5500 Cedro Trl, Austin, TX 78731

Discover this beautifully updated ranch-style home in the coveted North Cat Mountain neighborhood! This thoughtfully designed floor plan offers effortless flow and comfortable living throughout, featuring a spacious living room with a cozy gas fireplace that opens beautifully to a gorgeous covered patio perfect for seamless indoor-outdoor entertaining. The remodeled gourmet kitchen includes a large pantry and additional seating space ideal for casual dining and gatherings, and flows into a formal dining room with custom built-ins. The primary suite offers a relaxing retreat feel and a generous walk-in closet. Owner improvements include terraced front-yard landscaping, new sliding doors that enhance natural light and flow, and a remodeled covered back patio overlooking a private yard with mature trees ideal for enjoying peaceful outdoor living. The roof was replaced in 2025 for added peace of mind. This special pocket of North Cat Mountain offers the perfect blend of nature and city living, just minutes from Bull Creek and only 15 minutes to Downtown. Zoned to highly rated Doss, Murchison, and Anderson schools and close to Magellan. Pride of ownership shines throughout this lovingly maintained and updated home is truly a gem. A must see! *Garage refrigerator does not convey*

At $445 per square foot, 5500 Cedro Trl makes a clear value case in Northwest Hills with 2,581 square feet on a 0.2744-acre lot in Austin 78731. The property is a 1984 single-family residence with three bedrooms, two full baths, one half bath, a two-car garage, and an Austin ISD school path that includes Doss, Murchison, and Anderson. For buyers tracking this part of Travis County, that mix of size, lot depth, and school assignment is the kind of foundation that carries real weight. After 18 days on market at $1.15M, the home presents as a measured option for someone who wants usable square footage and established neighborhood footing rather than a smaller footprint at a similar entry point.

The house itself reads as a ranch-style plan shaped around function. The main living area centers on a fireplace and opens directly to a covered patio, which gives the interior a stronger connection to the yard and makes the common spaces work well for day-to-day living and for hosting. The kitchen has been remodeled and is supported by a large pantry and extra seating area, while the formal dining room adds built-ins that give it more utility than a room used only on occasion. The primary suite is positioned as a true retreat, with a walk-in closet that supports longer-term ownership instead of short-stay convenience.

The owner improvements matter because they are specific and useful. Terraced front-yard landscaping improves the approach, new sliding doors increase light and circulation, and the covered back patio has been remodeled to make the outdoor space more functional. A private yard with mature trees adds another layer of separation that buyers in central Austin still pay attention to. The roof replacement in 2025 is also a meaningful update because it addresses a major ownership item directly rather than leaving it as deferred work.

Location is part of the equation here as well. The home is in a North Cat Mountain pocket with access to Bull Creek and an approximately 15-minute drive to Downtown, which supports both daily convenience and broader location leverage. Taken together, this is the kind of 78731 property that works for buyers who want established Austin ISD schools, real lot size, and a house with enough substance to justify long-term ownership.

Northwest Hills is a family neighborhood in 78731, built in the 1960s-80s on wooded half-acre lots between MoPac and Loop 360. Median home price $1.19M. Austin ISD schools — Doss Elementary and Murchison Middle rank among the district's best. 12 minutes to UT campus, 15 to downtown.

The housing stock is predominantly single-story ranch and split-level homes on lots averaging 0.3-0.5 acres with mature live oak and cedar canopy. Most original homes are 1,800-3,000 sq ft. A renovation wave has been updating kitchens and adding square footage without tearing down — the lot sizes accommodate additions well. Active listings typically number 15-25 at any given time.

Daily life revolves around the schools and the outdoors. Bull Creek for weekend wading, Mount Bonnell for sunset hikes (8 minutes from the neighborhood), Northwest District Park for soccer and the playground. Far West corridor handles weeknight dining — Saffron, 5280 Burger, Yamas. The Arboretum and Domain are 10 minutes north for shopping. HEB on Far West is the neighborhood grocery hub.

What makes Northwest Hills the family value play in Central Austin: Doss/Murchison school quality at roughly half the Eanes ISD price point, lot sizes that rival Westlake, and a 15-minute commute that beats the suburbs. The tradeoff is Austin ISD (good but not Eanes) and 1960s-80s housing stock that often needs updating.