Where is Goodnight Ranch and how far is it to downtown Austin?

It is in Southeast Austin (78747) off East Slaughter Lane and Vertex Boulevard, about 8 miles south of downtown (a few sources say closer to 10). Off-peak the drive via I-35 is roughly 15 to 20 minutes, but the I-35 south corridor is congested, so plan on 25 to 35 minutes or more at rush hour as of 2026. Austin-Bergstrom airport is about 10 to 15 minutes away.

Is Goodnight Ranch in a MUD or PID?

It is not a MUD or PID, and it sits inside full-purpose City of Austin limits, unlike many suburban new-build communities. The base combined City of Austin property-tax rate was about 2.05% to 2.07% for 2025. Note, though, that Goodnight Ranch does lie within a Municipal Management District (MMD), which can add a supplemental levy, so some neighborhood sources show an effective rate closer to 2.35%. Confirm the exact rate and any MMD or PID line item on your specific lot with Travis CAD.

What school district is Goodnight Ranch in?

Austin ISD, not Del Valle ISD, even though the 78747 ZIP is served by both. Children are zoned to on-site Blazier Elementary and Intermediate (A-rated), plus Paredes Middle and Akins Early College High School, with a future on-site AISD high school planned (land approved, no firm timeline). Verify the exact zoning by address before you buy.

Who builds in Goodnight Ranch and what do homes cost?

Empire Homes, David Weekley Homes, and Highland Homes are the active builders as of mid-2026. New homes run roughly the high $300s to mid $600s: row homes and smaller plans in the high $300s to low $400s, larger single-family homes into the $600s. Earlier phases also included M/I Homes and Homes by Avi, and True North Homes is now adding affordable homes with Austin Habitat for Humanity.

What are the HOA dues at Goodnight Ranch?

Dues vary by section. Row homes and townhomes are about $40 per month, while lawn-maintained single-family sections such as Empire's Ramble can run around $272 per month with yard care included. Some homes fall under both a master and a sub-association, so confirm exactly which HOA applies and what it covers.

What amenities does Goodnight Ranch offer?

Two amenity centers with pools and a splash pad, a three-mile trail loop, four ponds, pickleball courts, pocket parks, and more than 120 acres of open space, plus direct access to the 550-acre Onion Creek Metropolitan Park. The walkable town center adds retail, dining, an Austin Regional Clinic, a transit stop, and an on-site fire and EMS station.

Is now a good time to buy, and are there incentives?

As of mid-2026, builders here are offering strong incentives: rate buydowns advertised as low as about 2.99%, up to roughly $50,000 in savings or included features, closing-cost help, and flex dollars on select homes. That gives buyers real negotiating leverage, but most incentives require the builder's lender, so compare the all-in cost against outside financing.

Master-Planned Community

Goodnight Ranch

Southeast Austin, Austin, Texas. An honest, buyer-side guide to the builders, amenities, schools, taxes, and tradeoffs.

The short answer

Goodnight Ranch is a roughly 700-acre master-planned community in Southeast Austin (78747), about 8 miles south of downtown, off East Slaughter Lane and Vertex Boulevard. Planned for up to 3,500 homes plus a walkable mixed-use town center, it is one of the few new-construction communities inside full-purpose Austin city limits, so it avoids the MUD and PID tax layers common in fringe suburbs, though it does sit within a municipal management district. Empire, David Weekley, and Highland Homes build here, with prices roughly in the high $300s to mid $600s as of mid-2026.

Momark DevelopmentAustin ISDHigh $300s to mid $600s

Buyer-side notes by Luke Allen · Updated July 9, 2026· Figures approximate, verify current specifics

At a glance

The facts that actually matter

Developer: Momark Development (original master developer, in partnership with the Goodnight family), with Benchmark (Benchmark Land Development / Benchmark Austin) developing current residential phases
Location: Southeast Austin, Austin 78747
School district: Austin ISD
Price range: As of July 2026, builder pricing runs roughly $350,000 to the mid $600,000s: David Weekley from the high $300s into the low $500s (the Twilight row-home section starts around $353,000; the main 40-foot section runs about $410,000 to $509,000), Empire single-family from about the $450,000s, and Highland from about $505,000 into the $600,000s. A reliable current resale median was not confidently published, so verify on MLS.
Commute: About 8 miles south of downtown Austin via I-35 (a few sources say closer to 10). Off-peak the drive is roughly 15 to 20 minutes, but the I-35 south corridor is heavily congested, so plan on 25 to 35 minutes or more at rush hour (as of 2026). Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is about 10 to 15 minutes away.
Scale: Approximately 700 acres (some listing pages cite 770), formerly Goodnight family ranch/farmland, including about 120 acres of open space; planned for up to 3,500 homes and residential units at buildout

