Call us bias, but we love our grand state of Texas. There's so many hidden gems to choose from when it comes to nailing down the location of your new home. One of them being Temple, Tx! Today we get the pleasure of hearing from our very own Sales Manager for John Houston Homes, Misty Ryan. She fills us in on two brand new communities that have so much to offer in the Temple-Belton area - Legacy Ranch and Valor Estates. If you're looking to build or buy in Central Texas, these communities should be on the top of your list!

S2 Ep10_ The Treasure and the Pleasure of Living in Temple-Belton, Texas (Misty Ryan).mp3

Intro: [00:00:03] Welcome Home, a podcast brought to you by John Houston Homes. Join hosts, Chelsi Frazier and Whitney Pryor, as they walk you through the exciting adventure of your home buying and building journey.

Whitney Pryor: [00:00:18] Thank you for joining us on this episode of the Welcome Home podcast. This is Whitney and I've got Chelsi here with me. How are you doing, Chelsi?

Chelsi Frazier: [00:00:26] Hey, I'm doing good today.

Whitney Pryor: [00:00:28] It's a great day, isn't it?

Chelsi Frazier: [00:00:29] Yes, it is. We're getting into Summer, getting some sunshine and getting out of all this rain. It's looking good!

Whitney Pryor: [00:00:37] We get free tacos today at the office. We're getting treated today.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:00:41] I mean, free food at work is always a plus.

Whitney Pryor: [00:00:44] Yes, tacos even better. Well, who do we have on the show today?

Chelsi Frazier: [00:00:49] Today, we're joined by Misty Ryan. She's a sales manager for John Houston Homes in the Temple, Texas area. Misty's new to the company, but not new to the industry. Temple is also a new area for us. We have two new communities in Temple, Legacy Ranch and Valor Estates. Misty is the sales manager for both of those communities. We brought her in to tell us more about those communities specifically and just the temple area as a whole. Since it's a new market for us, we don't really know a lot about it other than what we've, read online and driving through it. Being from the area, Misty's going to give us the lowdown. Welcome to the show Misty!

Misty Ryan: [00:01:27] Hi, how are you all today?

Whitney Pryor: [00:01:28] Good, I'm excited to get to know you better too. With you being so far away over, over two hours away, we don't get to see each other that often.

Misty Ryan: [00:01:37] I really am excited about being with John Houston. I've worked for builders in the past and this company seems to be like a family, so that's really refreshing.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:01:46] Tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you've been in real estate.

Misty Ryan: [00:01:49] Well, I've pretty much been in the housing industry most of my adult life. I started years ago. In 1998, I started in property management. I started out as a little leasing agent, which is, putting people in cute apartments and students. I moved up to assistant manager, then marketing then a property manage, which I did for about eight years. I decided that I really love the housing part of it, not so much the management. I said I'm going to start selling homes. I worked for a couple of National Builders from 2006 till about 2012. I then decided to stay in the industry, go from one to the other, and then now stumbled on John Houston. I think I'm here to stay.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:02:34] Oh, good!

Whitney Pryor: [00:02:36] That's awesome! What do you love about the housing industry, as far as, homebuilding vs. property management?

Misty Ryan: [00:02:42] In property management, it's a temporary housing situation. When you're building someone's home, you're actually building more than just a home. You're building their dream. You get to know their families, their children and where they want to live their lives. It's a little bit more fulfilling than the temporary lease situation that I was in.

Whitney Pryor: [00:03:01] Yeah, the typical homeowner, if they're building a home, is going to spend probably six to eight months with you as a client.

Misty Ryan: [00:03:09] You really get to know them. I love that part of it, that's really special to me.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:03:14] Are you from that area?

Misty Ryan: [00:03:16] I'm actually from Killeen, which is about 15 minutes away. Temple, Killeen and Belton kind of all merges together. I Think back to high school when we all kind of knew each other. We went to different high schools, but we knew each other. We have people in our communities that we went to school with, that now I'm selling homes. Girls I went to high school with and kids I played ball with are now buying homes for me.

Whitney Pryor: [00:03:39] Cool! All right, let's talk about the location of where you're at. Can you kind of tell us where Temple is and a little bit about it?

