78704 Spotlight- Austin's Barton Hills and Zilker Neighborhoods

​I was recently chatting with a friend and she mentioned how it was odd that Austinites often refer to their neighborhood by zip code.  This is often the case when talking about Austin’s 78704 zip code.  You will frequently here people say they live in the ’04.  Alternatively, one might mention living off of one of the zip’s major roads such as “I live off of South Congress.” 
 
The 78704 zip code is home to the SoCo Strip, Zilker Park, St. Edwards University, and the legendary Broken Spoke, among other attractions.  The 78704 zip code of Austin is bordered by the Barton Creek Greenbelt on the west, Town Lake aka Lady Bird Lake on the North, I-35 on the east and Ben White/290 is the southern boundary. Residents are attracted to this area of Austin due to its easy access to downtown as well as numerous green spaces and a plethora of fun shops and restaurants. 
 
There are a number of neighborhoods that make up the 78704 zip code of Austin.  For today’s purposes, I am focusing on the two neighborhoods located west of South Lamar, Barton Hills and Zilker.  Between South Lamar and I-35 there are a number of other 78704 neighborhoods such as:  Bouldin, South Lamar, Dawson, Galindo, Travis Heights, South Congress, and the St. Edward’s neighborhood. 
 
The Barton Hills neighborhood is located south east of the Barton Creek Greenbelt, and north west of South Lamar.  As you might imagine, this area is hilly.  Here you will find a diverse array of housing styles; bungalow style homes built in the 50s can often be seen adjacent to newly built, uber modern homes.  Barton Hills has a highly rated elementary school, and this factor combined with its convenient location attracts a number of young families to the Barton Hills Area.  The Barton Hills Neighborhood is almost entirely residential; however, there are ample options for shopping and dining along South Lamar.
 
The Zilker neighborhood of 78704 is located northwest of Barton Hills.  As you might imagine, it is also located next to Zilker Park.  Barton Springs Road runs through this neighborhood and is home to a number of popular Austin restaurants such as Chuy’s, Shady Grove, Baby A’s, Austin Java Co, and a large food truck park.  In recent years, a number of new condo developments have sprouted up along the north side of Barton Springs Road.  South of Barton Springs Road, there are a mostly single family homes as well as a handful of multi-family properties.  Historically, homes in Zilker tended to be a bit smaller than in Barton Hills.  However, as is the case in Barton Hills, you are similarly seeing a number of Zilker homes being torn down and replaced with new construction homes.
 
If you’re considering moving to South Austin, 78704 really is a great place to call home.  You can view all homes and condos for sale in the 78704 zip here.  If you’re curious about other neighborhoods of Austin’s 78704 zip code or just have general questions about Austin life, feel free to contact me today.  

---