Who builds here

Builders

Empire Homes
David Weekley Homes
Highland Homes

Home types

Single-family detached on 30-, 35-, 45-, and 50-foot lots
Row homes and townhomes
Duplexes
For-rent apartments
Income-restricted affordable units (The Commons at Goodnight; plus new Habitat/True North affordable homes)

Lifestyle

Amenities

Two resort-style amenity centers with pools and a splash pad (one open, a second planned)
Three-mile trail loop through the community
Four community ponds
Pocket parks and playscapes
Pickleball courts
120-plus acres of open space and greenbelts
Direct access to the 550-acre Onion Creek Metropolitan Park
Walkable mixed-use town center with retail, dining, Austin Regional Clinic, dentistry, and fitness
CapMetro transit stop with a planned transit station
On-site Austin Fire/EMS Station 53
On-site Amazing Explorers Academy early-childhood education

Read this before the base price

Taxes

Not a MUD and not a PID, but there is a special district. Goodnight Ranch sits inside full-purpose City of Austin limits, so it is not a MUD or PID. The base combined property-tax rate for the City of Austin, Travis County, Austin ISD, Austin Community College, and Central Health was about 2.05% to 2.07% of assessed value for tax year 2025. However, Goodnight Ranch also lies within the Goodnight Ranch Municipal Management District (an MMD, formed in 2014 and expanded in the 2020 PUD amendment, which is distinct from a MUD or PID) that can add a supplemental levy; at least one neighborhood source cites an effective rate near 2.35% for 2025 (up from about 2.28% in 2024), and the gap over the base rate likely reflects the MMD. Always confirm the exact combined rate and any MMD or PID line item on your specific lot via Travis Central Appraisal District.

How MUD and PID taxes work →

Monthly cost

HOA and dues

HOA dues vary sharply by section as of 2026: roughly $40 per month for row homes and townhomes, and up to about $272 per month for lawn-maintained single-family sections such as Empire's Ramble, where dues include yard and ground maintenance. Some homes fall under both a master association and a sub-association, so confirm the exact dues and what they cover before writing an offer.

Honest tradeoffs

The pros and the cons, both

No community is perfect. Here is the case for and against, the way I would give it to a client.

The case for

Inside full-purpose Austin city limits and not a MUD or PID: the base combined tax rate was about 2.05% to 2.07% for 2025, typically lower than fringe suburban MUD communities that often run 2.5% to 3.2% (note it does sit in a municipal management district that may add a supplemental levy, so confirm the per-lot rate)
Genuinely walkable, mixed-use design: an emerging town center with on-site retail, medical clinic, dentistry, fitness, a transit stop, and a fire/EMS station
On-site, A-rated Blazier Elementary and Intermediate schools that many children can walk to
Direct access to the 550-acre Onion Creek Metropolitan Park plus 120-plus acres of internal green space, trails, and ponds
A wide range of price points and product types, from row homes to single-family, making it relatively attainable for inside-city-limits Austin
Only about 8 miles to downtown and close to Austin-Bergstrom airport, plus SH-130/SH-45 job nodes

The case against

Still building out on a 10-to-15-year horizon: expect ongoing construction, dust, truck traffic, a changing streetscape, and amenities, retail, and the planned second high school that are not yet fully delivered
Southeast Austin along Nuckols Crossing and William Cannon has a mixed, still-establishing reputation, and full-service grocery (HEB) and retail are still filling in
Despite the short mileage, the I-35 south corridor is heavily congested and unreliable at rush hour
Small lots and dense product; some single-family sections carry high lawn-maintenance HOA dues (around $270 per month) that surprise buyers
A Municipal Management District (MMD) may add a supplemental tax or assessment on top of the base Austin rate, so the effective rate can run higher than the roughly 2.05% to 2.07% base (some neighborhood sources cite around 2.35%)
Continuous new-home supply plus rental and income-restricted components can pressure near-term resale values and rents
Parts of the site are near Onion Creek and its ponds, so some parcels warrant a floodplain and drainage check
The 78747 ZIP straddles Austin ISD and Del Valle ISD, which causes school-zoning confusion even though Goodnight Ranch itself is Austin ISD