Misty Ryan: [00:03:46] It's centrally located. Fort Hood, is about 15 minutes South and Waco is about 30 minutes North. It's right in the middle, which is a good balance when you're selling homes, because like I said, we get the military community. We do get some locals and lots of college kids come to our area to go to college. We have four beautiful colleges within 15 minutes of each other. We have Temple College, A&M and we also have Central Texas College there. You'll get kind of a blend of families that will buy from Legacy Ranch from Valor Estates.

Whitney Pryor: [00:04:27] Isn't Temple kind of the halfway point between Dallas and Austin?

Misty Ryan: [00:04:33] Yes, it is. It's probably the most diverse communities that I've worked in because there's not just one genre. I'm getting medical professionals, families, locals and military all in the same.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:04:49] What is the community like? What draws people to to live and work there, other than military?

Misty Ryan: [00:04:54] We do have the Baylor, Scott and White, so that's a huge industry. I would say probably about 50% of the people that live in Temple are medical affiliated. The hospital is huge. Every single year, it seems like there's another branch going up there. Oh, wow. Also, like I said, the colleges and it's also a Texas town. It's a local Texas town. You can drive through there and there are people that have lived there three or four generations, which is nice,

Whitney Pryor: [00:05:25] It has that small town feel.

Misty Ryan: [00:05:27] It does.

Whitney Pryor: [00:05:28] It has all of the amenities that you really need, right?

Misty Ryan: [00:05:31] It's grown so much. Back in the day, it was just a little sleepy town you drive through. Now, every time you drive through I-35, they've built it up. On the left, there's shopping. On the right, there's another branch of the hospital and then they have another branch of the college. It's grown a lot. I think that's why John Houston probably decided to come there, because it's going to be a great community to build in.

Whitney Pryor: [00:05:52] I remember driving through Temple when I was in college at UT. I would drive from UT in Austin back home up to the Dallas area and I-35 was under construction. It was such a big pain, but all of that is done now in Temple. If you move to Temple, you don't have to worry about construction on I-35.

Misty Ryan: [00:06:12] A friend of mine and I were talking the other day and we said, "okay, bucket list-the Maldives, this, that, the other and I-35 being done before we die because it is such a real thing!

Whitney Pryor: [00:06:27] It's a real thing, especially up here. We're living it every day.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:06:29] I don't think it will happen, at least in my lifetime.

Misty Ryan: [00:06:31] The good thing is, yes, most of Temple is done, so that really eases the traffic and the driving.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:06:37] Well let's talk about those communities. The location of legacy Ranch and Valor Estates, where those situated?

Misty Ryan: [00:06:44] Legacy Ranch and Valor Estates are right off of Highway 93. The good thing is, that they are right across the street from each other. My model home is going to be located in Legacy Ranch. There was another builder in there, so we have some traffic coming through there. Of course, John Houston is going to bring all the rest of the traffic. We wanted to make sure that is where our hub is for our office. That community is a little bit smaller as far as square footage wise, but it will have a community pool. That's going to be you more of a family type neighborhood. Valor Estates is are more upscale with a little bit larger floor plans right across the highway. They will be able to come to my model home in Legacy and get information on both communities. Since we're in an eye shot of each other, it's going to be easy access.

Whitney Pryor: [00:07:35] Valor Estates, those are what, like 3/4 acre?

Misty Ryan: [00:07:40] They're going to be 3/4 acre to 1-acre. The square foot footage will start a little bit larger. They started 2,600 sf. and go all the way to 3,300 sf.

Whitney Pryor: [00:07:49] Those are all side entry garages?

Misty Ryan: [00:07:50] They will be all side entry garages.

Whitney Pryor: [00:07:52] Very nice!

Misty Ryan: [00:07:53] Our Legacy Ranch product is nice as well. It's going to have a little bit smaller lots. It will offer side entry garages and a little bit smaller square footage for people that don't need something so large. I mean, 2,600 sf. Is huge. so that's going to be maybe for a larger family or retiree. Legacy Ranch will have that little pool and a little area for families to have weekend time.

Whitney Pryor: [00:08:17] Oaky, you said it's off of Highway 90?

Misty Ryan: [00:08:20] It's off of Highway 93.

Whitney Pryor: [00:08:22] That's easy to get to from I-35?

Misty Ryan: [00:08:23] It's right off of I-35, yes mam.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:08:26] Legacy Ranch is mixed use area, too, right? There was some commercial stuff in there?

