OSSF + on-site sewage inspections. Cedar Creek 78617 ZIP straddles into Travis County (Del Valle area) — check ETJ.
5 · unincorp, no ETJ · 3 · some ETJ · 1 · in city limits
| Address / MLS # | Acres | Price | City · County | H₂O | C1 Zon | C2 Acre | C3 Sept | C4 H₂O | C5 Elec | C6 Road | C7 Flood | C8 ATX | C9 Adj | C10 Trees | C11 $/ac | C12 Perm | Score | Verdict |
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