The same reason people want to move to Austin motivates HR managers and entrepreneurs from across the globe to locate their startup and medium size companies in the Austin area.

For those CEO’s, the simple fact that Texas has no state income tax is enough to motivate them to look at alternatives to California and New York. The fact that their employees can actually afford to own a home (take a look for example at the median home price in Orange County, Palo Alto, or even Los Angeles), is a strong and compelling reason to put down roots in the region.

Additionally, there aren’t many sacrifices that these business owners have to deal with – in addition to the lower taxes and happier, more rooted employees, the great weather, cultural amenities, and natural beauty of the area “seals the deal” for many.

Office space is at a record high as homegrown startups (like Castle Hill Investments) compete with prime space for the re-locating firms and for the existing behemoths already in the area (like Motorola, Dell, and Temple Inland).

The Central Texas economy enjoys record low unemployment, with recent figures dipping below 3%. Though this has made it difficult to get a pizza delivery guy with enough sense to find your house with your order on time, it means that all of these new entrants (as well as current residents now making more money and ready to move up) need new homes to rent or purchase. And not surprisingly, this has led to strong equity appreciation, as well as rental value increases (Austin’s rents have always been the highest in the region to begin with).