Misty Ryan: [00:08:30] There will be some commercial stuff on the outside. A lot of people think that's a bad thing, but it's really not. I'm getting a lot more families coming and saying, "great, that's easy access to that." That boom, boom right around the corner. You're going to have easy access to shopping, some salons going in and things like that.

Whitney Pryor: [00:08:48] There's a gas station close by, right?

Misty Ryan: [00:08:51] Right down the way.

Whitney Pryor: [00:08:51] You don't have to worry about driving far away for the gas.

Misty Ryan: [00:08:53] I know it's nice. I like that. It doesn't bother me to have things close. I want to zip over and zip back.

Whitney Pryor: [00:08:59] Speaking of gas stations, what we really need to know is how far away is BUCCEES?

Misty Ryan: [00:09:05] I'm like, what's in Temple? BUCCESS, that's it!

Whitney Pryor: [00:09:10] That's my pit stop.

Misty Ryan: [00:09:11] It's about six minutes away right off the highway. You literally can go off 93 on to I-35 and it's right down the road. I mean that's just a staple, it's a Texas staple. I have so many out of town clients that are like, "what's up with this BUCCEES.? I swear it's part of my sales pitch, 30 minutes at least.

Whitney Pryor: [00:09:31] Yeah! You might as well just meet them at BUCCEES. I think it would sell the home.

Misty Ryan: [00:09:35] It probably would. That's such a good idea.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:09:38] Do you go like once a week?

Misty Ryan: [00:09:40] I try to go once every couple of weeks. Believe it or not, I love the restrooms. I love their snacks and their peanuts, but they also have good shopping here. I mean, that other end, I go in that other end because every couple of weeks that delivery truck comes in and there's always such cool things to buy. Yes, that's very close also. We need to put that on our marketing sign- Close to BUCCEES and shopping!

Whitney Pryor: [00:10:04] That's right! They're building one here in Waxahachie. My hope is that my daughter, once she reaches age 15 or 16, that she'll work at BUCCEES because they actually pay well.

Misty Ryan: [00:10:17] I was so surprised! They have it right outside saying, "hey, just in case you really love it here, try working here." I know it's a good job.

Whitney Pryor: [00:10:25] I digress. We're not here to pitch BUCCEES, but I could talk about it all day. Some other great things, other than BUCCEES, about Temple, you mentioned that they have lots of different colleges close by. You've got Baylor, Scott and White. I think a lot of medical professionals have to live within a certain distance of hospitals, right?

Misty Ryan: [00:10:46] Yes, we are right down the road. I would say everything's within 10 minutes. Belton Lake, which is huge with Summer coming up. Belton is beautiful. It is huge. It's 220,000 something. I don't know, something about the water count or whatever, fishermen will know what I'm talking about. It is a huge lake. It has BLORA which is a water park. It's Belton Lake Outdoor Recreational Area. People come from all over. They have the big light show at Christmas. In the Summertime they have the water slides, boating, canoeing, all the things that you need to have a fun Summer. That's literally within 10 minutes.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:11:32] How fun!

Whitney Pryor: [00:11:33] The neat thing about Temple is it's officially in the Hill Country, right? You've got those giant oaks and rolling Hill Country. It doesn't get better as far as scenery, greenery and landscape in Texas Hill Country.

Misty Ryan: [00:11:48] You can drive through Temple and you can still see farmland. Being from Texas, that's a big thing. I love a developed community. We all love a booming economy, but I also like to take a drive if I have to, and see nothing. You can still do that there. That's what makes it appealing.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:12:08] Tell us about the schools in Belton. How many High Schools are there?

Misty Ryan: [00:12:11] Okay, we are in Temple, but we are BISD. We are Belton Independent School District in these two neighborhoods, which, not saying anything about the Temple School District at all, but the Belton school district seems to excel in certain areas that are important to families. Us being in the Belton school district, that's a really big deal. We have a lot of people within the first five minutes of their call to me ask, "are you involved in school district?" Yes, we are. It's two High Schools, two Middle Schools, and it's zoned for BISD. I don't see it changing. Belton has a great football program and great baseball. Their cheer team goes national every single year. It's a good perk to have for sure.

