Custom Home Builder in Spicewood, Texas
Building in Spicewood is not like building on a flat lot in town. Out here the same floor plan can sit in a different county, over different rock, under different water rules, from one lot to the next.
River Hills Homes builds custom homes throughout Spicewood, the rural stretch of Hill Country where Lake Travis meets the Pedernales River, where the wineries and Krause Springs sit down the road from Opie’s pit BBQ and Poodie’s roadhouse, and where people come for land, hills, dark star-filled skies, and lake access within reach of Austin. We build on Lake Travis lots, on acreage off Highway 71, and on standalone land with room to breathe.
Spicewood is unincorporated and spread across three counties, primarily Burnet, with parts in Travis and Blanco, so the ground rules can change from one lot to the next: limestone close to the surface, sloped view lots, a private well into the Trinity Aquifer, an aerobic septic system, and, on lots near the lake, an LCRA watershed review on top of the county’s permits.
River Hills builds all of it into the plan and the budget before ground breaks, and hands you a line-item budget and financial records you can check the whole way. We have built custom homes across the Texas Hill Country since 2007, and Spicewood is exactly the kind of land we build for. And the home itself is yours: River Hills builds in any style, from clean modern to classic Hill Country to a formal French chateau, so it matches your taste, not a look we default to.
Communities We Build Around Spicewood
Spicewood Trails
Barton Creek Lakeside
Double Horn Creek
What It Takes to Build in Spicewood
Every great Spicewood lot comes with a few things the listing photos leave out. None of them are a problem when you plan for them, and all of them get expensive when you do not.
- The rock is close. This is Edwards Plateau limestone country, thin soil over stone, so foundations get engineered for the specific slope of the specific lot. It is why two lots a hundred yards apart, and the homes that sit on them, can carry very different site costs.
- Your water is a well, and your septic is yours too. Most Spicewood homes outside a master-planned community run on a private well into the Trinity Aquifer and an aerobic septic system, not city utilities. In the southern Burnet County part of Spicewood, the groundwater is managed by the Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District, which runs a dedicated Spicewood Trinity program, and the district and the septic office change with the county your lot sits in. We design both into the site plan and the budget up front.
- Your lot may not be in the county you think. Spicewood is unincorporated and split across three counties, primarily Burnet, with parts in Travis and Blanco. Lakefront tracts often fall in Travis County, land south of Highway 71 can fall in Blanco, and land toward Marble Falls is Burnet. Which county your lot sits in decides who issues the permits, so we confirm it before design, not after.
- Near Lake Travis, the LCRA gets a say. Lots in the Lake Travis watershed can fall under the LCRA Highland Lakes Watershed Ordinance. A separate LCRA review is generally triggered when a project disturbs more than one acre or adds more than 10,000 square feet of new impervious cover. The same water that fills the coves at Pace Bend Park and draws people to the lake is the reason those rules exist, so we plan the home and the site around them from the start instead of discovering them after the slab is poured.
The Custom Home Building Process
At River Hills Homes, building a home is a process you can follow, not a black box. From the first conversation to the final walkthrough, you know what is happening and why. Here is how a Spicewood build works.
We begin by getting to know you, your lifestyle, and your preferences. Understanding your needs, family dynamics, and design style allows us to develop a plan that matches your expectations.
Once we have a clear understanding of your goals, we help you choose the right land around Spicewood, from a Lake Travis lot to acreage off Highway 71. We know the area, so we can tell you which county a lot sits in, what the well and septic will take, and whether the LCRA watershed applies, before you commit.
Our team of architects and designers work with you to develop a unique design plan. This stage is where you choose features, layouts, and other important specifications to ensure your home is exactly how you envision it. We take into account every aspect of your new home, from the number of bedrooms to the finishing touches that make it special.
With the design finalized, our expert home builders begin construction. We use only the highest quality materials to ensure durability, functionality, and beauty. Throughout the construction process, we stay in constant communication to keep you updated on progress and timelines.
Before we hand over the keys, we conduct a final walk-through to ensure every aspect meets your approval. Our focus is on delivering a quality home that surpasses your expectations.
You See Where Every Dollar Goes
On a Spicewood custom home, the scary part is usually not the rock or the well. It is not knowing where your money is going. River Hills is built to remove that.