On your side of the table

What a buyer’s agent watches for in Goodnight Ranch

+Confirm exact school zoning by street address; 78747 straddles Austin ISD and Del Valle ISD, and Goodnight Ranch is Austin ISD, but boundaries can shift as new campuses open
+Verify which HOA or HOAs apply and the precise dues; row-home dues (about $40 per month) and lawn-maintained single-family dues (about $270 per month) differ dramatically, and some homes carry both a master and a sub-association
+Pull the Travis CAD tax detail on the specific lot to confirm the exact combined rate and whether the Goodnight Ranch Municipal Management District (MMD) or any PID assessment applies; the community is not a MUD or PID but does have an MMD that can levy a supplemental tax
+Most builder incentives require using the builder's affiliated lender; compare the all-in cost and rate against outside financing before accepting
+Order a flood-zone determination on homes near the ponds and Onion Creek
+Register your buyer's agent on the very first visit; builder contracts favor the builder, so scrutinize earnest money, completion timeline, warranty, and inspection rights
+Ask for the phasing and platting plan around the specific home so you know what and how long construction will continue next door
+Model comps carefully given the mix of continuous new supply, rentals, and affordable units when estimating resale or rental value

Current incentives

As of mid-2026 this is a buyer-favorable, incentive-heavy market. Builders here are advertising mortgage-rate buydowns (rates promoted as low as roughly 2.99%), up to about $50,000 in savings or included upgrades and standard features (David Weekley ran this promotion March through July 2026), closing-cost assistance, and flex dollars on select inventory homes. Most of these incentives require financing through the builder's affiliated lender, so compare the true all-in cost against outside financing.

Dated mid-2026 · Verify the current, written offer on a specific home

Good to know

Goodnight Ranch questions, answered

Where is Goodnight Ranch and how far is it to downtown Austin?: It is in Southeast Austin (78747) off East Slaughter Lane and Vertex Boulevard, about 8 miles south of downtown (a few sources say closer to 10). Off-peak the drive via I-35 is roughly 15 to 20 minutes, but the I-35 south corridor is congested, so plan on 25 to 35 minutes or more at rush hour as of 2026. Austin-Bergstrom airport is about 10 to 15 minutes away.
Is Goodnight Ranch in a MUD or PID?: It is not a MUD or PID, and it sits inside full-purpose City of Austin limits, unlike many suburban new-build communities. The base combined City of Austin property-tax rate was about 2.05% to 2.07% for 2025. Note, though, that Goodnight Ranch does lie within a Municipal Management District (MMD), which can add a supplemental levy, so some neighborhood sources show an effective rate closer to 2.35%. Confirm the exact rate and any MMD or PID line item on your specific lot with Travis CAD.
What school district is Goodnight Ranch in?: Austin ISD, not Del Valle ISD, even though the 78747 ZIP is served by both. Children are zoned to on-site Blazier Elementary and Intermediate (A-rated), plus Paredes Middle and Akins Early College High School, with a future on-site AISD high school planned (land approved, no firm timeline). Verify the exact zoning by address before you buy.
Who builds in Goodnight Ranch and what do homes cost?: Empire Homes, David Weekley Homes, and Highland Homes are the active builders as of mid-2026. New homes run roughly the high $300s to mid $600s: row homes and smaller plans in the high $300s to low $400s, larger single-family homes into the $600s. Earlier phases also included M/I Homes and Homes by Avi, and True North Homes is now adding affordable homes with Austin Habitat for Humanity.
What are the HOA dues at Goodnight Ranch?: Dues vary by section. Row homes and townhomes are about $40 per month, while lawn-maintained single-family sections such as Empire's Ramble can run around $272 per month with yard care included. Some homes fall under both a master and a sub-association, so confirm exactly which HOA applies and what it covers.
What amenities does Goodnight Ranch offer?: Two amenity centers with pools and a splash pad, a three-mile trail loop, four ponds, pickleball courts, pocket parks, and more than 120 acres of open space, plus direct access to the 550-acre Onion Creek Metropolitan Park. The walkable town center adds retail, dining, an Austin Regional Clinic, a transit stop, and an on-site fire and EMS station.
Is now a good time to buy, and are there incentives?: As of mid-2026, builders here are offering strong incentives: rate buydowns advertised as low as about 2.99%, up to roughly $50,000 in savings or included features, closing-cost help, and flex dollars on select homes. That gives buyers real negotiating leverage, but most incentives require the builder's lender, so compare the all-in cost against outside financing.

Keep exploring

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Thinking about Goodnight Ranch?

Before you tour a builder in Goodnight Ranch, get your representation registered so it stays free, and get the real tax rate, incentives, and lot notes in writing. Luke replies personally.

Luke Allen

Licensed Texas REALTOR, TREC #788149

Austin Marketing + Development Group

Call 254-718-2567 Text Luke