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When New Braunfels Utilities elevated the price of connecting new developments to water and sewer utilities by greater than 120% final yr, builders stated they needed to rethink whether or not they actually needed to construct inside town.
One metropolis council member even accused then-NBU CEO Ian Taylor of attempting to stymie a fee of growth that was threatening to overwhelm town’s infrastructural capability to deal with it.
And definitely, in 2023, growth slowed in New Braunfels. The place town linked practically 2,400 new developments to water utilities in 2021, and a pair of,150 new growth in 2022, that quantity dwindled to simply 1,068 in 2023.
Residence begins additionally shrank, with information seeming to indicate growth certainly shifting outdoors of town of New Braunfels.
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In response to housing intelligence agency Zonda, new house begins declined by 10% throughout Comal County between the primary quarters of 2023 and 2024.
Taking New Braunfels’ postal handle space out of the equation, nonetheless, which roughly covers the world served by New Braunfels Utilities — yearly begins over the identical timeframe soar to a 23% enhance in Comal County.

New Braunfels has been a hub for brand new house growth.
What’s astounding, although, is that whereas utility connections shrank significantly, the charges NBU collects for making these connections, known as influence charges, rose by practically $4 million in 2023, to an all-time excessive of $29 million.
The reality is individuals nonetheless wish to be in New Braunfels stated Senior Vice President of Advisory Bryan Glasshagel with housing intelligence agency Zonda.
“It is an amazing location,” Glasshagel stated. “It is shut sufficient to commute into San Antonio, it is historic and quaint and it has nice faculties in the event you’re in Comal ISD.”
And he is not the one one who thinks so. Grasp-planned communities like Mayfair, Meyer Ranch and Veramendi are set to redefine the world, betting huge on housing and business actual property demand in New Braunfels.
Nonetheless, Glasshagel stated he was stunned to see the big enhance in influence charge collections.
“Each house pays the identical influence charge whether or not it is a $700,000 house in Veramendi, or a $300,000 house south of I-35. Nevertheless it’s tougher to soak up that on the entry-level facet of the market,” he stated.
With present water and sewer influence charges round $27,000, that is about 8% of the price of a $330,000 house. That determine is the median house value of New Braunfels’ 78130 ZIP code, which contains your complete portion of town south of Interstate 35.
There are elements making it robust to level to influence charges as the only real purpose growth is bleeding out of New Braunfels, nonetheless. As an illustration, new utility connections had been down throughout the metro.
Each San Antonio and Boerne additionally noticed developments connecting to new utilities hit an all-time excessive in 2021 earlier than starting to jag downward, and neither of these two cities noticed influence charge will increase as dramatic is New Braunfels’.
Begins within the housing market had been additionally down general final yr, additional muddying the waters in terms of assessing the function influence charge will increase performed within the decline of latest utility connections in New Braunfels.
However Glasshagel stated it is going to be worthwhile to regulate New Braunfels’ housing market.
“New Braunfels has traditionally outperformed San Antonio, so if we see the housing market persevering with to enhance general, however begins numbers to proceed declining in New Braunfels, there is perhaps one thing else — like influence charges — at play,” he stated.
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