Your project gets its own dedicated account, so your funds are never pooled with another job. You get the line-item estimates, the bank statements, and the lien releases for your home, so you can verify where every dollar went instead of taking it on faith. There are no vendor kickbacks. It is the reason our most detail-minded clients, the ones who read every page before they sign, tend to relax once they see how we run a build.
From a Raw Lot to a Real Budget
River Hills can start before you own the land. We help you evaluate or find a lot, our Property Locator service, then turn it into a real, line-item budget, our Budget Cost Analysis, before you are committed, so a lot that looks like a bargain does not turn into a site-work surprise, a tri-county permit puzzle, or a watershed review you never budgeted for. Land, plan, budget, build, one path with the same team.
Where We Build on Spicewood Land
The three communities above are a start, not the whole map. River Hills builds across the rest of Spicewood on your lot, from the guard-gated waterfront to the acreage off Highway 71:
- The Reserve at Lake Travis, a gated waterfront community on a Lake Travis peninsula, with a deep-water marina, equestrian facilities, and a resort-style swim park.
- West Cypress Hills, a master-planned community off Highway 71 in Lake Travis ISD, with greenbelt homesites, trails along a spring-fed creek, and a rec center.
- Travis Settlement, an established acreage neighborhood with roughly one to five acre lots, hill and lake views, and a private Lake Travis park.
A large share of Spicewood is also unrestricted acreage with no POA at all, which is often where the most personal custom builds happen. No lot yet? On Spicewood land, the right lot is where a budget is won or lost, and helping you find it is a service we run.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you build on a Lake Travis lot in Spicewood?
Yes, when the water rules are handled correctly. Lots in the Lake Travis watershed can fall under the LCRA Highland Lakes Watershed Ordinance, which generally triggers a separate LCRA review once a project disturbs more than one acre or adds more than 10,000 square feet of new impervious cover. River Hills plans the home, the grade, and the site around that from the start, rather than building first and running into it later. We also confirm which county the lot sits in, because that decides who issues the rest of the permits, and we engineer the foundation for the limestone underneath. Lakefront and lake-view lots are some of the most rewarding builds in the Hill Country, and some of the least forgiving of a builder who does not plan for the watershed. We put those rules into the plan and the budget before ground breaks, not after.
Do Spicewood homes use a well or city water?
Most homes outside a master-planned community use a private well, not city water. Around Spicewood you are typically drawing the Trinity Aquifer, and in the southern Burnet County part of town those wells fall under the Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District and its Spicewood Trinity program, though the exact district depends on which county your lot is in. A private well also means an aerobic septic system rather than a city sewer connection, which is standard on the acreage and thin-soil lots out here. River Hills designs the well and the septic into the site plan and the budget from the very beginning, because on a rural Hill Country lot they are part of what makes the home livable, not afterthoughts. We will also tell you honestly what a given lot will need before you buy it, which is exactly what our lot-evaluation service is for.
How much does it cost to build a custom home in Spicewood?
The honest answer is that it depends almost entirely on the lot, because site work on Hill Country land, the rock, the slope, the driveway, the well, the septic, and any watershed review, varies a great deal from one tract to the next. The most accurate number does not come from a price-per-square-foot rule of thumb. It comes from walking the specific lot and building a real, line-item budget for it. That is our Budget Cost Analysis, and it is how you avoid the classic Spicewood surprise: a cheap-looking lot that turns into an expensive build. With River Hills you see that budget in full detail, along with the financial records as the home goes up, so the number you understand at the start is the number you can follow all the way to move-in.
How long does it take to build a custom home here?
Most custom homes take about 12 to 14 months from breaking ground to move-in, though the real answer depends on the design, the lot, and your selections. River Hills runs the schedule through a project-management portal, so you see progress, photos, and the current timeline the whole way instead of wondering. Hill Country builds can be moved by weather, by site work on rock, and by long-lead materials, and the difference with a builder who knows the area is that you hear about a change as it happens, not after the fact. Every build closes with walkthroughs at completion, around 45 days, and around 11 months, backed by an in-house warranty.
Thinking About Building in Spicewood?
Let us walk your lot, or help you find the right one, and build you a real budget with no surprises in it. Call (830) 643-0501 or reach us through the contact page.