But the city's more recently designated historic districts can give home buyers a chance to slip into a neighborhood that could turn from average to glamorous over time.

The new districts aren't quite as polished as those neighborhoods that have held the historic designation for decades. But they've also got vintage homes, wood floors and interesting architecture.

What they don't have in common: high prices.

“The new historic districts are so affordable,” said real estate agent Randy Rice of Keller Williams Legacy. “A lot of people can't get into King William or Monte Vista, but they can afford homes in some of these districts that are just starting out.”

San Antonio's most recently designated historic districts are Olmos Park Terrace and Tobin Hill. Monticello Park, a district since the late 1990s, swallowed several more blocks last year and eventually hopes to become the city's largest historic district.

The Los Angeles Heights/Keystone area, a small two-street section of homes west of Interstate 10, likely will become the city's next historic district Aug. 6 when it goes to City Council for approval.



Buying a home in a historic district isn't a guaranteed good investment, thanks to the amount of elbow grease older homes require. (Remember the movie, “The Money Pit?”)

But over time, property values generally rise in historic districts.

“It's a cumulative thing,” said Rice. “It encourages people to make more of an effort. I think people really like that idea of having a historic district and what it means as far as the type of houses and the diversity of the houses. People take pride in it.”

Joe Barfield, a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty, said some historic districts organize when neighbors want to prevent or stop odd additions and exterior changes that might not be considered aesthetically pleasing.

“Things like chain link fences in the front yard or these crazy extended car ports shouldn't be happening,” said Barfield. “You're protected from tacky fences.”

Sometimes a historic designation attracts new residents. Other times, though, people just like the look of a neighborhood and don't care about whether a home is in a district or not.

Suzi Birnbaum of Nix Realty recently sold a renovated home in Olmos Park Terrace. “She didn't care if it was historic or not. She just liked the feel of the neighborhood,” Birnbaum said. “She liked the upbeat feel of the whole area.”



Average sales prices in the newer historic districts have been on the upswing, according to the data from the San Antonio Board of Realtors.

In Olmos Park Terrace, the average price was $142,943 in 2008 and is at $144,485 so far this year.

The neighborhood includes several stone cottages built by H.C. Thorman in the 1930s and is known for its annual Olmos Park Terrace Art Stroll held in the fall.

“A lot of the historic neighborhoods have hardwood floors and high ceilings and charm,” Birnbaum said. “What they have over in Olmos Park Terrace is lot size.” The larger lots often appeal to buyers who want more space than is typical in many of the historic neighborhoods.



In Tobin Hill, the average sales price last year was $117,409, which has jumped to $169,596 year-to-date.

Many of the homes were built between 1877 and 1930, in Classic Revival, folk Victorian or Craftsman style. Residents in the near-downtown neighborhood worked off and on for three decades to have the area designated historic.

The neighborhood recently kicked off the Art-on-the-Hill art walks on the second Friday of the month. The event included venues located in the triangle formed by East Dewey Place, North St. Mary's Street and Josephine Street.

“We're seeing people buy up the big old houses and fix them up,” Birnbaum said. “Tobin Hill has gone nuts.”



And in Monticello Park, the average sales price last year was $149,539, compared with $197,500 so far this year.

Architect N. Strauss Nayfach designed about 40 of the homes in the neighborhood, which is home to Art Moderne, Gothic Revival and Spanish Eclectic homes.

It's also located next to Woodlawn Lake, a city park that is also a historic district. “It's got one of the prettiest parks in town with Woodlawn Lake,” Rice said. “You see people out there walking and jogging and playing tennis. The ice cream trucks are there selling paletas. It's a very wonderful park. A lot of people don't realize that it's there.”



Having a historic designation doesn't simply mean a neighborhood is likely to have an annual home tour attached to it.

There are also rules and restrictions that apply.

Homeowners who want to make exterior changes – everything from building a new fence to repainting the home – need the approval of the city's Historic Design Review Commission.

When homeowners want to replace like with like, however, they can simply ask the city's Office of Historic Preservation for administrative approval. Repainting a home the same color or rebuilding the same kind of fence are things that would qualify for administrative approval.

But additions, roofing changes, paint color changes and the like have to go through HDRC.

When neighborhoods inquire about a historic designation, the HDRC process is one of the most popular questions.

“They want to know the process,” said Elizabeth Porterfield, architectural historian with the city's Office of Historic Preservation.

Another common question: property taxes.

As property values rise over time, many residents worry that rising tax bills will force them from their longtime homes.

Residents of new historic districts, or newly annexed areas of an established district, get a 20 percent tax exemption on their city property taxes for 10 years. Long-term residents who live there for the entire 10 years of the exemption can get a five-year extension at the end, Porterfield said.

Barfield loves the historic districts, but doesn't want to live in one himself and deal with the hassle of asking for permission for exterior changes. “I'm lazy,” Barfield said. “I don't even like to renew my drivers license.”

And the quirky appeal of an older neighborhood isn't universal, Rice said.

“Sometimes you see people come down from the far North Side to look and they don't know what to make of it,” Rice said. “There are townhomes next to a cottage next to a four-plex across the street from a commercial building.”

Following the rules

Monticello Park

Tobin Hill

Olmos Park Terrace

Over the years