Whitney Pryor: [00:12:51] Yeah.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:12:51] Yeah, I think that's important to point out. It's the city of Temple, but Belton ISD. I think sometimes we have to explain that a little bit about our communities when they are on those lines.

Misty Ryan: [00:13:00] Yeah, it's a good thing for sure.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:13:02] Is there anything you want our listeners to know specifically about Temple or Legacy Ranch or Valor Estates that we haven't asked you yet?

Misty Ryan: [00:13:08] Yes, I keep going back to the military. I'm from Killeen. The military is moving out that way, as far as ,wanting to live outside of Killeen. Killeen is pretty packed now. The availability of homes is getting slim.

Whitney Pryor: [00:13:27] Fort Hood is one of the largest.

Misty Ryan: [00:13:29] The largest.

Whitney Pryor: [00:13:30] It is the largest, okay, I didn't want to say it.

Misty Ryan: [00:13:31] Yes, the largest military installation. We have lots of military retirees and clients that want to live here. It's only 18 minutes right down the highway and it's not a tough drive, especially going that way South is not bad. North is a little bit more busy, but going South is not. We have Valor Estates. I driving through, looking at my community and looking at the lots. I realized that the street names in Valor Estates are all war heroes, which I thought was so cool. I love that. I'm going to be able to bring that up to you military clients and of course other clients alike. I think that's going to be well respected.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:14:12] That's neat.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:14:14] Yeah, it's a very, very cool, fun fact about Valor.

Whitney Pryor: [00:14:16] Trinity Oaks Mortgage, I know works really great with veterans in the VA program. They can do the VA loans and are very well versed on it.

Misty Ryan: [00:14:25] Yes ma'am, I've noticed. I'm very happy about that.

Whitney Pryor: [00:14:27] Yes, now with Fort Hood being the largest military base that we have, I know my sister was in the Air Force and was there for a little bit. She was also at Dyess and then also in San Antonio, san you give us a little background on what it's like in Killeen? Do you have ties into the military there and what is that like?

Misty Ryan: [00:14:50] I'm a local girl. I was born and raised there in Killeen, which is really rare. If you dig deep enough, even as local kids, have some affiliation. None of us were just born in Killeen. You know our grandfathers, so I go back, back, back. My grandfather was in the military. He's from the Hills of Tennessee and married a little German lady, my grandmother, from Berlin. They retired in Killeen. Then they had my parents and my parents had me, so yes, I do have military ties. I also have a daughter that's in the Air Force and she's stationed in Phoenix. Living in a military town is tough. I've made friends and see them go. It's really important with the military clientele to make their home feel like a home. To be honest, sometimes it's for three years, sometimes it's for 10 and sometimes it's forever. That home transition is really important to them, so that they can have some stability. You want that process to be smooth for them. It's a tough life. It's not easy for sure.

Whitney Pryor: [00:15:58] It seems like with your background, that you know how that goes. You'll be able to serve those military clients really well and understand, from your background, what they're going through.

Misty Ryan: [00:16:08] Yes, it was really, really tough for us as a kid. Especially when their families, take that extra care and just make sure that things go smoothly. It's tough. Being in the military and getting off for those design appointments, etc., is a little bit tough sometimes.

Whitney Pryor: [00:16:23] Yeah, that's awesome that you're there to make it as easy and smooth as possible for them.

Misty Ryan: [00:16:28] Yes.

Chelsi Frazier: [00:16:28] Misty, thank you so, so much for joining us today. I think it's been really great getting to know you more and your background. Hopefully our listeners will feel connected and ready to come see you in Legacy Ranch and Valor Estates.

Misty Ryan: [00:16:41] Thank you all so much. I'm so excited.

Whitney Pryor: [00:16:43] Yes, it was so great to hear your story and hear what you're doing down in Temple today.

Misty Ryan: [00:16:47] Okay, thanks so much, guys.

Whitney Pryor: [00:16:49] Thank you for joining us on this episode of the Welcome Home podcast. If you have any questions or would like to comment about this episode, feel free to reach out to us. We are on Facebook and Instagram and we also can be reached at 866.237.7803 or by email at info@jhoustonhomes.com. Feel free to visit our website at jhoustonhomes.com. Thank you Misty and thank you listeners for tuning in today. We look forward to having you listen in on the next episode of our podcast.

Chelsi Frazier and Whitney Pryor: [00:17:25] Welcome Home.